Nasty Compressors?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Somnium7
  • Start date Start date
That's the trouble with eBay, you can get very amateurish or dishonest sellers. They don't know how to pack items, the items are often not in the condition described, and sometimes they are just plain liars. I've had several sellers send absolute broken crap, and then disappear without any attempt at making things right or being accountable.

I've cut my eBay buying down to a minimum, and I stick with sellers that I have a very high degree of confidence in, or who I've done business with before. I've gone back to buying my gear new, even if it means buying less of it due to the cost.
 
SonicAlbert said:
That's the trouble with eBay, you can get very amateurish or dishonest sellers. They don't know how to pack items, the items are often not in the condition described, and sometimes they are just plain liars. I've had several sellers send absolute broken crap, and then disappear without any attempt at making things right or being accountable.

I've cut my eBay buying down to a minimum, and I stick with sellers that I have a very high degree of confidence in, or who I've done business with before. I've gone back to buying my gear new, even if it means buying less of it due to the cost.
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This is actually the very first time I've had any problems with Ebay stuff. So far the seller has gone out of his way offering me options to make up for it. Additionally, the help people at TC Electronics are sending me a new rack ear free of charge. All I had to do was ask...

Despite all of this I decided I didn't like the way the TC sounded. The envelope was as much fun as I thought it would be but overall not much of an improvement over the plugs. :(
I find it humorous that the "Digital Radiance Generator" makes things sound cold and digital ;-)

I am finding that I can use my modular synth gear for the same enveloper effects.

I have resumed the hunt for the micro-lim and have even found a source for bitrman though it's bundled with several other boxes from the series and will probably cost me too much.

Still really happy with the JBL/Urei box - thing rocks. I have set about looking for a suitable transformer for it.

DBX unit arriving tomorrow but I have to go out of town :mad:

I am reading conflicting stories in regards to the Art Pro VLA. I know there is an American version and a Chinese version and they have some differences. Some of the things I have read indicated that this unit can be dirty and overdriven and other things I've read say it's smooth as silk. Can any VLA owners clear this up for me?

Thanks!
 
I've owned both the American and Chinese versions at different times. If you want a bit more grunge and pumping the USA version is the one you want. You'll also probably want to experiment with different tubes. The Chinese version is smoother for whatever reason.

Another unit you might want to look at is the Joe Meek SC2.2. I had one of those for a while and it has it's own unique color and compressor action.
 
SonicAlbert said:
I've owned both the American and Chinese versions at different times. If you want a bit more grunge and pumping the USA version is the one you want. You'll also probably want to experiment with different tubes. The Chinese version is smoother for whatever reason.

Another unit you might want to look at is the Joe Meek SC2.2. I had one of those for a while and it has it's own unique color and compressor action.
Click to expand...

if you can get it, i'd look at the sc2, which is more expensive, but has a much better rep. keep in mind that those old joe meek units had tons of revisions which often entailed major changes in the circuit (such as removing input transformers).
i had a joe meek vc brick for a while and regret moving it-- it was a cool little pre and compressor. i've read that those use the same transformer and very similar circuit to the compressor in the sc2.
 
SonicAlbert said:
I've owned both the American and Chinese versions at different times. If you want a bit more grunge and pumping the USA version is the one you want. You'll also probably want to experiment with different tubes. The Chinese version is smoother for whatever reason.

Another unit you might want to look at is the Joe Meek SC2.2. I had one of those for a while and it has it's own unique color and compressor action.
Click to expand...

Do you remember whether the American one had Allen or Phillips type screws on the FP. I wanna say Allen. Ohhh hell I will just go search google till I find out...

I have been hesitant in regards to the JoeMeek stuff. I'm not sure why, maybe it's the hype, or the fact I have no idea what the "JoeMeek Sound" is, or am stuck thinking these products are one trick ponies for straight up rock and roll styles.
I have often found that gear that gets a great vintage rock sound in some manner usually doesn't impress me much for the style of music I do. And as I mentioned I am leery of hype. :(

Since both of you guys give these JoeMeek units the nod I'll put aside my reservations and investigate them.

if you can get it, i'd look at the sc2, which is more expensive, but has a much better rep. keep in mind that those old joe meek units had tons of revisions which often entailed major changes in the circuit (such as removing input transformers).
Click to expand...

So are the new versions of the JM products watered down compared to the older ones?
 
FINALLY managed to win a Micro Limiter for under $40. :D
I was about to give up on trying to obtain this unit at a reasonable price.

The rack ears for my Triple-C arrived Friday and now the unit is good as new.

Anybody heard of the Gates solidstatesman?
Read something about it in a similar thread on GS
http://www.gearslutz.com/board/high-end/156839-dirtiest-compressor-alive.html
Very little turns up about it on google.

Also saw mention of this unit - Shure se-30
Then watched people on Ebay have a bidding frenzy on one :eek:
Christ on a crutch, you'd think the sucker was gold plated!

