UA 1176LN...worth the $$$??

I'm currently looking into some UAD plugs (I get my card next week). It comes with the 1176SE, which is a less processor intensive version (and apparently not as good). I'm not sure if you have the SE version or not. I want to get the LA-2A instead of the 1176LN to start with so I can diversify a bit more.
 
Depends on what you are expecting in terms of a compressor. I have the 1176 and it is a great compressor for many things. Found it used for $1100. It takes your sound up a very nice notch. Guitars sound amazing, as does bass and some vocalists. It's a bit aggressive however for your average ballad singer.

The LA2A is much smoother sounding, not as aggressive which covers the big vocal type material. I rent one of these when required and it's on my list for my next big purchase.

The distressor is a great swiss army knife type compressor and can go down the road of both the 1176 & the LA2A but after using one for a few months I made the decision to get the real things. If I did primarily rock, then keeping the distressor would have made sense. I used the distorted compressor sound, that the distressor is famous for, so rarely, I decided to go another route. That said, it's a very good compressor as well.

I hear amazing things about the Summit but since I have a Portico 5043, that ground is covered.

Depending on the type of music you record, you might also want to take a look at the Cranesong Trakker, amazing sounding, or, if you have cash, the CL1B from Tubetech. These are your big clear sounding vocal type of compressors. Used a lot on country and overall ballad music.
 
Middleman said:
Depends on what you are expecting in terms of a compressor. I have the 1176 and it is a great compressor for many things. Found it used for $1100. It takes your sound up a very nice notch. Guitars sound amazing, as does bass and some vocalists. It's a bit aggressive however for your average ballad singer.

The LA2A is much smoother sounding, not as aggressive which covers the big vocal type material. I rent one of these when required and it's on my list for my next big purchase.

The distressor is a great swiss army knife type compressor and can go down the road of both the 1176 & the LA2A but after using one for a few months I made the decision to get the real things. If I did primarily rock, then keeping the distressor would have made sense. I used the distorted compressor sound, that the distressor is famous for, so rarely, I decided to go another route. That said, it's a very good compressor as well.

I hear amazing things about the Summit but since I have a Portico 5043, that ground is covered.

Depending on the type of music you record, you might also want to take a look at the Cranesong Trakker, amazing sounding, or, if you have cash, the CL1B from Tubetech. These are your big clear sounding vocal type of compressors. Used a lot on country and overall ballad music.
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^This is good info. Another possibility is to look into the new softube CL1B plug. It's $300 instead of $3000 for the hardware unit, and although I've never used the hardware unit, the reviews on it are fabulous, and many say it is very, very close to the hardware version. I also have the softube FET plug comp, which is an 1176 type, and it's very good. The hardware units are so expensive, I think the good plugs are worth a try. You can download the demo units and use them for two weeks, and then if you're not satisfied, get the real McCoy.
 
if you don't know what you want yet but want close inexpensive generally similar to the original emulations, pick up a focusrite liquid mix (the 16 is cheaper, I own a 32, just got it).

I own a real 1176 (well, I built it myself), and have used many older studio standards. in my quick playing with the liquid mix I can say that it does capture the overall tone of each of the compressors that I knew, I recognized them without looking them up most of the time (liquid mix uses fake made-up names for famous branded models, but there's a lookup pdf on their site and an even better one on gearslutz).

so although I've only just started playing with my liquid mix, I would say from my experience with the real things that you'd be better off spending $250 or $400 on a LM16 (or LM32 used) to learn the differences in these models and see what you like best.

Because, in my opinion, if you own an 1176 for that price you'll want to use it as much as possible, but there are times when it's far from appropriate. if you own an 1176 you really need something mellower and slower like a nice opto (la-2a or my fav la3), or even a poor man's opto (pro vla II, same type of speed/effect, much less character than la-2a but still very nice musical optocomp). and then you'll want a nice punchy comp, something more crunchy, something really transparent.... well you'll get all of those in a liquid mix.

same with a uad by the way, but uad wtih those plugs can cost much more total, so I'm trying to save you money.

UAD is great but gets pricey. liquid mix comes with (including free downloads) several dozen famous compressors and anohter few dozen famous eqs.

but if you want a tracking comp you need to start looking into hardware... there's a reason why I still own hardware. The sound, the versatility, and tracking through a comp results in different sound/usefulness than mixing through a comp, although it takes experience and guts too LoL
 
yetipur said:
So, is the UA 1176LN...worth the $$$??
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Sure. If you have a high-end studio to put this compressor to work in, and you want to justify charging potential clients hundreds of dollars an hour to record in your studio. If you're one person recording your singer/songwriter musings in the untreated room that also doubles as your sleeping quarters (as I am), probaby not.

Massive Master said:
Any of the units listed are "worth it." But those are some seriously different units.
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Gospel. This falls under the category of ' I wanna be a biker. How much for a Harley?' Rather than read about all the top brand names you're supposed to have, rent them and try them out. Ignore the cork sniffers. Go with what works for your mic, your voice, and your room, however treated or untreated it may be. What did Joe Meek say? If it sounds right it is right! Have fun. Experiment. Learn.
 
Well, no - You get a Harley. :)

That said - There are several wonderful Harley models to choose from. Although I'm not a fan of the new (2010) 2-into-1 single exhaust on the Touring models... Makes the thing look unbalanced from the rear...
 
I've found that the distressor can add bass to a track...say you recorded a weak bass or kick, that thing can put it right back in there.

also the 1176 kicks serious ass on vocals, and is "worth it" on vocals for me

never tried the other two
 
I bought 2 Summit TLA-100A's in the early 90's and have been using them since. They've never needed repairs except for the free bulbs they sent me.

I use them right after my mic pre and I love them, they are very smooth and warm. They have a subtle sound like you don't know they're there.
 
Massive Master said:
Well, no - You get a Harley. :)

That said - There are several wonderful Harley models to choose from. Although I'm not a fan of the new (2010) 2-into-1 single exhaust on the Touring models... Makes the thing look unbalanced from the rear...
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Well, you wouldn't tell a high school science nerd to get an Ultra Glide, and you wouldn't tell the college fullback to get an 883 Sportster.

I wouldn't tell the singer/songwriter noodling with a Boss BR1200 in his laundry room that unless he has an LA2A he is wasting his time. And I wouldn't dream of telling the guy recording in his converted garage onto an Otari MX-5050 MKIII that he can get perfectly acceptable compression with a Behringer Composer Pro.

There's an old joke about a woman reminiscing about her ex-husbands on her honeymoon with her latest husband. Something along the lines of;

"John was a psychologist; all he ever did was talk about it. Bob was a gynecologist; all he did was look at it. Tom was a stamp collector; all he ever did was... God! I miss him! But now that I've married you, I'm really excited!"

"Good," said the new husband, "But, why?"

"You're a lawyer. This time I know I'm really gonna get screwed!"

I'm not sure why I said that. Maybe I'm saying rather than think about it, read about it, or talk about it, DO IT! Rent something. Try it. Ask all the experts here if something doesn't seem right. But base you budget on being equal to what you spent on accoustic treatment, equal to what you spent on your pre, and maybe equal to what you spent on your best mic. Don't just Google the high end stuff, and then ask everyone which one they think is best. Ask yourself why you deserve the best to begin with.
 
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