Overstayer Stereo Compressor

[thebaron]

I'm hoping to hear more first hand reviews of vocal and mix buss use.
This thing, especially with the price point, sounds like a great way for me to break into some otb mix buss, bass and drum buss mixing.

[thebaron]

bumping this puppy for vocal and mixbuss reviews

[EngineEars]

Originally Posted by thebaron

I'm hoping to hear more first hand reviews of vocal and mix buss use.
This thing, especially with the price point, sounds like a great way for me to break into some otb mix buss, bass and drum buss mixing.

I'm sure more opinions will arrive as people get more experience with the unit, but I've spent a little less than a year with these pups on a number of sources and have really run them through their paces. There aren't many things that just suck through a FET comp however it's pretty rare for you to find many mastering engineers throwing them across a 2 mix. Because the Overstayer has built-in blend you find yourself trying it on just about everything (just to see if it'll work.) While not traditional, it's got vibe and sometimes that's all that matters.

Something that Jeff spent a lot of time on is making sure the size of the audio didn't shrink as you run thru the unit and that really pays off. You can really abuse your material but you don't ever feel like your fidelity is suffering. You're right, with this price point you kinda want it to work on everything. I'm sure you won't find anything under $1500ish that would come close to be as good as this on the sources you mentioned, I've looked. Think of it as the ultimate analog inflator without reels.

For vocal and mix buss compression you want the variable release with auto release mod version. If you are just tracking vocals with it the standard one knob atk/rel version would be optimal, IMO.



TOP SECRET TIP OF THE DAY:
On Mono sources run one channel into the next and all it cost you is a xlr cable. You'd think it'd be limiting (no pun intended) to only have one set of controls for both sides but if you don't set it to stun, the second channel reacts very nicely to what is being feed from the first one (when the stereo link button isn't engaged.)

[bleen]

I have to agree with Mr. Ears above - things don't get smaller going through the Overstayer at all. I've had it on a parallel drum bus for the past couple of days and it's been "embiggening" drums with aplomb. Both mixes I've been working on are really dense arrangements and the drums are having no trouble cutting through.

If I bypass the comp, the drums just get small and weak sounding (comparatively).

If I have some time this weekend I'll try to give it a go on the 2-bus (where I generally have a Foote Control P3S) and perhaps some individual tracks.

[initialsBB]

Originally Posted by overstayer

On the Channel Amplifier the extra knob is Attack and the switch to the immediate right of Output engages an auto makeup, auto release FET compressor. The Output fader becomes the input control to the compressor. With the Attack control CW the compressor increases apparent volume but doesn't really sound compressed, but turned CCW can become much more aggressive. Operationally and sonically this compressor is much different then the Stereo Compressor.

Do you have any more info on this channel amp + compressor mod (apart from what's on your site)? What does the compressor sound like when pushed aggressively? Anyone heard this yet? How exactly does it differ from the two channel unit, other than the obvious differences in controls?

[dysenterygary]

Originally Posted by bleen

I have to agree with Mr. Ears above - things don't get smaller going through the Overstayer at all. I've had it on a parallel drum bus for the past couple of days and it's been "embiggening" drums with aplomb. Both mixes I've been working on are really dense arrangements and the drums are having no trouble cutting through.

If I bypass the comp, the drums just get small and weak sounding (comparatively).

If I have some time this weekend I'll try to give it a go on the 2-bus (where I generally have a Foote Control P3S) and perhaps some individual tracks.

Bleen, if you can will you post some clips up here? If this thing does anywhere near as much as these post claim, some clips will probably sell a lot of units. This is gearslutz! All we do is record stuff for other people to hear, so lets hear this bad boy in action. One guy had to drop the 1176 bomb, and that really got me interested. If it sounds half as good as one of those this thing will really kick.

[Farm sounds]

I agree, if it has some 1176 mojo, I'll grab one for sure. If someone can post some samples that would be great!

[Tom Hakala]

Yeah. If this is something that's close to 1176 and for 500 bucks. I'm definitely getting one at some point. Or the new GAP compressor, if it will be released at some point...

[jchadstopherhuez]

looks quite interesting....

btw...is this the same jeff turzo of "god lives underwater" ?

love that band !!

cheers,
jchristopherhughes

[thebaron]

Thanks for the feedback. Can't wait to hear the comments from the weekend.

[EngineEars]

Originally Posted by mixman499

looks quite interesting....

btw...is this the same jeff turzo of "god lives underwater" ?

love that band !!

Yes the same Jeff from GLU, Wired All Wrong & his infamous Apogee ads. thumbsup

[bleen]

Okay, kiddies, I had a little time today to make some audio examples. Don't get all trainspotting on this and talk about level-matching and stuff like that. I set the comp where I thought it sounded good and left it at that.

These were all created in Logic 9.1 using a track from a band I just finished mixing; I either have an I/O plug on a channel strip or an Aux track on which I've inserted the Overstayer (OS from here on out) using the I/O plug and then pinged to compensate for the delay. Converters are SSL Alphalink MADI clocked via an RME HDSPe card.

