Am I misunderstanding how my compressor is supposed to work?

[Mike_NL]

I don’t know the first thing about compressors, but Cyrus Heiduska of Ovni Labs mentioned that “with this comp circuit the interaction between the threshold and the ratio can sometimes be counter-intuitive”. Could this be what you are experiencing here?
http://www.ovnilab.com/reviews/mxrbass.shtml

[akos]

Well it definitely is counterintuitive to me, but I don’t know what exactly he means there, that statement is very vague.

Other complaints include the effect failing to engage, or responding only to extreme input levels

This applies to me as well. I have to almost max out the input level to engage compression, but I assume that’s because I’m using passive basses. I don’t know if other compressors would behave the same way or not.

[Mike_NL]

@akos

that statement is very vague

Yes, it is. By the way, he says the same thing about the Urei 1176, on which this MXR is based: “People are often confused by the meter readings on this unit (and on comps inspired by it) because of the sometimes counter-intuitive interaction between the ratio and the threshold”. No further explanation there either.
http://www.ovnilab.com/reviews/1176ln.shtm

[eric.kiser]

@akos

I don’t know if other compressors would behave the same way or not.

There are a lot of different compressors out there. I recommend spending considerable time at Compressor Reviews (ovnilab.com) doing a deep dive on what’s out there and what the differences are. I’ve learned a lot from there but still feel like I’ve only scratched the surface.

For instance, that’s where I learned that the MXR Bass Compressor is a very capable compressor but notoriously difficult to dial in.

@T_dub had posted some sound samples with different compressors but, since he has been so prolific on this topic, I haven’t been able to find them. Maybe he’ll stop by with a link.

[Paul]

@akos

This applies to me as well. I have to almost max out the input level to engage compression, but I assume that’s because I’m using passive basses. I don’t know if other compressors would behave the same way or not.

IIRC someone else on the forum had the exact same problem. He traded it for the Hyperluminal. Think the low level is actually a common problem with the MXR. I haven’t experienced any level issues with any of my passive basses on any of my compressors. It also depends on how hot your signal is. For example it could also mean that your pups are setup too low.

That aside I do think the MXR is at fault here. It’s a great compressor but like Eric pointed out a bit hard to dial in. I have the mini version of this compressor which is a lot easier in use and sounds great too.

Come to think of it you might fix this with a decent tuner pedal that has a buffer. This should make your signal stronger too before it goes into the compressor. Edit: nevermind I see that you have the polytune tuner which has a buffer.

[Mike_NL]

@akos I think this is the thread @Paul is referring to:

MXR M87 Bass Compressor Problems

I decided I wanted to change away from from my TC Spectracomp compressor, to one that had the usual selection of control knobs physically on the pedal. I also liked the idea of knowing a bit more about what was going on with the compression, so I wanted a pedal with a row of LEDs showing how much compression is being applied. That really narrowed things down to the Boss BC-1X and the MXR M87 compressors. Having watched A/B tests individually and against each other, to me they seemed pretty ev…

[akos]

@Paul

He traded it for the Hyperluminal.

That is exactly what I’ve been considering. The only downside is that the power draw of the Hyperluminal is 250 mA, and my power supply has two outputs that are exactly 250 mA, which again makes me a bit nervous… I would rather get the Super Symmetry, there’s still one in stock at Thomann, but it’s more expensive than the Hyperluminal (??), and it’s been discontinued by Darkglass.

@Paul

it could also mean that your pups are setup too low

According to my notes I’ve set them to between 2.8-3.1 mm, which is around the recommended height, as far as I know.

@Paul

Come to think of it you might fix this with a decent tuner pedal that has a buffer. This should make your signal stronger too before it goes into the compressor. Edit: nevermind I see that you have the polytune tuner which has a buffer.

It does, but it’s been set to true bypass, not buffered. I’ve now tried it with buffered bypass as well, and didn’t notice a change in the input level.

[Paul]

lol this thread is spot on but it was actually a post from Itsratso I was referring too:

What's the deal with effects and pedals? (Also: sound in general)

I’ve sort of gone round with compression pedals lately. I took the advice of ovnilab and bought the mxr bass compressor. I realized pretty quickly that it wasn’t going to work for me. I liked the led meter and the controls. but i found (and ovni mentioned) that I had to have a HUGE amount of input in order for it to respond. so it’s gone. didn’t really know what to replace it with, I really wanted the cali76 but it’s $350 bux (gulp). for some reason I always ignored this: [20210403_214113] bu…

[Paul]

@akos

That is exactly what I’ve been considering. The only downside is that the power draw of the Hyperluminal is 250 mA, and my power supply has two outputs that are exactly 250 mA, which again makes me a bit nervous… I would rather get the Super Symmetry, there’s still one in stock at Thomann, but it’s more expensive than the Hyperluminal (??), and it’s been discontinued by Darkglass.

