What compressor are you using ? Why?

[Corbusier]

I play a Fender Jazz bass through a TF210V and Trickfish .5k amp. I’m about to purchase a compressor.

Please recommend a compressor or tell me which ones to avoid.

Thank you for your time.

 

[GMC]

Source Audio Ultrawave, snappy compressor saved to patch 2. Expression blends in a light overdrive.

 

[crguti]

what do you expect from a compressor? what are you trying to achieve?

 

[Zbysek]

EBS Multicomp. Sounds good, it is versatile due to its "Mode" switch...

 

[el murdoque]

Depends on what you want the comp to do.
I use an Origin Effects Cali76 Compact Bass and I love it.
I did own an Aguilar TLC and did not get along with it because I only bought it because the internet told me every bassist needs a compressor. I did not get along with it. One of the main reasons was that it has no visible way of telling you if it's doing anything.

If it is your first compressor, I'd recommend you get one with LED metering that will clearly show you what's going on. You should have at least a status LED that tells you something like 'unit on, not yet active / slight compression happening / heavy compression happening / TURN DOWN' Better are more LEDs


I also recommend that you get a quality unit. Why? The comp is a popular place to introduce floor noise into your chain. Since it does gain reduction, it needs makeup gain to keep the signal at unity and that needs to be done by quality components to keep the noise out.


A good starting point is the big compression thread here and the ovnilab website. Find a silent unit with good metering where the description appeals to you and get going.

 

[Smurf-o-Deth]

To answer the questions posited in the thread title, I use the Doc Lloyd Photon Death Ray, because it makes every bass I own sound better (it very much is a tone-enhancement sort of comp), while providing enough squeeze to keep everything even. It also has parallel compression and can be run at 18v for lots of headroom (which I need). It doesn't offer a lot of control over the compression, but I don't find myself ever wanting more from it. It's always on my board and always turned on.

To answer the questions in the original posting will require more information, as prompted by @crguti above.

 

[MynameisMe]

I've had the original Empress compressor, very good.
The Diamond bass compressor, very good.
A not so good Tech 21 compressor.
I am now running a Darkglass Hyper Luminal compressor, excellent.
I do not like large pedals. Many compressors are huge.
Read the reviews.
Buy one and try.
Half the time I wonder if I actually need one.

 

[superheavyfunk]

I’ve gone thru a ton of compressors over the years. Almost none of the ones that I’ve used have had led meters on them and I can’t say I’ve ever cared, but that’s just me. Just seems like an unnecessary expense to me.

Anyway, for a long time I thought I wanted transparency in a comp but over the years I’ve discovered that for my uses/taste, the opposite is best. With that said, my three fave comps - which I own and use - are the Fairfield Accountant, the Joe Meek FloorQ, and the FEA Opti-Fet. All are optical and offer varying levels of “character,” which I find useful and enjoyable. I landed here after playing something like 15 compressors over 7 years or so… you should be prepared to potentially find yourself dissatisfied with your first compressor and be willing to try many more as time goes on

 

[BLDavis]

Many hours of good info to be found in this thread:
Testing Compressors: Cali, Smoothie, Empress, Diamond, Keeley, FEA, Darkglass, Doc Lloyd, JHS & more

Remember the old saying, a journey of a thousand compressors begins with the first one. Or something like that.

As for me personally, and what I want/need a compressor to do, the Doc Lloyd PDH has it. The Diamond Bass Comp is a very close second.
B.

 

[2saddleslab]

Very happy w/ the Ampeg Opto Comp. I adjust to very minimal settings and it brings the bass "out front" and sets it perfectly in the band mix.

 

[Corbusier]

what do you expect from a compressor? what are you trying to achieve?

ive got good sounds/tone coming from the new amp.

I’m mainly trying to keep a consistent volume with each note played, and the new amp is much better at this than my old one.

 

[FronTowardEnemy]

Right now I’m running a Dark Glass Hyper Luminal.

I have it dialed in to be tight and punchy, just the way I like it.

 

[danster]

I use the MXR M87 with good results

 

[WG Plum]

Whenever Aguilar starts shipping them, I will be using a DB 599. Doesn't look like Ovni's reviewed it yet. I had an OG Diamond Bass Comp, and it was excellent, but more of a tone enhancer. It added a bit of a percussive kick to notes.

 

[Jrussblues]

I run the empress compressor because it doesn’t really color my sound and it has an led readout to show me what’s going on. Does a fantastic job of evening out volume from note to note/slap to finger style, etc.
More knobs than I like on a pedal but actually pretty easy to get a good sound out of.

 

[Polfuste]

Kelley Bassist. The only pedal i always put between bass and amp. I can't describe it by words, but this thing add some precision, or clarity, .. the I-don't-know-what which add a cherry on the already delicious cake, without damaging taste. And the easiest pedal to set up i never had.

 

[BTBOTTOM]

I’ve tried many many comps. Use to be I needed two. One for recording and one live. I’m sold on the Empress as my only one. Really great at enhancing higher end notes while not squashing the bottom end. Almost feels like a nice eq and boost that limits the overplayed notes. The blend knob makes it all extremely versatile. Honestly perfect for every instrument. Thats my two cents.

 

[GreyBeard]

I use a Boss limiter enhancer. I leave it on moderate limit until it is time to slap and then I twirl up the enhancer to 50%. It gives me a nice slap tone with any of my basses. It does not turn up my soft notes or add sustain like a compressor. It only tames down spikes which is all I need.

 

[Low Down Brown]

Whirlwind Bass OC is a great one. It's simple to use and adds some girth to the sound.

The Becos Stella is another fantastic comp. It can do colored or transparent and has a nice punch to it. It also has fantastic metering and TONS of tweaking options.

+1 more for the Doc Lloyd PDR too. It just makes every bass sound better. Nice and punchy with simple controls.

EQD The Warden is really good too. It has some tone magic happening inside it and very flexible/useful controls.

Markbass Compressore is an all tube comp with tons of tweaking options and nice, tubey, punchy tone.

If you have the $$$ to drop, the Effectrode LA-1A or the PC-2A are phenomenal. Great optical compressor circuit and tube tone for days.

 

[JazznFunk]

My MarkBass Compressore (original model from around 2009/2010) is my absolute favorite outboard pedal-style compressor, mainly because it's one of the few compressors in that style where the tube actually does the compression. It's a beautiful, natural, punchy compressor that sounds good even at extreme settings. That said, it's BIG in terms of its physical size, and hard to squeeze onto a pedal board if that's your need. I looked for an alternative that still sounded good but had a smaller footprint, and a fellow bassist suggested the Seymour Duncan Studio Bass Compressor pedal. I really dig the multi-band options and the blending capability, and it's warm and punchy without being overbearing at most settings. I highly recommend either.