Do you use a compressor?

johnallg · Post by **johnallg** » Thu Apr 19, 2007 2:02 pm

Thanks for that, Don. Depending on how much you will use it, you can either get all sorts of sounds out of it via the Drive and Volume knobs, or if you are going to switch it in and out, doing the matched levels with it in/out of circuit will yeild the most even results. Its fun to just play around with it until you get a feel for what it can do and how you like it to sound. I've settled on the concept to just even things out a bit and have Drive set around 5 (half up) and Volume set to match when switched out. I understand the pick noise reduction - that is the upper freq edge reduction I was talking about, though I will say it is minimal how I am running it. In fact I was goofing today on some Squire sounds and was amazed how close I was sounding to the sound on "America" (not the playing quality, though!

) and then on going back into the amp room noticing the compressor was in-circuit. When switched out, it was not the same closeness in tone. Interesting.

Oh, and I didn't know you played 4 string too - thought you were a 12'er of the strum variety! Neat!

fatcat · Post by **fatcat** » Sat Apr 21, 2007 7:28 am

I've also been known to play 5 strings,and 11 strings,at least to finish the song in progress.

fatcat · Post by **fatcat** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 12:10 pm

I got some time today to fiddle about with it,first with my 4003FG and then the 370-12 RM.Again thru the Westy.For the bass it is useful to limit clipping, and subtle tone improvement.I get more appearant clean volume.
It isn't really very useful on the 12 er,not as much compression as the on board gizmo, and no benefit as a 2nd stage with the insider on as well.Later on, I'll try the Hofner and the Harmonys.Not to mention 5 Fender and one Epiphone amps.This might keep me busy for a week or three.

bongomania · Post by **bongomania** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 10:48 pm

Hi all,
I'm the fellow with the reviews page linked earlier. It's true as noted that the opinions there are subjective. I was confused, though, by this assertion:

"I think he missed the point of the two stages working together - the Drive stage sets the amount of compression but also has a gain effect, and the volume stage is set to match the bypass mode (true bypass, BTW), which implies it has dynamic gain and thus would appear to always hit the board with the same level, not "seeing" the compression effect as he stated."
.....

The plain fact is that even with dynamic "inverse compression" it is still possible to observe the resulting output gain changes on a good set of meters. Only a test-tone at a sustained static level would be impossible to read, having no dynamics. Additionally, there is no dynamic gain increase circuit in the PF. It's just an optical compressor, which can be observed by comparing the circuitboard against schematics of similar devices. Perhaps if you could clarify what you mean by saying the Drive "has a gain effect"? Is it a tonal quality you hear, like overdrive? I didn't observe any gain increases aside from the Volume stage, which is the standard make-up gain function found on nearly all compressors. FWIW, I also use an Aphex Compellor, which does have leveling (inverted compression, dynamic gain), and that function is audible, testable, and visible on meters.

Also, FWIW, the PF is not true bypass. Open it up and see- the footswitch is a DPDT connected to a buffer.

Please note that I am not writing this in a spirit of either offense or defense- I just love talking about compressors.

I'm totally open to people disagreeing with me!

anoukane · Post by **anoukane** » Thu Apr 26, 2007 12:28 am

I'm not sure whether to go for the EBS or the EHX Black Finger. I like loud rock, but I don't like loud noise, so perhaps the EBS is a better option. Is it also suitable for Heavy compression?

Is there any good multiband compressor?
I like the Compressor in Adobe Audition 2.0, it's multiband and very easy to use.. I'm looking for something like that, but then in a pedal..

bongomania · Post by **bongomania** » Thu Apr 26, 2007 8:20 am

As I wrote in my review, the EBS is excellent at doing heavy compression in its multi-band mode. Another good multi-band pedal is the (discontinued) Trace Elliot SMX, although it is more of gentle-moderate compressor.

johnallg · Post by **johnallg** » Thu Apr 26, 2007 10:48 am

Cyrus, no offense was intended with my comment.

What I meant with the Drive gain comment was if I leave the Volume level alone but increase/decrease the Drive, the level of compression changes as expected, but also the signal level through the pedal and I need to adjust the Volume to maintain level parity with the compression switched out.

As for the true bypass comment, I am quoting what the booklet said; in fact they made a big deal of pointing out it is true bypass. I will have to open it up and check that out.

I am happy with this pedal for the money spent. It does what I need with my bass, which is why I wanted one. It smooths out the unevenness in my pickup/strings and playing, being used on the songs that need it.

I did find your site and evaluations useful too. Thanks for all the effort.

bongomania · Post by **bongomania** » Thu Apr 26, 2007 7:30 pm

You're welcome! Just so I understand better- when you say:
"...if I leave the Volume level alone but increase/decrease the Drive, the level of compression changes as expected, but also the signal level through the pedal"

Do you mean that the overall signal level is increased or decreased? Does increasing the Drive decrease the overall signal level?

jps · Post by **jps** » Fri Apr 27, 2007 12:15 pm

Increasing the Drive control increases the overall level and visa versa. Like John, I use the Volume control to match the in/out signal level at the output jack.

johnallg · Post by **johnallg** » Fri Apr 27, 2007 4:39 pm

Yes that is what I meant. If I turn the Drive up, increasing the compression, the volume, or loudness of my playing, increases also. Conversely, if I decrease Drive, compression lowers and also apparent volume. Adjusting the Volume control will keep my signal (compression to bypass ratio) at parity.

charlyg · Post by **charlyg** » Fri Apr 27, 2007 7:04 pm

Did someone say party?

oh, parity!

never mind

rictified · Post by **rictified** » Sat Apr 28, 2007 3:41 pm

I use good old tubes for compression.

markbass99 · Post by **markbass99** » Mon Apr 30, 2007 5:33 pm

I've been following this thread and decided I wasn't completely satisfied with the FMR RNC compressor that I was using. It's a great compressor with lots of adjustability but not so great for bass guitar. Based on Brian's recommendation I found a Compulator on ebay for $185, not a great price but every place else was $199. I put my RNC on ebay for $100 BIN and it was gone in a couple hours.
Brian was right this thing is great, very simple controls and it just made everything sound better and smoother. It really did something to the sustain too, it's hard to improve something that a rick already does well but somehow the notes coming out are longer lasting and richer sounding. I'm sure the Aphex works just as good as this one but the Compulator is better built and that made the difference for me. The jacks on the Aphex are connected to the board and not the outer case like the Compulator.

incubus2432 · Post by **incubus2432** » Mon Apr 30, 2007 6:49 pm

I wasn't a big fan of the Aphex unit but do really love the Compulator....worth every penny IMO. I'm glad my recommendation payed off for ya' Mark.

keb · Post by **keb** » Tue May 01, 2007 2:39 am

The Punch Factory is true bypass. A quick way to tell if a pedal is true bypass is to put it in your signal chain without any batteries or power source. If you get signal through the pedal while it's unpowered when you click to bypass, it's true bypass. I just tried this with my own Punch Factory to confirm this.