Product Review : Compressors

A compressor is a device that “evens out” the dynamic range of the signal. This means turning down the really loud parts and turning up the really quiet parts. All professional recordings use one of these, and if you don’t use one, you will find that some parts of the recording are so loud that they distort the sound.

Here are the controls that you will find on a compressor:

Threshold	The level of compression.
Attack	How quickly the compressor kicks in.
Release	How long before the compressor stops compressing each part of the signal.
Ratio	How much of the dynamic range will be compressed.
Gate	Also called a noise gate or suppressor, this cuts out any unwanted noise below a level that you set. This is great for playing live.

We recommend the following compressors:

Alesis 3630 Compressor $99

The 3630 Compressor is designed as a high-quality, versatile compression unit that can be used live or in the studio with consistent results. The 3630 is a dual-channel compressor that offers Ratio, Threshold, Attack, and Decay controls to handle the toughtest signals.

 

Samson SCOM4 4-Channel Expander Gate Compressor Limiter $99.95

The SCom 4 packs 4 separate processor channels into a very professional, single rack space device. The 4 processor channels can operate independently or as stereo pairs and each channel includes: an Expander/Gate with Threshold control and Fast/Slow Release switch, a Compressor/Limiter with variable Threshold, Ratio, and Output controls, and multi-segment LED meters for input/output and gain reduction.