I thought I would take a second and share some of my favorite bits and bobbles of plugin gear, starting off with some of my favorite compressors. I find that compressors can be some of the most misunderstood and misused pieces of audio gear out there, but they're really important and I couldn't do a mix without them. Well, I could, but I really wouldn't want to.

Up first is a compressor that I probably use more than any other on a given mix: the FET Compressor by Softube.

As you can see, it's an 1176 style compressor, with a bunch of added modifications. As with most 1176 style compressors, this one moves fast and is quite grabby, like a Black Friday event at Walmart, but much better and with less greed. It's speed and overall aesthetic makes it great for drums, which is something I always try putting it on, almost as de rigueur. It works much more often than it doesn't, which may sound like a backhanded compliment, but that's the best sign of a great piece of gear in my opinion. It's a staple on snare drums, and the built-in parallel feature means that it's great for drum bussing as well. Combining the "All Buttons In" with the low cut set pretty high makes for a stupid sound (but in the best possible way), and turning the parallel knob all the way up, then backing it off until it feels just right is a great way to retain clarity with added mayhem.

Another common use I've found for the FET Compressor is on vocals, especially female rock vocals. It can give you a really great modern vocal sound, punchy and in your face, and bring out all the little details in a voice. Again, having the low and high cut in the detector signal really makes it powerful, so instead of using the low cut to stop a kick drum from triggering the compressor, I sometimes use the high cut to help stop the sibilance from a vocalist splattering all over the compressor. I also tend to dial in a very fast attack and release for rock vocalists, and turn up the parallel knob to bring back some of the original flavor. A lot of times I'll end up using this compressor on a vocal to bring up the details and make it punchy, then add a slower compressor afterwards to smooth things out.