Do I need a Fatso?????

[Ace'Lo]

What's going on fellow Gearslutz? I was wondering if a Empirical Labs Fatso can help me in my case. I'm recording into Protools HD 2 Accel and I have an Hedd 192 A/D convertor, Lil Freq, DBX 160 and a Distressor(with English Mod). So I'm wondering, with my setup, would I benefit from having a Fatso? Or would it be overkill? Thanks!

[andrewj]

i think you should specify what you wanna improve in your setup? what do you miss in your sound?

[Dan]

No, yes, and yes.

[Ace'Lo]

Originally Posted by andrewj

i think you should specify what you wanna improve in your setup? what do you miss in your sound?

Nothing is actually missing...but I do want the warmth that the Fatso offers. Although I've been told that the Hedd 192 does the same thing. So i'm just trying to make sure I dont have that "sterile and cold" sound they complain about in digital music!

[Dan]

Go for the Telefunken V-76. That'll warm it up!

[TML]

The warmth end of the fatso is cool... like the 192....but it's the de-esser type action that knocks off some of the edge on certain tracks... also the fatso works on the 2 bus to keep random high spikes in check.....the comp is good for certain sources... no control and release,,,,,,per say... just presets......
Tim

[andrewj]

well perhaps some people will dislike my point rightnow but you sound as if you just wanna add something other people like! if you think your sound is already great and you do not miss anything do not add the fatso! if you are sure you miss the characteristics the fatso offers (and make sure it does offer what you want!!!) get it!

this is the only advise someone should give you here! the fatso is a nice tool. 100% clear

do not buy because it is recommended! most of us here are real junkies and would sell their house for some gear. you already have a lot of hot tools in your list!

listen to some tracks here and on the websites of some people from here! some sound amazing and are done with a few waves plugins and a medium class pre and converter! they did the job with their ear and got a fantastic result. your equipment can do a lot, but your ears, too! and you got them for free!!!

[bigbongo]

I have the fatso, and yes it's great [ on some sources, not all ] it's not the total answer to the cold digital thing. I've achieved better results than the fatso by running stuff as a hot signal onto a Denon cassette deck lately. results weren't as hi-fi but were warmer and more 'tapelike'.

[Ace'Lo]

Interesting. So the Fatso would'nt "magically" warm up the digital signal? Cause that's all I'm basically trying to do, although I've been told the Hedd works just fine for that.

[andrewj]

for warming up the rupert neve portico tape unit should be a nice unit, also!

just an alternative!

[u b k]

the fatso doesn't so much "warm" things to my ears as it does "de-edge" them. it'll smooth out the metallic brittle top of an acoustic guitar like no other tool out there. killer of nasty esses, killer of harshness on the top of gnarly sounding overheads, it has the ability to turn icepicks into velvet.

but for thickening the bottom, if i need something warmed, it's gotta be tape and transformer saturation.


gregoire
del
ubk
.

[heyman]

Hey.. when the well runs dry...

Or you need some shelter or a port in the Storm...

[Igotsoul4u]

I get way more use out of the cranesong phoenix plugin then i do my fatso. I actually haven't been able to get anythign out of the fatso that i like which probably has more to do with me, but nonetheless i don't dig it at all. Also seems redundent having a hedd and the fatso.

[Igotsoul4u]

Originally Posted by u b k

the fatso doesn't so much "warm" things to my ears as it does "de-edge" them. it'll smooth out the metallic brittle top of an acoustic guitar like no other tool out there. killer of nasty esses, killer of harshness on the top of gnarly sounding overheads, it has the ability to turn icepicks into velvet.

but for thickening the bottom, if i need something warmed, it's gotta be tape and transformer saturation.


gregoire
del
ubk
.

interesting. this was what i found too with the fatso, but I don't have problems with brittleness to often. I was really looking for bottom end results and i didn't get any.

[Ace'Lo]

Originally Posted by Igotsoul4u

I get way more use out of the cranesong phoenix plugin then i do my fatso. I actually haven't been able to get anythign out of the fatso that i like which probably has more to do with me, but nonetheless i don't dig it at all. Also seems redundent having a hedd and the fatso.

Really? And I have the Phoneix plug in also. Maybe I'm already set and just dont know it yet!

[bigbongo]

... de-edging is a perfect description of what the Fatso does!

Run a Pod thru it or an Avalon 737 with a new U87 and again it'll just round things off for you in a classy 'no twitting around with eq' way.

[olivia_nb]

Originally Posted by Ace'Lo

Maybe I'm already set and just dont know it yet!

yeah, seriously, you have some great gear and plenty of amazing records have been made and are being made with a lot less (in slutty terms).
I personally find the fatso more indispensable now than my distressor. i track a lot through it, but keep in mind a little goes a long way and it really adds up to mush if you over-do it. I have found the perfect place in my chain for it and love it, but that doesn't mean it will work for everyone.
I also find that what most people refer to as "digital harshness" is either poorly eq'd tracks, more accurate representation than they expected, or just hype because 10 years ago digital harshness was more of an issue. I find now I can punch the hell out of my apogee rosetta and it still won't sound harsh (not that I try to).

I'd say try a fatso out, you may love it or leave, just don't buy our hype...

