Yup, it's actually called the Really Nice Compressor. Anyone ever use one? I borrowed one from the local music store and really liked it, but had some specific reservations concerning distortion. I won't go into excruciating detail here, but if any of you guys are RNC fans, you likely are familiar with the distortion issue. Anyway, RNC fans/users please chime in with your thoughts, especially the distortion/release time issue that is documented in the FAQ on the company's website. Thanks!
I was very close to buying one a couple years ago. There is a lot (a ton? a mega-ton!) of positive feedback about the RNC on the net. I'd like to hear some feedback from bassists about it, too. EDIT: Humm... I did a search: http://www.talkbass.com/forum/search.php?searchid=115053 Looks like the users with them are generally quite pleased and consider it to be a modern sound matching units much more expensive.
Cool, Woody! Your search link didn't work for me, but I did a more careful search on my own and came up with more than I did on my first try. [Edit/update: I borrowed another RNC unit from my local music store and this time had NO PROBLEMS with distortion. Could have been a bad first unit, an impedence mismatch because I was plugging the bass straight in the first time around, or some unexplained mystical voodoo. Anyway - I AM IN LOVE! The RNC sounds grrrrrrrrreat! It's almost exactly the sound I had in my head!
Bump -- just because I've fallen instantly and madly in love with my new RNC! All of the stomp box compressors I tried out came up short. A DOD multiband box I tried first was really, really bad. From there I tried an EBS Multicomp, which I was shocked to discover colored the sound way too much for my tastes. Then an Electro-Harmonix Blackfinger, which sounded better than I expected, but was fussy in many ways and still not what I was looking for. Next was an Aphex Punch Factory, which wasn't happening, either. Ahhh... the RNC. Beauty. Bliss. Life is good.
I'm a little late on this but. I really like my RNC I have mine racked at the FOH so our sound guy can tweak accordingly. IMO hard to beat in the price range.
To minimize distortion, extend your release time to 1.0 - 3.0 seconds. This is actually a recommendation on the FMRaudio website. I use mine in the effects loop of both an Eden combo and RBI / Crest / Acme rig.
Thanks, Zoob... but I'm running far shorter release times without noticeable (in a live rig) distortion. My earlier problems (i.e., per my original post) I am attributing to other factors. There may indeed be *some* distortion in my sound, but if it's there at all, it is the type of thing that I'm guessing would only be apparent on a track soloed through studio monitors... I'm just not hearing any problems, just a nicely tamed attack on slap stuff and aggressive fingerstyle.
RNC - I have 2 of them. Great compressor. Very transparent. Excellent for mix-downs, vocals, drums. Not really that good for bass. It doesn't have enough balls. It is too clean in my opinion. The small knobs are difficult to use live. It is very sensitive to small changes and highly interactive. I like a simpler design for live use. I love this thing for studio work, and for working the board in a live setting.
Heehee - sounds like you want something very different from a bass compressor than I do! As a compressor newbie, I can be glad that after testing out a few, I was able to quickly sort out what characteristics I did and didn't like, rather than making that realization after purchasing one - which is the sort of thing that I'm afraid happens to the best of us from time to time... and that reminds me, I oughta put some of my unused toys up in the buy/sell forum!!!
Hmmm... sounds good secretdonkey, sounds like you know what you want. I have a 1773 in my studio, and I like it a lot. I use it for many of the same purposes that BFunk does, and it's also not my favorite compressor for bass purposes (one of the reasons being the distortion you mentioned). I "like" coloration in a bass compressor, as long as it's the right kind. One of my favorite bass compressors is the old Urei LA-4, that one probably gets the most use for this purpose (it sounds great with a B3 too). It's an opto compressor, and it's very easy to use, just a couple of knobs on the front panel. I don't use compression live, I used to, but now I'm more inclined toward the "preservation of dynamics" philosophy. Of course a good compressor is invaluable (maybe even mandatory) in the studio. My arsenal includes several old Urei's (LA-2, LA-4, LA-22, 1176LN), some DBX's (160 and 165A), a Klark-Teknik (DN-504), the RNC, a StaLevel, a Level Devil, and the guts of a Fairchild 660. Mostly I use the LA-4 for bass, and sometimes the DN-504, the others are for different purposes. Anyway, if you ever get a chance to check out some of the vintage units, definitely do so. They're very different from anything you'll find at GC or at your local bass store.
I would disagree. When I initially purchased mine I had some distortion. I blame that on user error. After our sound tech did his magic and explained to me how to set it correctly for Bass Ive experienced no distortion. Sounds Great. Here is a quote from the RNC site regarding distortion in Bass "How do I avoid or reduce the low frequency distortion?" This one's easy: increase the release time until the distortion goes away. (Doing my best Groucho Marx impression: "Does it distort when you do that? Well don't do that!")
