Compressor or High Pass Filter?

[mmbongo]

From what I hear, the Broughton RFE is the bees knees of filter pedals, but with no drop in sight I guess the LP/HP filter will do for now.

I didn't care for the RFE, it changed my tone too much. I lost my nice tight bottom that I liked to dial in with the regular HP/LP pedal so I went back to it. I would say the bees knees in filter pedals is the Messenger Jr....LP/HP pedal with sweepable mids, EQ, and DI!

 

[butterfingers1]

Don’t go to the Broughton Mega Thread, people are just posting bullsh*t there.

Whenever I look there’s photos of really nice breakfast dishes.

Anyway, yes, HPF is a must have. Compressor too (as everyone says the HPF on there is for something else).

I have the Broughton stuff, also the Empress Bass Compressor and Diamond Bass Comp EQ. All good. The Diamond does have a marked warm and round tone colouration. The eq part is surprisingly useful effective and fun to play with. The SolidGoldFX (owner of Diamond) BetaV bass preamp is, to me, the dark, warm, punchy, dirty vintage tubey pedal to get, and not expensive. Pairs well with the Diamond compressor.

 

[groove pump]

I do have an envelope filter, phaser, and Russian Muff in there, but they're not 'always on' pedals.
The Spark is a clean boost (with the gain off) and the WIIO, with a bit of od, kind of fills the sonic corners the Spark doesn't. I also don't use the gain on the eq.


I currently have a line on a few used pedals: A Cali76 Bass, a Keeley Bassist, and the Broughton LPF/HPF (someone actually had a Broughton for sale near me for ridiculously cheap, like $50, but they wouldn't wait a day to meet up with me. Guess they needed their fix right away or something). There's also 1st gen Empress compressor for $125 cad ($95 usd) on CL, but it's too far away to bother.

From what I hear, the Broughton RFE is the bees knees of filter pedals, but with no drop in sight I guess the LP/HP filter will do for now.

I'm also thinking that the HPF is the easy thing to try first. I thought that these were just status symbols being touted by audio snobs until I picked up a Broughton from a local seller and eventually put it to work at a gig in a room that was prone to getting boomy. I was stunned - it worked like magic. Even if I don't always have it plugged in, it's always at the ready just in case.

I can't seem to settle in with using compression, but just a couple weeks ago I got off my duff and picked up a decent one; the Aguilar TLC. A couple other simple comp's in my past have been less than impressive, but I can say that the transparency that folks chirp about in this Aguilar unit is no joke. It leaves my bass sounding like my bass and it's very tough to even tell that it's functioning unless I maybe turn the ratio and attack settings up rather high.

Full disclosure: I generally gig using a GK MB 500 to run a pair of 2x10 cabs and my sound doesn't have PA support with our current setup. This GK head has a built in limiter that can only be switched on or off (no knobs or settings for it). I gig with this limiter switched on and while this head is a remarkably loud 500 watt'er when it wants to be, the limiter does seem to create a soft ceiling to help with keeping my rare volume spikes a little bit less harsh.

It might just be that my off-and-on dabbling with compressors will eventually lead me to a limiter with a couple of controls on it - our pals have already mentioned that Keeley. But whenever I need to get something with my sound under control, that culprit is usually my lowest frequencies running amok in a not-so-good room. The HPF simply trims those away without thinning out anything in the rest of my sound. Love it!!

 

[jthisdell]

14K Bisonic? Does that refer to output of the pickups?

 

[HolmeBass]

I'm not 100% positive, but the HPF on an Empress functions differently than a Cali76 Compact Bass, correct? The Empress is a "side chain" that can be accessed by the TRS 1/8" Y cable. The Cali76 Compact Bass is a through pass for uncompressed signal?

@scubaduba

The Cali is also an HPF applied to an internal side-chain.

So the only difference is the Cali does not have an input to allow you to connect an external signal to the side-chain.

 

[Mike Vee]

I do have an envelope filter, phaser, and Russian Muff in there, but they're not 'always on' pedals.
The Spark is a clean boost (with the gain off) and the WIIO, with a bit of od, kind of fills the sonic corners the Spark doesn't. I also don't use the gain on the eq.


I currently have a line on a few used pedals: A Cali76 Bass, a Keeley Bassist, and the Broughton LPF/HPF (someone actually had a Broughton for sale near me for ridiculously cheap, like $50, but they wouldn't wait a day to meet up with me. Guess they needed their fix right away or something). There's also 1st gen Empress compressor for $125 cad ($95 usd) on CL, but it's too far away to bother.

From what I hear, the Broughton RFE is the bees knees of filter pedals, but with no drop in sight I guess the LP/HP filter will do for now.

I love Russian Muff

 

[DishDive]

I just got the Broughton HPF and I also have the Keeley Bassist Compressor. They are a great 1 - 2 punch to controlling low end. I really love them. I play a Fender P-Bass with flats into a Fender Rumble V3 200 + 112 cab which I've struggled with being too bassy. Not anymore. Love it.

 

[bherman]

Like others have said, I'd start with the hpf and see if that solves your problem. Compressors can be a rabbit hole, ultimately I stopped using one once I started using a hpf and found it to be much more intuitive.

 

[Derek Williams]

Like others have said, I'd start with the hpf and see if that solves your problem. Compressors can be a rabbit hole, ultimately I stopped using one once I started using a hpf and found it to be much more intuitive.

Or maybe you just needed another compressor?

Oh wait

help!

 

[sloppy_phil]

I love Russian Muff

I believe there are better website to explore, for that particular predisposition...

 

[Ellery]

I transitioned from compressor only, to compressor and hpf, to hpf only. But I run it through a sansamp bddi which seems to compress the signal as I usually have the drive around 2 o'clock.

