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why is there no 1176 compressor in a pedal...

JohnDavisNYC

JohnDavisNYC

Jan 11, 2008
1,373
155
45
Brooklyn, NY
www.thebunkerstudio.com
Disclosures
Endorsing Artist: Aguilar, D'Addario
#1
seriously.

how has one of the most badass classic compressors for bass NOT had any stomp box clones made, or at least attempted? give me input, output, attack, release, and a 5 way switch (yes, include the all buttons mode)... and an LED bar meter for gain reduction.

that's all i ask for.

john
 
#2
I'm not a compressor expert by any means, but this one has big input and output transformers. So a stompbox would either have to do away with them, in which case you might lose some of what you like about the sound, or the box would have to be huge and nobody would buy it. If you didn't think the transformers were giving you any of the color of this comp that you like, then you could go transformerless and it would be a reasonable thing to do.
 
#3
JohnDavisNYC said:
that's all i ask for.
Click to expand...
Of course I agree with you wholeheartedly. Sebatron made one, but he gave up after building the prototypes because he got frustrated trying to source the right power supply for non-Australian customers. And his business in rack gear is sufficiently busy that he hasn't felt the need to focus his time on the pedal market.

But if someone did it up properly, I'd be all over it. :)
 
#4
hmmm.. truth about the trafos, but i don't think that they are a huge part of the sound, at least in terms of what would make it great in a pedal form... it's really about the controls and metering... i need to check out the maxon cp9+ (i think that's the name) since it's kind of a dbx160, it seems, but again... no meters...

i just love the sound of a great compressor only pulling back like 2-5db... and with pedals, there is no way to tell how much you're doing in gain reduction... yeah, yeah, i know i should just use my ears, but it's nice to be able to know what you're doing and what you like...

just a random rant.

john
 
#10
I think if you were going to build an analog clone, you'd really have to build a somewhat original design that simply mimicked the features of the 1176. Making something similar to the 1176 circuit run off of low voltage would be tough. I think the power supply has a bigger effect on the sound than the tranies in this case.
 
#12
I disagree about the trannies making minimal difference. I have been carefully comparing some high-end DI's, and at least from my perceptions it seems like the trafo's are a massive part of the tone. I've owned a couple of DI's that used trafos and no tubes, and they sounded just as fat and colorful as the tube ones. And although this is just speculation, I think the gargantuan output trafo in the REDDI is a key part of its sound--or they wouldn't have used something that inconveniently big.

I've exchanged a few emails with the guys from Old World Audio, and they like their product a lot of course, but they freely agree that the main thing their pedal offers is the release characteristics of the LA2A--and not much else.
 
#13
Not a pedal, but a distressor would still not be too bulky, especially if you rig was racked anyway. They are true bypass as well, if EL would just make a footswitch it would be pretty cool. I thought purple audio made a 500 series module of an 1176 style comp, if you could cram it in a 500 module, you could certainly cram it in a pedal. a 700 dollar pedal, but a pedal none the less.
 
#16
Mingus Addict said:
Keep in mind that a 500 series module does not have a built in power supply. The power supply is built into the rack, and is usually much larger than the module itself.
Click to expand...

true. But the power supply in a lunchbox is the size it is and provides power for the whole thing. Even if the enclosure had to be the size of one of the Moog pedals that would still be pretty cool.
 
#17
bongomania said:
Of course I agree with you wholeheartedly. Sebatron made one, but he gave up after building the prototypes because he got frustrated trying to source the right power supply for non-Australian customers. And his business in rack gear is sufficiently busy that he hasn't felt the need to focus his time on the pedal market.

But if someone did it up properly, I'd be all over it. :)
Click to expand...

if he's in, i'm in.
 
#19
For sure. Having designed some digital effects myself, I agree completely, but sometimes what people hear is influenced by what they expect to hear, if you get what I'm saying. So if anybody were to make such a thing (and it wouldn't be me, so there's no COI issue here), I think a lot of people would be turned off before they ever heard it.
 

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