Appreciate the link. I'm def gonna listen in to that this weekend. Thoughts on the class?
Honestly, I know the gist of what compression does as well as the parameters associated with it, but when I sit down to mix after I get all the elements at levels that sit well together, my ear doesn't tell me like "oh, that snare needs some compression" or "the bassline def needs some compression on it." Because of that I kind of stray away from using it. Short answer, I rarely use it. I've experimented with it somewhat, but a lot of times, I don't like how boxed in it makes things sound. I feels like it traps elements and doesn't allow it to have it's original open sound for my ear. Maybe I was using it wrong at that point which caused it to sound that way.
I'll usually throw it on my master channel along with a limiter, but just use a slight compression to help with the dynamic range a bit.
I've gone through YouTube videos on it, but I haven't come across anything elaborate that kind of takes you through the thought process of when and how to use it in conjunction with all the other elements going on in your mix. Plus majority of the "guides" on YouTube are from people who think they know what they're talking about/might know what they're talking about, but aren't great at delivering the message. Plus most people aren't going to put up hour long videos discussing the topic which I feel like is needed to gain a solid understanding of the subject.