brandondrury wrote on Tue, 22 February 2005 22:28 |
If I'm gonna add character to something I want it obvious to everyone in the room that I just added character to something.
|
A worthy notion. Reminds of the mixerdude I would second for on occasion. He had a tip jar out on the meterbridge. "I do something you like, you put a dollar in." "Something you don't like? Pull a dollar out."
Quote: |
I'll check out the cheaper LA-4 and see what's happening on that end.
|
Don't know about "cheaper". I use three of these devices at my place. Highly recommended. Not the fastest compressor in the west though, so your snare requirements below may not be met to your satisfaction.
Quote: |
By the way. What does color mean?
|
If a piece of gear is uncolored, it faithfully reproduces its input without adding anything to the signal. Many call this transparent.
If a piece is colored, it adds to (or sometimes subtracts something from) the original signal. This can be a good thing.
Quote: |
Does it mean darker, brighter, smoother, harsher, or something else?
|
Yup.
Quote: |
Can it be described in a frequency response curve?
|
Not likely. Even the colored pieces will show "flat" in many cases.
Quote: |
These days I find that I'm eqing the shit out of my snare to give it more cut or crack.
|
Try a different microphone, or position for said microphone. Better yet, try a different snare.
Quote: |
I would like to run it through something harsh beforehand just so I don't have to rely on eq so much.
|
Perhaps a Rat pedal is what you seek? Cool on vocals, too.
As for a "first compressor", I would start with either an RNC from FMR or a trusty 166 from dbx. Certainly not the best compressors in the world, but for the money, good learning tools.
There's few things worse that someone with a Distressor in his/her rack who can't wield it. Many mics fall into this category, too.
$0.02,
Fig