Cheap compressor for me?

[Pierre]

And by that I mean less than 50 British pounds...

I used to have a Route 66 but I had to sell it and I feel the need for a compressor.
The two I have in mind are the EH Soul Preacher nano and Marshall ED1.

The only real constraint aside from price is low, low noise level, and the ability to use it with a tiny boost for clean tones. I'd also rather it be NOT true bypass as it'll be first in the chain.

 

[GuitarStv]

Re: Cheap compressor for me?

I like the Marshall ED-1 . . . it has a lot of gain, so you can definitely use it as a boost (I boost my amp or another distortion pedal to get a smooth lead sound). It's not noisy unless you really crank up the compression on it . . . the tone knob takes some playing around with to get a sound that I like, but other than that I think it's a great little box.

 

[Gr8Scott]

Re: Cheap compressor for me?

The Boss SC-3 is a decent compressor, but you have to change the input cap (c1) for something with a higher value such as a .22-.47 uf film cap. That helps the sound tremendously right there. Still a tad noisy at high compression levels, but it's very transparent and the highs aren't muffled like most compressors I've seen. It won't knock your socks off, but it doesn't change your tone much that I've seen. It just compresses it. Anything over half the way up on the sustain (compress) knob and you hear a bit of background hiss. It can lay down some serious compression if you don't mind the noise.

 

[lex666]

Re: Cheap compressor for me?

The Boss SC-3 is a decent compressor, but you have to change the input cap (c1) for something with a higher value such as a .22-.47 uf film cap. That helps the sound tremendously right there. Still a tad noisy at high compression levels, but it's very transparent and the highs aren't muffled like most compressors I've seen. It won't knock your socks off, but it doesn't change your tone much that I've seen. It just compresses it. Anything over half the way up on the sustain (compress) knob and you hear a bit of background hiss. It can lay down some serious compression if you don't mind the noise.

+1 including your settings...

I set both compression and sustain at 11:00 and that gives me some nice compression without squashing the tone or adding unwanted noise...

 

[Gr8Scott]

Re: Cheap compressor for me?

I actually run mine at about 2-o'clock on the sustain/compress knob. It adds a bit of noise, but when you're playing you don't hear it and it sustains for days. You hear a bit of "noise swell" at the end of notes, but it's not something that bothers me at all. I kind of like it in a way in some respects as it's like someone automatically riding the gain for me to keep my volume even. Still feels punchy too, even though I know that it's a very subjective thing.

 

[scottish]

Re: Cheap compressor for me?

get a BYOC ross if you are a competent solderer. awesome pedal for very cheap

 

[baritone]

Re: Cheap compressor for me?

I have a DigiTech Main Squeeze and a Boss LMB-3. Both are cool, but the Boss is a little more natural sounding. I don't use compression very often, but for classy tones, it has to be very subtle. When used with settings suggested by the manuals, they produce that unpleasant "breathing" sound.

 

[Vasshu the humanoid typhoon]

Re: Cheap compressor for me?

BYOC....or....hehe

 

[Pierre]

Re: Cheap compressor for me?

Yeah Niels if i had a bigger budget the CM Compressor as well as the diamond one would be first on the list... I'll try the Marshall one and check it out. I'm not THAT picky about compressor tones anyway. As long as my tone isn't squashed and muffled as opposed to balanced out, I'll be ok.

 

[Pierre]

Re: Cheap compressor for me?

I tried a Boss compressor today... It was at 35 quid second hand whereas a brand new Marshall would cost £33. Anyway... it wasn't great. Got noisy quickly and it really squashes your notes pretty bad. I didn't like it.

 

[theodie]

Re: Cheap compressor for me?

I like the Marshall ED-1 . . . it has a lot of gain, so you can definitely use it as a boost (I boost my amp or another distortion pedal to get a smooth lead sound). It's not noisy unless you really crank up the compression on it . . . the tone knob takes some playing around with to get a sound that I like, but other than that I think it's a great little box.

Yeah, I like the Marshall Compressor too. This is a good low buck choice P!

PM sent Pierre! I found a nice link for you.

 

[Pierre]

Re: Cheap compressor for me?

I got the Marshall one! I tried it today and it just sounds BEAUTIFUL. Way better than the Boss compressor I felt. So I went for it. I'll try it thoroughly sometime later. Right now it sits right between my Bad Monkey (which acts as a boost with) and the SD1 (as a standalone OD) for more tonal variation. Thanks for the help y'all!

 

[pixelpusher]

Re: Cheap compressor for me?

get a BYOC ross if you are a competent solderer. awesome pedal for very cheap

totally agree i built one for me & one for a friend and we both LOVE the BYOC comp.

 

[Pierre]

Re: Cheap compressor for me?

BYOC are pretty expensive, especially over here...


Well I placed the compressor first in chain in the end. Sounds gorgeous!

 

[theodie]

Re: Cheap compressor for me?

Glad it worked well for ya brother!


Did you get that one off of Ebay?