My compression purchase dilemma : 6 good channels vs 2 great channels

TEMAS · 7th May 2008

Hi all. I work everyday at my own small home studio and I make a decent living from my own compositions and productions. I record a variety of acoustic and electric instruments and singers, usually using no more than 2 mics at a time. I generally like gear with tons of vibe. My studio acoustics are pretty decent and I'm happy (for the time being) with my most of my gear, which at a glance consists of:

- 2 channels of Lavry Blue AD clocking 12 further channels of MOTU HD192 AD&DA
- Mackie HR824s
- 8-core Mac. Mixing ITB on Logic with a decent range of plugins.
- 1 x SH Gama 8 (8ch Pre)
- 1 x Phoenix DRS-Q4 (2ch Pre/eq)
- 2 x Chandler Germ TC (eq)
- 2 x 6-slot BAE lunchboxes (with 2 x PSU)
- 1 x Buzz Essence (comp)

With the savings that I've accumulated and if I were to sell the 2 lunchboxes & the Buzz Essence I could, at present, afford a pair of Retro 176s. In this scenario the 176s would be used to add a touch of magic to practically everything I record and would pretty much be glued to the Lavrys' inputs. Plan B, is to keep everthing, buy a second Essence along with maybe a pair of Purple Actions and a pair JLM 500 series comps.

The main question is do I need 6 compressors for tracking? 95% of the time, no. But can I seriously make a decent drum recording with just a pair of Retros? Its not often I ask for advice, but I'd be interested to know what you'd do if you where in my position.

Cheers.

Tom H · 8th May 2008

Have you checked out those Retro 176's yet, that would obviously be the first thing to do. From what I see they can be pretty versatile and they probably sound killer too, but I doubt there will ever be any comp in the world that can be a substitute for six others.

I think though the idea of one amazing stereo comp or a pair of singles is a good one in your situation, mainly because you mix ITB. Wether it's going to be the Retro 176's a pair of Trakkers or a Thermionic Phoenix is your choice ultimately, but I would choose something amongst those lines.

peeder · 8th May 2008

I have little faith in the 500 series format in a tracking scenario especially (i could see building a console out of them) and so I'll be all for the 2 great comps. Never heard the 176 though.

Usually I don't compress stereo sources to tape; I leave that for mix time. So my tracking compressors are all mono: 1x LA-2A, 1x 1176LN, 1x Distressor.

futur2 · 9th May 2008

EDIT: sorry i overlooked that you have the motus in addition to the lavry, so if you trust them and record more than 2 channels at a time yes more than 2 comps make sense, if you'd mix with outboard even more. if all of that is negative stick to the essence and buy another one or make the jump into something more fancy like 176 or thermionic...

[old post]

with only a two channel converter and not being able to use outboard when mixing i would tend to stick to two channels of compression.

IF you plan to upgrade converters to more channels and mix with outboard the lunchbox plan is not bad. i personally am very interested in the jml, that could be real promising. also the essence is really more than good as you obviously know, a second one would be great and (relatively) cheap. i nearly bought yours for a second one

but something like a thermionic phoenix which i also have is the bomb although for me it makes more sense mixing than recording.

7th May 2008	#1
TEMAS Lives for gear Joined: Jan 2006 Location: London Posts: 1,434 Thread Starter	My compression purchase dilemma : 6 good channels vs 2 great channels Hi all. I work everyday at my own small home studio and I make a decent living from my own compositions and productions. I record a variety of acoustic and electric instruments and singers, usually using no more than 2 mics at a time. I generally like gear with tons of vibe. My studio acoustics are pretty decent and I'm happy (for the time being) with my most of my gear, which at a glance consists of: - 2 channels of Lavry Blue AD clocking 12 further channels of MOTU HD192 AD&DA - Mackie HR824s - 8-core Mac. Mixing ITB on Logic with a decent range of plugins. - 1 x SH Gama 8 (8ch Pre) - 1 x Phoenix DRS-Q4 (2ch Pre/eq) - 2 x Chandler Germ TC (eq) - 2 x 6-slot BAE lunchboxes (with 2 x PSU) - 1 x Buzz Essence (comp) With the savings that I've accumulated and if I were to sell the 2 lunchboxes & the Buzz Essence I could, at present, afford a pair of Retro 176s. In this scenario the 176s would be used to add a touch of magic to practically everything I record and would pretty much be glued to the Lavrys' inputs. Plan B, is to keep everthing, buy a second Essence along with maybe a pair of Purple Actions and a pair JLM 500 series comps. The main question is do I need 6 compressors for tracking? 95% of the time, no. But can I seriously make a decent drum recording with just a pair of Retros? Its not often I ask for advice, but I'd be interested to know what you'd do if you where in my position. Cheers.

8th May 2008	#2
Tom H Lives for gear Joined: Apr 2006 Location: Haarlem, Holland Posts: 1,387	Have you checked out those Retro 176's yet, that would obviously be the first thing to do. From what I see they can be pretty versatile and they probably sound killer too, but I doubt there will ever be any comp in the world that can be a substitute for six others. I think though the idea of one amazing stereo comp or a pair of singles is a good one in your situation, mainly because you mix ITB. Wether it's going to be the Retro 176's a pair of Trakkers or a Thermionic Phoenix is your choice ultimately, but I would choose something amongst those lines. __________________ New Mixtape http://soundcloud.com/tom-heringa/so...-tracks-in-the

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8th May 2008	#3
peeder Lives for gear Joined: Aug 2006 Location: No longer participating here. Posts: 6,705	I have little faith in the 500 series format in a tracking scenario especially (i could see building a console out of them) and so I'll be all for the 2 great comps. Never heard the 176 though. Usually I don't compress stereo sources to tape; I leave that for mix time. So my tracking compressors are all mono: 1x LA-2A, 1x 1176LN, 1x Distressor.

9th May 2008	#4
futur2 Lives for gear Joined: Jan 2004 Location: Berlin Posts: 1,302	EDIT: sorry i overlooked that you have the motus in addition to the lavry, so if you trust them and record more than 2 channels at a time yes more than 2 comps make sense, if you'd mix with outboard even more. if all of that is negative stick to the essence and buy another one or make the jump into something more fancy like 176 or thermionic... [old post] with only a two channel converter and not being able to use outboard when mixing i would tend to stick to two channels of compression. IF you plan to upgrade converters to more channels and mix with outboard the lunchbox plan is not bad. i personally am very interested in the jml, that could be real promising. also the essence is really more than good as you obviously know, a second one would be great and (relatively) cheap. i nearly bought yours for a second one but something like a thermionic phoenix which i also have is the bomb although for me it makes more sense mixing than recording.