best compressor for under $1000

M

mustardeer

New member
mainly for vocals
i understand that i don't need it if I record in 24 bit but the room is not treated ( i guess i could use a gate to kill the room ) but also looking to bounce to tape during mastering and the vocals are all over the place.

I've heard of neve and urei being the best but that's over $2K
Is there anything for around or under $1000 that's considered high end?

I want as few knobs as possible and amazing warm natural sound with as much character/color as possible ( indie rock / americana ).

my set up is Neumann U87, apogee ensemble ( using apogee's mic pres ), Ableton Live, Mac Pro.

Or should i spend the money on a pre instead? I have all the plugins but prefer the real deal. I will be sending it out ( won't be mastering myself. )
 
sorry meant $1000 street price, ( craigslist in Los Angeles ), not guitar center.
Also love anything vintage :)

recording on Wed, please, help!
 
A) A compressor on the input is going to make any room issues much worse --

B) Automating vocal levels comes before compression - All the time, every time. Get them in the pocket with level before worrying about compressing the dynamic range.

C) The preamp will always be far more important than the compressor. The front end is everything (not just with vocals - With anything).


That all said - If you're looking for a nice compressor, you could go with something as simple as FMR's RNC. If you want more of a bad-ass front end as a whole with a compressor you could use in line (or more effectively after you have your overall volume tidied up), look for a used Langevin DVC (or the El-Op compressor is available on its own for a bit less). Very simple, very LA2A.
 
my 2 cents... which is now due to inflation probably only worth a fraction

I'd spend the money and treat the room (it'll be a very wise investment) - otherwise you're compensating for poor acoustics, which means you're masking problems by trying to filter them out/cover them up... which leaves sonic holes (I tried to solve poor acoustics issues by buying more gear, thinking 'this will solve it!'- until I finally had to fess up to the fact the largely untreated room sounded like crap- my tracking room and my control room)

I will use a compressor or EQ in the signal chain only if I'm very familiar with the performer- if you notice what plug-ins you routinely place on a specific track(s) then it may be worth using additional gear

example- I work with mainly one drummer, one drum kit- I use a channel strip on the kick and snare- compression and EQ (differently for each)- I use EQ in the signal chain on the Toms

Vocalists- I prefer their tracks as raw as i can get them, even it takes a few takes with instructions to take a 'baby step" away from the mic (or try a few different mics)
 
Massive Master said:
A)
C) The preamp will always be far more important than the compressor. The front end is everything (not just with vocals - With anything).
Click to expand...


Couldn't agree more. I've said numerous times here it all starts at the source. I love this idea that you can record substandard stuff and fix it all in post production.
 
Stain, i use an SE filter which kills the bad reverb really well.. and i try not to mix/master myself, i send it out. Maybe one day i'll treat the room but the filter works really well.

the reason i didn't invest in a nice pre because i thought my apogee ensemble's pres are already amazing. Am I wrong? Would I notice a significant difference with a pre by Neve, avalon, api etc ?? And maybe i should just use the apogee as a converter? I'm not sure how it can get better, things already sound sooo clean and professional.
 
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