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Ampeg Opto Comp

laklandplayer

laklandplayer

Jul 10, 2001
1,286
1,995
USA - Memphis, TN
#1
On impulse, I ordered one for $99.00 from AMS and got it today.
I just finished putting it through its paces and I am quite impressed, especially at this price point. It is a little bit bigger and taller than a Boss, but not much and the finish is a beautiful pearl white with no flaws. I installed a 9V battery and the interior looks very good. The pedal has Compression, Release and Level knobs along with a true bypass On/Off switch. It has a purple on/off led and a green led that shows your peak level and it dims according to the release time setting. The compression is very smooth and the range is probably 1:1 to 10:1. The release is very effective and you can set it with a range of short to long. The compressor has a warmth about it but it doesn't really color the sound and I don't detect any loss of low or high end. I hear no breathing or pumping of the signal, even at extreme settings. It has very little residual noise when engaged but am getting a pop when I engage the footswitch (which may be a power supply issue). The switch doesn't feel very solid, but in my use, the pedal will be "always on" so it's not a problem. My personal gold standard for an optical compression pedal is my $250.00 Whirlwind OC. And while the Ampeg does not have all of the functionality of the OC, it compares favoribly for the one thing it does. The Whirlwind OC is 18V and requires a dedicated power supply so it lives on my big pedalboard. The Ampeg Opto can run on a 9V battery which makes it handy for times when you just need compression on the fly without lugging a pedalboard. All in all I really like the Ampeg Opto Comp and it's a nice addition to my collection along with my Keeley's, dbx and Whirlwind. The Opto Comp is a great little pedal at a competitive price, it's a keeper and worth consideration. Ampeg: Pedals - Opto Comp
 
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#2
I was supposed to get one but this sale of Ampeg to Yamaha has everyone busy with other things for now. How dare they!!! Why can't they drop everything and take care of me? It's so unfair!

To my Ampeg people... That was a joke. Here I'll prove it...

:-)
 
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#3
laklandplayer said:
On impulse, I ordered one for $99.00 from AMS and got it today.
I just finished putting it through its paces and I am quite impressed, especially at this price point. It is a little bit bigger and taller than a Boss, but not much and the finish is a beautiful pearl white with no flaws. I installed a 9V battery and the interior looks very good. The pedal has Compression, Release and Level knobs along with a true bypass On/Off switch. It has a purple on/off led and a green led that shows your peak level and it dims according to the release time setting. The compression is very smooth and the range is probably 1:1 to 10:1. The release is very effective and you can set it with a range of short to long. The compressor has a warmth about it but it doesn't really color the sound and I don't detect any loss of low or high end. I hear no breathing or pumping of the signal, even at extreme settings. It has very little residual noise when engaged but am getting a pop when I engage the footswitch (which may be a power supply issue). The switch doesn't feel very solid, but in my use, the pedal will be "always on" so it's not a problem. My personal gold standard for an optical compression pedal is my $250.00 Whirlwind OC. And while the Ampeg does not have all of the functionality of the OC, it compares favoribly for the one thing it does. The Whirlwind OC is 18V and requires a dedicated power supply so it lives on my big pedalboard. The Ampeg Opto can run on a 9V battery which makes it handy for times when you just need compression on the fly without lugging a pedalboard. All in all I really like the Ampeg Opto Comp and it's a nice addition to my collection along with my Keeley's, dbx and Whirlwind. The Opto Comp is a great little pedal at a competitive price, it's a keeper and worth consideration. Ampeg: Pedals - Opto Comp
Click to expand...
Update: The foot switch pop that I was getting was the result of the power supply that I was using. I switched it out with a a One Spot and now it's fine, no pop.
 
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#4
If like me you favor optical compression for bass, may I suggest trying a Strymon OB.1 Optical Compressor (Bass Mod). That thing is magic. I won't bore you with what I thought of the Whirlwind. I much prefer optical comps for bass and glad Ampeg offers what seems to be a pretty good one.
 
#5
The Strymon is a lot like the Seymour Duncan but with less signal control. I really like Keeley Compressors too, they work and sound great. I own their Pro, GC2 and a Bassist. I also like the GC2 and Bassist because they run on a 9V battery and sometimes I'll only take a compressor if it's just a rehearsal or an easy casual gig. I've tried a lot of optical compressors and I a-b'd a Whirlwind head to head with an LA2A and they were so close it sold me. The 18V adaptor is a bit of a hassle with the Whirlwind but it has tons of headroom. The Opto is good, I've been using it all week on a show that I'm doing and it sounds great. I have noticed that it acts more like a limiter when it is pushed hard, I had to rethink my settings. It runs on a battery and that is good. I do prefer the Keeley for upright and for straight ahead rock and roll on electric, it's a lot tighter and responsive. I like the optical comps for that smooth old school sound.
 
#6
Thought I'd add my 2c to the conversation... I've had the optocomp for about a week now. Lots of character to this pedal - my guitar player commented that it brings the "Ampeg Sound" and I tend to agree. Darkens the tone slightly, but also fattens it up a lot. I love the three knob setup, very easy to dial in. Strangely surprising to me just how useful the Release knob is; I tend to be focused more on the attack with other comps and just default to a medium release setting without much thought. Since this pedal has no attack knob to play with, it got me into trying different release times which was really very illuminating. BTW it has a medium attack that allows transients through which is what I prefer. This might be the best $100 I've spent on a pedal. Have not yet tried it with a full band, but so far like what I'm hearing.
 
