De-Essing......where in the chain?

[jlcnyc]

In the past, I've added the De-Esser after compression and eq.
But now I'm wondering -
Is there a technical reason that dictates where to place the De-Esser? (in the chain of plugs)
Should I De-Ess first? Does it matter?
Is there a concensus on this issue?


thanks in advance

[JFreak]

If you de-ess first, then the excess "ess" will not affect compression. If you compress first, then the excess "ess" will dominate compression and make the situation worse for de-essing.

Also,

If you eq first, then the eq-ing will affect compression, but if you compress first, then the you can eq the compressed signal.

Think!

[jlcnyc]

Think!

I resent your implication that i am not thinking........I am thinking (and trying to learn).
My original logic was that compression (and eq) naturally accentuates the "essing"...therefore I would de-ess after compression (and eq). But then I continued "thinking" that maybe this logic was incorrect.... so I thought I would ask the "friendly" people at the duc. thanks for the answer

[EGS]

De-ess ---> EQ ---> Compression. My 2 cents.

[flommer]

I would say try it both ways and choose what works best for you, because your original "thinking" may have some merit. Your self-critical "thinking" is the most important aspect of the music you are making..

And if you try to imagine that "think!" thing as coming from your inspiring, friendly high-school physics teacher instead of from the grouchy assistant principle who caught you smoking behind the gym then maybe it doesn't come off as so condescending...

[hki]

Think!

But then I continued "thinking" that maybe this logic was incorrect.... so I thought I would ask the "friendly" people at the duc. thanks for the answer

[/QUOTE] Some people here do tend to "preach" before actually helping... Look at it as though they are your studio manager or your post production sup. BUT I have to admit, the education you get in here is a lot better than many courses out there.

[mnoxious]

If you are comfortable enough with your monitors and know how well the mix will translate on consumer speakers, headphones, car stereos, etc then just trust your ears. Let your ears be the judege as to what is best for your mix, perhaps that ess sound is desired to add some unconventional flavor to lead vocals. But if you are recording for a book on tape you probably don't want it there at all. And if you're not 100% comfortable with your studio monitors and how they translate to different speakers then take your mix on the road, testing it in every cd player you find.

For me I usually De-ess, Eq, Compression. However lately I've put it second in the chain, Eq, De-ess, Compression and sometimes don't use it at all.

[bigbadhenchman]

EQ->De-Ess->Compress.

here's my logic.

fisrt, you want to eq the vocals, get them all nice and bright and breathy, right?
problem now, is the esses are killing you.
If you compress first, then the dynamic of the esses is smoothed out, making it harder for the de-esser to grab the offending frequency.
So, you de-ess first. then compess to smooth the vocal out.

[EGS]

EQ->De-Ess->Compress.

here's my logic.

fisrt, you want to eq the vocals, get them all nice and bright and breathy, right?
problem now, is the esses are killing you.
If you compress first, then the dynamic of the esses is smoothed out, making it harder for the de-esser to grab the offending frequency.
So, you de-ess first. then compess to smooth the vocal out.

I try to eliminate esses at the source with careful mic choice and placement. If I still get some nasty esses then I'll put the de-esser first, so that it has a clear shot at removing the offending ess frequency from the original signal. Then, I EQ (to compensate for the now funky sounding de-essed vocal), and finally compression. De-ess ---> EQ ---> Compression.

[bigbadhenchman]

I try to eliminate esses at the source with careful mic choice and placement. If I still get some nasty esses then I'll put the de-esser first, so that it has a clear shot at removing the offending ess frequency from the original signal. Then, I EQ (to compensate for the now funky sounding de-essed vocal), and finally compression. De-ess ---> EQ ---> Compression.

I tend to not use any processign when recording.
The goal for me is to record as flat as possible, then mess with it later.