Guide
How to get the sidechain pumping sound, in any DAW
Sidechaining is the reason the bass in a dance track seems to breathe around the kick. This guide explains what it is, shows three ways to do it, and gives settings to start from.
The short answer
Sidechaining turns one sound down every time another sound plays. In electronic music, the bass and pads are turned down each time the kick hits, then allowed back up. Done gently, it stops the kick and bass fighting. Done heavily, it creates the pumping sound of house and EDM. You can do it with a compressor that listens to the kick, with a volume shape that repeats in time with the tempo, or with a plugin made for the job.
What sidechaining is
A kick drum and a bass line both live in the lowest part of the mix. When they sound at the same moment, they compete for the same space: the kick loses its punch and the low end turns to mud.
Sidechaining fixes that with timing. Each time the kick hits, the bass drops in volume for a fraction of a second and then returns. The kick gets a clear moment to itself, and the bass fills the gap straight after.
The name comes from how compressors work. A compressor normally listens to the sound it is turning down. Most compressors also have a second input, called the sidechain, that lets them listen to a different sound. Feed the kick into the sidechain of a compressor on the bass, and the bass is turned down whenever the kick plays.
Why it pumps
Turn the effect up and it stops being a mixing fix and becomes part of the rhythm. Pads, chords and bass all swell back in between the kicks, on the off-beat, and the whole track seems to breathe in time. French house made this sound famous in the late 1990s, and it has been part of house, trance, future bass and pop production ever since.
How it feels depends mostly on two things: how far the volume drops, and how quickly it comes back.
- A small drop that recovers quickly is nearly invisible. It simply makes the kick clearer. This suits techno, drum and bass, and most mixes.
- A deep drop that recovers slowly is the obvious pump. The sound swells back over most of the beat. This suits house, future bass and big chord sections.
Three ways to do it
| Method | How it works | Best for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sidechain compressor | A compressor on the bass listens to the kick and turns the bass down when the kick is loud. | Natural results that follow the real kick. Already in every DAW. | Four settings to balance, and the result changes if the kick changes. |
| Tempo-synced volume shape | The volume follows a shape that repeats every beat, with no kick involved. | A steady pump that continues through breakdowns where the kick stops. | It ignores the real kick, so it only fits a regular kick pattern. |
| Dedicated ducking plugin | A ready-made curve that runs with the tempo or is triggered by the kick. | Getting a consistent, exact shape quickly. | It is an extra plugin to buy. |
Method 1: a sidechain compressor
This is the classic way, and every DAW can do it with its own compressor. The idea is the same everywhere: put a compressor on the track you want to duck, and tell it to listen to the kick.
Ableton Live
- Add Compressor to the bass track.
- Open the sidechain section with the small triangle at the left of the device.
- Switch Sidechain on, and choose the kick track under Audio From.
FL Studio
- In the mixer, select the kick's track, then right-click the send arrow at the bottom of the bass track and choose Sidechain to this track.
- Add Fruity Limiter to the bass track and switch it to COMP.
- Set its Sidechain input to 1.
Logic Pro
- Add Compressor to the bass track.
- Open the Side Chain menu at the top right of the plugin window.
- Choose the kick track.
Settings to start from
| Setting | Subtle, for a clearer kick | Obvious pump |
|---|---|---|
| Ratio | 4:1 | 10:1 or higher |
| Attack | As fast as it goes | As fast as it goes |
| Release | 50 to 100 ms | 150 to 300 ms |
| Threshold | Lower it until the meter shows 3 to 6 dB of reduction | Lower it until the meter shows 10 dB or more |
Release is the setting that matters most, because it decides how the sound comes back. A useful reference is the length of one beat at your tempo: 60,000 divided by the tempo gives it in milliseconds. At 128 beats per minute a beat lasts about 469 ms, and the off-beat falls at about 234 ms. For the classic pump, set the release so the sound has swelled back by the off-beat.
The ghost kick
A compressor only ducks when it hears the kick. If your kick drops out for a breakdown, or plays a broken pattern, the pump stops with it. The usual fix is a ghost kick: a second kick track that plays on every beat, is sent only to the compressor's sidechain, and is never heard. The pump then stays steady whatever the real kick is doing.
Method 2: a volume shape in time with the tempo
The second way leaves the kick out entirely. The volume of the bass simply follows a shape that repeats every beat: down at the start, back up by the end.
You can draw this as volume automation, one beat long, and loop it. Some DAWs also have a device that will do it for you. In Ableton Live, for example, the Auto Pan-Tremolo device has a Tremolo mode that moves the volume in time with the tempo. In versions before Live 12.3 the device is called Auto Pan, and setting its Phase to 0 degrees does the same thing.
The advantage is consistency. Every beat ducks in exactly the same way, and it carries on through sections where the kick is silent, which keeps the energy moving in a breakdown. The limit is that it knows nothing about your real kick. If the kick pattern is irregular, the ducking and the kick will not line up.
Method 3: a plugin made for ducking
The third way combines the other two. A ducking plugin holds a curve, the exact shape of one duck, and plays it either in time with the tempo or each time the kick hits. Because the shape is drawn in advance, every duck is identical, and there are no compressor settings to balance against each other.
From Realms
Swang
Swang is our sidechain ducking plugin. Put it on a bass, pad or synth and it starts ducking in time with your project straight away. It has eight built-in curves, and you can drag the points of any of them to draw your own. Choose your kick in your DAW's sidechain menu and every hit triggers the curve. A band mode ducks only the low end and leaves the highs untouched.
Swang is $22 and comes as AU and VST3 for Mac and VST3 for Windows.
See SwangWhat to duck, and how much
- Bass. The one that matters most. Even 3 to 6 dB makes the kick clearer.
- Pads and chords. This is where the audible pump comes from. Duck them deeply and let them swell back slowly.
- Reverb and delay. Ducking the effect, not the dry sound, keeps a big reverb from washing over the kick.
- Only the low end. If a sound loses its presence when ducked, duck just the frequencies below about 150 to 200 Hz and leave the rest alone. A multiband compressor can do this, and so can a ducking plugin with a band mode.
Lead vocals and the main melody are usually left alone, or ducked only slightly, so they stay steady while everything else moves around them.
Common mistakes
- The release is too long. The sound has not recovered before the next kick arrives, so it stays quiet all the time. Shorten the release until it returns to full volume between hits.
- The duck starts late. If the start of the bass note slips through before the volume drops, the kick still gets masked. Use the fastest attack, or a method that follows the tempo.
- Everything is ducked by the same amount. The mix starts to sound as if it is being switched on and off. Duck the bass a little, the pads more, and leave some parts untouched.
- The kick has a long tail. A compressor keeps ducking for as long as the kick is loud, so a boomy kick holds the bass down. Use a shorter kick as the trigger, or a ghost kick.
Questions people ask
Is sidechaining only for kick and bass?
No. Any sound can duck any other. Producers duck music under a voice, pads under a lead, and reverb under the sound that feeds it. Kick and bass is simply the most common pairing.
What is the difference between sidechain compression and a volume shaper?
A sidechain compressor reacts to how loud the kick is, so the amount of ducking changes if the kick changes. A volume shaper plays the same shape every time, whether it is following the tempo or being triggered by the kick.
How much should I duck?
For a cleaner mix, 3 to 6 dB on the bass is plenty. For the pumping effect, 10 dB or more on pads and chords, with a release long enough to hear the swell.
Do I need a plugin to sidechain?
No. Every major DAW can do it with its built-in compressor, as shown above. A dedicated plugin is faster to set up and gives the same result on every beat.