Warm Audio introduces BUS-COMP - Stereo Bus Compressor
by The Press Desk   1st January 2020

I posted my response from Warm Audio earlier in this thread about several of these questions.

I have subsequently written a review of the Warm Audio Bus comp.

Spoiler alert - it is NOT a clone of the SSL, differing in several critical ways.

In my comparison shootout which was referred to I intently stayed on 44.1 to have a real life scenario for a lot of project studios. These are the guys who ask themselves if an affordable hardware clone is worth it. The other ones just have the dough and buy the original or stay ITB because they have too much work and recalls to do.
If you really carefully match everything, which often means not relying on meters, the differences can be small indeed. Many with trained ears participated, very few favored the real SSL, even less the Stam. I love my Smart C1 and find it sounds better than plugins. But could I pick it blind? I hope, but I'm not sure. Which is why I haven't tried yet. ;-)
Feel free to join the shootout thread, would love to have you there.

Witch thread ?

The problem is always materials in reviews .... 808 stuff are unfogiving and 808 bd tails is like nothing to show timing and distortion...

For anyone that’s interested (UK), I have the Neko SL4000 with all mods incl. transformers. It’s absolutely superb and there is no comparison with any of the plugins even at standard -4db gain reduction. The depth , width, girth and effortless compression cannot be matched itb yet!

Another Gearslutz user sent me a PM a few months ago when we’d both bought bus comps - his was Audioscape and he wanted to do a comparison.
I sent my Neko files and never got anything back from him apart from the comments that the Neko sounded fuller, with more mojo....

Would not hesitate to get a Neko. Pretty sure the WA is also great.

SSL Bus Comp Shootout (SSL X-Rack, Stam SA-4000+, Duende, Slate, Waves, bx_townhouse)

Have a Neko, too. Totally agree with you, well worth the money. Sounds very similar to the modern SSLs (XRack, Duality). I didn't include it in my shootout since I have one without the turbo mod (but with transfomers) and thus it reacts differently. It got it without turbo intently since I already have an SSL X-Rack and now a Smart C1 and it's nice to have another option. With the right material it can yield a certain widening effect. That's what everyone loves about the Obsidian, for instance, which is also based on a simple GSSL design without turbo mod.

Come on Uli, where’s the KT-4K? How about $299?

Maybe that’s a really bad idea...

Hi!
I just saw this video (at the end of the post) - comparison, WA comp, SSL comp, Waves comp.
I don't know if they did some mistakes in the test (pan law, gain staging) but both SSL and WARM audio sounds MUCH wider than the plugin.
The difference in other comparisons is much smaller. Close to subtle but this sounds almost like different mix.
I'm pretty sure there must be something wrong...otherwise I will buy SSL comp today :D
What do you think guys? Or is it just me?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ka1ftlFJsoY&t=471s

Im pretty new to decent hardware compressors. Only had an cheap 266xl before. Looking for a descent bus compressor for electronic music.

Does anybody know how the Warm Audio would stack up against the Drawmer 1978 or 1968?

I don't have the Warm, but a Smart C1 and the 1978. While SSL style compression is a classic for electronic music, especially since the Warm has a HPF, the 1978 definitely is more versatile and can be made to sound quite similar.

Hey all,

I'm interested in getting the Warm Bus Comp...however...I need my master bus comp to have side chain inputs to print stems with...I see the warm only has one side chain input? I do I run a stereo input into the side chain for printing stems with the effect of the compressor on it?

Possible or not with this?

Thanks!

Hi Guys !

I have received my Bus Comp yesterday and I would like to report how it manages. Basically - very good.

I do not have an original SSL to compare. I have following compressors: JDK R22 (my best and favorite one, I love it), Elysia Xpressor 500 (very good sounding comp with limited functionality as it creates oddball effects rather that useful compression), two WA-2A (once again I cannot compare it to the original, but very good indeed, very "hifi": sounding), one WA-76 (cannot compare to teletronics… one pot scratches while operating, otherwise very good for vocals, can add even 20dB of gain reduction without sacryfying the sound), LA-3 clone which is fair and two Drawmers 241 which I do not use anymore.

