Exciting sounding compressors for mixing

[vernier]

Mixing to tape is the compression I like.
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[SoZo]

Originally Posted by vernier

Mixing to tape is the compression I like.
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Man, I cant believe the thickness and presence and glue it adds to drums ! One day...

[SoZo]

What about 500 series, worth it to get into them due to the lunchbox chassis cost and the offerings of compressors in a 500 series format or just stay 19 inch rack ?

[SoZo]

Also, are the FMR 6A that good or are they sibilant and well... transformerless boring

[andychamp]

The Elysia Xpressor can do some VERY fun things.
It's available in API500 format or 19"/1u. The latter has external sidechain access.

[Retinal]

+1 on the Xpressor, while is not one of the
most colored comps it does things no other comp does
Retro comps are cool
API 2500, 525 and 527,
1176s
Crane Trakker
Zener Limiter
the lil RNLA has a lovely color and it's a no-brainer for the price
and I'll throw in some weird stuff like DBX 163X and Valley Dynamite,
Level-Or even if not really a compressor

[salomonander]

haha...now here you go. never ask for gear advice on gearslutz. worst thing to do. everybody throws in what they bought recently. according to this thread you basically need most compressors ever made :-) welcome!
i guess the 1176 suggestion is a good one though. still, get one - use it for few months and then decide what else you need.

[SoZo]

Originally Posted by salomonander

haha...now here you go. never ask for gear advice on gearslutz. worst thing to do. everybody throws in what they bought recently. according to this thread you basically need most compressors ever made :-) welcome!
i guess the 1176 suggestion is a good one though. still, get one - use it for few months and then decide what else you need.

2x 1176 in the rack is a must have... I agree.

[RoundBadge]

character and/or attitude:
dbx 160 vu's.still kind of affordable.
api 525
standard audio levelors.
inovonics 201
spectrasonics 610

[The Famous Yard]

For character and musicality, Buzz Audio SOC is great. Lovely on vox, fantastic on bass and acoustic and can be pushed hard for dirty. Btw I have a 5043 as well which I love in a completely opposite way. These two do most things between them.

Also LA4, distressor. I quite like the Drawmers too, in fact the LX20 was great on drums and pretty cheap these days if you can get one.

[gouge]

i'd add the dbx 160sl to the list of things to try.

it doesn't get much love though round here.

it's excellent on vocals, evens out vox nicely and adds weight.
in limit mode it makes a very good parallel drum bus comp, stuff sounds huge.
also great tracking comp only just touching stuff like drums as stuff sounds better after going through the dbx,

urei la-12 is very good on bass guitar and some people like it for vocals also. (i use the dbx on vox so haven't tried the la-12 there) the la-24 probably better as it has freq dependant functions.

my fav use for the drawmer 1968 is guitar buss.

what i haven't used is an 1176 so take all of the above with that in mind. that said the dbx will never leave the room.

the 1178 is supposed to be killer also. that, the daking fet2 and the orban 418a are all on my want list.

[Slikjmuzik]

Originally Posted by gouge

my fav use for the drawmer 1968 is guitar buss.

What is it about what this piece does on guitars that you like? What kind of sound is it that you dig for guitars? Would it work well for Daughtry/Nickelback type rock or modern pop/rock like All-American Rejects?

[mindkontrolle]

Originally Posted by schmuck

Since almost every compressor in history has been mentionned already, I would not only like to throw in a +1 for the aurora compressor

Not at the beginning, during the early posts there was an actual consensus.

Some of the vintage comps suggested that don't have a reissue made yet may be very hard to find, could be troublesome once obtained, and will invariably have added expenses of refurbishing or recapping... I know because all my comps are vintage 50's, 60's and 70's.

[kcmoonshine]

What, did the guy just win the effin lottery?!
"get a couple of these, and a few of those, oh, and you should also get one of these"
$20,000 later he's got all the best hardware comps that money can buy.
Ah, im just jealous that i cant afford all these pieces.

[gouge]

Originally Posted by Slikjmuzik

What is it about what this piece does on guitars that you like? What kind of sound is it that you dig for guitars? Would it work well for Daughtry/Nickelback type rock or modern pop/rock like All-American Rejects?

i like that it doesn't do too much i guess. just adds a subtle thickness/warmth/smoothness. i also like that it isn't majorly forward focused or overly bright, it makes guitars sound slightly more polished and thicker.

i tend to use it with slower attack and release settings and lighter ratios. usually try and get the make up gain around 6db. i don't like it hitting red.

i also track vocals through it.

i can't see why it wouldn't work on nickelback type music. that's not really what i'm into though. most of what i record is indy/punk orientated.

the closest sounding compressor i've got to the drawmer is an art pro. the drawmer sounds way more hifi though.

funny thing, the drawer was gotten because everyone talks it up for drums. it just couldn't compete with the dbx on drums or vocals to me. particularly on drums. the dbx really makes the cymbals sound wonderfull where as the drawmer sounded a little harsh. the dbx also sounded more focused/punchy on drums.

[SoZo]

For now I want to buy new avaialble pieces and I save every penny to buy this stuff.

