Karaoke Forums

Got to get a compressor, I'm sick and tired of sitting all night with my hand on the volume, waiting for some idiot to scream into the mic. Some drunk Lady (well, Lady is certainly stretching it...), caught me off guard last night, and I thought she was going to damage something.

Trying to decide whether to spend the extra on a 4 channel as opposed to the 2 channel. I only give the singers 2 mics, and refuse to give them more. 4 singers? Share mics! So I only need 2 compressor channels for them.

Do you compress your own mic channel? I'm not worried about myself screaming into the mic, are there any advantages sound wise to compressing my own mic?

No, I don't compress my mics...BUT, i REALLLY want too...Let me know how it works for you...I hate when you get some drunk guy (or girl) that screams into the mic like Rick Flair...and then taps on it..."is this thing on?" or my personal favorite "testing, testing...it's not working"...because i shut the mic off so he wouldn't scream...

keep me posted...
T.

I'm going to compress the mics for the Singers...What I'm asking, is if everyone compresses their own personal mic, the one they use and won't hand to a singer....

I do simply because my mixer has built-in compression on 6 channels. When I used a two-channel, no, I didn't.

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[color=#ffff55]Mickey J.[/color]
Alas for those who never sing, but die with all their music in them.
-- Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

most people don't even use the compressor feature of a compressor, most use it for the limiter and/or the gate features......

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It's all good!

Cool, I'll go with the 2 channel....I don't need to limit myself, I paid for the equipment, so I guarantee that I'm careful!

Ok, next question: Can I use both a compressor and an external reverb unit with this mixer? http://www.musiciansfriend.com/pro-audi ... B&ZYXSEM=0

Am I right in assuming that I would use the channel inserts on the back to get the mics to and from the compressor, then use the Aux Sent and Stereo Return to add reverb from a standalone reverb unit?

Speak for yourself. About all the discussions at this here chat room have centered around the compression function. Rarely do people even discuss the limiting and gate functions. We've seen some that use it for ducking the music from the DJ mic.

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[color=#ffff55]Mickey J.[/color]
Alas for those who never sing, but die with all their music in them.
-- Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

I don't use compressors on voice. I have recently added gates to my vocal channels. If you set your gain properly I find compression is not needed unless you are running a huge system.

that would be a firm no, because I have NO CLUE how to use it properly and that goes double for a gate/limited. I have read several peoples explinations, and it still all manages to go completely over my head.


maybe if I got a board like the yamaha ones where you just turn the knob for the amount of compression you want, i would do better. *shrug*

My mixer is digital and has compression on all 16 channels. And yes, I definitely use it on my own microphone.

Of course I use compression, I can't even think of singing live with out it Compression doesn't only limit the signal, it improves the over all blend between the music and vocal so it's a MUST have even if you know you can control yourself

I use the same microphones as my singers (I have an identical microphone that only I use, but it's separate to the "singing" mics as I'm terrible at reducing reverb before I talk and adjust as soon as the first utterance has left my mouth, which to me is far to late). I can sing without compression, but I much prefer the sound with it.

Took me a while to get used to working with a compressor, but it was worth it.

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'A genius is one who can do anything except make a living'. Joey Adams.

I have a Yamaha mixer and I turn compression up all the way for the singers' mics. Too many idiots out there that have no clue what they are doing and don't have the common sense to realize that microphone = amplified sound and screaming also = amplified sound and the two do not mix well. Even so, I will always warn them when they start screaming into the mic that I WILL turn it off on them if they continue, and I do. I've found a combination of compression and education (even if it's tough love ie: mic OFF) to be the best remedy. Best thing I ever did was switch to a board with compression!
As for using compression for myself, I don't bother.

I don't compress but would like to buy a compressor that is under $200 to connect to my Allen & Heath ZED 10FX, which doesn't have built-in compression. From what I have read, the best compression option would be to have the microphone connected into the compressor and then into the mixer. I would appreciate suggestions as to what to buy.

That's exactly the right set up. I suggest getting a DBX 166XL compressor/limiter, and as far as an FX unit goes, I like the Lexicon MX200!

I would disagree about that hookup. A good compressor is easily available for less than $200. You would want to use the insert in your mic channel to do the compression. I am not sure that the compressor even has a mic pre-amp, and if it does it isn't as good as the one on the ZED.

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[color=#ffff55]Mickey J.[/color]
Alas for those who never sing, but die with all their music in them.
-- Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

I do use compression on vocals - including my mic. It's a benefit for ANY system - big or small - even with proper gain structure being set up.

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LIKE Lonman on Facebook - Lonman Productions Karaoke & my main site via my profile!

I think I'm going to buy this compressor.

ART Pro Channel Tube Mic Preamp and Compressor with EQ
http://www.zzounds.com/item--ART215

I've research other compressors and I'm not very impressed by the reviews. It seems you have to spend around $200 and above to get something decent.

Not sure what your intended use is, just know this is a single channel unit - can only connect to one mic. Designed more for recording and not so much live, but can be used live. If you need more than one mic, then you might look into something else. The dbx 266XL is a good 2 channel unit.

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LIKE Lonman on Facebook - Lonman Productions Karaoke & my main site via my profile!

I use it on all mics, including mine. I like the way it sounds, of course, also even a host can screw up once in a while...

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