Would you place a compressor before or after

[joek86]

Boosters and distortion boxes?

~Joe

 

[DavidH]

Before.

 

[joek86]

Before.

Thanks

 

[Christian Ace]

Before

 

[Fireball XL5]

Either way is valid, but it's far more common to place a compressor before noisey pedals like overdrives & distortions because the compressor - which is basically a mini amplifier - will raise the noise level of any pedal that is placed before it. Keeping the compressor first in line will keep the noise level of your rig to a minimum. Also, placing the compressor first allows you to feed all of your fx a constant level - which usually is more desirable as well. I always run my compressor first for these reasons. It sounds best to me when run this way as well.

 

[joek86]

Either way is valid, but it's far more common to place a compressor before noisey pedals like overdrives & distortions because the compressor - which is basically a mini amplifier - will raise the noise level of any pedal that is placed after it. Keeping the compressor first in line will keep the noise level of your rig to a minimum. Also, placing the compressor first allows you to feed all of your fx a constant level - which usually is more desirable as well. I always run my compressor first for these reasons. It sounds best to me when run this way as well.

thanks for that, I thought that might be the way, but I have never used allot of pedals and this is my first compressor after playing 35 years!

~joe

 

[huskerjohn]

I almost always run my comp after wah and before anything else. I currently run a light OD (keeler pull) in front of my comp just to enjoy how the pull reacts so well to my picking dynamics. As stated above, the advantages of running a comp before dirt are pretty solid. The only disadvantage of running comps first, in my mind, are how your OD or distortion won't react as well to your dynamic because the compressor tends to level this out as a nature of their design. The best thing to do is experiment and do what sounds right.

 

[aziltz]

AFTER!

personal preference but I do Treble Boost --> OD/Distortion --> Compressor (always on) --> clean/dirty boosts.

 

[sub rosa]

After - provided you have the right compressor. I use the Maxon CP101 which works great after drive pedals.

 

[Flyin' Brian]

You guys have me wondering. I have always run my comp before dirt, but I'm gonna give the other way a try.

 

[rickenbackerkid]

I like mine after boosts.

 

[aziltz]

i use the Visual sound Comp after my dirt. i'm gonna upgrade to the new Comp 66 soon. Their circuit has a different tone than the usual, plus noise reduction (a plus) and I use it more like a preamp with a bit of compression.

 

[big mike]

i run them second to last, right before the delay. That way if you have a couple OD's, it can act as a limiter and balance the volumes.

 

[Jon Silberman]

As long as the drive and comp are set up properly relative to each other, if nothing else, this thread shows both orders can work.

 

[Slideman]

Even though I'm not a big compressor user anymore, I did run one between two overdrives...a Keeley BD2>Boss CS2>AM TS9 -- this versatility added more sustain to the TS9 and a slight limiting function to smooth out the BD2 which was used as a booster. It worked very nicely.

 

[sxt]

NO compressor (for ME) .... it's taken me a long time to come to this conclusion but every part of my rig (amp and pedals and guitar) are touch/volume sensitive and adding a compressor just kills what is so good about what I like - dynamics - I am open to anyone suggesting that I am misguided.... but before my "latest" realisation, I did put the compressor just after my nkt-275 to give a very smooth lead tone.