I think one thing that would help also with this - especially on TH-cam which automatically compresses the videos anyways - is to show the wave form so we can see what each one is doing.
After trying a few bass compressor pedals over the years (looking for just enough to even out my pickstyle vs fingerstyle and smooth out in general), I found that having LED indicator lights that show you visually what's going on is super, super, super valuable. I would never even consider a bass compressor without LED indicator lights again. For me, the Keeley Compressor Pro has been flawless and will never leave my pedalboard. You had a couple of other ones in this shootout that would also work for me, but I'm set with the Keeley. Great shootout! Thanks for doing these, your channel is great.
Totally agree. I have the Empress Bass Comp and didn't realise how useful I'd find the metering until I started using it in all sorts of different scenarios.
I love bass compressors. My favourite are these two: Boss BC-1x and Markbass Compressore v.1 Seymour Duncan Studio is nice too, but it cuts some presence.
I feel like any one of these could work. I’ve used the Seymour Duncan Studio Bass Comp for several years now. I like the blend control, the tone switch and the headroom it offers running at 18 volts. What it doesn’t have is a threshold control, a release control, and a gauge or light to show the gain reduction. Still, it has worked well for me. Thanks as always 🙏🏽
This comp was a real surprise for me when I tried it for the first time a couple months ago. There is something very unique in that tone that I really like. That's a keeper for me.
It's a superb and probably underrated pedal! It seems to add some warmth and punch with very low noise. I believe that there is no difference in the voltage that the pedal sees (9v) if using 9, 12 or 18v- it just makes the pedal able to use any of these for convenience
Had this playing in the background and the ones that caught my ears were MXR bass compressor and EBS multicomp. MXR has a great single band punchy sound and double band circuit of the multicomp gives a really balanced tone, doesn't get overly bright or dull and doesn't get muddy or weak,. It really sits at a perfect balance. Keeley and Seymour Duncan also sound great. I had the Spectradrive preamp from TC whic had the Spectracomp built in and the sounds were great. I have a custom pedal with Walrus Deep Six clone built in, it also sounds great but having a mulitband compressor was something else.
Not a bad sound in the bunch. Love the fat sound of the Boss. The Teletronix for that warm LA2A sound that’s great on bass. Would have loved to have seen the SA Atlas in there as well on the optical setting. But for me you can’t beat the Empress. As a FET It does its thing so well without affecting the tone. The Cali is right there too obviously and I have one and love it, but IMHO I think the Empress has dethroned it as the best on the market and at a better price. That’s what I have on my touring board now and it’s replaced the Cali. But can’t go wrong with any of these pedals. Choosing amongst them is a high class problem.
I’ve been using the TC Spectracomp for years. It’s multiband, intelligent, and I can use tone prints and the tone print editor to dial in just about anything on the fly. $99. Done.
@@Rik-Ahbece there’s nothing confusing or difficult about it. It has one knob. Changing tone prints takes less than 30 seconds and you can have a multitude of multi band compressors at your fingertips. It does get complex if you go into the editor, but with the number of tone prints, there’s really no need to go there because they’ve done a great job of creating excellent presets. It’s like having hundreds of compressors available to you at one time. I’ve never had a noise issue with it so I don’t know what happened there, but I still highly recommend it.
@@Naniamania3 Well.. I guess your experience was different yes. I also really struggled with the gainlevel, the default 'toneprint' boosted my signal a lot compared to bypass. I do not mind something being simple and straight forward, i actually love that. But the SpectraComp annoyed me because it did not work for me. The editor gave me huge "Analysis paralysis" and "Decision paralysis".. I do not want 50 toneprints and 200 settings to choose from. What i want from effects or things in general: A basic good impression and simple to understand with a few control knobs that help me to fix things when playing live. The Spectracomp was not for me, especially not for live use. No way to diagnose things.. When playing live there is no time to calmly start up your tone print app on your phone or laptop. Things need to work. I like something to be simple and be 'almost' good enough from the start, with a few control knobs at my feet to dail in things.
