Gssl - Man is this thing agressive!

[iangomes]

It sounds to me like the ratio is too high at 2:1. Maybe I should open my unit back up and do a ratio modification of some sort.

and I worry that you've built these for other people.  

??? That's an odd thing to say right off the bat.
Otherwise, thanks for the input regularjohn. I do have the trim-pots in and I did adjust the resistors for my vca's. I'm pretty sure my GR meter is accurate, but I'm going to do a couple of tests to be sure when I get home tonight.

MikoKensington , I think we're on the same page. Grabby is definitely the word I would use to describe it. Sometimes is works if I have a mix with a lot of dynamics, but on a dense mix, I find you have to be really careful with it.

 

[regularjohn]

??? That's an odd thing to say right off the bat.

my apologies...i jumped the gun on that assumption.  i've just come across alot of gssl's that when i see the inside it's instantly apparent that the builder didn't have much of a clue as to what they were doing, and i forget sometimes that there are people out there that do know how to build these things correctly.  No offense meant by my comment.

 

[desol]

Hey desol I like your stuff man. Just listening. Really dig it.

So I have boards here for the original gssl and I also have the expat turbo board for it. But then there was a thread a while ago about this dude from philly building an "ultimate" gssl board that had all the option pretty much built in.

I think I might really want the SC, as evidenced by the GSSL comparison thread we had a while ago. Should I build the ultimate gssl, or just build what I got?

Thanks man. I've got some new ideas(tunes) coming up soon, so check back.

Well, there's two nice SSL builds going i'd say...ruckus's and Igor's. Either one would be good. I'm doin one of Igor's 500 series units. I like space saving. The compressor used on the recordings was a portico 5043, which i like alot. I've been using the Sta Level on the latest recording.

Imo, a new type build is just less hassle with s/c, turbo, etc included onboard.

 

[canidoit]

I think Ruckus is planning to ad the crush and blend feature on his build which I will probably wait for, since it will have every feature possible for the GSSL.

From what I understand, Igors one only has Blend but not crush.

 

[regularjohn]

From what I understand, Igors one only has Blend but not crush.

The crush and blend is only a blend control.  The "crush" part is the compressor itself.  I'd hope Igor's has the "crush" part. 

 

[canidoit]

From what I understand, Igors one only has Blend but not crush.

The crush and blend is only a blend control.  The "crush" part is the compressor itself.  I'd hope Igor's has the "crush" part. 

I thought the crush part was like a replica of the C1 comps version of the crush and it would be like a setting??

Are you saying that this compressor here has the crush part but not the blend? Is the crush and blend a single feature or are they independent?

 

[regularjohn]

there is no crush part on the CnB - it's only a blend control.  The part that does the crushing is the compressor - that's why I said I hope Igor's comp has this part, otherwise his comp is not a comp...a joke.    

"crush and blend" is just the name of the device that lets you blend the uncompressed signal with the signal from the gssl for parallel compression.

you "crush" it with the gssl and "blend" in the uncompressed signal.

And yes, I've built a gssl with the crush and blend, btw.

 

[desol]

Wet/dry = Crush/blend. !!

 

[fazer]

I've used the ssl compressor for mixing.  Have not used the gssl.  I find you like or dont like depending on the music style your working on. 

I always liked it better with analog tape.  Usually you want to tighten the sound with tape and the ssl works great for that.  But when everything went digital ,  I found I didn't use it as often and preferred a tube compressor like a manely vari MU or my Tubetec LCA2 or a Neve SS 33609.  I also never cared for the auto release setting on the SSL.  I always liked the 10ms attack/300ms release 2 to 1 or 4 to1 .    It rules when mixing from tape,  about 2 to 3 db GR of the peaks.  The only time I like it when its deep compression is for live mixing and it saves your butt.  I mix Etown in Boulder ( syndicated music radio show still on), every Sunday back in the 90's. The SSL was great for the Rock shows with big drums across the mix. 

