Didn't mean to turn this thread into a sales pitch, I've been pretty religious about keeping my posts spam free.

So..

This one will be on the house Dave (no charge). PM me when you're ready.

duaneadam
http://theoutboardrack.com/

Thanks Man sent you a PM...

A huge thank you to duaneadam(theoutboardrack.com) I sent him through a file to try out with a Pendulum ES-8
The file contained kick,drums, bass, vocals, guitars, flute and a couple of stereo mixes.
He ran them through a couple of different settings to show me what the ES-8 can do. Pretty cool you get a PDF file back with pictures showing the settings used on each.

The compressor is very hi fi sounding and its great to actually hear one. As I will be buying blind as no one has one that I know in Australia. Like a lot of things
A pretty cool idea to upload and process files for things you are looking at big $'s for and cannot try first. Yes I would rather play with the knobs myself although great ot hear my tracks processed.
I will run the same file through a Vari Mu that is local and see how they compare.

So again a big thanks

Update.
Well I got the ES-8 and have been using it the last few days and just spent a few hours with it again today. I am really really happy with it. Sound I would say is clean and a bit of hifi edge.
Now comparing it to my 1969,2254/e and fatso it really adds teh glue and does not loose the top end.
I played a bit with the 1969 going into the ES-8 that was nice.

Again a big thank you to duaneadam(theoutboardrack.com) teh tracks I sent him to process helped me decide on the ES-8 for sure. It was nice to sort of hear the box before buying.
They have a quartetII in local as well now so I might check that out soon in person this time.

yeah, it definitely is a great box! the more i use it, the more i like it. i know i'm glad i went with it.... have fun w/ it!
joshua

I was able to compare the ES-8 against the Cranesong STC-8 at a friends studio. The ES-8 was able to be super clean or by working with the input and output control, add some nice smoothness to the signal while still being clean. I loved it! This is the box for me!

The STC-8 I found too transparent and it did not do anything for me. If you want a transparent box that can control the peaks without being heard, this is the unit to get. I liked the Ki mode, but the Hara took away from what was special about the music.

So now I have to save my money and get the ES-8. What an amazing compressor. I heard it on vocals, acoustic guitar and 2 bus. WOW this unit is great!

Not sure if anyone heard this, but here is a sample of the ES8 in action. Tube compressor shoot-out: Pendulum ES-8 vs QES Labs Variable-Gm

ES 8 is a wonderful piece. Great on the 2bus. Clean, hi-fi with those hi end jensen trannies. Its got a unique vibe out of all the tube comps I have use. Tubish, but clean and modern. The only thing I can say that is sort of close to it in vibe is a ADL.

I liked it more so than the older 6386. Due to the ES8 sounding more open on the hi end of the spectrum.

I say get it if you don't have one yet. Its a slutty piece.

Personally I would like to suggest the Qes labs Variable-Gm,
there is a shoot-out thread vs the ES-8 here,
really interesting.
Clean, detailed, and open in the top end.

Didn't like that (Tube compressor shoot-out: Pendulum ES-8 vs QES Labs Variable-Gm) sample at all. QES labs seems small, flat with no body. Pendulum works nicely though.

haven't heard the ES-8 in a while but for kicks recently had the 6386 next to my Shadow hills MC,a Metal knobbed 33609,Ear 660s and the Elysia Mpressor.
The 6386 came in dead last as far as what we liked.
it wasn't bad ..but it wasn't "wow" either.

Not sure where you're listening to those samples.... QES labs small?!?!
It has an impressive sound!
Really warm, while still retaining transparency.
It is by far the one I liked compared to the others, es-8 included.
pl-2 was nice, but not as the variable-gm.

At this price point, many of the compressors are great. However I liked the gentle smoothness the ES-8 added to the 2 bus. It made it "to me, and for what I like" sound less digitial and it did not over do it which some claim the Manley Vari Mu can do at times. It is sort of like in between the OCL-2 and Manley. Yes I am sure in some situations, one may prefer another compressor over the other, and in most situaitons the ES-8 will be amazing. Pl-2 was too clean for my taste

Not listening on the laptop speakers . My monitoring chain is Avocet > Geithain RL901k. I can imagine to use this kind of sound (QES from the sample) for paralel compression or for effect for sure.

Manley can sound very subtle too. It is hard to set it to do anything drastic in compression mode btw.

With input over 3 o'clock and limiting doing 10dB of reduction, it gets dirty, but that's not what I'd use on 2buss .

In listening to the example of the ES-8 many more times, I found it perhaps smoothed the gutiar too much. It removed the attack of the guitar. Am I right in saying, if you back off the input gain and increase the output control, it will keep the attack of the guitar present in the mix?

From those shoot-out samples, I must confirm my preference for the QES Labs Variable-Gm.
The es-8 was my last choice.
Pl2 nice.

I think it stems from your previous statement 'no body'.
I believe it has, it really has.

Anyway taste is taste, just tweak the knobs.

Don't rely on internet samples. Who knows how it was recorded.

That is true my friend, I didn't mean to slander the es-8.
All of the compressors from that shoot-out thread are top notch units.
I do believe it.
Simply my vote goes to the QES Labs.

Again, YMMV, of course.

I wanted to add some additional thoughts on the Pendulum ES-8. I wrote a review after having it in my studio for a while. What I expected was a cleaner tube compressor that added a little character to a 2 bus mix. When it did not, I was a little disappointed with the unit though it was still a well made clean tube compressor.

2 years later I had the opportunity to check it out again, and this time I fell in love with it. The second time around I removed preconceived notions and just listened to what it did. I also had more experience in hearing other high end mastering compressors as well and had a deeper understanding. With the ES-8 or other cleaner compressors the mistake is to listen for what character, sparkle, or change in tone the compressor adds to the signal. As many clean compressors don't do that, what you do have to do is learn to listen only on how the mix affected? If you just focus on the signal, you hear how the ES-8 is able to reduce the peaks while staying out of the way. It has the ability to keep the sparkle, 3 dimensional sound you had after going through a nice bus compressor like a Portico or API. It allows you to clearly hear the reverb tails while at the same time reducing the peaks without being heard. When you learn to hear for this, a smile will come across your face. In addition, you are able to hear the subtle density it adds to the center of the mix. The ES-8 is a work of art. The Fairchild presets work really well, and you have the ability to reduce deeper without affecting the signal. It is similar to some high end solid state clean compressors you are aware of, but the tubes in it does add a slight smooth sound but it is gentle. When you want to just control the transients without changing the overall sound of your mix, the ES-8 will do it.

Many times mixes will need something to warm them up as they may be too clean. You may want to add some analog character. But when you get the sound you want as the recording stage, and you don't want to change the sound but just help it to gel, the ES-8 will do just that.

Here are two helpful threads to help you understand the compressor. The first is my review which shows the updated review 2 years later as well. The second thread has a comparison of the ES-8 to other compressors.

Pendulum ES-8 Vari Mu limiter

thermionic phoenix-manley vari-mu-pendulum ES-8 shootout