Avalon 747 - what do you use yours for?

[Simon Lomax]

I know some people love 'em and some people hate 'em but for those who use the 747 what do you use it for mainly?

Drum comping, guitars, mix buss . . . . ? And does anyone use it with the tubes switched out of the signal path?

Simon

[Innominandum]

I've seen people say that Avalon compressors aren't aggro enough. Do they mean that it's transparent or that it's not doing it's job "properly?"

[Simon Lomax]

I think that people mean that the compressors attack time isn't really fast enough for some applications.

The compressor can be transparent and subtle, but if you want to you can play with the release time and side chain + you drive it you can make the sucker pump

Si

[diaspora]

i've read alot of the posts referring to the 747...i've had mine for a number of years and have to say that, while i've occasionally considered replacing it, it's quite a useful piece...i think it gets a bad rep as it isn't always an 'immediate' payback

while u can make it pump like mad, it can also be mistaken for not doing anything at all as it's really quite smooth...i find that there isn't really a middle ground...the sidechain is the secret to really ruling it and i really don't feel i've come close to mastering all of its personalities...

in the right hands, i do believe it's quite a powerful piece...

i occasionally use it for my 2-mix and tend to use it for rather aggressive drum compression as well...hip hop and soul material as well as more uptempo club material

[Simon Lomax]

I think you hit it that it's subtlety can be mistaken for not doing anything. I find that the sidechain is usually always essential to make it work the way I want it to, but you've got to love the eq on the thing - it justs sounds fantastic IMHO and what it does for drums is phenomenal!

Si

[Liam Judah]

As a newbie (in terms of using real gear) it is my first "real" dedicated comp. I use it on everything (tubes in)... synths/samples on the way in, and for the stereo mix on the way out. Much better than the cheapo gear I had used prior to getting it. I haven't used enough high end gear to compare, but for what I do (hip hop) its been great for me so far. The eq is really cool too.

[TheTruffleKing]

However they do it, the tubes really help the vocals stand out when you switch them into the signal path.

[ron florentine]

i use the 747 in series with my Al Smart C2 comp on the 2 bus it is sweeeeeeeet!!!!

Ron Florentine
Soundswest Studio

[WunderBro Flo]

my 747 is used for tracking vocals and bass in tube mode, compressor is really nice for tracking, very inaudible if set right, a good leveling comp without too much character coloration (like a 1176 for example). the eq is killer. acoustic guitars sound a bit better to me without the tube path. for 2 buss I use the sidechain eq to dip the bass and the mids around 1.5kHz, long attack, fast release and GR of 1-2dB, works well, tube signal path again, adds life to the mix. michael wagner uses it across the stereo mix as well just for the tube path....

rock on,
pat

[guru007]

Been using the 747 on a film score recently and getting fantastic results (tube mode) on Flutes that sounded too shrill without it.
Didn't have too much time to fiddle with it, but just a little tweaking resulted in a wonderfully full sound on an instrument that would have been ducked too low otherwise.
Very pleasantly surprised.

guru007

[TheTruffleKing]

Oh, and it's the best sounding thing I've got for tracking keys/synths, even though it's not a preamp/DI...weird.

[blackcatdigi]

Originally posted by WildCowboys
michael wagner uses it across the stereo mix as well just for the tube path....

You sure about that?

Maybe Michael can expound...

[WunderBro Flo]

yeah, i just read an interview with michael a couple of days ago, i think it can also be found in the faq´s on his website....he likes to use the 747 across the mix just to run it through the avalon´s tube signal path ( he does not use it´s comprssion on the mix buss, he mixes and compresses subgroups). he said he likes what it does to the midrange.

rock on,
pat

[blackcatdigi]

Interesting.

Not to be contradictory, but I've never noticed it in his racks.

Could be either an old interview or very new...

Maybe MW will clear this up after the WS session, today.

[WunderBro Flo]

...hope i am not mixing him up with another famous engineer/producer...let me do some research on the net...i´ll be back...

[WunderBro Flo]

sorry, my apologies - I ment michael brauer, not michael wagener!

rock on,
pat

[TheTruffleKing]

The article you're referring to was in TapeOp #37:

Q: " What about stereo mix compression?

A: I try to leave that alone. I've already been doing the internal stuff. What I might do is an Avalon 747. If I'm working on Pro Tools stuff, I'll try to introduce a certain warmth back into it. There are certain things about the signature of Pro Tools that no matter what you did, or who the engineer is, keep coming back and you hear that. There's a button on the 747, the tube button. What it does is add this certain tone to the lower midrange that is fantastic, and it has a graphic equalizer at the end. What I might do when I'm done mixing, when I feel like everything is great, is pop this into it and see if I can make it sound better.

Q: So even though it's a compressor, you won't necessarily run it through the compression?

A: There is no compression going on.

Q: But the compressor's in?

A: If the blue light turns on-yes, because it has to go through that tube. But the blue light will only light up occasionally. You'll barely see the meter going. Then I'll play with the overall EQ to see if it sounds better, and, it it doesn't, I'll leave it off."


I think it's the "blue light" that gives the 747 the cool tone!!

Michael Brauer also is pretty fond of the ES-8.

[Shabo]

If the blue light turns on-yes, because it has to go through that tube. But the blue light will only light up occasionally. You'll barely see the meter going. Then I'll play with the overall EQ to see if it sounds better, and, it it doesn't, I'll leave it off."....xzactly!!!!!!!!! thats how we do it...and the EQ is great

[Kestral]

Is a good backup paperweight for when the Drawmer 1960 is already being used as a doorstop

[Shabo]

yup...avalon is a keeper,,,thumbsup

[JimNdave]

On just about everything (but only to taste)


JimNdave

[guru007]

Originally Posted by crossroad

Hi Guru,

The flutes you did on the filmscore, where those samples or real flute recordings?

Definitely samples for that particular film.
If they were my own recordings, I would have had more latitude to bring in a ribbon mic or a tube pre to tame things.
But even still, the tube section of the 747 softens the tone nicely and the slow comp actually works well in that application.

Best,
guru007