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DBX 160 compressors are one of the main compressors you hear about being used on hip hop drums back in the day.

Back in the 90's when I was starting out, I did a lot of work with a producer/bass player Bill Laswell and he always used it on bass. I've done that ever since with great results... sometimes with a tube compressor after it..

That peak stop level is really cool, I just started researching outboard gear last year and this is the first time I’ve seen something along these lines. Def need to add this to my gear list 🤘

i've got two of the 166's with Jim Williams mods, thing sounds great on everything

Often I find when people show these things I usually don't like what they are doing, I usually don't like how it sounds but you are making it sound exactly what I strive for when I compress drums. Make it sound kind of nice.

When I bought my 166 in 2020, I was in heaven. Even the gates were a lot better than the ones on the 3630 I had. Didn't took me too long to figure out its limitations, however. I used to try limiting ratios to get closer to the 160 characteristics, but overall I thought it rounded off too much, especially drums. One trick I use all the time is to use only the gate and the peakstop limiter while tracking snare drums. Cuts through the mix, doesn't round off the transients as much as the compression does, and cleans up hi-hat leakage to some extent.

I have this and I use it on an analog synth from the 80s (Oberheim Matrix -6). It sounds great, really pushes pads upfront and has a subtle, dark grit to it. I also agree with the post about the silver series being underrated. I have the 576 and it’s a great sounding channel strip for my purposes.

DBX compressors sound great on low compression ratios (4:1 or less), and just ‘tickling’ them (gain reduction at 1 or 2 db). Especially on ‘over easy’ mode. Great for drums, percussion and Bass guitar, as well as percussive synth sounds. When you slam them, they get this weird ‘dip’ attack which can be really bad, but can be really musical (for an excellent example of this effect dig up a copy of the studio version of the song ‘Someday’ by an Australian band called Spectrum, and listen to the handclaps and reverb during the start of the song). One thing to be aware of with 166 and 266 series compressors is that in stereo mode many of them will only key from the left channel, so for true stereo you either need to run them as 2 identical mono channels, create an extra mono mix and use that to key both, or run 2 of them in series swapping left and right

@jamisonfrench

7 ай бұрын

This! ☝️ On point. 👌

I always found that the DBX166 was the Rack standard in any FOH pub rig.

I got the 266xl 19 years ago. My first and only hardware compressor. Managed to get ok vocal out of it. Also found it to be great on bass guitar low end. Eventually went all in the box and it’s been collecting dust. Learned alot about music production since the last time I used it. Might need to set it up for a outboard option again. lol

I have a 266xs that I got on a Black Friday deal many years ago, and I’ve tracked overheads through it, but I’m actually liking it as a drum parallel compressor.

I had a rack full of them back in the day for FOH. Need to go to the barn and see if I still have one. I think i might have a 163 someplace to. I think its a pumpie little com to.. great video.

My standard live FOH rack gear almost always contained a stack of DBX compressors. I found ways to make the 166 my goto compressor for vocals, guitars and drums. The 266 was definitely the better version, but the 166's muddiness actually worked in my favor for live sound systems. The key to survival was to take it out to the point where you could hear it start to grunge up when solo'd, and then back it off a bit. The 166 is an excellent compressor for anything that has a lot of edginess to it that needs taming. A good example is a guitar cabinet if the player is using a Strat. It really helps a Strat to sit in the mix with the vocals.

I use mine as rack filler but my freind calls his the "Tamborine Tamer" I never really experimented with mine, I tried them on acousic guitar, bass, and vocals and then moved it to the bottom of the rack. I don't even think it is connected to my patchbay anymore, I guess I will have to pull it out, clean it up, and apologize to it, thanks for the tip

I use the smaller dbx163(I think?) on my bass all the time. Helps bring some thump to the higher strings before I send it to the amp. Just something cheap I bought almost 20 years ago at a flea market.

I use mine on my kicks and I love it! Great video!

Most hated...man, I thought this was gonna be about the 3630! 😆😆😆

@rafaelsartori1481

2 жыл бұрын

ACP 88 Bro....😆

@emersonvella

2 жыл бұрын

@@rafaelsartori1481 I thought I couldn't find a compressor I couldn't somehow find a use for. Enter the ACP88 😂

@rafaelsartori1481

2 жыл бұрын

@@emersonvella 😄😄😄

@royglennie

2 жыл бұрын

Same haha!