So : It looks very sexy. The "level meter" is next to useless as it does not show dB scale, just the "amount of compression", but it makes me feel good as it wipes the screen. First impression is very good sounding SSL-style (I presume) compressor which makes the job done. It needs high input level to operate properly but most compressors do. I am not sure about the accuracy of attack - release but they do work and are useful for taming the transients or letting them to go through. Filter works as it should. Please note that there is an error in the manual - this is high pass not low pass of course Channel levels are equal, the unit is quiet. My impression is that unit adds compression without changing the overall character of the sound; both basses and trebles are where they were before. It does not mean that it is transparent: it adds some "glue" character to the sound but does not affect its foundations.

There is a lot of discussion here about generic stuff like Warm Audio not being "original" and therefore not good enough for us producers and engineers. Let me tell you something. I know, that some of you guys spent millions on equipment but this is just my 2cc. I have three NEVE units: 8816mixer, 8803eq and 8801channel and they all do overheat and sometimes malfunction. I received very little support from NEVE. Their recall software sucks btw. I love these units but they sometimes make me suffer. I had two TC Powercore cards in the past and they both stopped working after some time. The only support that I received from TC was a suggestion that I should change my PC to Mac and I hate Macs. I can give countless examples of original expensive piece of gear that eventually is not better that Warm Audio. So i do not see any reason that I should apologize for using it.

Regarding WA in general this is a mixed bag; some units I like, some less but Bus Comp is the one that I can recommend.

Regards, Tom

Cool ^^^^^

I just received mine today, haven't connected it up yet, just waiting for a new desk also so I can rack it up and then put it through its paces.

Happy social distancing

My Neko has been absolutely reliable for years now and Gray has always been responsive and nice. The unit sounds almost identical to my X Rack SSL. Bear in mind the modern SSLs sound more hifi than the old ones from which the Waves is modelled. Seems you had a bad experience, just wondering: why hadn't you a local US tech fix it and save the shipping?

From videos without trying, this Warm seems to nail a lot more of the old magic than the actual SSL X logic stuff to me.

The X Logic comps are dead to me. Boring. To the point of instantly selling if I was given one for free. And that's from using them not from videos.

Sorry, but just cannot believe that you preferred the Waves over the Neko. Obviously, the Waves would have a tighter low end because it kills the low end whereas the Neko retains a good amount even with -4db GR.

I do have the turbo mod so I think that helps even more regarding the low end but haven’t really experimented with it.

The Neko compresses effortlessly with great punch and whilst being solid in the centre it also opens up the soundstage really nicely - to be fair, I haven’t used the Waves Comp for a few years because I felt that was even superseded by other emulations. The best algo emulation of SSL type comps I’ve used is the Townhouse which is great but certainly cannot match the Neko.

Oh well, guess I just wasted £800 on the Neko when I could have used the Waves version for $29!

I’m not intending to be confrontational, I just honestly can’t resonate with your claims. There isn’t a single plugin bus comp that I have ever heard that can match the Neko or probably any other hardware clone for that matter.

The Vertigo VSC-3 which I own is nice but has nowhere near the depth of the Neko.

I use the Neko for processing individual tracks also and you can’t match hardware compression with plugins - if all you do is tickle things lightly then perhaps the differences are minimal....

The first thing I’m going to do when I get chance is try and get a new demo for the Waves SSL because my WUP ran out years ago and I can check for myself!

Peace

I love Warm audio,do not me get wrong.
When compare Warm Bus vs SSL 500-SSL still win.
Yes SSL is 2 times the price but I will safe more cash and buy SSL.

I ordered this and finally got it last week. At the same time i got an ear infection. Oh, the irony!