First up, parallel compression on drums. The file starts with parallel bus muted for the first two bars and then unmutes/mutes each subsequent two bars. Settings for the OS were:

tint: in
drive: 7
dirt: out
output: 1
grab: out
attack: 2.5
release: 8 o'clock
a/r x10: out
l/r link - in

Drums - parallel bus

Next, bass guitar. I had the OS inserted pre-EQ. The first pass through the 2-bar progression is with the Blend knob at 100% dry. The second pass the Blend moves to 50%, and by the 2nd bar of the third pass it's at 100%. Settings:

tint: in
drive: 10
dirt: out
output: 1
grab: out
attack: 1.5
release: 7 o'clock
a/r x10: in
l/r link - out

Bass guitar

Now, on to the 2-bus. The original mix of this song I used my Foote Control Systems P3S on the 2-bus at a 1.5:1 ratio with the threshold at +3; attack was 18ms, release 15ms. The comp was shaving off 2-3dB on the loudest parts of the track and I had the Carnhill trannys on (always...). The OS is a different beast entirely and doesn't have settings to match the P3S, but again, I was setting to sound good, numbers be damned. OS settings:

tint: in
drive: 7
dirt: out
output: 2
grab: in
attack: 2
release: 7
a/r x10: out
l/r link - in

2-bus - Foote P3S

2-bus - OS

You'll have to level match the 2-bus files as the OS is a bit louder in RMS, but no louder on peaks.

So there you go. This is now one of my "desert island" pieces of gear. I'd kill for either a dual-mono or even just a single channel version so I can use the stereo model on stereo buses/2-mix situations and have separate mono ones for bass/vox/etc.

[VWYF11]

I actually really like it on the 2 bus a lot. Where can I find some music from the band?

[SWAN808]

Thanks for the excellent demos!

Man - it nailed that Bass track!

And the Masterbuss is heavy

Im interested in how long the attack gets on this...but I guess the Mod. version doesnt have the long attack....

So vs PBC?

[bleen]

Originally Posted by VWYF11

I actually really like it on the 2 bus a lot. Where can I find some music from the band?

The band is called Kirby Krackle; their site needs some updating to reflect the upcoming record (their first disc they self-recorded using Garageband), but the new one should drop in March. Nerd rock galore!

[bleen]

Originally Posted by SWAN808

So vs PBC?

I still think it's an apples to oranges comparison. The PBC, to my ears, is "smoother" in that I can hit it harder and see the meters going nuts without necessarily hearing it working. The OS lets you know it's there! Plus, it's FET (OS) vs. VCA (PBC) - different character comps, the PBC has the "Thick" switch and a variable side-chain HPF, etc.

I'm not getting rid of either!

[guze]

Very nice, thanks for the samples
It really sounds GOOD
Could you post the drums and bass with the DIRT on???
To check that function

[dysenterygary]

Thanks for posting bleen! I don't know what a foote p3s is, but now I don't really care what it is. Great tracks too btw.

[dysenterygary]

Originally Posted by bleen

Now, on to the 2-bus. The original mix of this song I used my Foote Control Systems P3S on the 2-bus at a 1.5:1 ratio with the threshold at +3; attack was 18ms, release 15ms. The comp was shaving off 2-3dB on the loudest parts of the track and I had the Carnhill trannys on (always...). The OS is a different beast entirely and doesn't have settings to match the P3S, but again, I was setting to sound good, numbers be damned. OS settings:

tint: in
drive: 7
dirt: out
output: 2
grab: in
attack: 2
release: 7
a/r x10: out
l/r link - in

I just read that part and to be honest I don't know if that comparison was fair to the P3S. I am not attacking you bleen in any way, but in this compression loving time a 1:1.5 ratio is nothing and would probably be looked at as "worse" than anything else that was compressed more. The overstayers ratio is fixed and the amount of compression is controlled by the drive knob which you had at 7. Since I don't know yet what the ratio is fixed at I could be completely wrong, but I'd be willing to bet that having the drive at 7 out of 10 is probably a lot more than a 1:1.5 ratio. Regardless the overstayer sounded really awesome to me, but I'd like to hear the P3S really working to more fairly compare the two. Just my opinion of course!

[thebaron]

Thanks for the tracks.
This comp sounds great!
In my opinion, I thought the foote had a little more 3d depth on the 2-bus.
(but I suspect that can be tweaked that to an extent on the os. maybe with the blend?) However, I still thought it sounded great and competitive... and for 1/3 the price! I loved it on bass and drums. Not to mention, like posted before, it does what a fet is supposed to do extremely well.

Is there any way of getting a sample of the mix bus that toggles between on and bypassed? I'm more interested in the comparison of "with or without".

A vocal with it on and bypassed would also be cool.

Thanks for all of your time and input!
and sorry for being so demanding.

