Limiter Enhancer or Compressor

[bluevoodoo]

I just became somewhat interested in pedals. I am looking to clean up my signal before I go to a DI when I play live. I play a fender MIM jazz with an ampeg 450he. I am looking for a good tone for blues/ rock. I like the looks of the boss limiter enhancer and was wondering what kind of sound that would give me compared to just a decent compressor. Is there anything else that would be a good thing to put in my line. I was interested in an EQ, Do many serious players use these? I just dont understand what difference it makes when you have an EQ on the amp, would that just be convience for the sound guy? Would it be worth more money for the limiter enhancer or a compressor around the same price. Any suggestions or info would be appreciated.

[Paulitics]

EQ pedals are nice for added flexibility in tone and are often used to help boost your signal prior to certain effects such as distortion. The are also very helpful when you have multiple basses that you switch between during the show. For instance my friend uses his when switching between a passive Ric and active Stingray. Without it he would have to readjust his amp and other pedal setting to take into account lower output level and less beefy tone of his Ric. With the pedal all he has to do is press(step on) one button.

Compressors can be used for everything from slightly adjusting your dynamics(something that should be transparent) to a full squash of your signal. I suggest you read Bongomania's review page. The link is in his signature.

[bongomania]

Originally Posted by bluevoodoo

I just dont understand what difference it makes when you have an EQ on the amp, would that just be convience for the sound guy? Would it be worth more money for the limiter enhancer or a compressor around the same price.

When buying any tool, it only has "worth" relative to the job at hand. I need to nail some shingles to my roof; would it be worth more money for a crescent wrench or a hammer around the same price?

Check the compression FAQ in my sig. Once you think you've got a handle on what compressors/limiters do, then ask yourself if you need that tool. If you do, then please check out my reviews page.

Similarly, what is EQ for? Is there something about different frequencies of your signal that needs adjusting, either to make it "sound good" or to switch between playing styles, instruments, or sections of a tune? If yes, then you'd want those changes to also go to the PA, right? And be controllable with a footswitch. OTOH maybe you don't need any of that, you just want a consistent clean bass tone going to the PA and to your amp, and you know the amp is just there on stage so you can hear yourself; so in that case you wouldn't want or need a stompbox EQ.

[bluevoodoo]

I have read the reviews but I still don't understand the differences between each one. Is this something that I would have to play around with.. or do they all have the same effect but differ in quality. I want a compressor to keep my signal even before the PA. I am looking for something reasonably cheap but that will help the dynamics of my bass. I thought the boss limiter enhancer seemed good for its price. Would there be any noticable difference between that and a regular compressor?

[bongomania]

Read the FAQ, it's more important than the reviews. Reviews only help once you understand what you're buying. If there is something I left out of the FAQ, please let me know and I'll try to answer it.

[Paulitics]

Originally Posted by bluevoodoo

I have read the reviews but I still don't understand the differences between each one. Is this something that I would have to play around with.. or do they all have the same effect but differ in quality. I want a compressor to keep my signal even before the PA. I am looking for something reasonably cheap but that will help the dynamics of my bass. I thought the boss limiter enhancer seemed good for its price. Would there be any noticable difference between that and a regular compressor?

The difference is mostly in quality. There are a few compressors such as the orange squeeze and its clones which really smash your signal and have a large affect on your tone. These are often used by guitarists. But for the most part compressors are built to be invisible to your tone and merely even out your dynamics which sounds like what you want.


Since you are looking to even out your signal before the PA, you want a stompbox. When you say "is there a noticeable difference between that and a regular compressor," I assume you mean is there a difference between a pedal/stompbox compressor and a rackmount compressor found in most studios. Obviously the answer is it depends on the particular compressor. There are great versions of both. That said the best rackmount compressor is better then the best pedal compressor but it is also much more expensive and targeted for studio use rather than stage use where the difference is much less noticeable if at all. The Boss LMB-3 has a decent reputation around here. Kinda of considered to be pretty good for the money. Below is a list of other compressors which do what you want better than the LMB-3 (according to me/others on this forum).

-BBE Optostomp $100 (the LMB-3 is good for the money, this is great for the money)
-Barge RC-2 $155
-EBS MultiComp $200
-Demeter Compulator $259

I have not personally tried all of these but when I was searching for a compressor these where the ones most highly suggested to me. I tried both the Multicomp and Optostomp next to the LMB-3 and found the LMB-3 to be ok and if it was my only choice it would be fine but the Optostomp was a good deal better(as far as having very little affect on my tone and just controlling my dynamics nicely). The Multicomp was also very good plus it had other features like the tube sim mode.

If it was between those three I think the Optostomp was the best price to quality ratio. So search around the forum, read as much at you can and if possible try them out before buying.

[Crabby]

I have a cheapy rack compressor (Berhinger) and it has way to many knobs and switches on it. No matter how I set it, it doesn't give me what I want, which is a subtle "tightening" of my tone if you will.

I own an Aphex Punch Factory pedal which works much better and works great.

having said that, I found compressor nirvana in my Eden Navigator pre amp with a built in two knob compressor. It sounds absolutely perfect to my ears.

[Templar]

Sounds like you're pretty keen on a Boss. I found the LM-2 to be a bit quieter than the bass-specific LM-2B.

[bluevoodoo]

Im just looking for something somewhat cheap, something dependable, and sounds better than the price hopefully. I dont know, maybe a cheap rackmount? I have an svt 450h head so if i ran a compressor as a preamp, and then went DI after that or the amp, would that be a better solution?

[bongomania]

Have you read the FAQ yet?

[FunkyFrosty]

Originally Posted by bongomania

Have you read the FAQ yet?

I fear the answer is no.....

[bluevoodoo]

ha sorry, christmas, yes i read the FAQ. I was lookin around on ebay and managed to get my hands on an alesis nanocompressor for 50 bucks. Any info on this? It seemed nice in the reviews and for the price. What do you think of this comp.