Why do you use compressor pedals in live gigs

bryan the rocker

bryan the rocker

New member
A question I read on another site,



Why do people use compression pedals when even the best ones take tone and add background noise and take away dynamic range and a lot of the nuances of sound and emotion. I know they can add sustain, thicken the tone and can make fast riffs a little more clean but is the tradeoff really worth it when you're ruining a really good tone? Also, why are they so abundent in country music?



any opinion guys,
 
Last edited:
Re: Why do you use compressor pedals in live gigs

I like em too. I don't think it is the compressor's fault if the tone is bad. I'd look more at the distortion pedal, the guitar, the amp and the player.
 
Re: Why do you use compressor pedals in live gigs

I once played with a guy who played a lot of clean guitar, but he would play arpeggios and then go right to the hard strumming. So naturally, his volume would fluctuate with his playing. I bought him a compressor and it gave us a bit more control over his sound and how it fit in with the rest of us. It actually made a world of difference. The arpeggios came through and the strumming wasn't right out in the very front of the mix (that sounds weird when it's a clean guitar, trust me.)
 
Re: Why do you use compressor pedals in live gigs

Same reason I use a phaser.

I don't keep it on all the time, I switch it on and off for effect.
 
Re: Why do you use compressor pedals in live gigs

I don't care for compressors, personally. IMO they take away a lot of the dynamics and feel I like to hear/feel when I play. YMMV, of course.
 
Re: Why do you use compressor pedals in live gigs

The key to maintaining quality tones through a compressor is to use mild compression settings. If you don't squash the peaks too dramatically then you won't have to crank the gain to bring up softer signals (and the noise floor as well). If you can hear an obvious compression effect you have gone past the optimum setting.

A lot of country pickers prefer a more squashed attack. I just don't happen to share that preference.
 
Re: Why do you use compressor pedals in live gigs

because Keeley makes a compressor... for a fatter more consistent clean tone... for sustain, etc...
 
Re: Why do you use compressor pedals in live gigs

I've used them for easier melody and lead while using clean tones. Even a cheap el-generico compressor seems to make that work better for me.

I've also used them as a good way to add a fairly clean boost for a distortion.

Also, since I'm pretty much a solid-state user, sometimes they help me screw up my tone a little bit so my sound isn't so blocky.


I haven't had too much extra noise introduced by compressors but even so I think (within reason) that its worth it.
 
Re: Why do you use compressor pedals in live gigs

i use mine for that trey anastasio endless sustain. personally i dont think it eats tone, i love the coloration my analogman bicomp adds to my tone. i have it on almost all the time
 
Re: Why do you use compressor pedals in live gigs

firat of all, tone/noise at a live gig are really moot points. Overall, live gig sound is meh at best. There will be noise, there will be all kinds of tone suck, sound bleed, etc...so don't worry about the compressor.

And there are lots of reasons to use it. One, and the big one, is to keep the instrument in the dynamic range you want it to sit in the band mix. different instruments run different dynamic ranges based on the instrument and its range, volume etc. sometimes you really do need to put a cap on something or make sure it is brought up to be heard or not overwhelm another instrument. That "optimal" setting mentioned above is a good place to start. after that, the board can adjust the overall volume to sound right with the band.

Another is for "effect" see 80's pop, etc. for examples of this. Also sustain, lead boosts, and whatever else you want. But I think you are talking about the above reason.
 
Re: Why do you use compressor pedals in live gigs

Sustain... I am currently using a BBE Orange Squash..... It is working very favorably with my Mark IV... Have it set very subtle...... I am a Strat player.... so every little bit helps :)


bryan the rocker said:
A question I read on another site,



Why do people use compression pedals when even the best ones take tone and add background noise and take away dynamic range and a lot of the nuances of sound and emotion. I know they can add sustai, thicken the tone and can make fast riffs a little more clean but is the tradeoff really worth it when you're ruining a really good tone? Also, why are they so abundent in country music?



any opinion guys,
Click to expand...
 
Re: Why do you use compressor pedals in live gigs

I like a mild squash with a fast release so the notes of a solo will bloom as the compression lets go and the note comes back up a couple of db.
 
Re: Why do you use compressor pedals in live gigs

bryan the rocker said:
A question I read on another site,



Why do people use compression pedals when even the best ones take tone and add background noise and take away dynamic range and a lot of the nuances of sound and emotion. I know they can add sustai, thicken the tone and can make fast riffs a little more clean but is the tradeoff really worth it when you're ruining a really good tone? Also, why are they so abundent in country music?



any opinion guys,
Click to expand...

Obviously compressors CAN do what you're saying, but the way you state it why would anyone use compression? Because what you're saying is far from being entirely true. And I think you realize that.
 
Re: Why do you use compressor pedals in live gigs

Many guitars might sound great without compressor, when played alone.

When the whole band is playing things are a different matter. You can easily end up being sucked into the mix inaudibly for most of the time and only sparkles of annoying "pling pling" making it through.

Even where you have -say- a ballad going on with just your picking and the singer you will often find that huge dynamic jumps irritate the hell out of the sinker. You are almost always better off doing a "carpet" in the background and let him/her handle the dynamics.
 
Re: Why do you use compressor pedals in live gigs

2 of my favourite guitarists use Compressor pedals a lot!!! Pete Townshend has had MXR Compressors in his rig since 1976... He was using it as a solo boost with a Boss OD1... these days he has a new MXR Super Comp on his pedal board in place of the Dyna-Comp pedal... when he has the Clapton Mid Boost on, the Boss OD1 on, and the MXR on, and the Delay pedal he uses, it is sustian heaven...

another player i love, Canadian Kim Mitchell, uses stock CS3 Boss units... i watched him really close many nights and he tap dances on that comp all night... he told me he uses it as a solo boost, and also to clean up his JCM 800 for cleaner sounding tones??? But he uses it like Townshend does for solos with a Boss OD unit... except he has a Blues Driver and a CS3 unit..

me i never liked Comps that much... seeing these guys tap them on and off constantly makes me see how they can stand to use them... they only have them on for short passages at a time..
 
Re: Why do you use compressor pedals in live gigs

I'm not much of a fan of guitar compressor pedals... most of them DO squash things to a ridiculous degree and thats what makes them noisy... the loud stuff gets pushed down too much and so the quiet stuff is too loud. I really haven't found one yet that can be subtle enough to make it worth having on my board.

About the only time I have a comp in-line is if I'm fingerpicking a lot, and a little bit is nice to even things out... or if I'm feeding an octave unit or pitchshifter because they tend to track better when getting a more even signal.

Occasionally I'll use the dynacomp as a clean boost but there are much better things for that task...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

belensky
The Humbucker Archive: DiMarzio, EMG, BKP, Suhr & Duncan Tested – My Notes & Comparison Samples (Long Read)
2
Replies
35
Views
2K
Artie
Artie
S
Modified Blaze Neck in bridge position is awesome!
Replies
6
Views
616
Juanhanglo
J
Chris EmCee
Will anything dethrone the '78?
Replies
19
Views
1K
jeremy
jeremy
C
It has arrived
Replies
15
Views
820
Chistopher
C
Z
Crazy Tube Sidekick- I don't need anything else!
Replies
6
Views
524
Mincer
Mincer
Back
Top