Hello - i been lurking a while, thought i'd ask for a bit of advice...

I'm looking to invest in a buss comp/mastering limiter and have whittled down the field to the following four - they are all around €3500 mark

Prism Masselec MLA-2

Tubetech SCM2B

Cranseong STC8

2xDaking FET Comp II


I like versatilty and options, and I like to be surprised and get inspired by a piece of gear, be it a buss compressor or whatever... So this is why I have come down to these four -

Anyone have any opinions about these units? The material I tend to work with is electronic experimental and alternative bands - versatility is the key in our studio... workhorses are fine, but they need to be able to adapt to the producers' latest sonic obsessions...

any advice would be appreciated..



Oh and I saw Shellac at Primavera Sound here in Barcelona this year
, a wonderfully lucid and deep show ! thanks for coming over!

http://www.no-future.com

hey cristian,
i have absolutely no idea about these units but i can tell "station 55" is a masterpiece. really dig super collider also. so next time you play paris i'll be glad to pay you a beer and have a snooker discussing analog hardware.

cheers

kim

hi kim,

thankyou very much for the postivie comments about my music !

I didn't know they played snooker in Paris ?

re the buss compressors - can anyone shed some light on these units? 3 of them are US made, so I guess they are more available to demo over there...

The prism...i guess? Sounds like you do alot of dance/techno type music...otherwise i would say it's a complete waste of money.

For me...a buss comp...and mastering comp are two different things.

I'd probably go for a Smart C2...that way you get two seperate mono-comps...AND...a mix-type comp in one package? Also...u can find em on ebay for alot less than 4 grand. But hey...that's just my two cents.


http://www.sunsetsound.com/equipment_sales/smart2.html

http://www.smartresearch.co.uk/

I'm not much of a fan of the tubetech or daking for 2-mix compression, unless I want to thrash the mix. Cranesound has a good rep.
See if you can't try out the GML limiter. That has been a favorite of mine all around.

i've used the Prism in a Mastering context (in fact Russ Ferox who i believe you know was my boss for a while!) and i like it - punchy and clear - good for dance music/electronica/whatever its called this lunchtime, but a pretty strong allrounder imho.

Doug

ps i saw SuperCollider at Spitz ummm 2? years ago - wild gig

i've used the Prism in a Mastering context (in fact Russ Ferox who i believe you know was my boss for a while!) and i like it - punchy and clear - good for dance music/electronica/whatever its called this lunchtime, but a pretty strong allrounder imho.

Doug

ps i saw SuperCollider at Spitz ummm 2? years ago - wild gig

greg wrote:See if you can't try out the GML limiter. That has been a favorite of mine all around.

After using one of these at Electrical, I am seriously looking for one.

Chris Garges
Charlotte, NC

the GML is clearly the leader , but its a least twice as much as the other units in my budget range - i think the GML needs power supply on top of unit price that pushes it up.


why are people so into the Smart C2 ? Surely there is way too much crushing going on in modern music these days ...

(EDIT: just found this in depth user review http://www.primalgear.com/alansmartcomp001.html - I understand more now about the C2 in use now )


Daking just dropped their prices the FET II is now 1400 euro.

No one has said anything nice about the Daking, but the philosophy and design quality is not matched by much else in that price range. I haven't been able to hear them unfortunately, but its classic autorelease models seem to be quite interesting. Can anyone point me towards an in depth review of the Daking FET II?

( EDIT: i'll point meeself - it sounds a bit boring , yes - Lion King 1 1/2 ?!?!? - http://www.transaudioelite.com/fiscmistkefi.html )

cristian_vogel wrote:

Oh and I saw Shellac at Primavera Sound here in Barcelona this year
, a wonderfully lucid and deep show ! thanks for coming over!

http://www.no-future.com

Hello. If you are *that* Cristian Vogel, I met you at the end of a wildly drunken evening at the end of one night of Primavera in 2004, with a friend of yours called Ed and his girlfriend. I've got a photo of you in a little group on the terrace of the Palau Nacional at dawn.

Weird shit.