Guitarists ... Your recomendation for a compressor pedal

[Dave M]

Well ... not just guitarists I guess, but what's your best recommendation for a compressor pedal.

I'm in love with Keeley pedals, but they're fearsomely expensive ... I have my eye on the MXR Dyna Comp or the MXR Super Comp..

But what I would love to know is what you use and whether you'd recommend it.

Thanks in advance
Dave

[D S]

Long time since I used a separate compressor pedal but you won't go wrong with the MXR Dyna Comp - great little pedal.

Actually, the best compressor I ever had (and it's still up in the attic) was a little plastic Carlsboro thing that cost about £20.  Did everything you wanted a compressor to do although it had a vicious gain - if you weren't careful, it would bring in more hiss than a steam train after about 15 seconds of sustaining a note / chord!

[Geetar]

+1 on the MXR, if you must use a comp pedal. Some of my friends over the years have had some success with it.

I hate the effing things for the damage they do to the envelope of the note, but that may speak more about my particular already squidgy touch/technique than compressor pedals in general. Anecdotally the Keeley is a good one too, i gather.

Sorry not to be more helpful, but my amp (K&M LTD) and mics (SM57+AEA R84 ribbon) make any compression redundant, thank gawd.

[Blessed Dude]

The MXR for me too, if I was ever to go back to using a separate pedal - it's simple and effective. I actually own a Boss one which I haven't used for years. It sounds reasonable but there are too many controls.

I haven't tried the Keeley compressor (modelled on the old Ross unit) but it is meant to be the dogs' danglies. Pretty much anything Keeley does is good!

Compression is always a problem for rack stuff as it works best in front of the preamp and sounds truly awful in the FX loop. For years, the only multi FX unit that allowed you to do this was the Lexicon MPX G2 (which I use specifically because of that), however I believe there others now.

[Lerxst]

The Keeley offering is the nads but you could buy 1/3 of a TC electronic G system for the price of the pedal alone - I opted for the G system which has made my previous life of pedal gymnastics a thing of the past.

[EVP]

I have an old Boss CS-3 that has worked ok but I've really only used it on Bass and I've
always had other stuff around in FX units for guitar. There is a certain hand made one
by someone that I unfortunately can't remember that is great for clean stuff. Unfortunately
I can't remember who makes it at the moment. I'll report back.

A whole bunch can be found here.  //http://www.bananasmusic.com/productlist2.asp/subcategoryid_55/subcategory_Compression-and-Sustainer-Pedals-for-Guitar

[Dave M]

Thanks for the tips, I've gone for an MXR .. I'm using it mainly on a Tele and a Strat.
I thought I'd go cheaper to start with see how it suits, then upgrade later If I'm liking what I'm hearing ... the Keeley is just so tempting, though £300 is a bit much  for me at the moment.

[EVP]

Though you've probably already made your purchase I thought I'd include this one.
I remember reading about it somewhere and lost the link. It's really great for clean
guitar tones.  I'm actually going to buy one of these eventually. It'll be nice to have
an electric 12 string to run through it.

http://janglebox.com/jangle_about.htm

[sigod]

The Boss comp pedal is very good for that ultra clean Andy Summers 'chime' but it's not as articulate when power chords are the order of the day. One thing I have discovered however is that the more expensive ones don't always sound as characterful as some of the cheaper stomps but the posh ones are a little more flexible.

[Ba55me15ter]

I'd also recommend the Carl Martin - //http://www.quicksound.co.uk/dp/12368-carl-martin-compressor-limiter-pedal.html

I got this for bass initially at which it excels, but it's also great on guitar. It actually has a mains lead attached to it - no batteries. Really nice, clean compression with sensible controls.