Channel Link: Finding the Sweet Spot Where Music Starts to Move

Channel Link on a limiter or compressor isn’t mainly about loudness or control.

It’s about movement – the slight left–right variations that make music feel alive.

Electronic music isn’t supposed to be static – even though that’s one of the battles when producing it.

It works because of small changes happening all the time: tiny shifts, subtle interactions, little movements that keep the sound breathing.

Channel Link plays a role in that, even though the control looks simple and easy to overlook.

What Channel Link Really Does

Channel Link decides whether the left and right channels are treated together or separately.

In practice, it controls whether the gain reduction is based on a combined stereo signal or on each side more independently.

• Fully linked → both channels move at the same time

• Reduced linking → each channel reacts more independently

This isn’t a dramatic effect.

It’s not something that jumps out.

It’s more like the difference between a still photo of a landscape and a photo of a landscape with a bit of motion in it. A slight breeze.

Linked: Unity and Coherence

With Channel Link set high, the sound feels unified.

Both sides move as one.

It’s coherent, centred and stable.

There’s nothing wrong with that – sometimes a track needs that kind of togetherness.

It gives you a firm foundation.

Lower Link: Where Movement Appears

As you bring Channel Link down, something starts to happen.

The music begins to move more.

Not in a widening or effect‑driven way, but as the natural result of each side breathing a little differently:

• small shifts

• subtle variations

• left and right behaving slightly differently

• a bit more life in the groove

These differences are tiny, but they matter.

They’re the kind of variants that keep the music from feeling flat.

And the more stereo information a sound has, the more this behaviour shows up – especially on the master or 2-bus. Wide pads, percussion, effects, or anything active in the sides will react differently left vs right, and that’s where you really hear Channel Link shaping the movement.

For me, there’s a point where the sound wakes up a little.

A moment where the movement feels good, and the music feels more alive without losing its foundation.

That’s the sweet spot.

It’s Not About Right or Wrong

Channel Link isn’t something to “get correct.”

There’s no ideal percentage.

There’s no universal rule.

It’s simply:

Where does the track feel right to you?

Linked gives unity.

Lower linking gives life.

Every track needs a different balance.

It’s a small adjustment, but like most small adjustments in mixing, it’s one of the ones that makes a real difference.

Summary

A big part of Electronic music production is about having movement and life in what can easily start off as static, lifeless sounds. There are many ways a track can move, and Channel Link is simply another subtle way to bring a little more life into your music.

It's far from the main source of movement, but it does add a layer of subtle breath to how the sound behaves.

On a busy, very wide mix, for example, too little linking can make the image wobble. If you hear the centre shift, just bring the linking back up a bit.

Fully linked, the sound feels coherent and stable.

As you reduce it, the music begins to breathe and shift in subtle ways.

Somewhere between those two extremes, there’s usually a sweet spot – the point where the life creeps back in.

You hear it.

You feel it.

And that’s where you stop.