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King Loudness « The secret weapon »
Published on 10/13/11 at 06:30The Diamond Compressor is a pedal built for people who want a compressor that has optimum audio quality for the most demanding of players. It features three controls total. There is one for the amount of compression itself, there is an EQ control with a central notch position, and a level to control the overall volume or output coming from the pedal. It is powered by either a 9v battery or you can use a power adaptor. One other cool feature that this pedal has is a pair of dip switches inside that allow the EQ to be bypassed, as well as allowing the pedal to be switched from high impedance to low impedance. This is very helpful for reducing the noise floor if you're using this pedal for heavy compression or higher gain avenues.
UTILIZATION
Setting up this pedal to get sounds is quite simple and effective. I was able to dial it in to SERIOUSLY enhance my clean tones which gave me the sustain and punch that I was looking for. It took my otherwise flat clean tone and gave it some massively needed injections to beef it up! Extreme settings aren't even nesesscary with this pedal - I find myself content with the dials all at noon or close. It isn't a difficult pedal to dial in by any means and I incorporated it into my rig pretty seamlessly. Start with the knobs at noon and tweak to taste and you'll surely find a tone that works.
SOUND QUALITY
I've tried this pedal mostly with my various humbucker loaded guitars. I initially started out only using the pedal for clean tones, but eventually decided to try it with some higher gain applications. It worked very well but on the advice of my music teacher (who owns one himself) I opted to switch the pedal into low impedance. This not only all but wiped out the noise floor issue, but it also thickened up my distorted tones considerably. It has now become a pedal I use nearly all the time, regardless of the tone, simply because it makes things sound clearer, punchier, and just plain superior to my previous tones. It is a definitely awesome tool for any serious player's tonal palate.
OVERALL OPINION
All in all I think the Diamond Compressor is a FANTASTIC unit for anyone looking for something to add some serious fire to their tone. It's very natural sounding and allows the tone of the rest of your rig to remain intact, but it adds a certain perfect brilliance whether playing clean or distorted. At $250 new it isn't a cheap pedal, but is it worth it? Absolutely.
UTILIZATION
Setting up this pedal to get sounds is quite simple and effective. I was able to dial it in to SERIOUSLY enhance my clean tones which gave me the sustain and punch that I was looking for. It took my otherwise flat clean tone and gave it some massively needed injections to beef it up! Extreme settings aren't even nesesscary with this pedal - I find myself content with the dials all at noon or close. It isn't a difficult pedal to dial in by any means and I incorporated it into my rig pretty seamlessly. Start with the knobs at noon and tweak to taste and you'll surely find a tone that works.
SOUND QUALITY
I've tried this pedal mostly with my various humbucker loaded guitars. I initially started out only using the pedal for clean tones, but eventually decided to try it with some higher gain applications. It worked very well but on the advice of my music teacher (who owns one himself) I opted to switch the pedal into low impedance. This not only all but wiped out the noise floor issue, but it also thickened up my distorted tones considerably. It has now become a pedal I use nearly all the time, regardless of the tone, simply because it makes things sound clearer, punchier, and just plain superior to my previous tones. It is a definitely awesome tool for any serious player's tonal palate.
OVERALL OPINION
All in all I think the Diamond Compressor is a FANTASTIC unit for anyone looking for something to add some serious fire to their tone. It's very natural sounding and allows the tone of the rest of your rig to remain intact, but it adds a certain perfect brilliance whether playing clean or distorted. At $250 new it isn't a cheap pedal, but is it worth it? Absolutely.