@@Naniamania3 Yes. I really wanted it too work because i like things to be straightforward and easy.. Exactly one knob should not be difficult! But it was, because it did not work well for me. The default toneprint boosted my gainlevel increasingly when i turned the knob. Really annoying. It also introduced a lot of noise. (Maybe the SpectraComp struggled with my high-output signal? Idk) Besides that i also missed the feeling of having control and understanding about how i exactly was compressing my signal, and realized I prefer to have a few knobs, attack, blend, compression rate etc. I gig quite often, and want to be able to diagnose things and control things on the fly in a quick way.. Not having to diagnose by using a Toneprint App on a phone or laptop, and having to choose from 50 presets which one sounds best and adjusting about 200 settings and having Analysis paralysis while your bandmates are waiting for you. I remember turning it off and i stopped using it because it boosted my signal and my sound seemed much better without it. Some people really love the SpectraComp, some people really do not. I am glad you found a compression pedal that works for you. 🙂
@@Naniamania3 Yes. One knob 'should' not be confusing, of course. I wanted it too work because i like things to be simple, and being able to focus on preforming live and not struggling with my gear. The gain/volume increased while turning the knob, making it unusable for me to use live. Also it was not noise free. I have spend a few days and 10+ hours with all the 200 settings and 50 pre-sets, which gave me huge Analysis paralysis. And some how, i did not like the sound and feel the presets gave me. I could not get over the fact you need the Toneprint App to make ANY specific changes. Imagine doing that on stage. It scared me. I actually turned it a few times on stage, because i did not like the sound and could not change it. TLDR: I like things to be simple and have a sound that is decent from the start, And having control knobs right at my feet, so i am able to change things fast. SpectraComp did not offer that for me. A few people like the SpectraComp, but it is not for me. Good to hear you are enjoying it. 🙂 have fun.
Eyes closed: Boss sounded best to my ear. Eyes open: Darkglass and MRX look cool, Cali 76 is well-reviewed elsewhere. Wishing for a limited edition Boss in a different color.
Good video if only to demonstrate that my current M87 is perfect for my requirements. The final settings during the adjustment segment are not a million miles away from my own.
Thank you very much ! They are all great but I feel something special with the Seymour. Never tried it in a show though 🤷♂️ . I rarely see that pedal but I just worked with Unto Others and the bass player had the Seymour on his board.
I play hard metal rock, with a 6 string tuned across the strings to C (not simply 'drop c'). Which of these handles attenuates the ultra lows without adding the farty, huffing sound? Being somewhat old and half-deaf, I can't hear much difference between most of these.
Great video. Rarely a Mad Professor Forest Green Compressor is showcased! I have one and don’t use the sustain mode. Only compression and just a little. This thing can get aggressive!!
I decided to include the Forest Green 🌲because the character is very unique and nothing else sounds like that. The Pulp n Peel 🍊 was another that almost made the cut because of it's unique voice
Giving the strong impression that a compressor is engaged- the opposite of transparent and/or organic. Just my personal impression of course. I do know that some (particularly tube compressors) have a strong characteristic sound which can be nice. I just found the Cali too coloured and it wasn’t to my taste
Smooth Compression
0:35 Amazon Basics - Compressor
0:43 Electro-Harmonix - Bass Preacher
0:52 BOSS - Bass Comp BC-1X
1:00 MXR - Bass Compressor M87
1:08 Keeley - Bassist Limiting Amplifier
1:17 Seymour Duncan - Studio Bass Compressor
1:25 Aguilar - TLC Compressor
1:33 Darkglass - Hyper Luminal Compressor
1:42 Mad Professor - Forest Green Compressor
1:50 Empress - Bass Compressor
1:58 Diamond - BCP-1 Bass Comp
2:07 Keeley - Compressor Pro
2:15 EBS - MultCcomp V1 True Dual Band Compressor
2:23 Universal Audio - Max 1176
2:32 Universal Audio - Teletronix LA-2A
2:40 Origin Effects - Cali76 Compact Bass
Hard Compression
5:11 Amazon Basics - Compressor
5:20 Electro-Harmonix - Bass Preacher
5:28 BOSS - Bass Comp BC-1X
5:36 MXR - Bass Compressor M87
5:44 Keeley - Bassist Limiting Amplifier
5:53 Seymour Duncan - Studio Bass Compressor
6:01 Aguilar - TLC Compressor
6:10 Darkglass - Hyper Luminal Compressor
6:18 Mad Professor - Forest Green Compressor
6:26 Empress - Bass Compressor
6:35 Diamond - BCP-1 Bass Comp
6:43 Keeley - Compressor Pro
6:51 EBS - MultCcomp V1 True Dual Band Compressor
7:00 Universal Audio - Max 1176
7:08 Universal Audio - Teletronix LA-2A
7:16 Origin Effects - Cali76 Compact Bass
Thank you !
@@BassStuff For these amazing videos, I should be the one thanking you! 😊
I think one thing that would help also with this - especially on TH-cam which automatically compresses the videos anyways - is to show the wave form so we can see what each one is doing.