 

[bherman]

Or maybe you just needed another compressor?

Oh wait

help!

View attachment 5216648

 

[MultiScaleMale]

How about a multi-band compressor?

DB-CL (Dual Band-Compressor Limiter) – FEA Labs

 

[butterfingers1]

I'm also thinking that the HPF is the easy thing to try first. I thought that these were just status symbols being touted by audio snobs until I picked up a Broughton from a local seller and eventually put it to work at a gig in a room that was prone to getting boomy. I was stunned - it worked like magic. Even if I don't always have it plugged in, it's always at the ready just in case.

I can't seem to settle in with using compression, but just a couple weeks ago I got off my duff and picked up a decent one; the Aguilar TLC. A couple other simple comp's in my past have been less than impressive, but I can say that the transparency that folks chirp about in this Aguilar unit is no joke. It leaves my bass sounding like my bass and it's very tough to even tell that it's functioning unless I maybe turn the ratio and attack settings up rather high.

Full disclosure: I generally gig using a GK MB 500 to run a pair of 2x10 cabs and my sound doesn't have PA support with our current setup. This GK head has a built in limiter that can only be switched on or off (no knobs or settings for it). I gig with this limiter switched on and while this head is a remarkably loud 500 watt'er when it wants to be, the limiter does seem to create a soft ceiling to help with keeping my rare volume spikes a little bit less harsh.

It might just be that my off-and-on dabbling with compressors will eventually lead me to a limiter with a couple of controls on it - our pals have already mentioned that Keeley. But whenever I need to get something with my sound under control, that culprit is usually my lowest frequencies running amok in a not-so-good room. The HPF simply trims those away without thinning out anything in the rest of my sound. Love it!!

With a HPF running you can even turn up Bass EQ, it’ll boost low end without mud and boom.

Since I use both compressors and HPF/LPF, I find my tone and amp simulator pedals barely noticeable. I have the Broughton SVpre, Scorpion, and SolidGoldFX BetaV. I play more and more without them.

 

[Low Key]

It's hard for me to imagine playing without a HPF. Without one, I am amplifying the nearly inaudible rumble that consumes amp energy, muddies the sound, and can cause speaker excursion. So if I MUST chose between the two, I'd start with a HPF.

That said, compressors are super useful and my next priority after the HPF.

My chain includes the Empress Bass Compressor --> Broughton Messenger. I love this combo. The Empress has a built in side chain, which makes sure the compression circuit can't "see" the lowest frequencies and overly compress the full signal. Then the Boughton includes a HPF, which takes everything and and chops off the low rumble frequencies.

 

[SteC]

I didn't realize so many people use a high pass filter or that that was even a thing. Something to ponder!

 

[Bigbri]

I'm trying to even out the low end on my '67 Guild Starfire. The highs are nice and full, but I get spikes in the lower frequencies due to the 14K output Bisonic, and, (mostly) my own sloppy playing. My JBL K140 cab is also sensitive to too much low end. I use vintage tube amp heads like a Sunn 200S and a Fender Dual Showman.
I'm running into a MXR 10 band eq into a TC Spark Booster and a WIIO clone. While the eq helps, I still want a certain amount of vintage wooly bassiness, but without the spikes.

Although I have zero experience with them, I know compressors like the Cali76 Bass have a HPF, but was thinking I might get the job done with a HPF alone. Or maybe a compressor/limiter like the Keeley Bassist.

I've never really liked compressors but I love the HPF in my WD800. If you just want to get rid of the extra subs just cut everything off at 25hz and your good to go. sounds great.

 

[Maxi Funkl]

Don’t go to the Broughton Mega Thread, people are just posting bullsh*t there.

Hater LMAO

 

[sloppy_phil]

I didn't realize so many people use a high pass filter or that that was even a thing. Something to ponder!

It's (for me) largely about protecting my speakers from overworking. Using a sub octave is a big part of my sound, and that sends a massive sine wave signal to my cab. Plus sometimes I play gigs where the cab is *just* on the threshold of being too quiet (mostly outdoors), so I have to run my amp's level a little higher than usual. The speakers are only rated down to 40-45Hz, so I use an HPF to roll out the stuff it isn't capable of producing anyways. Prevents any accidental damage to the speakers, and lets them put their operational capacity into only producing frequencies they can handle, increasing their efficiency.

On my miniature touring/fly board, when I'm using only backline, I don't bother with an HPF. The amps are always big/loud enough that I'm not worried about speaker damage, and pedalboard real estate is at a premium!

 

[Egg250]

I'm trying to even out the low end on my '67 Guild Starfire. The highs are nice and full, but I get spikes in the lower frequencies due to the 14K output Bisonic, and, (mostly) my own sloppy playing. My JBL K140 cab is also sensitive to too much low end. I use vintage tube amp heads like a Sunn 200S and a Fender Dual Showman.
I'm running into a MXR 10 band eq into a TC Spark Booster and a WIIO clone. While the eq helps, I still want a certain amount of vintage wooly bassiness, but without the spikes.

Although I have zero experience with them, I know compressors like the Cali76 Bass have a HPF, but was thinking I might get the job done with a HPF alone. Or maybe a compressor/limiter like the Keeley Bassist.

A compressor and HPF accomplish separate actions. The HPF only allows frequencies above the limit to pass through and be heard. The compressor specifically restricts signal levels above the threshold from passing through.

I use a HPF to keep the low frequencies that my cabinet can't reproduce from being pushed through.

I use the compressor to keep the transient spikes from hard plucked notes from overshadowing everything else. I think for your purposes, a compressor would suit you best.