I gotta say, I am now a HUGE fan of HCL. In every test, it was one of my top 2 choices, but never a "numer 2" choice as I liked both very much.
The only pre and compressor I decidely did NOT like, were the 72 pre and the 1176. That really surprised me.
I just want to say thanks a ton for this little test, too. I've never been one to trust gear based soley on reputation, name or price... I prefer to trust my ears in a blind test, and posts like these make it possible to do just that. Yes, there are a ton of variables that could be affecting this or that blah blah blah, but this gives enough of an idea for one to make a purchasing decision I think, so thanks again.
I would really like to see (hear) similar tests with with some FMR gear thrown into the mix. I think most people agree that they are an amazing value considering the quality, but just how do they stackup to say, oh I don't know, HCL???
HCL, you guys rock! So do you, Lowswing!