Where do you find the DBX 162 excells?

-a

DIRTY HALO www.dirtyhalo.com

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Parallel drum bus is the only place it's worked for me.

No one else uses it on anything else? Would you use the 162 over SSL 4000 channel compressors for drum duties?

Anyone like it on guitars? Synths?

-a

I also thought the 162 was a stereo verion of the 160 VU, which seems to have all sorts of uses!

The 162 has no dual mono function so it's less flexible than a pair of 160s. That's probably why a 162 goes for about the price of a single 160.

i love using it on ac guitars

Try it on drum room mics. Just got a fantastic result with a SM69FET -> V276 -> 162. 90% of the drum sound from just that mic with the 162.

I actually just mastered a record through it.
I had tons of other, "nicer" stuff to use, but I tried it on a whim after nothing else worked, and it did the trick.
Low ratio, 2-4 db right before the limiter.

Go Figure.

Im blessed enough to have lots of cool toys so these days I pretty much only find myself using mine when an artist (rock drummer usually) is not happy with the way his drums sound in his headphones. I use an aviom headphone system so I'll sub comp his drums and send it stereo to the avaiom along side the other drums I'm already sending him. So I'll give him kick, snare, maybe hat if he asks for it and a sub comp with a good overall mix of the whole kit (K,S,toms,OH L&R) that's slammed into the DBX. 9 times out of 10, they freak out an spend a majority of our mixing time trying to convince me I need to get that sound from their headphones in the mix.... Thus, I don't do this much anymore.... These kids and their compression! Sheesh!

In fact, I use it so rarely that I've been thinking about selling my purple 162SL. If anyone wants it send me a PM. Hope I'm not offending you by offering it on your thread!

Cheers

Are we talking about the newer anodised DBX162's or the vintage bakelite panelled versions. I have the vintage version and it is great on acoustic guitars.

I had an original 162 back in the late 1980s or early 1990s. We put it in the front window hoping for a smash and grab.

The older blackface was used for 2 buss mixes in the late 70's early 80's. Many others comp/limiters are being used for this purpose today. So I guess it's a forgotten sound from the analog tape days?
I've run stereo synth tracks through them recently with good results but don't ever recall doing acoustic guitars. I'll give that a try. Grouped BG vox can be softened and smoothed and electric guitar on occasion.

The newer unit blue 162sl is a sparkling clean sound that is a precision instrument. It is master quality when in good calibration. I think it has Jensen output transformers which sound clinical to most. Many styles other than rock like these very much for 2 buss, notably accoustic music. A few db's of compression and you swear it's not doing anything, but that's the good thing when you don't hear it.

Both are useful tools and not hi profile at the moment.

hi
can u tell the style of the record?