wrybread wrote:
or my system I've been using the good ol DBX 166XL for compression and a Lexicon MPX-100 for reverb, and both work well once you get the hang of them. I'm now building out a system for someone who is probably a bit less inclined to learn how to use them though, so I was wondering if there's some fairly simply reverb and compression hardware that someone could recommend? As "set it and forget it" as possible.
Will be feeding a wireless 4 mic setup into it, if that's a factor.
Like most everyone who responded said, a better solution would be to assign each mic its own channel on the mixer (assuming of course that your wireless receiver has as many individual outputs as it does mic inputs), but with your situation you seem to be more comfortable controlling the mic volumes from the wireless receiver. Of course there are trade-offs which you seem to be aware of so with that in mind, I would suggest a couple of devices that may or may not have been mentioned.
So in running all of the mics into one channel, if it were me I wouldn't be using compression, but just limiting. There's a fine line between the two because many devices i.e. the "one knob squeezers" have a hard time limiting without compressing. Without getting into the technical details as to why I wouldn't use compression, suffice it to say that the trade off is that if there are any very soft signals, in the microphone signal path, they won't get amplified. However, as most non-professional singers usually lack a bit of microphone technique, I don't think this is much of a trade-off. The good news is that you won't be compressing the prerecorded content which in many cases is already squashed to smithereens. There was an old analog dbx "one knob squeezer" back in the 80s that did allow you to adjust the threshold and compression ratio thereby allowing it to function as a limiter. I believe the model # was 163X, however it did not have any built in noise gate function. If you wanted to add a noise gate you had to use a separate device called a 463X. Both of these units are 1/2 racks and can be slaved to each other. In other words either device could function as a compressor or a noise gate so you could run a stereo compressor or stereo noise gate. You used to be able to pick these things up on eBay for about $50 each, but these devices are about 30 to 40 years old and used carbon resistors so if you decided to try one of these you need to check it out thoroughly first. If you can find an old Alesis 3630 that is one of the best all time compressors. Just a word of caution about compressors is that there are different types of compressors, some used for tracking some for mastering, etc. For example I have a Tube-Tech CL1-B which is great for tracking and an older UREI/Universal 1176 for mastering. Both of these are studio devices and are great for the purpose for which they were designed, but way overkill for live sound.
As far as reverbs, they've come a very long way over the years, but here again there's a huge difference between studio quality verbs and those designed with the stage in mind. For stage, if you can find an Alesis microverb or nanoverb I wouldn't look any further. The Lexicons and TC Electronic devices have far superior sound (although still not as smooth as a true EMT plate IMHO), but the Alesis verbs have a bit of grain to them so the verbs cut through in noisy environments whereas the silkier sound of the Lexicon and/or TC gets buried in the room noise. One more note, is that when you add these devices inline, they tend to be a bit noisier than if they were inserted so you might want to consider adding a noise gate to your system if the noise is more than you would care to have. Just remember to add it as the very last thing in the chain.
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