Best Compressor For Bass Guitar (2024 Update)

This thing is absolutely worth the price. The compression doesn't deaden the sound in the name of compressing. I'm constanting impressed at how much the dynamic range is still able to breathe through it. The dials are also very easy to understand and tweak with satisfying results. I really enjoyed tinkering to establish the levels of compression I wanted based on the purpose for which I was using the pedal. It's great. BUY IT.speimb-46

Great manufacturer with an excellent track record in compression. Easy to use. Good quality pedal. Has no effect on bass tone between ON/OFF. Works really well. Only downside is having to remove / replace 4 screws on bottom to access the battery. One centre screw would be much easier. Not a big issue as i intend buying a decent power supply for it. Would highly recommend.David M.

OK, why wasn't this mentioned in the description . Because eveyone has a 9V 100ma power supply with the correct adapter size laying around . . . right? WRONG! . There is no option for using a 9V battery . So, you need to know this up front . because when it arrives, if you don't have the correct power supply, it's dead in the water until you can buy one .Jambalaya

As a bassist, I've been using compressors in my signal chain for live performances (and recording) for decades . . . I have always used rack units VS pedals . Being able to set the Ratio, Threshold, Attack, Release is an advantage on a full scale unit. I find this pedal, click ON, click OFF to be extremely limited in effectiveness . And, I'm not comprehending the "individual string" compression algorithms that TC touts, also, the sound is not all that clean . But for a quickie, (i.e.I want some compression on my guitar or bass) ok, cool, plug it in! . . . but be prepared to " grin and bear" it you feel you need to adjust it. because, you do not have that capability with this box . It's extremely limited.Guntherprobe

Great little compressor pedal for bass – very simple to use but just makes everything sound smoother and better. A small package but a huge punch! Great work from the guys at TC Electronic and top service from GuitarGuitar! Thank you!Reviewed by guitarguitar custome

Electro Harmonix has been "Rockin the House" for decades. At first I wasn't sure I wanted this unit, bought it any way. Here is my signal chain: guitar – Bass preacher – Tascam 2488 neo. boom. ..1997 Squire 5 string P Bass – Bass preacher – Neo …boom. Ive tried a number of others, eg; dyna comp; too heavy handed. Boss limiter enhancer: quite good. This puppy is easy, effective and as heavy handed as you want it to be. Heres the thing; the toggle "attack " switch settings, makes you think. It changes your strumming and picking methods. I believe its made me a better player. MADE IN THE U.S.A..!angel

First up: You're not going to get tonnes of features for the price. What you'll get is a solid little compressor, that's a good start point for getting used to using them and understanding what they can do to your sound. Secondly: Individual pedals are much, much more intuitive and immediate to use than those multi-fx pedals, which light up like Christmas trees and have a gazillion settings. I use this as my 'mostly always on' compressor; to even the dynamics out a little before my distortion-type effects. It's not really versatile enough to use as an effect in itself (though the attack options are nice). If you want all the 'bells & whistles' you'll have to shell out about twice the price. For anyone just dipping into bass fx, on a budget or just curious, I'd recommend giving it a go.bigrichie69

Easy to use with only 2 knobs. Does exactly what its supposed to do. The level of compression is subtle between low and medium. The sustain knob controls the blend. Personally I have high compression, sustain around one o'clock. It brings out the hight notes that get lost in the mix in a live situation. Great pedal.Chris

Worth big money? Yes, it is that good. Everything works like you'd think based on the 1170, and it's simple just to listen and dial in. I use it primarily on acoustic guitar in live performance, and it's done stellar work for me. High-end build quality matches the cost of entry—high dollar but also excellent results.Scott

While some claim this compressor is an optical compressor, that couldn't be further from the truth. This compressor is an OTA (operational transconductance amplifuer) design, much like a Ross or Dynacomp. That being said it is an improvement in that design. A big one. If you're into great tone does it really matter whether it is OTA, optical, flux capacitor, or glow plug? No. The bottom line is that this compressor is awesome! It can do the Ross/Dynacomp thing where it DOES squash and color your tone, or it can be as transparent as you want it to be. The key is to put that blend knob to use along with the other controls.Guitar74

I have the Mini Ego on another pedalboard and I love the sustain knob on the big brother. The pedal has phenomenal versatility. The tone control is very interactive and when switching from single coil to humbucker pickups all is needed is a tone adjustment to dial things in. Built like a tank and the footswitch is as quiet as a church mouse.stillbillsmith

I was slightly influenced by a review video made by one of my favourite guitarists Brent Mason. He spoke very highly about the pedal so that, along with other reviews and comparisons, made me decide to go for the Ego. It is a brilliant pedal and does everything I want from a compression pedal.mike k.

