Optical Compressor preferences .....

I think you would really like and appreciate the Doc Lloyd Photon Death Ray.

The Doc Lloyd pedal has been a little hard to come by, but I think he's got more time on his hands with COVID19...I believe batches were released the past two weekends. So, I'm guessing there will be more to come soon.

Joe Meek vc6

Just need a larger pedal board and 110v...

I’m enjoying the UT&T Lab.
I like the simplicity of it.

Never had the opportunity to try an actual Pete Cornish OC-1. But I recently found and built what purports to be a clone of it (with some extra features) that I’m very happy with. I posted a bit about earlier in this thread. It’s by Aion Electronics and called the Oceanid compressor.

It’s not available as a full kit from them. Or at least not as yet. They just sell the board and the build documentation. So you’ll need to source your own parts for it. But if you’re handy with a soldering iron and have some electronics building experience it’s a fun build.

I wouldn’t recommend it as a first project - or maybe even a second project - because there are a lot of parts involved and the board is pretty densely packed. It’s not super difficult. I mean I successfully built one so it can’t be that hard. However, you need to be methodical and patient when assembling this one. Because it would be a nightmare to troubleshoot if you borked something during assembly. So it’s really wise to get this puppy right the first time.

That said, it’s a very rewarding project to tackle IMO. And a really nice “always on” type of compressor to have on your board or for your project studio.

If you just want to buy something and start playing, you can’t go wrong with the Union T&T LAB. That’s an awesome sounding OC. And not priced so high that it’s in the nosebleed range either.

The earlier recommendation someone made about the Doc Lloyd Photon Death Ray is also spot on. Sweet optical compressor. A little hard to get right now. And its recent scarcity due to the new limited production schedule has triggered some attempts at price gouging lately. I wouldn’t pay a premium for one. But if you can find one in excellent to mint condition close to its original $170 price tag then I’d call it a good deal and worth considering.

Luck!

The Union LAB is a fantastic compressor. Very very similar to an LA3. Fantastic on bass. Its one of my all time favorite comps.

Another one that actually sounds really fricken good(especially for the price), is the Ampeg Opto Comp.

AMJBASS said:

The Union LAB is a fantastic compressor. Very very similar to an LA3. Fantastic on bass. Its one of my all time favorite comps.

Another one that actually sounds really fricken good(especially for the price), is the Ampeg Opto Comp.

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I’ll second that. It’s voiced a little on the “darker toned” side to my ears. But that’s no bad thing IMO when it comes to bass. And it’s a real bargain at $129 new most places.

This is one of those unfussy (is that a word?) compressors like the Ovnifx Smoothie that’s handy to have around as a “grab & go” compressor because it’s easy to dial in, virtually impossible to make yourself sound bad while using it, and just sounds good.

Lots to like for small money.

I have the FEA Optifet and really like it. It's very adaptable and the sidechain EQ is useful with some basses.

I use a Warden for gigs. It kind of makes me sound wider and less processed. I use it for just a touch of compression to bring out the nice stuff the string is giving me. It takes 9v which I needed because I use a battery for power but I'm very happy with it.

This one... I love mine!
https://www.compressorpedalreviews.com/post/mozztronics-co-2-opto-comp-review

Top choice for compressors are
Fealabs
Orgin
La2a clone..

But if you playin dub.. Boss lm2 or lm-2a

And from your list
Pc2a because that's got mojo
Or
Bye opto comp for cheap basic compression

40Hz said:

I’ll second that. It’s voiced a little on the “darker toned” side to my ears. But that’s no bad thing IMO when it comes to bass. And it’s a real bargain at $129 new most places.

This is one of those unfussy (is that a word?) compressors like the Ovnifx Smoothie that’s handy to have around as a “grab & go” compressor because it’s easy to dial in, virtually impossible to make yourself sound bad while using it, and just sounds good.

Lots to like for small money.

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Aidenn7 said:

I believe it's tuned to be a darker la2a..​

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Thx! Didn’t know that.

Don’t own nor have any sort of regular access to an LA-2A. But that is one very highly regarded compressor. So if Ampeg is able to deliver even a somewhat similar vibe to a legendary $3K+ studio comp for less than 1/20th the price, that can only be a good thing.

I’m really loving the PC 2A. Simple and easy to use. Don’t forget you can set the attack and knee via inside trim pots.

I used to have the Cali 76. Kind of miss it now though.

duncmill said:

I have the FEA Optifet and really like it. It's very adaptable and the sidechain EQ is useful with some basses.

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+1 On the Opti-FET.