How do I need to set up sidechain: 100% 90% 80% or else?

Answer 1

It depends on what element I'm sidechaining and the genre.

For EDM / hip hop:

Sub bass: 100% or >-24db Sub bass and kick basically cannot coexist. Your kick needs to entirely push away the sub.

Mid bass / pads / chords: 50% to 80% or -12db to -36db

Vocals, atmospheres, effects: 25% to 50%, or -3bd to -6db

Again, it depends on a lot but these are good starter guidelines.

Answer 2

Hi! How are you today?

1.) You need to send your sidechain trigger (kick, for example) pre-fader & top level to a dedicated bus.

2.) Then, turn off the output of that bus (it will be used for the sidechain only but won't reach your monitors)

3.) Add a digital (non-colored) compressor to the sidechain objective (the bass) and set the Kick BUS as the sidechain.

Now, your kick sound (from the bus) will trigger the compressor of your bass. Now you can play with the Threshold, Ratio and other values.

If you're interested in mixing or mastering lessons, please let me know! I'm a mixing and mastering engineer, Certified Pro & Master Pro in Logic Pro X.

Have a great week!

Carlos