[airmate]

i recently sold my fatso - i bought a studer and a pendulum ocl-2 instead. while i still think the fatso is a cool unit, i wouldn't say it's an "audiophile" piece of gear. in fact it does something strange to the sound which probably has something to do with the vca opamps.

but with the ocl-2 (plus an additional sidechain eq) i have better control of the dynamics. and regarding the studer - it's just the real thing. i haven't heard any tape sim so far that *really* does what good tape can do. and compared to the price of a fatso, a 1/4" studer machine isn't really that expensive...

i never had great results with the fatso on the stereo buss. but i wouldn't hesitate to send my stereo buss through the studer and the pendulum. in fact, that's what i'm doing all the time since i got them...

[effectsnut]

The fatso jr will take the digital edge off your mix or per track. I never use the warmth any higher than 3 and I don’t drive the unit too hard either …One thing it also does that no one has mentioned is that it changes you mix dimensionally and makes it huge wide and tall…I never use the compressor because I don’t like it and the tranny is too bottom heavy for my stuff… The crane song hedd is a totally different animal as far as I’m concerned…great converter but the processing is mediocre don’t go past 3 on that either .its a set it and forget it device for me, nothing spectacular ..I use the fatso and hedd on all my mixes but keep it subtle.. they work great togeather

[airmate]

Originally Posted by effectsnut

…One thing it also does that no one has mentioned is that it changes you mix dimensionally and makes it huge wide and tall…

interesting... i'd much rather say that it makes the mix grainy and processed sounding, even when driven not so hard. this is a characteristic i could live with for a while, but then i decided to go another route (see my post above)...

[effectsnut]

Originally Posted by airmate

interesting... i'd much rather say that it makes the mix grainy and processed sounding, even when driven not so hard. this is a characteristic i could live with for a while, but then i decided to go another route (see my post above)...

grainy? i dont know what your hearing

It's funny how things have a love fest at GS and then fall out of favor later.

I think Im there with the Distressor. I used to love it so much I wanted 5-6 of them. Now, I think having one is enough.

I think from now on, I'm gonna stick to classic stuff (LA2A,1176,160,1073 etc...)

With all of the warmth devices we are really chasing the sound of analog tape. I'm gonna stop chasing and get a 2".

[effectsnut]

Originally Posted by no ssl yet

It's funny how things have a love fest at GS and then fall out of favor later.

I think Im there with the Distressor. I used to love it so much I wanted 5-6 of them. Now, I think having one is enough.

I think from now on, I'm gonna stick to classic stuff (LA2A,1176,160,1073 etc...)

With all of the warmth devices we are really chasing the sound of analog tape. I'm gonna stop chasing and get a 2".

I think these companies should just stop using the words tape emulation and come up with something else...tape is tape

[pigpen]

Lets not forget the next in "tape emulation"...the Pendulum Anamod. Although, I must admit, I really want to hear it.

Back to the Fatso...try it before you buy it. I use it all the time for different things. Never on the 2 Buss, but mostly on tracking...then on the gtr buss during mixing sometimes. I too use it more often than the Distressor at this point.
As far as the Phoenix plug goes, I found myself in the exact opposite boat and sold the Phoenix. I know alot on here love it, I just did not get it. I prefer the MCDSP analog channel myself, but neither are a replacement for the Fatso.

[thearnicasync]

Hiya!

Hey, I was Fatso's biggest fan, but I honestly couldn't afford to have that money tied up in a single piece of gear.

That said, I miss it greatly, and could see snatching another up at a good used price one of these days.

I put that thing through many, many, many paces, and would agree with some of what's been said above, FWIW, and disagree on other points.

I agree that it's too much on the 2 buss. I tried this with a friends relatively sweet and delicate indie acoustic guitar record with saw, banjo...you get the idea...and the fatso crushed it. At all settings. That ain't its gig.

That said, no other compressor (1176, et. al) will do to snare, kick, and guitars what this thing will do. And honestly, if you need more versatile compression, you're a better engineer than I. The genius thing about it is how it truly turns the amount of output from the device into it into another Fatso knob. It really can't be overstated how much you're hitting it decides the amount of Fatso-ness.

Also, this thing was designed with eq in mind, as in making up for the attentuated high freq response with your fancy, smooth, colorful eq's. Oh, how I harkon for a soundelux u195 (bright) into LTD-1 (1073), and into fatso. Seriously, after I lost the fatso, it was back to typical 1073, 1-3 dB will do land. Kinda boring if you ask me. YMMV.

I disagree that el Fatslob will not add thunder in the bottom. I think it does...especially on kick. What it DOES do extremeley well in the bottom is allow to sculpt the low mids. This thing piles on the great mids, and you sculpt to taste. Again, I've never heard a warmer, grittier, more present guitar acoustic or electric guitar sound ever. Period.

Lastly, if you're a samples and drum machine guy, I would think the fatso would be a NO BRAINER. Seriously, run the outputs of your drum machine into it, feel the power, and get out the debit card. That shit ain't going back! :-)

So yeah, I loved the fatso. I'm a project guy, and I couldn't afford to have the $2k wrapped up in it at the time, but soon...maybe...again...relive the glory...of el fatslob.


YMMV, blah, FWIW, blah....

kelly