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#7
I have got the Ampeg Opto Comp for few days now and concur with most of the above.
The foot switch pop did happen when I turned on the pedal the first time (using 1Spot) but since then never again.
I didn't notice the tone darkening but I guess my bass is already a bit dark itself.
To me it sounds warm and fattening, almost like a transparent Diamond but with a slower attack, adjustable ratio, adjustable input gain (internal jumper, I didn't need to tweak it), more output gain, easy powering and cheaper.
Very satisfying, especially for the price.
Disclaimer: I own and like the Diamond as well, better built quality amongst other.
 
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#9
Yesterday, I traded out my Keeley Bassist with the Ampeg Opto Comp on my pedal board at my church gig. I really like it in this musical setting. I was playing my Cerro 5 with Big Splits and it fattened up my sound and sounded great with a pick too. I experimented with the release knob and found it to be quite effective. Fast release on the rock material and slow release on the ballad, orchestral music. I didn't notice any loss of tone or high end just some warmth like you get from tubes. It must have something to do with how it processes the overtones. I'm very happy with the Opto Comp.
 
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#11
Both are transparent and you don't hear them "work". The Ampeg has a warm, tube quality about it that fattens the sound. I attribute that to it being analog/optical and the way the circuit treats the harmonic overtone series.
The Keeley is essentially a dbx 160 in a pedal. It's very clean, fast, accurate and doesn't change the quality of your tone. They are both great, just in different ways. I liken them to the sound difference between digital recording and analog tape. You need to compare both and decide which one fits what you want to hear. Either way, you won't go wrong.
 
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#13
It depends on the compressor but input gain is usually not a problem.
The Keely has a feature that sets the attack and release automatically depending on the threshold sensitivity. The Opto has a compression, release and level control. Plug in your bass, set the compression level that you want and adjust the release. Use the level control to match the pedal volume so it's the same level as your dry signal when the pedal is disengaged. There are more complicated compressors where you can set the compression type, compression ratio, attack, release, and level. But for bass, these pedals have it pretty well figured out so they are simple to operate on the fly and sound good. Don't overthink it, you will drive yourself nuts.
 
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#14
bassboysam said:
isn't some sort of threshold/input gain setting kind of essential for a comp?
Click to expand...
Nah :D I'll admit it's nice, but I've recently tried to get back into compression and it's kind of nice to take the simple approach...IF the comp gives you what you want. So far I'm 1 for 1 with the comps I've tried. Both are fine but I like the way my LMB-3 works better than my Kokko. Still not using either one onstage, though.
 
#17
JimmyM said:
Nah :D I'll admit it's nice, but I've recently tried to get back into compression and it's kind of nice to take the simple approach...IF the comp gives you what you want. So far I'm 1 for 1 with the comps I've tried. Both are fine but I like the way my LMB-3 works better than my Kokko. Still not using either one onstage, though.
Click to expand...

Seems like with an SVT even at low volumes, I never find the need for compression.
Some of those high horsepower little guys (like GK) seem to be super dynamic.
Of course, compression as an effect is an entirely different subject
 
#18
bassboysam said:
just seems odd that you don't have easy access to set when the comp activates. going to see if anyone has it here to try out
Click to expand...
Yeah, it did look odd to me as well...but like the EBS MultiComp, it seems that the threshold has been carefully chosen as it is reached (on all my passive basses) when the ratio control is somewhere between 2:1 and 3:1, that suits my (diamonesque) needs. But if I want the threshold to be crossed later, I just activate the provided input pad (external switch for MultiComp, internal jumper for Opto Comp). I also suspect the ratio control to have an influence on the threshold on both. In any case that design work perfectly fine (for my needs).
 
#19
Jim C said:
Seems like with an SVT even at low volumes, I never find the need for compression.
Click to expand...

There's some natural compression that takes place in any all tube amp. It's very subtle and very musical. And probably a big reason why so many players like all tube heads. So there's a good chance that little hint of compression an SVT provides is all the compression you'll want or need.

I find compressors very useful once you get a handle on how to use one. And that isn't always intuitive IMO. But I seldom feel the need to use one if I'm plugged into an all tube amp.
 
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#20
40Hz said:
There's some natural compression that takes place in any all tube amp. It's very subtle and very musical. And probably a big reason why so many players like all tube heads. So there's a good chance that little hint of compression an SVT provides is all the compression you'll want or need.

I find compressors very useful once you get a handle on how to use one. And that isn't always intuitive IMO. But I seldom feel the need to use one if I'm plugged into an all tube amp.
Click to expand...

The only problem is, to get tube amps to "compress" you have to drive them at a very high level to near or at distortion level. That's why optical and tube compressors are great, you can get that smooth musical sound at workable levels. The Ampeg Opto and Whirlwind OC are two good examples of Optical compression. The Whirlwind OC is American made, 18 Volt and has tons of head room. It's operation is switchable between compression or limiting and it is the closest thing to an LA2A I've ever heard in a pedal. It is a well made, high premium pedal, but it's about 3X's the price of the Ampeg. I'm really impressed by how good the Ampeg Opto sounds, especially for its reasonable price. I'm sure Ampeg took the SVT sound into consideration when they designed the OptoComp.
 
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