I bought this compression pedal to boost my acoustic signal as well as fatten the sound a bit. I love the size as it fits on my board perfectly. I leave it on all the time so it neatly fits up top. I mainly lead worship at my church and was looking to make my Martin D-15 sound more like it is supposed to plugged in.Mark

The Xotic SP Compressor is without a doubt a 5 Star product! For many years I used a 1953 Gibson ES 175 or 1966 Telecaster plugged into a MXR Dyna Comp and grew to appreciate the warm squash this device had to offer as I lost the taste for most all distortion devices on the market. The Dyna Comp was a simple two knob device that squeezed my signal rather nicely to which I still have 3 of them floating about the house. I also have the more expanded version, MXR Limiter dating from the early 80s that also does a nice job modifying my signal. The only initial down side to the Dyna Comp was a little bit of noise. However the real down side to the old Dyna Comp was sometime in the early 90s, after Dunlop acquired ownership of the MXR Product, decided to reduce the cost of production by having all the jacks, pots, and switch connected directly to the PC Board via solder bath. Not only did this process of assembly affect the durability of this classic old compressor, it also compromised the tone and performance of a one great pedal. The vintage Dyna Comps wired point to point are far superior product. If you have one, keep it! In the wake of the cheapening of the Dyna Comp came the Keeley Compressor. I bought a Keeler Compressor somewhere around 10 years ago a noticed an improvement in performance over my old Dyna Comps with less noise. And with going into great detail, every guitar, from my old 1951 L5 to any of my old Fender sound great through this compressor. So now a new and somewhat revolutionary compressor has hit in the market by way of the Xotic SP. These guys are making some of the best pedals that I?ve run across in years. By the time I got my SP I was already the proud owner of an EP Booster and SL Drive. To later I have to say it is the only distortion that has come out in the last 30 years with a decent sounding tone that does not narrow the bandwidth of your signal path. Not to mention these pedals just happen to be the cutest looking signal devices on the market. What really makes the SP Compressor outstanding is the 3 position Hi/Mid/Low switch. The versatility to this pedal via of this switch is just amazing. In the Hi mode I can match the performance of my Keeley and Dyna Comp compressors for Jazz applications. However, I have taken using the Mid position for a great Blues/Rock tone. In this position the pedal allows me to play over the top of the compressor for soaring highs. This works in great combination with my 1960 Telecaster with Barden pickups. Anyway, I highly recommend the Xotic SP Compressor with its advantage in versatility over other compressors on the market. And here?s the bonus, this pedal is priced about $100 less than the Keeley. My hat?s off to you folks at Xotic for manufacturing a fantastic compressor at an affordable price that will thousands of guitar players sound better and better. Now if you can reinvent the Sola Sound Tone Bender in one of these small bud boxes, that would be fantastic!David A

I tried the Wampler and it was too much going on and I could find a sound I like. That was my first compressor so i'm Sure it was me. With this one I set it to Humbucker setting per the manual and it was fantastic. I just made the volume a little lower so that it was the same as my OD and TS pedals so that I control the gain there not with the compresssor. I leave it on all the time now. I never realized how much better the sound would be from just this. I always thought of it just pushing down the high parts but the making the lower parts a little louder made a big difference. This is going to be on permanently. Crystal clear sound wise too.Mike CT

True to the many reviews I read online before purchasing, this preamp is very transparent, providing boost and EQ without adding its own color/flavor to the sound. Great for matching a passive instrument's output to that of an active one when switching between. So if boost and a bit of EQ are what you're looking for this may be the pedal for you. If on the other hand you're seeking a massive tonal change beyond boosting what's already there this one will probably leave you wanting.duneindy

I purchased this to compliment my Yamaha BB425x which, for a passive bass, has a hot output. The EQ parameters don't have a wide enough range to be very versatile. I found myself having to run at 3 o'clock just to get much of a difference and at full for a obvious difference. With an active bass I could compensate for that but, I bought it to compensate a bass, not the other way around. On the plus side it is very quiet, and like all MXR products well built.markm13

Perfect for when you want an onboard preamp for your passive jazz bass, but don't want to modify the bass. Really like the voicing of the sweepable miss, wider filter than a lot of eq, great for filling out jazz bass mids. The bass is perfect for adding definition to the lows, salt to taste with the treble. Transparent, low noise, good headroom. Build quality you'd expect from MXR. Part-ex'ed my first one and missed it so much I bought a second.Graham B.

