DYNAMICS · CHARACTER COMPRESSOR · 25
Still Comp
One compressor, four characters: Clean, FET, Opto and Tube. 0 samples latency.
Also in the Vocal bundle · Drums & Band bundle
What it does
Pick how it works, then set it like any compressor. Clean is exact and colourless. FET grabs in as little as 20 microseconds and gets brighter and grittier as it works harder; All mode pushes it into over-compression for smashed drums and rooms.
Opto behaves like an optical cell: a gentle ratio that firms up as the level rises, and a release that comes back quickly at first, then slowly. Tube is variable-mu style: the ratio grows with level over a very wide knee, with round, warm harmonics. The transfer curve shows each character's shape with a live dot.
Key features
- Four characters, each with its own detector, curve, timing and colour
- Mix for parallel compression; Colour 0–100%; auto or manual makeup
- Sidechain high-pass, SC listen, stereo link and external key
- Transfer curve with live dot, 10 s gain-reduction history, In / GR / Out meters
Quick start
- Insert on the channel; pick a character: Opto for voices, FET for punch, Tube for glue, Clean for anything.
- Bring Threshold down until the readout shows 3–6 dB on the loud parts.
- Leave Auto makeup on, or turn it off and set Makeup by ear.
- For parallel drums: FET, Ratio 8 or more, Mix 30–50%.
Controls
| Control | Range | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Character | Clean / FET / Opto / Tube | Choosing one also sets its usual attack, release and knee. |
| Threshold / Ratio | −60 to 0 dB / 1:1 to 20:1 | Where it starts and how hard it holds. |
| Attack / Release | 0.02–100 ms / 5–3000 ms | Auto release follows the music (Opto is always program dependent). |
| Knee / Colour | 0–24 dB / 0–100% | Soft or hard onset; the character's harmonics (Clean has none). |
| Mix / Makeup / Output | 0–100% / −12 to +24 dB / −24 to +12 dB | Parallel blend; gain back (or Auto); level. |
| SC high-pass / Link / Key | 20–400 Hz / 0–100% / on-off | Keeps lows from pumping it; stereo link; external sidechain; SC listen. |
FACTORY PRESETS
Default (Clean, 4:1) · Lead vocal, smooth (Opto) · Lead vocal, upfront (FET) · Speech / sermon, even (Opto) · Backing vocals (Opto) · Bass, steady (Opto) · Kick / snare, punch (FET) · Drum room, smashed (FET All) · Acoustic guitar (Clean) · Keys / piano, warm (Tube) · Mix bus, gentle (Tube) · Parallel drums (FET) · Peak catcher, transparent · Music under talk (key in)
GOOD TO KNOW
Measured at 48 kHz: harmonic distortion at Colour 100% with 6 dB of reduction is 0.02% Clean, 0.7% FET, 1.3% Opto and 1.1% Tube. Overloaded or broken input can't break it, switching character never clicks, and it uses about 0.6% of one CPU core in stereo.