After trying a few bass compressor pedals over the years (looking for just enough to even out my pickstyle vs fingerstyle and smooth out in general), I found that having LED indicator lights that show you visually what's going on is super, super, super valuable. I would never even consider a bass compressor without LED indicator lights again. For me, the Keeley Compressor Pro has been flawless and will never leave my pedalboard. You had a couple of other ones in this shootout that would also work for me, but I'm set with the Keeley. Great shootout! Thanks for doing these, your channel is great.
Totally agree. I have the Empress Bass Comp and didn't realise how useful I'd find the metering until I started using it in all sorts of different scenarios.
I love bass compressors. My favourite are these two: Boss BC-1x and Markbass Compressore v.1 Seymour Duncan Studio is nice too, but it cuts some presence.
I feel like any one of these could work. I’ve used the Seymour Duncan Studio Bass Comp for several years now. I like the blend control, the tone switch and the headroom it offers running at 18 volts. What it doesn’t have is a threshold control, a release control, and a gauge or light to show the gain reduction. Still, it has worked well for me. Thanks as always 🙏🏽
This comp was a real surprise for me when I tried it for the first time a couple months ago. There is something very unique in that tone that I really like. That's a keeper for me.
It's a superb and probably underrated pedal! It seems to add some warmth and punch with very low noise. I believe that there is no difference in the voltage that the pedal sees (9v) if using 9, 12 or 18v- it just makes the pedal able to use any of these for convenience
Had this playing in the background and the ones that caught my ears were MXR bass compressor and EBS multicomp. MXR has a great single band punchy sound and double band circuit of the multicomp gives a really balanced tone, doesn't get overly bright or dull and doesn't get muddy or weak,. It really sits at a perfect balance. Keeley and Seymour Duncan also sound great. I had the Spectradrive preamp from TC whic had the Spectracomp built in and the sounds were great. I have a custom pedal with Walrus Deep Six clone built in, it also sounds great but having a mulitband compressor was something else.
I thought the Boss did very well here, the diamond was nice and soi too the empress.
Wow - the Empress really stands out!
Not a bad sound in the bunch. Love the fat sound of the Boss. The Teletronix for that warm LA2A sound that’s great on bass. Would have loved to have seen the SA Atlas in there as well on the optical setting. But for me you can’t beat the Empress. As a FET It does its thing so well without affecting the tone. The Cali is right there too obviously and I have one and love it, but IMHO I think the Empress has dethroned it as the best on the market and at a better price. That’s what I have on my touring board now and it’s replaced the Cali. But can’t go wrong with any of these pedals. Choosing amongst them is a high class problem.
Good value too: Universal Audio - Teletronix LA-2A
I’ve been using the TC Spectracomp for years. It’s multiband, intelligent, and I can use tone prints and the tone print editor to dial in just about anything on the fly. $99. Done.
I had one and it's very cool indeed.
@@Rik-Ahbece there’s nothing confusing or difficult about it. It has one knob. Changing tone prints takes less than 30 seconds and you can have a multitude of multi band compressors at your fingertips. It does get complex if you go into the editor, but with the number of tone prints, there’s really no need to go there because they’ve done a great job of creating excellent presets. It’s like having hundreds of compressors available to you at one time. I’ve never had a noise issue with it so I don’t know what happened there, but I still highly recommend it.
@@Naniamania3 Well.. I guess your experience was different yes. I also really struggled with the gainlevel, the default 'toneprint' boosted my signal a lot compared to bypass. I do not mind something being simple and straight forward, i actually love that. But the SpectraComp annoyed me because it did not work for me. The editor gave me huge "Analysis paralysis" and "Decision paralysis".. I do not want 50 toneprints and 200 settings to choose from. What i want from effects or things in general: A basic good impression and simple to understand with a few control knobs that help me to fix things when playing live. The Spectracomp was not for me, especially not for live use. No way to diagnose things.. When playing live there is no time to calmly start up your tone print app on your phone or laptop. Things need to work. I like something to be simple and be 'almost' good enough from the start, with a few control knobs at my feet to dail in things.
@@Naniamania3 Yes. I really wanted it too work because i like things to be straightforward and easy.. Exactly one knob should not be difficult! But it was, because it did not work well for me. The default toneprint boosted my gainlevel increasingly when i turned the knob. Really annoying. It also introduced a lot of noise. (Maybe the SpectraComp struggled with my high-output signal? Idk) Besides that i also missed the feeling of having control and understanding about how i exactly was compressing my signal, and realized I prefer to have a few knobs, attack, blend, compression rate etc. I gig quite often, and want to be able to diagnose things and control things on the fly in a quick way.. Not having to diagnose by using a Toneprint App on a phone or laptop, and having to choose from 50 presets which one sounds best and adjusting about 200 settings and having Analysis paralysis while your bandmates are waiting for you. I remember turning it off and i stopped using it because it boosted my signal and my sound seemed much better without it.
