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On the other forum I haunt (the Tele forum), it seems lots of folks have a compressor pedal and leave it on all the time. Am I missing something? Anyone doing that for jazz? I've listened to a number of demos with clean guitar sounds and I don't hear much of a difference. Just wondering.
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01-26-2015 12:56 PM
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Hell no, I like dynamics.
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Only time I used to use a compressor pedal was when doing Country music, but they dull the sound and compressor pump gets old fast.
Last edited by docbop; 01-26-2015 at 01:24 PM.
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Oh no, no need a comp for jazz I like dynamic too.
The only times I used a comp it was for overdriven gilmour style solo, and used as a boost and to get more sustain. But to me no comp in a clean signal !
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the squeaky, Ross type compressor is also something that I don't like and too much compression doesn't do the the guitar tone any good (except one is after these smooth Gilmour'ish tones). However, a modest amount of compression provided by a quality compressor, to me, goes a long way in making the signal clean, articulate, a bit sparkly and well, just somehow nicer.
Pedals like the Mad Professor forest green or the okko coca comp or the Vahlbruch Fusionizer are all compressors that I liked quite a bit in conjunction with arch tops. I do not feel that they kill dynamics - at least not unless one drives the compression up. They also can be used to add a bit of additional volume, which most tube amps like, especially if one has the guitar volume dialed a down a bit.
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For those on any kinda fence here, there's also the Wampler Ego Compressor. It has a Blend knob whereby you can have both your straight signal and the compressed tone in whatever ratio you desire. There's also a Tone control.
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I've experimented with a compressor in a big band situation, but I normally don't use one. I suppose a compressor could be useful in a crowd environment if you want to play in a style that produces a lot of dynamic range at the instrument but you want the audience members who are actually listening to hear the "quiet" passages. A volume knob or pedal usually does that job well enough for me.
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If you like the sound, use a compressor, let your ears decide.
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Originally Posted by KIRKP
Yup a compressor is squeezing out the dynamic range. Think of a sideways funnel, a big dynamic range goes in and a small one comes out how small depends on the compression ratio. Just listen to TV, radio, Youtube, bad MP3's, and you'll hear what compressed sound is like, the life goes away. They do it because they predict the device you're probably listening on can't handle a big range. Like when mastering a song to be used in a movie will increase the bit-rate for more dynamic range because you know theaters have sound systems that can handle it.
When I worked in the studio we tended to use limiters more than compressors. Limiter only push the signal back down if it goes above a certain level it doesn't do anything other wise. Compressors and limiter were generally used for spikey instruments or on players who's players who playing was all over the place.
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I recently watched an old interview with Bill Frisell, who explained that he used a compressor and a volume pedal, but at last figured out that they both cancelled each other out, so he got rid of both.
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I do own the ubiquitous red MXR Dyna Comp, and aside from an overdrive, it's generally the only pedal I'll use when I get called for a country gig. Excellent "always-on" pedal for chicken-pickin' stuff, and it also works great for Prince-type funk scratching. I couldn't see using it for any type of jazz gig other than maybe a big band chart that specifically specified "80s funk" or something to that effect on the guitar part. Having the dynamics squished out would make it impossible to blend and match the inflections of horns when reading lines in big band charts.
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Wampler Ego Compressor is the way to go! Endless possibilities to shape your sound. I use it quite often to get clean sustain or to get more attack, or just to cut through the mix in band situations.
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I had a guitar that sounded fantastic with acoustic strings. The pickup had no pole pieces to balance the string to string volume so my first two plain strings were much louder than the brass third thru sixth strings. I adjusted the pickup height as much as possible to get the balance, then used a compressor to smooth it out the rest of the way. Sounded great and still had dynamics. Sounds kind of crazy but it worked very well.
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If you have a guitar that NEEDS it's sound tightened up then use one. Most good guitars lay back and then punch when you lay on them. That's "dynamics" and I would be disappointed if that was eliminated from my guitar by a compressor. That said, while playing in a band setting a compressor comes in handy when the drummer has no respect for dynamics and feels compelled to stay on top the whole time. Then you just unplug your compressor and throw it at him!!!
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never used a compression pedal, but I use it with the amp modeling for recording on the computer with a direct line in.
my line 6 guitar port sounds terrible without compression.
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A comp pedal for a clean boost is mandatory for what I play.
It works perfect for me, and it has for many years.
HTH,
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I bought an Empress compressor about a month ago; it's a decent piece of equipment, but I'm still not sure if it's an improvement or a detriment. I use it judiciously, and it does produce a bit of a different sound, but I doubt that it was really a worthwhile investment.
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I go back and forth. I have a built in compressor on my Lab Series L5 Amp. The signal sounds pretty good coming out of the compressor, although I don't like it _too_ squashed. Sometimes, however, I just leave the compressor off. Things still sound pretty good. There is a noticeable difference, however.
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I use a rack compressor and with very little ratio on occasions. My reasoning is that I can tame shrill transients without resorting to achieving the same with heavy treble tone roll off. You can also run them with an eq pedal in the side-chain, so the compression is frequency dependent. This seems good with teles. Lastly, even in bypass, the signal still passes through the transformers which adds a bit of analogue warmth.
The dbx rack units are cheaper than the better pedals
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Tube amps compress the signal... just saying.
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+1 You are so right, Danno. For Country and Funk the red MXR pedal is outstanding. It has been around forever; it is dead simple; and it sure gets the job done. Originally Posted by Danno1985
My Lab Series L5 amp with built in compressor and JBL D-130 speaker (baffle board has been replaced) gets a great country sound with my Telecaster, so I don't use a pedal anymore. Otherwise, it would be the MXR for country work.
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It could work well, as said above, to bring the solo out front. Its what they do on TV when the adverts come on - they are not louder, just compressed. The same can happen to your guitar, it can be set up to sound louder when the compression gets switched on. Trouble is in a playing situation, compression brings with it some strange side effects that overtime you'll get to recognise (and hate?).
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Try a Origin Cali 76 pedal. Its Wonderfull and is nothing like ordinary comp pedal . The key is parallell compression and the ability to blend the original signal with the compressed. People that thinks compression kills dynamics just do do it right ..
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compressors,even the best are killing dynamics.
However,Philip Catherine does always play with compression with his 175!
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No , a compressor used right can actually increase your dynamic range. Also Bring out components in your guitar that you never heard. If you know how to set it and have control over your dry path signal then it can be awesome.
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