Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Has anyone used the Diamond Compressor. If you have I would be interested in your comments.

It was demo'd at the Toronto Confluence. Dean immediately went out & bought one. It sounds really good, great high end boost, crisp & clean.

How much do these run for in Toronto? And where can I git one?

Here's some info:

http://www.musictoyz.com/guitar/pedals/diamond.php

Mick, 12th Fret carries them. Also, Dave who was at the confluence was somehow involved with them. I think they cost around $175, but I could be really wrong about that.

Thanks! I gotta wait until after the seasonal holiday known as the Twelve Daze of Shopping before I can go pick one up.

Proudly engineered & made in Nova Scotia!
I have their Fireburst overdrive pedal. Perfect for single coils, you can really dial in the amount of drive.
Sadly, the comp was still in the design stage when I bought my compressor.

Don't think the Diamond has been out as long as the Janglebox. If you do a search on the thegearpage.net you'll find plenty of opinions there with both & others options mentioned.

I was under the impression that the JB is based on the circuitry installed in Roger McGuinns 12 string Rickenbacker on in the '60's.(that's what I've read before on various sites?) where as the Diamond is based on Opto studio compressors & made as a guitar recording pedal that can be used live as well. So the circuitry & ideas are different.

Now I have not read from anyone on here who has heard both compressors or compared them to any other models. I've only heard the Janglebox demo's that's all so I can't really compare them both.

All I know is what a good studio compressor sounds like & for years would not use a pedal even for live use because every pedal compressor I tried was sterile & lifeless & sucked up tone! Guitarists for years have used Studio Compressors on many of the records we have heard.

What makes the Diamond compressor very useful is that it is optimised for guitars during recording & does sound as good as studio compression, in fact it's much easier to use than a studio compressor, we all know how tricky they can sometimes be to set up!. The EQ feature is also very useful & can be bypassed by a switch inside if not needed. (There's also a hi-cut filter switch) It has the warmth & sparkle combined with very low noise & transparency.

Turn the comp level & tone upwards & the diamond of course does The Byrds sound then ease back & it's more versatile for other styles from Funk / Soul to Country chicken picking etc;

The latest ones have a different value comp pot installed which achieves even more squash & sustain, if that's what you're after. I'm still thinking about getting the part to upgrade it myself? Only problem with the Diamond is that you never want to turn it off!

PS. I was wondering when Roger McGuinn got the compressor circuitry installed in his Rickenbacker? As I read that he used a pair of LA2 Optical Compressors in series on the early recordings?

David Love said to mention his name at the Twelfth Fret to get a massive discount. I didn't get to hear the pedal at the TO confluence but it seems like a lot of folks liked what they heard.

Yep.... it was very good, Steve. David did a bit of an A/B with another one (forget the brand) and the difference was quite obvious. The Diamond came out ahead in most peoples' opinions as I recall - a little more 'subtle' perhaps?

Interesting Howard - I wonder if David or Dean could let us know what other pedal was used in the comparison?

I think it was a Keeley he A/B'd. The Keeley is nice & clean with no coloration of tone, so if the Diamond is better, then it's really good.

From listening to the demo on the Diamond page,
yes, it has a good tone...but as soon as i hear
it click on, i'm also hearing noise. The
JangleBox i have is _very_ quiet and that's with
the bright setting on ...if you can, try before
you buy

Ah! A Keeley - I think you're right, Kevin. Dean took more interest in the comparison than me... he was in the market for a compressor and I was too busy looking for a drink! The Diamond was impressive 'live', though.... as is my JB.

Hopefully he can chime in soon......

I can personally recommend the Keeley. No noise, no tone change, just compression to the amount dialled in by the user.
As one user described: "Hmmm...a box that does nothing!"