Keeley Compressor vs EBS Multicomp

[bassinyourface]

hey softies, just want to ask you guys which do you think is a more suited compressor for me.

i play a warwick LX streamer jazzman (active with active bypass) and yamaha attitude (passive), i'm into indie, finger funk, a bit of slap and play for a church band. i currently dont own any pedals but i'm looking for something that will help in my overall tone shaping and maybe add a bit of punch.

i've heard many good reviews of both compressors but i'm not really sure which to go for. the keeley compressor is rather pricey but simple to use, the EBS multicomp is cheaper but seems rather complex. (mind you i have never played with pedals before, and having exams now, so no time)

lastly, could you tell me where i could find these 2 compressors to try out and their approximate pricings. thanks.

 

[shinobi]

haha the multicomp is easy! you must be referring to the 2-knob keeley, wait till you see the 4-knob one.

anyway this one is slightly more clear cut than some other comparisons, the keeley is capable of heavier compression than the multicomp. the multicomp is very transparent

so since u mentioned finger funk and especially SLAP, the keeley is the one

im not sure who's the keeley dealer, maybe guitar77 because i saw the 2-knob there before. davis is the dealer for ebs. expect to pay around 300 for the multicomp. i enquired about the keeley before but i forgot the price. sorry!

 

[iverson763]

i'll just throw in the demeter compulator for your consideration as well. haven't tried the other 2, but i'm pretty happy with the demeter. Owned a supercomp and modded cs-3 before. Supercomp was a bit too subtle for me, cs-3 got a little hissy at high settings, and i wanted a compressor that can do heavy compression with little/no noise

as for the demeter: no low end loss (to my ears), can do heavy compression, no/very minimal noise at all, very good at taming peaks, easy operation with 2 knobs: volume and compression.. can't go wrong. oh yea, it has an easy access gain trimpot to adjust with active basses... not sure how the keeley and ebs fare with active basses.

only put off is the price, though it's in the range of the keeley. i got mine secondhand, so it's perfect for me!

 

[jbarks]

try out the keeley before you buy it -- there is a slight amount of bass roll-off if you play in drop d or anything of the sort. it is a nice compressor, no doubt, but not everyone might like it.

 

[mingrong]

+1 to the cs-3 hiss
and +1 that you should try it out first

Go after your exams! Ha ha I think sometimes no matter how much you hear about compressors, you must try it out first because most often when you play it you'll have a feel of whether you like it or not... (Sometimes you get that, "Eeee, this thing just doesn't suit me")...

Of course as we grow as players sometimes our taste and influences change - and we find ourselves going out there to try out more compressors and effects - sometimes we even go back to those that we condemned years back and realised we could force a good sound out of it if only we knew how then.

 

[jbarks]

yeah.. still kick myself for selling my NOS dod 280 compressor :/

 

[mingrong]

Ha ha I know how that feels... Speaking of compressors, I just bought over Felytone's Trace Elliot SMX Dual Compressor. I must say, I'm impressed by it. Although all the reviews say you don't know the compressor is on until you turn it off - I think anyone who has played with a compressor enough will know when his tone is compressed. So really, play around with other compressors so you know what a compressor does first... It's no point choosing between which one you want to purchase before knowing what a compressor does persay. And it'll save you the trouble of buy-sell-regrets. Ha ha

 

[exin]

EBS Multicomp has a gain trimmer for low end and high end inside the stomp box when you open the back cover.

I think it's the compression ratio or compression threshold one for the low band and one for the high band .. can't remember .. if you do get it .. check the manual! i think that allows you to customize your compression ratio according to the tone of the bass you have .. like if your bass has a tendency to be a little bright .. being a passive bass .. you can increse the trim slightly to control the highs ...

 

[bassinyourface]

hey guys, thanks a bunch on all the tips and suggestions, i will most definitely check out both compressors once my exams are over :-D

 

[lordie]

qns.

what compressor would work well with drop tuning, primarily 1 step down to D and drop C.

 

[Resetti]

EBS Multicomp is easy. only 2 knobs. compression and gain.

About Demeter Compulator, it's an optical compressor whereas EBS is a VCA one.

There are some different characteristics about a optical compressor vs a VCA one, i don't know in detail, but i'm sure google can find the answer.

Both are dead slient and transparent (let's your bass characteristic pass through cleanly), no noise nor hiss nor loss of any low end issues.