[thebaron]

Originally Posted by dysenterygary

I just read that part and to be honest I don't know if that comparison was fair to the P3S. I am not attacking you bleen in any way, but in this compression loving time a 1:1.5 ratio is nothing and would probably be looked at as "worse" than anything else that was compressed more. The overstayers ratio is fixed and the amount of compression is controlled by the drive knob which you had at 7. Since I don't know yet what the ratio is fixed at I could be completely wrong, but I'd be willing to bet that having the drive at 7 out of 10 is probably a lot more than a 1:1.5 ratio. Regardless the overstayer sounded really awesome to me, but I'd like to hear the P3S really working to more fairly compare the two. Just my opinion of course!

Good point. Maybe that's why the os sounded a little more compressed and 2d to me on the 2 bus (slightly). That would also explain why the overall rms level of the os was louder after matching the peaks.

[futur2]

sounds great on drums! on the mix i think the foote sounds like a 2-bus compressor, the overstayer does not for me. but depends on what you want and expect (as always).

[dysenterygary]

Anyone else have any firsthand input on these?

[thebaron]

Yea, I'd still love to hear some samples that toggle between on and bypassed. Especially with vocals and mix buss. I'm already sold on drum buss.

[bleen]

Originally Posted by thebaron

Yea, I'd still love to hear some samples that toggle between on and bypassed. Especially with vocals and mix buss. I'm already sold on drum buss.

I'll see if I can make this happen today...

[guze]

Originally Posted by bleen

I'll see if I can make this happen today...

And drumbuss or bass with the DIRT on also, please

[Silver Sonya]

I kinda think that products at this price-point merit the "impulse buy" response. Check it out, see if you like it!

If a manufacturer somehow figures out how to make a great (or even good) stereo comp for $500, just buy it. Seems to me that if you don't love it for one thing, you'll find a use for it on, say the tom buss or whatever. Just buy it. Y'know?

It's so cheap! I truly hope it's a hit.

If it's a hit, it incentivizes others to try to meet this market. And that would make me happy.

I think a lot of people presume that the low-dollar market is exclusively ITB. It would be great if more products like this and this come on the market. My shorthand is "Tape Op econo classic."

Like the Sytek pres, RNC, etc. Cool shit for home studios. I have affection in my heart for stuff like this. It's my roots. If you have good ears and talent, you can do wonders with this level of stuff.

It's the typical Chad Clark stance, I suppose --- and I know it's not that popular around here --- but I say stop with the dorky A/B-ing and just grab stuff and pull it into your world, throw it in a mix, wrestle with it. Makes you smile? Cool! Makes your brow furrow? Oh well. Best case: a lifelong tool. Worst case: eBay. Y'know?

My only question about this thing is how are people carrying a single unit around? Can it be racked? 'S a little confusing to me.

- c

[bleen]

As requested, a few more files - this will be it as I've got to get back to mixing!

2-bus, pt2:

First bar is bypassed and then every other measure is in, out, etc. Same setting as previous 2-bus example.

Overstayer - 2-bus In/Out

Drums - dirt:

Same parallel drum bus setting as above, dirt out the first measure, then in/out each subsequent bar.

Overstayer - drum dirt

Vocals:
Two passes; verse with no comp, then OS with the following setting:
tint: out
drive: 7.2
dirt: out
output: 2
grab: in
attack: 2.5
release: 9 o'clock
a/r x10: out
l/r link: out

OS - vox, no comp

OS - vox w/comp

[thebaron]

Originally Posted by Silver Sonya

I kinda think that products at this price-point merit the "impulse buy" response. Check it out, see if you like it!

If a manufacturer somehow figures out how to make a great (or even good) stereo comp for $500, just buy it. Seems to me that if you don't love it for one thing, you'll find a use for it on, say the tom buss or whatever. Just buy it. Y'know?

It's so cheap! I truly hope it's a hit.

If it's a hit, it incentivizes others to try to meet this market. And that would make me happy.

I think a lot of people presume that the low-dollar market is exclusively ITB. It would be great if more products like this and this come on the market. My shorthand is "Tape Op econo classic."

Like the Sytek pres, RNC, etc. Cool shit for home studios. I have affection in my heart for stuff like this. It's my roots. If you have good ears and talent, you can do wonders with this level of stuff.

It's the typical Chad Clark stance, I suppose --- and I know it's not that popular around here --- but I say stop with the dorky A/B-ing and just grab stuff and pull it into your world, throw it in a mix, wrestle with it. Makes you smile? Cool! Makes your brow furrow? Oh well. Best case: a lifelong tool. Worst case: eBay. Y'know?

My only question about this thing is how are people carrying a single unit around? Can it be racked? 'S a little confusing to me.

- c

I fully agree with you on all fronts and yea, I want to impulse buy. I just don't have the cash yet...so I want to hear samples so I can dream and plan. I know it will be the perfect addition to the other stereo comp that i'm planning and dreaming about, too. Yea, I'm way ahead of myself in my head.

[thebaron]

Thanks so much, Don!
Now can we hear a sample with you standing on one leg?
On that note, I won't bother you anymore.
Thanks again.