@TheGarageRecordingSC

2 жыл бұрын

Same here 😂

Brilliant! Have you tried other budget friendly comps like the "very nice compressor", some of the affordable drawmers, or others, for the same OH duties?

I was just about say how nice its fitting for snare and there you said it. When you lift ratio sound is poping real nice. I just found from old stack DBX 266A project 1 usa made retro thing. Definately need to give it a go since Im all in plugin compressors atm.

Great compressor, used these a lot for live sound. Another sleeper comp from same era is the symetrix 425, the gate and limiter are absolutely killer on kick and snare, brings them right up in the mix. , superior to the dbx, but the comp function is not as good as the dbx.

I have this and I use it on my vocal during online calls etc. pretty useful

I agree I have 2 units that live patched on my bottom Tom mics; I love them!

A lot of DBX gear is underrated, the EQ’s and the Silver series especially. I was running a Neve chain on guitars one day, I accidentally switched into a pair of 376’s, the client got all excited asking what I did, they sounded fast and phenomenal. I compared the Dbx Eq’s to my SSL Eq’s one day, I was surprised by the Dbx, they had a sound, kinda mosfety kinda sound. Awesome on bass

@arizonanorte3180

6 ай бұрын

Any 160 166 1066 dbx will make your bass a great 90s vive thump. Specially with a Fender Pb or Jb And the great Music man stingray

@BojanBojovic

9 күн бұрын

People hated 376, but I never understood why. Then I heard their work. Dunning Kruger ignorants talking nonsense and repeating some internet mantra.

Got one. Love it!

Great Video !!! Thanks for sharing

I dig the vid bro when it comes to compressors, eq, and effects you have to apply the saying “if it sounds good it is as long as it’s not making unwanted noise or just plain not getting the job done like for instance I’m a bassist and for most of my career I was looking for a bass tone that was meaty and fat but snappy on the top but also really good in the upper mids and one day I was in guitar center and just trying a bass and plugged into a random amp and was blown away from the tone and thought wow this bass sounds great! So I remembered the bass and put the stuff away and when I came back I grabbed the same bass and plugged into a random amp but this time the sound was different and I was confused because my conclusion of this bass made me want to hear it again so I grabbed another bass and plugged into the same amp to the same result so I looked at the bass amplifiers and I remembered the random amp was in the corner so I plugged it into the amp and the sound was back and it only had 5 tone controls low, low mid, mid, high mid, and high and the frequencies were dialed in so precisely that at zero boost or cut my tone was 75% there and it took very little to get me all the way there and I looked at the name brand, it was Behringer huh? And it was a 250 watt amp with a few extra settings and a foot switch for $250, a dollar a watt this is the part that’ll blow your mind, we did a gig that provided p.a. Lights and sound man and I didn’t know the guy but after the first set this guy came up to me and asked me what I was playing through on stage and I said the little behringer head with the XLR out to the snake and I asked him why do you ask? And he said because it’s probably one of the best bass tones he ever mixed and he almost had to do nothing to get it to sound good and I still have the same bass rig because it gives me what I’m looking for If it sounds good it is

@leonardconstant

Жыл бұрын

Wow! Would you please be kind enough to disclose the exact model name or number? Thanks.

@jacksondelahunt8385

Жыл бұрын

Model please!

Cool beat!! and the compressor sounds great. I have a 166xs, and it's a bit clickier on the attack than this model, still like it a lot

@UltraCodex66

2 жыл бұрын

I have one too !! D'you know any other differences? I've been using mine simply as a hardware compressor, nothing else really lol

Very surprised at how it handles cymbals at high ratio. Very cool. I have one of these and use it from time to time

You are absolutely correct , this compressor indeed sound great qith drums . I want to add that most DBX compressors actually can sound really good , all you have to do is think a little out of the box when deal in the settings . As we all know same settings used on different brand / type compressors will never give same result and there can even be variations within the same model / brand too . As you finetune the settings don't think the typical compressor way as most people they do and have learned . DBX compressors is actually a bit more dificult to get right but when you get them right , they perform pretty good . I have used those on my electric guitar both as conventional compressor style of use and , they are ok for that but when used as an effects , well thats another world , they really can sound great if used with care . But still the best use is with drums , just do not use with vocals there they really is not that good at all . ( and flute like instruments , dont use ) Edit - For other instruments and use I can't really say anything because my experience with DBX compressors is only with those I mentioned above . Other people may have other experiences with other instruments , good as well as not so good .

