When exactly do you engage your 2 bus compressor? You probably fall into one of four categories, depending on what you mix.
1 - at the beginning of the mix
2 - somewhere in the middle
3 - at the very end
4 - never (you don’t use one at all)
I have 5-6 bus compressors sitting on my 2 bus when I do non-post production music stuff. I tend to wait until the end. I usually start with the SSL G comp, then try the Red 3, and if neither are working for some reason, I keep going down the list. If none of them add anything, I leave them off all off.
I’m actually waiting for a Nuendo mix to bounce as we speak. …found out that the UAD SSL G comp is cleaner than the waves one. The Waves mashed the high frequencies from tambourines, hi-hats, choir sibilance, flutes, violins together in a really messy way. It was a rather unpleasant phasey hissy noisey thing. That’s too bad. I really liked that Waves unit. It was my go-to for a number of years.
I’m like 1.5 or so on your list… 
I have it on but bypassed from the start and then get into it fairly quickly. Like in the middle but close to the start.
I use the Waves SSL (most of the time). That phasey/tweaked high end isn’t that apparent the way I use it. The needle barely moves. And if I do hear it, I know I’m hitting too hard (for me)
I used to have 4 or 5 different comps available on the mixbuss in my template. But I end up missing the SSL most of the time. So now it’s just the SSL and the API2500 to chose from. Still the ssl wins 99% of the time.
I do the same on my drum buss. Nothing active on it until I get a basic gain, then the basic eq goes on… get a little deeper and the comp goes on.
But like I said in previous posts… The comp is only there for 'a sound" rather than dynamic control…
have fun
rich
I usually throw it on somewhere around the middle. i don’t know why it just seems to be when it is happens.
I’m more like the 2.5 stage. My middle would be a balanced mix with group busses setup and everything im working together but its still needs the finishing touches.
I would have to say that I usually put one on towards the middle of a mix project. I try and get a good mix going and get everything separated before I try to glue it back together. I think this helps me actually set the 2 buss compressor to be able to dial in the right amount of compression.
I would say I’m somewhere around 2. I usually engage the buss comp after I roughly tone shape the instruments. The volume of each track comes after that.