[audiomichael]

As far as exciting sounding, I love the 33609. it's just so interesting and big and warm and wide... even though (for me) it's often exciting at first, then ends up being overkill and I have to waaaay back it off.

Distressors are very exciting but kinda 'hard' sounding.

I'll go to my Overstayer FET when I want the Distressor slamming thing, but in a softer tonality.

API 2500 sounds good on everything. I'm not sure it's super exciting, but it's great.

If we're talkin' plugins... the UAD Fatso, is great, as is their new 1176's. Also, love the Waves SSL channel comp.

[jeffinaustin]

IMHO - if you want 8 channels worth of channel comps cover your various bases:
2x opto
- Manley ELOP
- Buzz SOC
- IC Brute
- APA Leviathan
2x vca
- DBX 160 variant
- IC Vogad
4x fet
- Daking FET II
- Purple Action
- 1176

I own, or have owned, all of these and they'll all deliver on various sources. Great weight, color, and control that will surpass plugs for the most part. As others have suggested the FMR PBC6a is worth having as well.

[Brad McGowan]

Someone please tell me what the deal with the FMR PBC6A is. I had their RNLA way back and totally hated it. I really dig the RNC on the outputs of my Sony PS3 for watching movies though! No more explosions that annoy the neighbors.

Brad

[Slikjmuzik]

Originally Posted by Brad McGowan

Someone please tell me what the deal with the FMR PBC6A is. I had their RNLA way back and totally hated it. I really dig the RNC on the outputs of my Sony PS3 for watching movies though! No more explosions that annoy the neighbors.

Brad

The RNC is king on backup vocals in supernice mode. The RNLA is fantastic when you group distorted guitars AND bass together. Bass right up the middle, guitars double tracked left and right sound huge, stay out of the way of the drums and the tonality the RNLA brings out when doing this is pretty darn right for pop to heavy tracks. Back to the RNC, try it on clean guitars and Oh/Room mics, you might be surprised, especially in supernice mode.

[Rob Coates]

Originally Posted by RoundBadge

character and/or attitude:
dbx 160 vu's.still kind of affordable.
api 525
standard audio levelors.
inovonics 201
spectrasonics 610

I was wondering why no one mentioned the Spectra Sonics 610. Capable of transparent compression if you know how to use it, or as colored and harmonically rich as you want it to be. Fastest compressor on the planet, no contest.

[D K]

Originally Posted by Brad McGowan

Someone please tell me what the deal with the FMR PBC6A is. I had their RNLA way back and totally hated it. I really dig the RNC on the outputs of my Sony PS3 for watching movies though! No more explosions that annoy the neighbors.

Brad

Brad..have Mercenary send you a pair and throw them over your vocal or guitar bus..play with the drive and knee controls for a while .. then for more fun and games - play with the silk and thick settings.. good fun and a plethora of great tones .. of course, we haven't even gotten to the side-chain options yet... lots of possibilities in these ugly little yellow boxes... great sounding and really a different world from the RNC (which I still love) and the RNLA which like you wasn't overly impressed with...

[Rob Coates]

Originally Posted by D K

the RNLA which like you wasn't overly impressed with...

Nor was I. The RNLA is colored all right. I just thought it was an ugly color.

[tomat]

I use 4 channels of SSL XR728 gate/expander/compressor/limiter :
Solid State Logic | Music | X-Rack

Really punchy and usefull Comp, and the gate is so good !

[sage691]

Originally Posted by SoZo

Man, I cant believe the thickness and presence and glue it adds to drums ! One day...

Yep -- but if you have 20+ channels of slutty outboard comps then you don't need no stinkin tape machine !

Lavry Blues will suffice just fine (actually sound BETTER), thank you !

[Blindman]

For overall mix compression, the Rupert Neve MBP is really amazing. You get two great sounding compression favors as well as an immense amount of control.

Also, if you desire the very distinctive sounds it can bring to the table, the Chandler Zener is, for my money, indispensable. It is not always the right choice for a mix, and a little goes a long way. However, when it is the right box, nothing else will make a mix feel the way it does. This compressor is a sonic experimenter's playground.

I also like the Chandler Germanium comps on busses sometimes. I use them often in tracking across the overheads. I will not engage the compressors. I simply use the dirty mode, which adds a very pleasing hint of distortion, and the germanium drive to shape the sound in the upper register of the drums. When using 414s or large condensers over a kit, this set up can be wonderful.

1176 Bluestripe for bass guitar Tracking. I love the sound of a great bass instrument patched into the di on my Avalon 737 and then into the 1176.

There are many other boxes to consider, these are a few ideas.

[SRS]

Originally Posted by SoZo

Mix Bus comps are going to be my venture after I have a full rack of mix comps and Eq's.

When you get to the mix bus point, I would look closely at the API 2500. Love mine there. It is a nice unit in that spot. Designed for that position and does very well there. And nothing says you cannot track through it.

[mixerguy]

The obsidian 500 is AWESOME.

like an SSL compressor .... Except BETTER !!!!!

:-)