 

[abechap024]

Im having a lot of luck with 10:1 30ms attack and auto release. for a metal album i'm mixing. Gives the audio a nice "hard" sound. (Sorry for the buzz word...)

The more I use this thing the more respect I have for its designers, they really knew what they were doing when they put these ideas to paper!!

 

[TheGuitarist]

I'm just waiting to see what livingnote does with his gssl project, but i use a ssl every day i'm down at the studio, and that compressor is smeared over so many recordings its not funny. Its VERY obvious.

 

[ytsestef]

The switches on my unit rarely even move. They seem to be stuck in 4:1/10/Auto goodness! ;D

 

[kambo]

stick a lundahl, in/out trx hear the clarity 

 

[SSLtech]

Have you checked the CALIBRATION if the gain reduction metering and ratio?

Your METER may be telling you that it's digging in 3dB (which is a LOT on everythign simultaneously, so I'm not surprised that it's audible) but if you're actually chewing 7 or 8dB out, at a "past-infinity" ratio, then of course, it'll sound outrageous.

-So -before we get TOO far with trying to decide a solution, I think we should start as an Engineer (with a capital 'E') would start, by identifying and measuring the subject.

Keith

 

[MikeClev]

Time to link em up, Keef!

http://www.groupdiy.com/index.php?topic=944.0

Its a long thread but worth it. Its stuff missing from the GSSL build documentation.

Basically the GSSL was designed around the DBX/That 2150 VCA circuit as a replacement for the original DBX 202XT VCA which is obsolete and hard to find. Nowadays you can also get That 2180 and 2181 A, B and C VCAs, which means there are at least 8 VCAs you can use in the GSSL, and documentation for the alterations needed to the circuit for each VCA type are scattered throughout threads all over this forum and elsewhere. So its no wonder people build GSSLs and find they don't behave quite as expected. The GSSL is presented by some as a paint by numbers build, but the devil is in the details!

 

[iangomes]

Thanks for the post Mike!
I actually think that mine is working properly. I think people may have got the wrong idea from my description of my GSSL being 'agressive'.
That said, I'm going to open mine up and take another look in the coming months after I get a bunch of other tech work off of my list (just in case).
I'll report back with my findings.

Oh, Ps - SSLTech, I did do that test when I built the GSSL originally. Everything seemed fine as far as I remember.

 

[sheadstedford]

Just built an sb4000............
Its incredible.
It can be subtle, syrupy, harsh, clean and dirty sounding.
Im well impressed.
All my calibration apart from unity gain is done by ear so far as not yet got my gr meter. The T1 and T2 on the sidechain are out of this world.


I like to compress things ......
It makes me happy

 

[mac]

Great timing for me reading this thread - I think Mike and Keith have hit the nail on the head. Just this afternoon I was calibrating my latest one which is a turbo with my own side chain filter, and I though I should pull out my first one and measure it again.

http://www.groupdiy.com/index.php?topic=11320.400

No wonder I thought my first GSSL was way more aggressive than the real console ssl's that i have used - ratios were waaaay off! Also my first one is only a single sidechain VCA which behaves differently also.

Devil IS in the detail, calibration etc.

Mac

 

[iangomes]

Alright! So it's been in the back of my mind that I would like to sell my GSSL so I thought I would mess around with it one last time to address what I heard that started this thread.
I spent a couple of hours putting signals/music through the unit and it seems that SSLtech was right. At times I can be compressing about 3db more than my meter is telling me. I futzed with all of the settings and watched my levels and decided that it is working properly, but the GR is off (moreso as you turn up the GR). I remember reading that this was an issue with some GSSLs (correct me if I'm wrong), so I'm not too worried about it.

I found some great settings for a few different electronic tracks (one in particular where, with the sidechain filter, I was getting some seriously awesome bass...). On other genres, I'm not crazy about it. Nothing bad, it just isn't what I'm looking for. Since I need the money (buying a tape machine!! ) I've decided to sell. It's a pretty awesome unit (fully stepped, turbo, sidechain, off board psu...), so if anyone is interested, check the black market. Thanks for the chat everyone! This is most certainly a great place!