But today my hearing is starting to be better, so i turned it on for a little more testing. But i noticed something strange. The meter shows more reduction on a ratio of 1.5 than 10. And if i dont touch the make up gain, the signal level gets louder as well. Anybody else notice this? Is it something with how ratio works on this that can explain it?

I also saw someone mentioning that turning on the transformators making the level higher. It doesnt do that on mine.

The first Mix Bus I received had some fallen off/jammed knobs and the sticker with the Serial-Nr was halfway gone... not good. The store said they didn't know what happened but to their credit I got sent a new one immedeately and could return the first one without cost. This one now works great.

As I'm reorganizing my setup at the moment I haven't used the Bus Comp much yet. But I am really excited about it. The transformer setting definitely does NOT raise the level. Also I wouldn't go by the meter too much but use your ears.

It seems to me that the box has plenty of make-up gain available so on moderate setting the control can be set pretty low.

Sonically the Mix Bus is great, I probably will keep it permanently in the chain as it adds depth and size even without or with very little compression.

Thanks. I did some more testing today and it seems that only the 10-1 ratio is off. I get gradually more compression from 1.5 to 4, but it seems i get less again with 10.

It sounds good, and very useful on the master bus. Looking forward to try it in a real mix when i get all my hearing back.

I did some research (googling around) and found out that people have been experiencing the same things i have on ssl emulated plugins. So there is some threshold compensation going on when you change the ratio. And it also has an auto adjusting soft knee function that adjusts based on how hard you hit the compressor. So it is possible to get more gain reduction at a ratio of 1.5:1 than 10:1.

So there is more going on than meets the "eye" here.

This is most likely basic knowledge for you guys, but i didnt know about all this, and it isnt mentioned in the manual either.

That's is a normal SSL bus comp behavior for ratio(soft and hard knee)
Even if your release is on auto,and you bypass the unit the release still hold the audio and slowly return to zero.That way no immediately bypass on that settings.

Thanks! Is there any other quirks in this unit?

I tested some compression on some drum loops yesterday. And i could hear that everything gets more compressed when i turn the ratio from 1.5 to 10. When comparing them all i still feel like the 10:1 ratio is less compressed. It sounds like it is between a ratio of 2 and 3. But i did not change the threshold when i did this test. So that migth be the reason. I only changed ratio, then normalized all clips to compare them.

As others noted this is normal and to be expected from an SSL comp. The threshold and knee response changes with the ratios. An 1176 does this as well. It actually makes sense, if you think about it. With a 2:1 ratio, you aim at glueing the whole mix together slightly, right? While with 10:1 your goal is to reign in large spikes. So with a low ratio you're ideally compressing all the time and with a higher ratio you're ideally compressing mostly peaks.

Superb replay..
You can try this with any comp that have ratio pots ....

PS. Warm gears is great... Worth every penny, I will grabs this one..

This is a nice mixbus compressor and the sidechain and HPF are useful. My only gripes would be, although the transformer option wooed me - I found it just adds mud and loses too much focus when engaged on the mix bus - great for processing individual tracks such as bass though. So it's rare I use the transformer option unless processing a drumbus or or other non-2bus duties. The almost program-dependant feel of the ratios does react in a similar way to the SSL comps I've had my hands on (admittedly very rarely!) I don't know how accurate the db reduction meter is - I pretty much ignore it and use my ears.

That's always good practice. Especially with SSL comps there's usually a lot going on before the meter even starts to move. The point where I think it's becoming too much is usually well beyond 4db on the meter.

Just put one of these in my rack, turned the ratio knob, it popped off

what you mean popped off?
So you will have return it?

Return it! I had similar problems as described above, the unit I have now works great though.

It's important to insist on getting fully working gear, too many folks think 'Oh, it's so affordable so I won't bother'. It's NOT cheap gear, you paid $700 or whatever for it and you are entitled to a brand-new, unopened, tested and fully working unit. Period!

Hopefully Warm will start to put as much effort into this as they do in shiny brochures, ads and celebrity engineer endorsements!