Man... With that more than correct record. The compressor sounds nice, but the overhead mic/technique/instrument is(are) the stellar ingredient(s).

I love using these on percussion. I was starting to think I was crazy using these cause people almost give them away. I both love to see some other love for them and also kinda want them to stay a secret.

@RobertoRomero-lg1le

Жыл бұрын

I'm about to buy 2 DBX 166XL for drums. But i'm reading a lot of reviews online to see if they'll work fine and so... A lot of people talk bad about them but then i found comments like yours saying its a good compressor and its like a secret love for them or smth. I dont have gear, only a focusrite 18i20 and the mics ofc but i want to make my own homestudio with external hardware to improve sound quality and so. So, do you actually recommend to buy the 166XL? I find them at 70$ each and i was thinking of buying them but i dont want to spend money on shiet. Thanks in advance!

@shaddoty

Жыл бұрын

@@RobertoRomero-lg1le They're great for adding edge to sound, I like em on vocals to make em more gritty

cool video. Wonder how it will sound with cheap mics though

I love the whole compressor and peakstop! Wish they had an 8 channel version of the peakstop 😁 I had the 166xs and loved it. End of the day it is the same as instruments. It’s not about what the brand name or price is, but who uses it. I believe there’s no such thing as bad apart from faulty. You can use everything to get the sound in your head. 👌 Nice video as always. Love your content!

Very fun! And unexpected I’d imagine

How do different versions of the 166 compare? I see the 166a and 166xl for sale near me.

i use my DBX 119 on overheads and the DBX 118 for guitars !! super squashed and distorted but in parallel though !!

What size and model of K cymbal are you riding on for this video?

Thanks for the video.

I have the same, that is the asian made one. Still an old unit and you would be surprised by the build quality if you open them up. You can be sure it will survive if you spill a bottle of champagne on the front. :D Mostly unusable on bass, vocal or any other source, that needs clean sound, but it is really good at drums. Actually I use it with 1 mic in middle of drums for tracking demos and monitoring in our rehearsals. It picks up everything and it has that huge attack that has its own glory. It is fantastic on drums in my opinion. :)

The 166 has been a go to for me on overheads for several years

Thank you Ryan Very informative. Good video! I also need your advice. I already have a dbx 286s that I use for vocals. In a singer-songwriter set-up where I also want to play a mic'd up acoustic guitar simultaneously as I'm singing but also want to have the acoustic guitar mic to have a seperate compression with its own tweaked levels, do I get another 286s for this purpose or a dbx 166xl? Which would you get for just the mic'd up guitar? I want cheap and lo-fi. It seems that the 286s works fine but would the 166xl work better for this purpose? Pretend that I'm recording into a 4-track cassette TEAC 144 (from 1979) recorder. So no DAW, no effects, dry everything. Lo-fi Just raw but even-sounding. Which would you choose? I heard the de-esser on the 286s also works to tame the brightness of brighter acoustic guitars.

Gotta try that some day. Mine is living in parallel on drums and bass, almost set and forget.

I think you’re on to something.. sounds great!

I must be missing something. I'm running a cheap Behringer Autocom and I've never gotten it to make any difference. At the moment I have it in the main inserts but even when I play recorded music back I just don't hear a difference wether it's in or out. I must be doing something wrong.

sounds good on kick drum too

This is how east coast rap from the 90's got their drums mostly look at old D&D studios sessions with Dj. Premier. And 160a was always used on vocals. The gate is trash though, but can be modded.

Don't know about the others but I have an early American made one and I can't even count the times I was able to find an interesting use for it. I wouldn't get rid of mine for anything.

Really sounds good on overheads! What do you think: it might sound good on parallel drum bus as well? Thanks for the video!!

@joaoantoniovione484

2 жыл бұрын

I tried it both as parallel drum bus, as a "rear bus" comp and master bus comp. I wasn't so fond of it as a master comp, but as parallel drums was cool! You can also crank the output, which feeds the peakstop control, and get some tasty parallel distortion. I did that on a drum bus actually, while recording, and it was instant garage rock...

