# Compressor Suggestions



## mrmatt1972 (Apr 3, 2008)

In sincere imitation of AL3D's thread I'm gonna start this one.

I'm looking for subtle rather than squashed. Something good for Country chicken pickin' and rock riffs. What's out there for 150 dollars or less?

matt


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## GuitarsCanada (Dec 30, 2005)

I would like a clear explanation on exactly what the compressor does to the signal. Then it would be fun to read all these recommendations


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## -mbro- (Apr 3, 2010)

I highly recomend a monte allums modded boss CS-3. It can do a subtle compression very well.

Monte Allums Mods - Individual Pedal Mods

The compressor from barber and diamond are good too.


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

Duplicate posting.


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

I have written this all innumerable times before, many of them on this forum, but I'll be damned if I know what to link you to. So...

A compressor adjusts the level of the signal in response to peaks and drops in the input. The majority of guitar compressors operate by applying gain to the signal, which is then turned down when the signal rises above a given point/input-level. The hotter the input signal, the more the gain is turned down. As the signal dies out, the circuit eases up on the brakes, and allows the gain to increase again. Regardless of what the control is labeled as on the chassis or schematic, it does NOT produce sustain, merely the *illusion* of sustain, by creating the sort of constant volume you would have if the guitar could ring out for a long time.

Because that illusion of constant volume is provided not only by capping the initial peak, but also by increasing the gain as the signal starts to die out, one of the most common complaints about them is that they are noisy. With only a few exceptions, the noise is not from the compressor, but from your guitar signal. Keep in mind that the signal only starts to get amplified again once you stop playing. When the guitar signal is removed, all that remains is input hiss, and when that gets amplified you get audible hiss. In compressors, the gradually-increasing hiss at the end of a passage is referred to as "breathing". This is why it is generally unwise to stick any compressor after any other effect, unless that preceding effect contributes NO HISS whatsoever. Because, as sure as death and taxes, that hiss will be amplified and exaggerated by the compressor.

Almost all compressors will appear to trim some of the highs. This is a byproduct of the rapid adjustment of volume. One of the current solutions to that problem is to use a blend control to mix some of the uncompressed sound in with the compressed. Seems to work.

One of the critical aspects of any compressor's "personality" is what is referred to as the _time constants_. That is, how quickly gain-reduction is applied, and how quickly gain is resumed. When gain-reduction is quick coming and going, the unit functions more like a peak limiter, appearing to affect only the peaks, and leave the dynamics of the rest of the signal intact. Slower re-application of gain produces longer simulated sustain, but at the cost of suppressing the initial attack of subsequent notes if you pick quickly (since the gain is still in a reduced state when the next note comes too quickly). Because of that, when compressors have some means of adjusting how quickly gain recovers, they tend to label it "attack". I've had a personal crusade over the last decade to clarify that such controls do NOT adjust attack, but rather recovery. It seems I've persuaded some folks because I have seen a number of pedals apply that nomenclature. Maybe it was my nagging, or maybe they figured it out for themselves. Fast recovery is what you want for chicken-pickin, and slow recovery is what you want if you want to pretend you're Carlos Santana or Paul Kossoff. The MXR Dynacomp and the Ross clone of it (plus all the various Ross clones out there, including Keeley's, Retro-Sonic, et al) is good for slow recovery, and the old Dan Armstrong Orange Squeezer is one of the best examples of fast recovery. Many players recommend the OS for chicken-pickin, or as a "transparent" compressor. Anything that has a sufficient range of recovery adjustment to provide both OS and MXR rates will cover both personalities nicely. The current EHX Nano series Soul Preacher comes with several recovery settings, although apparently I haven't converted them yet, so it says "Attack" on the control. That being said, their slow/medium/fast settings probably serve for both sustain and fast picking orientation.

Do you need continuously adjustable recovery ("attack") times? No. Since the audible impact of recovery time depends almost entirely on how you play, I promise you that you will not be able to easily detect the difference between 7:00 and 10:00 or 1:00 vs 4:00 on a compressor with continuously variable recovery time. It's not like a tone control or volume setting. If you pick slowly, and go for finger vibrato, the difference between longer and shorter recovery times will be very hard to detect, and will only emerge if you start to go for faster riffs where the absence of attack on subsequent notes will become apparent. Three settings is enough for just about everyone, unless they are the wrong 3 settings. Funny anecdote: When Tim Larwill first produced the Retro-Sonic compressor, it only had a sustain and volume control. Once I explained to him how the recovery adjustment worked, and devised a means for him to implement a 3-position toggle, he incorporated it into later models. But, as he relayed it to me, even though he personally couldn't see a reason to need it, customers felt the need to have a variable control...like some sort of security blanket...so he knuckled under to customer demand and converted the switch to a pot, with the same maximum and minimum recovery times. Go figure.

