Universal Audio 2-1176 Dual 1176LN - Manual (Page 16)

Insider’s Secrets
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“Treating some electric guitar sounds that had been previously recorded,” Curwin added, “allowed the
opportunity of experimenting with the different ratios and the attack and release controls, and with
careful positioning it was possible to give the guitar a lot of punch and an apparent sense of urgency
in the mix.”
Reviewer Michael Cooper tried using the 2-1176 on a rock tune to record electric rhythm guitar,
selecting All ratio. The result? “The 2-1176 brought intentionally muted bass strings up in level and
put a lid on the fully voiced and brighter upper strings, creating a wonderfully chunky, in-your-face
sounding track.” Darwin Grosse tried the 2-1176 on a 12-string acoustic guitar, something he points
out is “a difficult test for many compressors, since its crazy frequency range and oddball harmonics
will challenge many a ‘colorful’ compressor’s mettle.” Using a pair of small-diaphragm condenser
mics running through a “nice mid-range preamp” into the 2-1176, he got outstanding results. “This
combination sounded great,” he wrote, “with the 2-1176 providing an excellent responsiveness to the
sound while still allowing for crucial gain management. While the 1176 is known for its unique
personality, careful use provided a clean, defined quality with broad, deep imaging. Taking the
opportunity to exercise the various settings, it was
easy to move into a more effect-like area, with
tightly clamped limiting for a Jeff Lynne-type sound.
The wide range of control settings and the fast-
action limiter makes the 2-1176 a serious
compression toolkit for the artistic engineer.
The 2-1176 can serve as a perfect complement for
acoustic and electric bass as well. In his Sound on
Sound magazine review in June, 2001 Hugh Robjohns observed that “the original [1176] was often...
celebrated as a compressor for bass, and I certainly found the re-issue’s compression to cope
wonderfully with the wildest excesses of electric or acoustic string basses, without changing the
inherent sound or losing the essence of the player’s dynamics.”
Stephen Murphy said much the same thing when he reviewed the 1176LN for Pro Audio Review in
March, 2001: “My favorite use for the 1176 is for vocals, electric and upright basses, and other ‘single
line’ [monophonic] instruments. I usually stick to the 4:1 ratio, with medium attack and reasonably
quick release—one of my pet peeve sounds is that of a compressor coming back up with a sluggish
release. This was never an issue with the 1176.”
You’ll find that you can make almost any bass sound fatter and warmer, yet still retain its definition,
by running its signal through a 2-1176 channel set to a ratio of 4:1, with fairly fast attack and release
times (set both knobs to approximately 3 o’clock) and input and output at roughly unity gain (both
knobs at around “5”). To add more compression, select a ratio of 8:1 and slightly increase the Input
knob. With the extra punch and leveling this will add, every bass note will better be able to cut through
even the densest backing track.
“
The wide range of control settings
and the fast-action limiter makes
the 2-1176 a serious compression
toolkit for the artistic engineer.
”
— Darwin Grosse, Recording