Jim Dunlop MXR Bass Compressor Pedal

Product Information

Bottom Line: The Studio Bass offers a lot of value for its price. It sounds great, with a good assortment of usable tones under its belt, it’s very quiet during operation, and comes with a few nice extras in the box. They are very sensitive to micro-dynamics and transients making them ideally suited for percussive instruments, but you’ll commonly find them used with basses, guitars, and even vocals. If you are looking for a transparent compressor with low distortion, to even out your signal when switching from fingerstyle to slapping or popping, this could be the best choice for the task. Optical compressors A compressor should usually be among the first pedals in your signal chain, but it can also be placed further down the signal path when employed to smooth out the differences in volume created by effects that alter your dynamic range, like with auto-wah or synth pedals.

This is due to the fact that you’ve probably boosted the overall output of the signal after the compressor, which makes it louder than it was before compressing it (and louder is ALWAYS better!). Due to the nature of the size needed for tube circuits, almost all guitar compressor pedals feature a FET or VCA circuit design, though there are also some optical compressor pedals out there. It’s a compressor pedal that is designed to both emulate the sound and style of the legendary Universal Audio 1176 compressor but also has the familiar controls and stylings of classic guitar compressors like the Ross or Dyna Comp. Compressors were initially used as studio recording utilities by engineers. Today, they are a necessary addition to the pedalboards of the everyday guitarist, and there are plenty of options on the market. The addition of the Tone + Color switch stops this pedal from sounding generic or sterile. The 2-way switch adds mild harmonic distortion with either a mid-range cut or an upper-midrange boost.Set your compression ratio to somewhere between 2:1 and 4:1 (too much compression can lead to a lifeless sounding bass as the dynamics are reduced too much) While most of these other effects skirt around the issue of whether or not they’re supposed to sound like the classic 1176, the origin effects Cali76 boasts its ability to be the finest recreation of it for the guitar. Compared to the transparent M87 or warm Compressore, Super Symmetry is darker and fatter. The Empress has better highs and clarity, while the SS has fuller lows. The M87 promises studio-quality compression in a regular-sized enclosure with True Bypass and Constant Headroom Technology (CHT). The versatility, size, and price make it one of the top compressor pedals in today’s market. The MXR M87 is a very versatile pedal that can easily tighten up your sound. It’s designed for use both in the studio and on-stage, and is constructed to be very durable and compact. The pedal may look quite intimidating at first due to its appearance, but it really doesn’t take too long to figure it out with the help of the product manual that’s included with the M87.

The clean looks combined with the top-end connectors are sure to tidy up your pedalboard. The compressor pedal will fit like a glove in bright-sounding bass guitar rigs that need rounding off. A compressor will have 5 basic parameters that influence the way it behaves when running a signal through it: Tone-wise, the Empress bass comp is as clean and natural as it gets. The sonic character is transparent and there are no dips or swells in the smooth action. Target Customer: This is a very transparent compressor that adds just a touch of warmth to your signal, if you are looking for more character from your compressor, this one will not give you that. It offers good compression sounds, it’s very easy to set up and the blend control makes it very versatile. Target Customer: Keeley’s Bassist Limiting Amplifier is a high-quality multi-purpose pedal for the bass player who wants his tone untouched by his compressor. It can double as a fully transparent clean boost and also a potent peak limiter. Its price is rather on the high end of the spectrum, but you get a lot for what you pay.

Customer Added Media

Output level/make-up gain– Because you’re reducing the dynamic range of your signal, you will notice a drop in overall volume when the compressor is engaged. In this case, ‘making up’ the volume level is often necessary. This comes with the side effect of also turning up the volume of the quieter notes, which can be an easy way to add punch. The quiet notes will be closer in volume to the compressed peaks. But too much boost in make-up gain due to high compression raises the noise floor, which can make a compressor noisy or prone to hissing. Types of Bass Compressors From the large knobs to the circuits and the metal enclosure, the build quality of the Cali76 bass compressor is par excellence. Multi-Band is my favourite type of compression. When I first started playing bass, compressors were just what’s known as full-band. Nowadays it’s possible to divide up your frequency range into low, mid and high bands, rather than thinking of it as one source. This way you can essentially have three different compressors acting on your signal. The effect is almost transparent when it’s set up properly. The Darkglass bass compressor is for any bass player who appreciates a full-bodied, even tone with fat lows and a dark overall character.

It also has a variable HPF (20Hz to 300Hz) to filter the low frequencies via the Sidechain HPF function.Soundwise this pedal nails the character of the 1176’s super fast and aggressive attitude, while also being able to add sustain and sparkle to your guitar’s tone. It’s also made of an insanely sturdy metal enclosure with all-metal knobs, so you know it can take a beating out on the stage. As with any pedal, size can matter. We’re all looking to make gigging, practicing and recording easier, and a more compact pedalboard can aid this. A smaller pedal means that it takes less space on your board, so you can either have a smaller board (less to carry), or more pedals (more fun). If space isn’t an issue – maybe you’re only after one or two pedals, or you’ve got plenty of room in the van – or someone carries your gear for you (that’s the dream), then you don’t need to worry about size. You’ll probably find that the bigger pedals will have more functionality and flexibility too. How we choose products I don’t think I’m the only one who thinks that bass compression is an underrated and often misunderstood effect.

While the things I outlined above are really only scratching the surface on how compression works and why it’s useful on pretty much any sound source, here’s a list of great guitar compressor pedals you can utilize to enhance your tone and increase your guitar’s sustain. I Can’t Hear What A Compressor Is Doing. Is It Just Me?This layout will make the pedal very familiar to engineers/producers, which also makes it a bit easier to understand its concept. It also features a nice LED meter to show how much gain reduction is being applied to your signal, which is something I wish more guitar compressors had. When poorly implemented, compression can have a dramatic effect on the overall sound of your song or instrument. It can leave behind lots of unnatural artifacts and make your signal feel almost lifeless. First and foremost, we are guitarists, and we want other players to find the right product for them. So we take into careful consideration everything from budget to feature set, ease of use and durability to come up with a list of what we can safely say are the best bass compressors on the market right now. Since you have reduced the dynamic range so the louder sounds are closer in volume the quieter sounds, your signal is clearer because your louder sounds aren’t as attention-grabbing as the softer sounds because they are much closer together in overall level. This can also be described as the “smooth” sound of a compressed signal.