That pumping effect in dance music? That's sidechaining. But it's useful in every genre for clarity and groove. Here's how to set it up in any DAW.
TL;DR
Sidechain compression ducks one sound when another plays, creating space and movement. It's essential in dance music for that pumping effect but equally useful in pop, hip-hop, and rock for keeping kicks and bass from fighting. Every DAW handles it slightly differently but the concept is universal.
What Sidechain Compression Actually Does
Regular compression reduces volume when a signal gets loud. Sidechain compression does the same thing, but instead of responding to the signal it's placed on, it responds to a completely different signal. The classic example: a compressor on your bass that's triggered by your kick drum. Every time the kick hits, the bass ducks out of the way, then comes back.
This solves one of the biggest problems in mixing: frequency masking. Kicks and bass occupy similar frequency ranges, and when they play simultaneously, they fight for space, creating a muddy, undefined low end. Sidechaining creates rhythmic separation — the kick punches through on the beat, the bass fills the spaces between.
In dance music, this technique is pushed to extremes for creative effect. That iconic pumping, breathing quality in house, trance, and EDM comes from aggressive sidechain compression applied to pads, synths, and even entire mixes. But used subtly, sidechaining is a mix tool that improves clarity in literally any genre.
Setting It Up in Ableton, Logic, and FL Studio
In Ableton Live, it's straightforward: add a Compressor to your bass track, click the arrow to show the sidechain section, enable 'Sidechain,' and select your kick drum track as the input. Set a fast attack (0-1ms), medium release (50-150ms), and adjust the threshold until you see 3-6dB of gain reduction on each kick hit.
In Logic Pro, use the built-in Compressor plugin. Click the 'Side Chain' dropdown in the top right of the plugin window and select your kick track. Same settings apply: fast attack, medium release, adjust threshold to taste. Logic's compressor has multiple models — the FET (modelled on the 1176) works particularly well for rhythmic sidechaining.
FL Studio has Fruity Limiter with sidechain capabilities, but many producers prefer using Gross Beat or the dedicated Soundgoodizer for sidechain effects. For traditional sidechain compression, route your kick to a sidechain input using FL's mixer routing, then use a compressor plugin that supports sidechain input.
Creative Sidechain Techniques Beyond the Basics
Multiband sidechaining is a game-changer. Instead of ducking the entire bass signal, use a multiband compressor to only duck the frequencies that conflict with the kick — typically below 200Hz. The higher frequencies of your bass remain unaffected, maintaining presence while the low end stays clean. This is how modern pop and hip-hop bass sounds so big yet so clear.
Sidechain to a ghost kick — a kick drum routed to your sidechain input but muted from the main output. This gives you rhythmic pumping at a tempo and pattern you control, independent of your actual drum pattern. Want eight-note pumping over a four-on-the-floor kick? Ghost kick handles it.
Volume shaping plugins like Nicky Romero's Kickstart, Cableguys VolumeShaper, and Xfer LFOTool bypass traditional sidechain compression entirely. Instead, they draw a volume envelope that creates the same pumping effect without needing a sidechain source. They're simpler to set up, more predictable, and increasingly popular in professional productions.
Sidechain Settings for Different Genres
For house and techno: aggressive settings. Threshold low enough for 6-10dB of reduction, fast attack (0-1ms), release timed to the tempo (around 100-200ms at 128BPM). Apply to bass, pads, and sometimes the full mix bus for that classic pump.
For pop and R&B: subtle settings. 2-4dB of reduction, fast attack, faster release. The listener shouldn't consciously hear pumping — they should just feel that the low end is clean and the kick has presence. Apply only to bass and low-frequency synth elements.
For hip-hop: medium settings on the 808 bass, triggered by the kick. This is essential when your kick and 808 share frequency space. 3-6dB of reduction with a release tuned to let the 808 bloom between kicks. Some producers sidechain the entire mix to the vocals instead, ensuring the vocal always sits on top.
For rock and indie: light sidechaining on the bass guitar, triggered by the kick drum, keeps the low end tight without being audible as an effect. 2-3dB of reduction with a medium attack (5-10ms) to preserve the bass's initial transient.
Common Mistakes and How to Fix Them
The most common mistake is too much gain reduction. If your bass completely disappears on every kick hit, you've gone too far. Aim for a subtle ducking that you can feel in the groove rather than hear as an obvious effect (unless you specifically want the pumping sound).
Release time is where most people struggle. Too short and the signal snaps back unnaturally. Too long and the sound never fully recovers before the next kick. The release should be timed so the signal returns to full volume just before the next trigger hit — this creates the smoothest, most musical pump.
Another mistake: sidechaining everything to the kick. While kick-bass sidechaining is almost always beneficial, applying it to every element creates a lifeless, over-processed mix. Be selective. Sidechain elements that actually conflict in frequency, and leave the rest alone. Sometimes the best mixing decision is restraint.