You get a lot more value out of the Hyperluminal since you get the 3 compressors options (including the super symmetry) in one unit. I daisy chain 3 Darkglass pedals and 1 compressor with my Boss PSA 230S Power Supply (500 mA) and never had any problems… One of those pedals also draw 250 mA (Darkglass Element).

[akos]

@Paul

Darkglass Element

That too is on my wish list. Have you tried using it as a DAI? Can it do zero latency input monitoring while receiving audio from the computer through USB? (Use case: Element connected to MacBook with USB, GarageBand running on MacBook playing the backing tracks and recording my bass, me listening to the backing tracks and my bass (with zero latency) with headphones plugged into the Element.)

[John_E]

@akos

That is exactly what I’ve been considering

I have the Hyperluminal and I can tell you its confusing as well.
I have not yet sorted out the world of compressors to the point where I can discern what is going on and why (another day of focused learning needed).
I do like the three in one compressors built in and do hear differences, but no idea what each is doing differently.
I really wish someone put together a decent class on compressors using a DAW to show resultant waveforms etc and explain why etc. I know Spectre Studios did a great basic one, but I’d like one that is pedal based and more for ‘dummies’.

[akos]

See if this video helps, featuring everyone’s favourite compressor:

SCALE THE SUMMIT - How To Properly Use Compressors on Bass Guitar with Mark Michell | GEAR GODS

@wellbi also linked another good video above

[thomas]

@John_E

I have the Hyperluminal and I can tell you its confusing as well.

+1 on that. I tried the Hyperlum too and found it very difficult to dial in. Didn’t gave me the sound I like, but that’s just a personal thing. Returned it…

If you look for a straight forward comp which is easy to adjust and provides a nice sound, you might give the Keeley Bassist a try. It’s pricey, but I’m happy with it.

[Mike_NL]

@akos

According to my notes I’ve set them to between 2.8-3.1 mm

Measured with the strings depressed at the last fret? Even then it seems pretty high to me… Mine are typically set between 2.8 mm (bass side) and 2.0 mm (treble side), which AFAIK are the recommended values for Fender-style P and J basses.

Either way, it looks like this MXR compressor isn’t the one for you.

[Paul]

@akos

That too is on my wish list. Have you tried using it as a DAI? Can it do zero latency input monitoring while receiving audio from the computer through USB?

Funny that you ask this since I actually tested this for Eric. See the link below. Also there is no such thing as zero latency with any DAI as far as I know. The latency depends on the sample rate and buffer size but usually it’s like around 1 ms which feels like 0 latency. So the latency is fine on the Element and yes you can also receive audio from it as well via the headphone output. It just works like a DAI.

Darkglass Electronics

The Amp sims in the DG suite are just basic power amps. You can only switch between a bass and guitar PA. You can control the Drive, Resonance (which is particular nice with headphones), Presence and Volume. I would say they are good enough for the job by powering the signal. You can pick more interesting amp sims in your DAW. Yes, just now because I got curious. I just did a very quick record on my DAI and with the Element. I set the Element with a sample rate of 44800 and a buffer size of 6…

[howard]

Zero-Latency Monitoring is the ability to play the sound being input directly out of the monitor outs on the audio interface, blended with the sound output from the DAW. To use it you mute the track monitoring in the DAW and just listen straight off the DAI for the instrument you are recording.

Ideally the interface will have a blend control like this:

[akos]

It does have a blend, but I was unsure how it handles USB audio, because the manual only mentions aux and bluetooth in. But based on everyone’s comments I assume it handles the USB audio the same as it does aux/bluetooth.

Blend: A touch sensitive slider to set the blend between the main input (Intrument/Amp in) and the backing track (Bluetooth/Aux in) for the headphone out mix.

On the Scarlett I just press the “Direct Monitor” button and that’s it. (Always on for me.)

[howard]

@akos

On the Scarlett I just press the “Direct Monitor” button and that’s it. (Always on for me.)

Yeah some audio interfaces just have a button with a fixed blend level. A blend pot is better but a button will do the trick too.

[John_E]

@thomas

If you look for a straight forward comp which is easy to adjust and provides a nice sound, you might give the Keeley Bassist a try. It’s pricey, but I’m happy with it.

I assume you are referring to the more expensive of the below two, correct?

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/KBass--keeley-bassist-limiting-amplifier-bass-compressor-pedal
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/KCompPlus--keeley-compressor-plus-4-knob-compressor-pedal

[thomas]

@John_E

more expensive of the below two, correct?

Unfortunately: YES