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  #1  
Old 05-15-2020, 11:58 AM
fishwatcher fishwatcher is offline
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Red face Recommend a quality, entry-level compressor pedal

I've read a bunch on compressor pedals, and still don't know if I need one.

But I've got an itch and need to scratch it. I'm a relative novice, do very very little recording, and play both acoustic and electric guitar. Song range is from Green Day, Nirvana, and AC/DC, to Taylor Swift (with my daughter ) and some basic 12 bar blues.

In the $50-ish and under range, what lower priced compressor pedals do you like, and why?

What does it do for your sound (clean and distorted)?

How do you set your dials up?

Does it add much noise (would really not like that)?

Does it feel like a quality pedal (I know.. at a low price still)?

Pedals I've considered in this range are from Donner, Joyo, the TC Electronics Forcefield, and Hotone (the smallest, most unique looking in the bunch).

This is what I currently have in my line up (two separate boards, but can be connected into one longer chain). One board has a Voodoo X4 power supply and the other uses a daisy chained cable.



Thanks in advance for your advice!
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  #2  
Old 05-15-2020, 12:55 PM
RoyBoy RoyBoy is offline
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Compressors is one genre where trying to go cheap is going likely to bite you. They are very memory and processor demanding, which means the guts in them are pricey. Good sounding compressor pedals are going to run 3-4x your budget, and consensus is that the 4 knob models are where you can really get a sound you can live with.

If you're not sure you need one, then maybe you don't. Country chickin pickers are the one genre that really depend on a compressor to do what they need. Good compressors really do add a nice sparkle and presence with the attack turned down, mine is an "always on". But it costs $200.
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Old 05-15-2020, 02:10 PM
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Well, there are two kinds of compressor users "2 knobers" and "more than 2 knobers". Seriously, I think living with super simple, but quality one for a while, and then deciding if you need more control is the way to go. Kind of like Loopers. I have a ditto x2. Should have just bought the ditto... This thing is WAY more powerful than I need. Luckily it isn't overly confusing. But after 2 years, I can pretty much guarantee I won't be pushing this thing's boundaries. Ever.

You can go to ebay and pick up a basic used MXR dyna comp for around $50 and play the compressor Townshend was using live in The Who's heyday. If it's good enough cool. If you need more capability, you'll find out, and sell it off with no depreciation. I still have mine from the 90's.
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Old 05-15-2020, 11:32 PM
3notes 3notes is offline
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The first pedal I bought was a Boss Loop pedal. 2nd pedal was a Boss Compressor, CS-3. I bought it used for $60. I loved it for about 4 months but now I've gone with just cable to amp. Well, the loop pedal and a chromatic tuner are in between guitar and amp but they aren't effect pedals.

Playing lead guitar with a compressor is pretty cool. Add attack and sustain and things really come alive. If you crank the Level knob you'll get some noise. Same with the sustain. But, IMO, the compressor has value playing rhythm too. These pedals don't need a lot of power so the noise level is manageable.
The Boss Compressor CS-3 has 4 knobs and I think they are $99 new.
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Old 05-16-2020, 12:49 AM
Steel and wood Steel and wood is offline
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My guess is that the majority of guitarists will never use a compressor pedal. (Like their notes to sustain out). They are however popular with a lot of the country guys in getting their staccato sound.
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Old 05-16-2020, 06:33 AM
Dru Edwards Dru Edwards is offline
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I've never owned a compressor pedal before. There were a few times when I could have used one, mostly when I was strumming clean rock ballads when I was gigging in a band but since I played 98% of the time with gain there wasn't a need. I would own one if I did chicken picking.

You probably don't need a compressor if you're playing AC/DC or Green Day since gain naturally compresses.

At under $50 I'd probably start with the Joyo only because I've read lots of positive things about their pedals in general. But, if you can find a used Boss Compressor that could be a great start. If you don't like it you could always sell it for approximately what you paid for it.
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Old 05-16-2020, 06:41 AM
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rrgguitarman rrgguitarman is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RoyBoy View Post
Compressors is one genre where trying to go cheap is going likely to bite you. They are very memory and processor demanding, which means the guts in them are pricey. Good sounding compressor pedals are going to run 3-4x your budget, and consensus is that the 4 knob models are where you can really get a sound you can live with.

