Compressor under £99

[dickiefunk]

Hi. I'm looking for a compressor for my DMP3. I have an absolute maximum of £99 to spend. I will be using it mainly for vocals and occassionally bass. Ideally I'd like a different flavoured preamp aswell so I've included the Joe Meek 3Q because it has a compressor which I could send my DMP3 to.
I would like the compressor to be very simple to use as I've only used presets on VTS's and would prefer it to be half rack. I don't know if I need a smooth sound or character as I don't know what that sounds like.
At the end of the day sound quality is most important. Which would you recommend as being the best option for my needs? I would really value your opinions because I'm unable to get to a shop to here any because the nearest place is 200+ miles away.

Thanks

[Lance]

This might be on your list:
http://www.behringer.com/T1952/index.cfm?lang=eng

Compressors are simple to use, but only if you know what they are for and how they work. They're not for preset guys.

[Scot Solida]

Don't know how much these go for in the UK, but with the poor performance of the dollar, it might be worth looking into:

http://www.mercenaryaudio.com/realniccom.html

I've used some on your list, and I much prefer the FMR (I don't have one, but I have tried them and liked them enough to buy a few as gifts for friends).

[whyterabbyt]

Don't know how much these go for in the UK, but with the poor performance of the dollar, it might be worth looking into:

http://www.mercenaryaudio.com/realniccom.html

I've used some on your list, and I much prefer the FMR (I don't have one, but I have tried them and liked them enough to buy a few as gifts for friends).

Digital Village have them at £195. Since Merc Audio do the 240V version for $190 plus $84 postage, which would come to the equivalent of about £135 plus import duty (£20-£30?), he could get it for about 3/4 of that. Outside the guy's budget, but, by its reputation, a damn good choice.

[dickiefunk]

Yeah I've heard of the FMR RNC but it is definatley outside my budget. Not keen on the Behringer T1982 because of size. I have limited space and would prefer 1/2 rack if possible but would consider 1U if it's THAT much better.
I have heard good things about the Joe Meek 3Q and am wondering how the compressor on it compares to the other units?

[dickiefunk]

Thanks for the info guys. I've just seen a second hand Aphex 207D over here for the price of a new 3Q. I noticed that this has a MicLim feature which appears to prevent spikes from clipping the pre? Seeing as I'd only be using this for recording vocals and trying to eliminate those spikes from a couple of full on gospel singers would the Aphex 207D be a better bet than the 3Q?

[ahjteam]

This might be on your list:
http://www.behringer.com/T1952/index.cfm?lang=eng

+1 for this (costs £105 at thomann), I own one of them myself and I've used it both live and studio for vocals and kickdrum. But I would suggest you still save another £50 and get DBX 166XL, it hasn't failed me once and is incredibly good basic compressor.

Alternatively I could suggest TC ELECTRONIC C300, it costs £125 - I haven't tried it personally, but ALL the other TC products i've tried have been so superb (M1, D2, M300, M350, M1XL, M3000, Finalizer, G-Major...) that I can pretty much suggest that too

[sinkmusic]

THe Samson S-com Plus has good reviews in SOS, and is known to be a no brainer : does what he's told to without any fancy stuff.
It has a gate/exp + a comp + a limiter.

The DBX266XL has not so good reviews. I have tried it and wasn't that much impressed (well, it was 2 years ago and it was quick, so don't trust my advice eh eh).

The question is : does the dbx has bad reviews because the brand has a good reputation and that it does not hold the dbx standard (and on the opposite way : does the Samson has good reviews only because it is better than Behringer i the same pricerange) ?
I do not have the answer, but that Samson is damn cheap and seem of an honnest quality.

[dickiefunk]

224 views and 7 votes!?

I'm leaning towards the Joe Meek 3Q because I will be very handy having another different colour pre to my DMP3 and the compressor and EQ should be more than adequate for taming those occasional vocal peaks.
I've also just seen the ART TubePac. How does this compare to the 3Q?

[dickiefunk]

Is it possible to use a software VST compressor whilst recording? How would I do this?

[z15]

Seeing as I'd only be using this for recording vocals and trying to eliminate those spikes from a couple of full on gospel singers

In that case I would actually advise for setting the levels lower in recording and taming the peaks with a good software compressor AFTER recording.

Why? For three reasons. First: you have Layla 3G which is capable of 24 bit recording. With 24 bit you really don't have to worry about setting the peak levels close to zero so you wouldn't lose too much dynamics. You can adjust the recording level so that the "normal" peaks go at something like -12dB or -18dB and have plenty of headroom for recording those unexpected spikes without distortion. Second: you can't really get a very good hardware compressor for 100 pounds unless you're lucky, but you can get a really good software compressor for around that price. Third: when you apply compression during recording, it will be destructive - you can't undo the compression. However, when you compress in your favourite VST host, you can flick through settings, adjust compression, etc. as much as you want and even disable the compression if you think it wasn't needed anyway.

So what I'm suggesting is that instead of getting a cheapo hardware compressor, set the recording levels so that you won't run into digital overs if there are any bigger peaks, and get something like the Fabfilter Pro-C, Sonalksis SV compressor or something equal from Voxengo or Kjaerhus (there are probably other killer ones in the price range too) to tame the peaks afterward. They will definitely be more versatile and of higher quality than practically any hardware you can get for similar price. Hell, there's even some free compressors that probably have smoother and nicer action than the cheap Behringers and Samsons.

[dickiefunk]

Seeing as I'd only be using this for recording vocals and trying to eliminate those spikes from a couple of full on gospel singers

Hell, there's even some free compressors that probably have smoother and nicer action than the cheap Behringers and Samsons.

Could you recommend any?

[z15]

Could you recommend any?

It's a bit hard since I'm using OSX nowadays and don't have a chance to try out all the fabulous Windows VST freeware... But I've heard from people whose taste I trust that the free VST ReaPlugs set (that also comes with the low cost Reaper DAW software) includes a very good compressor. See this thread: http://www.kvraudio.com/forum/viewtopic ... sc&start=0 ... Kjaerhus Audio has the classic compressor: http://www.kjaerhusaudio.com/classic-compressor.php, I've heard good things about it too, even I haven't tried it. The Antress plugins (search around here) are reportedly very good in their latest incarnations even though the previous versions weren't that awesome. And I think there's some free version of the "FX Sampler" Nebula that should have really realistic (although really CPU heavy) models of famous, expensive and good compressors.

I'm sure some of the regulars who use Windows could name more than that, maybe better or just different sounding ones.