# What is parallel compression? > What parallel (New York) compression is, how to set it up, and what to listen for, with a loudness-matched drum demo. Then train the blend by ear. Page: https://mixchops.com/learn/parallel-compression By [Dan Murtagh](https://danmurtagh.com/about) · Updated 9 November 2026 **Short answer:** parallel compression blends a heavily compressed copy of a part in under the dry original. The dry keeps the punch of each hit; the crushed copy brings up the body, the sustain and the quiet detail between hits. It’s also called New York compression, and it’s used most on drums. Compress the copy hard, then bring it up from nothing until the part thickens without sounding squashed. > **Demo** (plays in the browser on this page): The drums from an indie rock track, with a copy crushed by 20 dB of gain reduction at 20:1 (0.3 ms attack, 80 ms release), the copy Parallel Blend uses. **Parallel** blends it in level with the dry, **Just a little** 9 dB under, and **Crushed copy only** plays it without the dry, so you can hear what the blend is adding. Both sides play at the same loudness, so the blend can’t win by being louder. Start with the drums on their own, then hear them with the band. ## How parallel compression works The signal splits into two paths that run side by side. One stays dry. The other goes through a compressor set far harder than you’d put on the track itself, which flattens the hits and lifts everything quiet around them. Add the two together and the loud hits barely change, because the dry already has them. The quiet parts come up a lot, because the crushed copy is mostly quiet parts brought up. So the part gets denser while the front of each hit stays intact. ## How to set it up 1. **Make the copy.** Send the part to an aux bus with a compressor on it, or use a compressor with a mix knob. 2. **Crush it.** A high ratio, a fast attack and plenty of gain reduction. Go harder than you think: the blend is where it gets gentle. 3. **Start with the copy off.** Bring its fader up until the part thickens, then back off a little. 4. **Compare at the same loudness.** Adding the copy makes the part louder, and louder usually sounds better at first. Turn the sum down to match before you judge it. Your DAW’s delay compensation keeps the two paths lined up. If the blend ever sounds hollow or phasey, check that it’s on, and that nothing on the copy, like a hardware insert, is out of step. ## What to listen for - **Under the hits:** the room, the ghost notes and the ring of the drums come forward. - **The front of the hit:** it should still crack. If it softens, the copy is too loud. - **Too far:** the cymbals wash, the kit pumps, and the whole part sounds smashed. A little goes a long way. Flip **Crushed copy only** in the demo against Dry to hear what the copy sounds like on its own, then **Just a little** to hear how small a blend still changes the part. ## Parallel or a compressor on the track? A compressor on the track turns the loud moments down. Parallel compression brings the quiet moments up and mostly leaves the loud ones alone. Both make a part more even; parallel keeps more of the attack than a fast compressor on the track. New to the controls? Read [what a compressor does](https://mixchops.com/learn/what-does-a-compressor-do) first. ## Questions ### What is New York compression? Another name for parallel compression: a heavily compressed copy blended in under the dry part, most often on drums. ### What settings should I use for parallel compression? On the copy, a high ratio, a fast attack and a lot of gain reduction, with a release that lets go before the next hit. How much you hear is set by the blend, not by the compressor. ### Can I use a compressor’s mix knob instead of a bus? Yes. A mix knob blends the dry and compressed signal inside the plugin. A bus lets you EQ the copy on its own, or send several parts to one crushed bus. ### What instruments is parallel compression used on? Drums most of all, and often bass and vocals. It helps anything that should stay punchy but feel fuller. ## Set the blend *by ear.* Parallel Blend plays a reference blend. Bring up the crushed copy until yours sits the same, then set how hard it’s crushed too. Every version is matched for loudness. [Start Parallel Blend](https://mixchops.com/compression/parallel) Part of Mix Chops Pro · Free to start: [How Much](https://mixchops.com/compression/amount), hearing how hard a compressor works ## More in Learn ### Explainers - [What is EQ?](https://mixchops.com/learn/what-is-eq): What an equaliser does, heard on a mix - [What each frequency sounds like](https://mixchops.com/learn/what-frequencies-sound-like): Nine bands, 63 Hz to 16 kHz - [Parametric EQ](https://mixchops.com/learn/parametric-eq): Frequency, gain and Q - [High-pass and low-pass filters](https://mixchops.com/learn/high-pass-low-pass-filters): Including the high-pass on a vocal - [Shelving EQ](https://mixchops.com/learn/shelving-eq): High shelf, low shelf, and a bell - [Mix problems you can hear](https://mixchops.com/learn/mix-problems): Muddy, boxy, harsh, sibilant, dull - [What does a compressor do?](https://mixchops.com/learn/what-does-a-compressor-do): Threshold, ratio and attack, on drums - [What is reverb?](https://mixchops.com/learn/what-is-reverb): The room around a part, and how to hear it - [Gain staging](https://mixchops.com/learn/gain-staging): Healthy levels, before the balance - [Mixing on headphones](https://mixchops.com/learn/mixing-on-headphones): What they hide, and how to check ### Practice guides - [How to train your ears for EQ](https://mixchops.com/learn/train-your-ears-for-eq): A routine, and the bands people mix up - [How to hear compression](https://mixchops.com/learn/how-to-hear-compression): A five-minute routine with matched-volume examples - [Critical listening](https://mixchops.com/learn/critical-listening): What it is, and how to train it - [How to find resonant frequencies](https://mixchops.com/learn/find-resonant-frequencies): Boost, sweep, cut - [Subtractive EQ](https://mixchops.com/learn/subtractive-eq): Cut first, and how to practise it - [How to fix a muddy mix](https://mixchops.com/learn/fix-a-muddy-mix): Find the part, then cut - [How to build a static mix](https://mixchops.com/learn/build-a-static-mix): Drums first, vocal last - [Compression ear training](https://mixchops.com/compression): Every compression exercise, easiest first - [All of Learn](https://mixchops.com/learn): Every explainer and guide, and what it trains