If you're not sure you need one, then maybe you don't. Country chickin pickers are the one genre that really depend on a compressor to do what they need. Good compressors really do add a nice sparkle and presence with the attack turned down, mine is an "always on". But it costs $200.
Very true.
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Old 05-16-2020, 12:52 PM
rockabilly69 rockabilly69 is offline
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A compressor used for the fast attack, long release, country chickin' pickin' thing, can be had for cheap (MXR DynaComp), but if you are going to use the compressor like you would a studio compressor, for taming peaks transparently, then it's going to cost you. It's nice to have a compressor where you can, vary the attack and release, vary the compression ratio, set the threshold (when it kicks on), and apply make-up gain. It's also nice to have metering to see when it's kicking on, and how much it's compressing. That's how I use compression, as I like to mimic the way I mix tracks in a studio setting. I found one that isn't too god-awful expensive, but still gets the job done. It's called the M87 Bass Compressor, which also goes by the name M76 Studio compressor. They are both the same compressor (other than color). Many people found out that the bass compressor was good on everything, so MXR, thinking they could sell more of these, just renamed it! Oh, and they are different colors, the M87 is white, the M76 is black. On the used market the price varies between $130 and $160, new they go for $190
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Old 05-17-2020, 04:14 AM
paulp1960 paulp1960 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RoyBoy View Post
Compressors is one genre where trying to go cheap is going likely to bite you. They are very memory and processor demanding, which means the guts in them are pricey. Good sounding compressor pedals are going to run 3-4x your budget, and consensus is that the 4 knob models are where you can really get a sound you can live with.

If you're not sure you need one, then maybe you don't. Country chickin pickers are the one genre that really depend on a compressor to do what they need. Good compressors really do add a nice sparkle and presence with the attack turned down, mine is an "always on". But it costs $200.
Most guitar compressor pedals are analog. They don't have memory or processors like a digital unit.
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Old 05-17-2020, 10:39 AM
jseth jseth is offline
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MXR Dyna-Comp, either an old one or the Lawrence re-make... should be able to find one for less than $100... an iconic standard and a great tool, used by so many great players throughout the past, and the tone still stands the test of time.
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  #11  
Old 05-17-2020, 04:31 PM
Beachrunner Beachrunner is offline
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Once I tried a compressor, I never looked back..

I picked up this mint MXR Dyna Comp for 50 bucks at Sam Ash - I've got it on my 2nd board. But that has been about 8-10 years ago now. However, I think this price is still in the ballpark for these pedals used.

(I also have a JangleBox, but that's a different price point..)



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Old 05-17-2020, 04:36 PM
fishwatcher fishwatcher is offline
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Thanks for all of the great advice. It sounds like going cheap is not a good idea, but the general consensus is that the MXR DynaComp is a not too expensive, quality option.

Looking into this more.. there’s a DynaComp mini that has pretty decent reviews.

https://www.tonestart.com/mxr-dyna-comp-mini-review/

I’ll be looking for one.

Thanks!
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Old 05-17-2020, 04:47 PM
Beachrunner Beachrunner is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by fishwatcher View Post
Thanks for all of the great advice. It sounds like going cheap is not a good idea, but the general consensus is that the MXR DynaComp is a not too expensive, quality option.

Looking into this more.. there’s a DynaComp mini that has pretty decent reviews.

https://www.tonestart.com/mxr-dyna-comp-mini-review/

I’ll be looking for one.

Thanks!
There ya go!

I really like my Dyna Comp, and to be honest, the more expensive JangleBox is very similar...
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  #14  
Old 05-17-2020, 04:52 PM
blue blue is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by fishwatcher View Post
Thanks for all of the great advice. It sounds like going cheap is not a good idea, but the general consensus is that the MXR DynaComp is a not too expensive, quality option.

Looking into this more.. there’s a DynaComp mini that has pretty decent reviews.

https://www.tonestart.com/mxr-dyna-comp-mini-review/

I’ll be looking for one.

Thanks!
I would only go mini if you need or like a mini pedal. I don't know if they still do, but dyna comps used to come with a fat rubber covers over the knobs so could adjust it with your foot mid set. It's pretty convenient if you end up using it as an "always on" type pedal. But for the right person, I'm amazed at the quality of the various mini pedals I've tried from a variety of the big companies.

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Old 05-17-2020, 04:54 PM
blue blue is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Beachrunner View Post



Egads. Your boards are so neat! Mine looks like an ape dipped the backs in peanut butter and threw them at a board. I need to get a hosting site so I can show you my shame!
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