Control dynamic range

[TonyCrazyMan]

Is there any way of measuring the dynamic range of a recorded instrument or should I put a compressor on the inputs instead? I don't want any additional noise, just want to remove those peaks that cause the whole track to dissapear in the background. A way of getting a balanced/clear/loud enough mix is to compress each instrument to a certain level and start mixing from there. Sometimes you also want to know the consumption of dynamic range on different tracks to see if it's balanced enough in comparison with other tracks and you don't want to add a compressor if it's not necessary. Then it would be good to have a tool that measures the dynamic range.

[rhythminmind]

hey tony you have alot of mixing questions going on.. I recommend reading some focal press books.. for mastering bob katz mastering audio is a must..

you seem to be like myself and try to find scientific ways to do tasks.. but i'll tell you this, you should really just learn what effects do and how they work and then stop looking at meters/numbers and use your ears.. every song/instrument is different. you cant make a preset or do the same things for everything all the time.. people tend to get caught up in the science and forget about the art..