Some people really love the SpectraComp, some people really do not. I am glad you found a compression pedal that works for you. 🙂
@@Naniamania3 Yes. One knob 'should' not be confusing, of course. I wanted it too work because i like things to be simple, and being able to focus on preforming live and not struggling with my gear.
The gain/volume increased while turning the knob, making it unusable for me to use live. Also it was not noise free. I have spend a few days and 10+ hours with all the 200 settings and 50 pre-sets, which gave me huge Analysis paralysis. And some how, i did not like the sound and feel the presets gave me.
I could not get over the fact you need the Toneprint App to make ANY specific changes. Imagine doing that on stage. It scared me. I actually turned it a few times on stage, because i did not like the sound and could not change it.
TLDR: I like things to be simple and have a sound that is decent from the start, And having control knobs right at my feet, so i am able to change things fast. SpectraComp did not offer that for me.
A few people like the SpectraComp, but it is not for me.
Good to hear you are enjoying it. 🙂 have fun.
Eyes closed: Boss sounded best to my ear. Eyes open: Darkglass and MRX look cool, Cali 76 is well-reviewed elsewhere. Wishing for a limited edition Boss in a different color.
amazing comparison!!!
! ! ! ! H U G E ! ! ! ! 👏🎵👏🎵👏🎵👏🎵👏🎵👏🎵👏🎵👏🎵
Good video if only to demonstrate that my current M87 is perfect for my requirements. The final settings during the adjustment segment are not a million miles away from my own.
Congrats. It's excepcional comparative video. Between Aguilar, Keeley Bassist and Seymour Duncan, wich one do you prefer?
Thank you very much ! They are all great but I feel something special with the Seymour. Never tried it in a show though 🤷♂️ . I rarely see that pedal but I just worked with Unto Others and the bass player had the Seymour on his board.
@@BassStuff Thank you for your reply. It helps me a lot!!!
I play hard metal rock, with a 6 string tuned across the strings to C (not simply 'drop c'). Which of these handles attenuates the ultra lows without adding the farty, huffing sound? Being somewhat old and half-deaf, I can't hear much difference between most of these.
Great video. Rarely a Mad Professor Forest Green Compressor is showcased! I have one and don’t use the sustain mode. Only compression and just a little. This thing can get aggressive!!
I decided to include the Forest Green 🌲because the character is very unique and nothing else sounds like that. The Pulp n Peel 🍊 was another that almost made the cut because of it's unique voice
Cali 76 ❤
not the empress mk2?
For fuck‘s sake… 😂
No Markbass Compressore?
After this vid, it feels there's no wrong answers.
So my question is, which pedal or pedals performed the worst in this vid?
The little Aguilar sounded fine to me. Most sounded a smidge, a tad, dull.
Diamond is very effective
Top top! Thanks bro!!!! And... Comp on Jazz Bass??? 😊
Sorry, it's too long to make it for Jazz too 😅
@@BassStuff hahaha. Ok! 🫶🏻
Que te pasa Policarpo?
@@Cuchicho06 jajajaja... que maestro 💥
👍
No inexpensives like Mooer, Donner or Behringer? I really would like to see them here, Great video
The Amazon Basics and the Bass Preacher was my cheaper pick. I had a Behringer too but it was really hard to keep it to 16 total 🤷♂️
Amazon Basics - Compressor is the same topology as the Mooer and Donner.
I think my ears are broken even with earphones on I’m not hearing much difference in any of these … even when you change the knobs
Not sure I could hear enough difference between stuff to say the Cali or Diamond is worth the money. I’ll stick with the Keeley Bassist for now
The Keeley Bassist is great ! I loved it.
Cali is overrated- compressory and hissy
I really need to know what you mean by compressory 😅
Giving the strong impression that a compressor is engaged- the opposite of transparent and/or organic. Just my personal impression of course. I do know that some (particularly tube compressors) have a strong characteristic sound which can be nice. I just found the Cali too coloured and it wasn’t to my taste
Excellent explanation 🙏
Dear Amazon, Can I please have my fundamental back? Sincerely, Bassy McBassist
CAli76
JHS Pulp ‘n Peel. /thread
eyes closed all i heard was dollar signs