Compressor for recording Bass

loakky · #1 03-02-2011, 03:34 PM

Hi there

I was going to ask this question on a recording forum then I thought to hell with it. You guys would probably be the best bet to present this question to.

I have a Fender Jazz Bass which I am about use to play some slap bass on in a recording. I'm fairly new to this style of playing. Just playing through my recording combo (a modest Fender Rumble 15), I find myself backing off a little due to the velocity of some of my slaps and pops feeling as though I may damage the combo's speaker. I cannot turn the volume down to compensate for this as the performance will end up a bit low in volume overall which is not good for recording.

I'll be going into my preamps with 3 signals. One with a Countryman Type 85 DI (clean signal) so that I can reamp this later if need be. This DI splits the signal.

The DI signal will pass through one of my Dbx 160x comps on th eway in with a light dusting just to limit any wayward peaks. I'll be micing my Fender Rumble 15 combo with an EV-RE20 and perhaps an SM57 or SM7b. My main concern is my slaps and pops bursting the speaker on my Fender Rumble 15.

Can you recommend any quietish compressor pedals to put in the chain between my DI and my amp input? Something fairly quiet and transparent would be good.

Thank

Loakky

**TXLawDawg** · #2 03-02-2011, 06:03 PM

Quiet? Transparent?

You're talking about the Aguilar TLC. In all fairness, I just got one. But, I did extensive research before deciding.

Chasarms · #3 03-03-2011, 10:25 AM

The Markbass Compressore is VERY quiet. It is an excellent compressor all around as is the aforementioned TLC.

The pros of the TLC, IMO, would be the size and power demands.

The pros of the MB would be the extended tweak-ability of the controls.

The TLC is more transparent than the MB, but the warming, darkened character (it's very subtle) of the MB is very pleasant.

silky smoove · #4 03-03-2011, 12:30 PM

Rothwell Love Squeeze is what I use.

When I bought mine, Bongo had it listed as the most transparent and quietest comprsesor he had reviewed on Ovnilabs. I haven't checked back recently, but I would guess it still holds that title. It's a really wonderful compressor if you want subtle compression and nothing else. That sounds like what you're after. If you're hoping the compressor will add a little something to your tone, I would look elsewhere.

etoncrow · #5 03-03-2011, 12:33 PM

Here is a link to Bongomania's extensive and very educational compressor reviews:

http://www.ovnilab.com/

loakky · #6 03-13-2011, 02:57 PM

Hey guys

Sorry I didn't replied sooner. I forgot I posted this here. Must have been the beer.

Thanks for the suggestions. I really appreciate it. There's still a bit of time before I need a compressor so I'll be researching your suggestions.

Thanks for this. I really appreciate your help.

Loakky