What about on bass compared to the 160?

I got a 166xs, any notes on the differences? Anyone?

Ryan. If you thought the 166 was interesting on overheads, you may want to try an A.R.T. Pro VLA II, on overheads, as well. It’s quite pleasing! Thanks For the video :)

@2ndyeardrummer

Жыл бұрын

Agreed, the art pro preamp is another under rated studio tool. I bought it for vocals but I’ve used mine for room mic’s with great results on drums. Again, these also come up cheap in the used market sometimes, I got mine for around $200 Canadian a few years ago.

what most people don't have on their radar is that dox made also some of the best vca compressors ever (from a sonic perspective ans built quality). The dbx 160 sl was nearly 4000 Euro / Dollars and is still an amazing piece of gear, that can be incredible fast and punchy but also transparent and hifi...

I have this. I used it in kick and bass

The peakstops were very useful on the 165a old models. They could make a drum-set sound grimey and hiphoppish. Did you test the peakstop on this 166 model?

I use a DBX 266xl and it sounds great on Synths and hard electronics.

@SDS-ff8ed

2 жыл бұрын

I think it excels best at neutralizing really sharp transients without getting rid of the attack of the instrument.

Gracias 🙌🏾

that studio one mix button is crazy

A big reason people hate on the 166 is because its later iterations are pretty brittle and stiff sounding. Very “cheap” as many people describe them. Also, in my experience the earlier Made in USA examples tend to sound less “dull” than the later versions made overseas. I’ve owned several 166’s over the years because you could pick them up as cheap as $20 here in Seattle. I don’t recommend using the gate. Last of all, these units aren’t grounded, so they’re fairly prone to buzzes. So make sure you really test it out if you buy one,

I thought it was the 3630... which I have 2 of and don't mind haha

6:32 yeah the dbxs usually get faster the more you compress. (and yeah I'm watching this again xD)

Just love it. Thats why music is so dope. Heres a rock music producer saying everyone hates a staple compressor for hip hop music.

the gated sound was pretty cool haha

@johnb2476

Жыл бұрын

the limiter was some pretty wonky processing, too. I could see using the two of them together as an effect.

At @9:31 those toms started to break up. I've found the 166 and 266XL to be pretty good on vocals, but anything with sustained low end is risky.

@creativesoundlab

Жыл бұрын

Good insight, thank you!

Shit- I got one of these just dying in my rack. I’ll try it on overs.

You can’t use more than two or three lights of gain reduction at 4:1 , helpful on keyboards or key subgroup. The old dbx 160vu’s were the thing for kick and snare, before the EL8 Distressor came along in the mid 90s. 166 is helpful as a parallel drum compressor, if you don’t have an 1178! Nothing is as useful as a UREI 1176! Amazing on everything!

The only dbx I ever had was a 163x. It was quite noisy but pretty cool.

Dang, now I wish I didn't sell the 166 that I had. 🤦🏻‍♂️😂

Honestly though, I've never heard any 16x series hatred. They're all just different tools in the dbx toolbox.

It's crazy how the toms sound "beatlesy" when you turn up the ratio

I wonder what using the SSL trick would sound like using the 166...

@creativesoundlab

2 ай бұрын

Which trick in particular?

@mantax55

2 ай бұрын

@@creativesoundlab SSL Channel Compression Trick: bringing the threshold all the way down and bringing up the ratio until it hits between 3-6db of GR.

Isn't it great how KZread over compresses videos about compressors? 🤣

dbx made the vca's in the old ssl consoles, they and focusrite have a weird reputation for being "cheap" that is a little unwarranted.

I thought the 3630 was the most hated?!

bruh. I've been saying dbx 163x is the dopest OH compressor. this I'm sure is close to it.

most hated? these are versatile compressors that with the correct use can work in almost any situation

Tho I do prefer it unlinked personally

who ever said 166 was a "most hated"???? it's just linear what's bad about that??? Tech snobism imo...

your twisting of the output knob without ever touching the bypass button is seriously off putting, the output and bypass in combination is where the rubber meets the road

DBX cannot make a bad compressor. Who hates it?