MIX BUS COMPRESSION
I would think that most DJs would prefer to record their music in a way that is easy to do, while providing quality results. While we have the tools to make the transition between live sound and a recording possible – digital recordings are actually much more complicated to understand than your typical uncompressed recording. One of the basic tasks that any DJ has is to eventually record themselves so they can have a real understanding of what their mixes sound like. It starts by running your record outs to your computer’s line in. But once you are at this stage you are not finished. You must be able to understand where your volumes are going to lay for the entire track, and using this you can create a perfect level to where you music can be recorded without distorting itself or clipping. The simplest way is to start a test recording and play various parts of your music; taking a look at where your peaks and valleys are. Some will stick out more than others. The problem with this method is that while it can be used to adjust the song as whole, it also eliminates some of the more minute areas of the song. In this case you really want to take advantage of compression. http://www.attackmagazine.com/technique/walkthroughs/mix-bus-compression/