Gonna keep my eye out for a Fostex MN-15 Mixer/Compressor. I read in a few places this little wonder can do horrible things with it's compressor.
 
i've read it's a solid state broadcast limiter made by gates (which makes the very slutty sta-level), though it's a very different beast. i see them up for sale from time to time. recently jim williams-- the well-known audio upgrades dude was selling one that he reconditioned at a decent price.
since you have diy skills, maybe you could find the schematics and bom for a sherlock (shure level-loc clone) too.

also-- did you ever try the free ssl listen compressor plugin? i know it's not hardware, but it's free. also maybe try a sansamp or one of those $30 behringer sansamp clones (?)
 
The American PRO VLA has the Allen type screws on the front that protrude slightly. The Chinese version has the philips screws that are flush with the front panel.
 
SonicAlbert said:
The American PRO VLA has the Allen type screws on the front that protrude slightly. The Chinese version has the philips screws that are flush with the front panel.
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Thank you again SonicAlbert! I couldn't find that info again for some reason...


since you have diy skills, maybe you could find the schematics and bom for a sherlock (shure level-loc clone) too.

also-- did you ever try the free ssl listen compressor plugin?
Click to expand...

Haven't tried the plugin Kojdogg. I have so much of my mixer pulled apart now for the overhaul I can't playback any audio from my computer at all.

Not sure I have the time for another DIY project right now but that one sure would be interesting. Do you have a link for the Sherlock I can check out.
I'm sorry I'm just too busy to search at the moment.

Just a heads-up... I am planning to try marketing my analog flash AD/DA bitcrushing device this summer.
I'll probably offer it in modular synthesizer formats and rack format for studio and live use.
I'll run some posts about with audio clips later on when I have finalized things better.
 
I read a review in Harmony Central where the person talked about using the Alesis Micro Limiter to master his tracks :eek:

He must have been doing a style of music similar to mine :D

Holy Micro Limiter Batman this thing clips and squashes the living shit out of stuff!

Samples:
Clean Loop http://www.somnium7.com/samples/verse.wav

Dirty Loop http://www.somnium7.com/samples/BeastieBeat-02.wav

Wait a few bars until I kick the Micro in....

Recording chain (prepare to cry):
Micro Lim > Marshall practice amp > Audix I5 > TubePre > Akai S6000

Apply some EQ and mix the dry sample back on top and that's what I'm talking about.... :cool:
 
Somnium7 said:
I want to disfigure, dismember, crush and systematically destroy loops, synths, sound FX and the occasional dialog snippet.

I don't want something pleasing for acoustic guitar, or tame and predictable for mastering. I want violence and aggression. :rolleyes:

Which compressors fit this description?

Thanks :D
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The Alesis 3630.

Perfect for what U need! Noticeable artifacts during gating with
raw & harsh dynamics during compression (try @ unity). Any signal you run thru the 3630 will be greatly "colored" w/o that "filtered" taste.
Dude, the 3630 is what u're lookin' for!!! Trust me on this!!;)

More of a dynamic efx unit than a compressor!
 
MISTERQCUE said:
The Alesis 3630.

Perfect for what U need! Noticeable artifacts during gating with
raw & harsh dynamics during compression (try @ unity). Any signal you run thru the 3630 will be greatly "colored" w/o that "filtered" taste.
Dude, the 3630 is what u're lookin' for!!! Trust me on this!!;)

More of a dynamic efx unit than a compressor!
Click to expand...

I see from your other posts you are somewhat taken with the 3630 ;)
While, it IS good for what I'm trying to do I think it's a little too high-end for my tastes :D

I just can't justify having such a classic in my racks :rolleyes:

Seriously though I think I have what I want with the JBL/Urei 7110 and the Micro Lim. Both boxes are brutal in their application and provide the grunge by the bucketload.
Not surprising is the DBX 162SL can cop an attitude when it wants to. The result is much cleaner of course but the speed of the unit does allow some transmogrification of the attack transients.
Then there is the Triple-C which I haven't spent much time with yet. I can tell that the envelope mode does some interesting things that will be fun to experiment with.

I plugged my new synth (Rhodes Chroma Polaris) into the Micro Lim for kicks and giggles and had a blast - literally. The result had more overdrive and aggression than running the synth straight into the Marshall amp with it's gain maxed out. Serious fun!
 
Symetrix

i have an old Symetrix comp it is not super fancy but it gets the job done dam well. I use the 502 so i have a stereo option and if you are using it on a syth you may need that. if you can find an old one they are great comps and quite durable.
 
For those interested I thought I would post the final result of my MicroLimiter experiment from earlier.
http://www.somnium7.com/samples/crusty_beat-68-01.wav

The links in the previous post won't work anymore as I have deleted the source files. Feel free to use this sample if you like it - just give props.

This is a good example of what effect I was shooting for from the start. Listen for that wicked tail on the snare hits... Love that!!

Add a touch of room reverb to this to smooth out the harsh 3 Khz peaks and it fits nicely into a mix. :)

I'm still watching out for some of the other units discussed in this thread so please let me know if you have one of them available.
I really appreciate all the great advice from everybody... you all ROCK! :cool:
 
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