If you're picky, Analog Man makes something he calls the Bi-Comprossor, which is a Ross and OS in the same box. Personally, having clones of both these units, plus a few others, I can say with conviction that they both have their charms. My current fave is one based on the SSM2166 dynamics-processor chip, which unfortunately you can't buy commercially. It comes with built-in downward expansion that quickly fades out the noise produced during breathing, so the unit is dead quiet.


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## GuitarsCanada (Dec 30, 2005)

Excellent breakdown on the compressor. Much appreciated.


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## mrmatt1972 (Apr 3, 2008)

found this, sounds pretty amazing. I have their tube overdrive (English Muff'n) which is pretty great.
[video=youtube;eCNNGTzzwh4]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCNNGTzzwh4[/video]


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## Budda (May 29, 2007)

I actually have a compressor I'm looking to sell, hand-made in the UK and comparable to high end comps say other owners.

Here's the website:

Welcome to Booty-Que.co.uk

Let me know if you're interested  - it deserves a good home!


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## hollowbody (Jan 15, 2008)

I went through a ton of compressors and the best I found was the Barber Tone Press. Thanks to the blend knob, it can be as subtle as you need, or it can give you full squish too. Can't recommend this pedal enough.


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## CDWaterloo (Jul 18, 2008)

my fav is Keeley comp. you can find a used one for 140-180. great for chicken pickin not sure about rock riffs...


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## david henman (Feb 3, 2006)

hollowbody said:


> I went through a ton of compressors and the best I found was the Barber Tone Press. Thanks to the blend knob, it can be as subtle as you need, or it can give you full squish too. Can't recommend this pedal enough.


...yep, same here.

-dh


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## Voxguy76 (Aug 23, 2006)

I just wish the Barber wasn't so big. I'd love to try one of wamplers ego compressors though.


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## hollowbody (Jan 15, 2008)

riffboy76 said:


> I just wish the Barber wasn't so big. I'd love to try one of wamplers ego compressors though.


I'm with you on that one. I kicked the Barber off my board (Pedaltrain Mini) because for that particular board it was taking up WAY too much space. If they made a smaller one, it would be awesome, but the PCB takes up quite a bit of the pedal innards, so I don't think it's possible.

Kudos to Dr. Scientist for making a mini version of the Radical Red Reverberator, which is the best reverb I've ever had. I had to get rid of mine for the same reason - just too big for my uses. But I might have to track down one of the Miniverberators.


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## allthumbs56 (Jul 24, 2006)

Tone Press is far and away my fave. Unlike others, the size doesn't bother me so much as the d/c jack placement - why do makers not just follow the Boss tried-and-true and put it in back - same complaint with my OCD and BB - makes rearranging the board a pain. Anyway ...............moving on, my second fave is the compressor side of my Route 66. If I can only take one pedal - it's this one (add my H20 and I'm all set).


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

allthumbs56 said:


> the size doesn't bother me so much as the d/c jack placement - why do makers not just follow the Boss tried-and-true and put it in back


Boo-teek makers tend to use the panel mount barrel jacks, rather than the PCB-mount ones; at least those that are still using through-hole components (those using SMT components may be different). Unfortunately, the problem with those panel-mounts jacks is that they are big, expensive and bloody cumbersome. These are the primary reasons why personally I don't use them, but stick to old EHX-style mini phone-jacks instead. Because the panel-mount barrel jacks are so bloody big, there are only a few places you can stick them, without interfering with other things, and more often than not, that place is the otherwise-unused space beside the stompswitch. So, they tend to get side-mounted because they won't fit anywhere else unless you use something other than the standard Hammond chassis that so many boutique builders use.

Ironically, while I can easily make a solid male-to-male phone plug adaptor that lets me snuggle two pedals with side-mounted input/output jacks up beside each other, I can't use them if the barrel jack is side-mounted, simply because the most readily available barrel-style plugs are too bloody long to let me slide the pedals up as close as the male-to-male adaptor with let me.

There are certainly advantages to barrel jacks, but those advantages pale beside the disadvantages when using chassis mount ones.


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## Drazden (Oct 26, 2007)

I'm digging the old, 'relic'd Boss CS-2 I just got. But I'm also waiting on a brand-new MXR Custom Comp, so I can shoot them out when it comes in!


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## discomalaria (Feb 17, 2010)

CDWaterloo said:


> my fav is Keeley comp. you can find a used one for 140-180. great for chicken pickin not sure about rock riffs...


I would also like to recommend the Keeley comp. It provides a nice subtle comp and it's size fits nicely on the pedal board.


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## -mbro- (Apr 3, 2010)

Found this on the Allums Modded CS-3

[YOUTUBE]<object width="960" height="745"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/4ObwhLwksjs&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/4ObwhLwksjs&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="960" height="745"></embed></object>[/YOUTUBE]

Best bang for the buck

[YOUTUBE]<object width="960" height="745"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/gyVeDXhJmSA&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/gyVeDXhJmSA&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="960" height="745"></embed></object>[/YOUTUBE]


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