I'd used a Boss M50B for a few years, and it had the potential to everything one could ask… but in reality I simply used the compressor function and as a tuner. I also play keyboard and guitar, and real estate on my pedal board is at a premium. So I got this and a Peterson tuner, and I have to say the compresspr has exceeded my expectations. The tube setting provides a really warm sound, and the compression is better than the Boss. All in all I sound better, and have reduced the footprint of my gear in the process. Yes, I'd buy it again. Quality seems top notch. Value… its expensive for a single stomp box, but worth every penny.maineprivateer

Fantastic compressor with side chain. I'm using it for a live electronic setup where I want the bass synth to duck when the kick is playing. Basic really but since I'm using different machines for each sound the Emptess Comp has been a life saver. Great build and relatively easy to use although the side chain output needs strange cables. But you can get around it.Reviewed by SX Pro customer

Great compressor with LED lights to aid sound choices. Will have to be more careful with this one as the power input is a bit fragile.Reviewed by Andertons Music Co.

Amazing compressor, super transparent but allows for some tone sculpting if transparency isn't your thing. Sidechain works a treat (you need a stereo breakout cable for it).Reviewed by Andertons Music Co.

I'd used a Boss M50B for a few years, and it had the potential to everything one could ask… but in reality I simply used the compressor function and as a tuner. I also play keyboard and guitar, and real estate on my pedal board is at a premium. So I got this and a Peterson tuner, and I have to say the compresspr has exceeded my expectations. The tube setting provides a really warm sound, and the compression is better than the Boss. All in all I sound better, and have reduced the footprint of my gear in the process. Yes, I'd buy it again. Quality seems top notch. Value… its expensive for a single stomp box, but worth every penny.maineprivateer

I was a little skeptical of the price of this compressor but since I already own a VAMP 3 and it is very good so I decided to try it. The unit is made of a kind of indestructible plastic and is very solid. I like the added controls for volume and tone as well as the compression controls. The compression is excellent and the attack sweep is pronounced and has a wide range that is really useful. It sounds especially good on the split coil settings and is smooth and extremely quiet. I would definitely recommend this pedal to anyone. It may not be as good as ones that cost 4 or more times as much but it is pretty close.Jerzy

Maybe its just because its the first compressor Ive owned, but this paired with a Behringer noise suppressor has completely made my playing time more enjoyable. Its clean and quiet and makes everything you play sound lush, warm, and interesting. Lots of ability to dial this pedal to your taste. If you are losing faith in your playing or just getting bored with your sound, pick this pedal and a noise suppressor up. You wont be disappointed. And the price/value ratio couldnt be better in my opinion.yellowbrickroadcommodities

This is the perfect pedal for a clean boost. I play clean country, country rock, jazz, rock and roll, rockabilly, etc. and when I need to play lead I kick it in. No volume pedal guessing, just on and off. Only problem is I like it so much that I do not want to turn it off! Great design (with active LED readout while playing) and easy to adjust. Short battery life (3 hours) so be sure to order a 9volt wart or use a power supply. If only using battery power be sure to unplug the input on breaks or when through playing. With the power supply you can leave it plugged in as it disconnects the battery. One big plus, this baby works fantastic on acoustic guitars as well. Just turn the comp setting down below 12 o'clock. Highly recommended!Larryz

The CP1x unlike its predecessors CS1 2 and CS3 tend to typically lose a lot of the highs after the compression and alter the tone which has to be EQd then. The new CS1-X keeps the tone as natural. Also the digitals LEDS to show the signal are a nice touch. Not the mention the usual BOSS rugged metal body and metallic paint and metal look knob and control interface. Truly visually appealing too. Very pleased with my purchase.keithmendes

Compression is often one of those effects that people either swear by or ignore entirely. Some lesser compressors don't seem to do much of anything when you click them on & off but when you're connected to a good compressor, you'll see what all the fuss is about. The CP-1X from Boss is one of the best compressors out there. Dial in the knobs to your liking & listen to your playing come to life. Balanced dynamics, beautiful singing clean tones, enhanced note definition and sustain. You'll wonder how you ever went without one. Try one out. You'll be glad you did.Brandon

I'll try to keep this short. I was looking for a 'Trey tone' type compressor that could give me that dynamic attack that Trey's Ross Compressor gives him. This pedal does that very well. In fact, this is a damn good compressor, slightly different than the Dyna Comp and not just because of the attack but an overall slightly different flavor.I put the Super Comp after my Barber LTD (Sliver=Awesome) and wahla! Instant Trey tone.. kinda, you gotta fiddle with the Overdrive and EQ on your amp to get close to that tone. But overall this is a good compressor.Huge CON: Its terribly noisy. Its very difficult to tame this noise because i like to keep the compressor on all the time (except with the Q Tron on). I have to use my Volume pedal to silence my signal when im not playing or else deal with feedback or noise. (Not feedback due to other effects on as well, just w/. compressor on)Other than the noisy-ness, this is a pretty good compressor. Attack nob is very useful, you can go from Trey Tone to complete transparency. Check one out and fiddle with it, it takes some real fiddling if your gonna use it with other pedals to get your sound.Jesus-i9BdY

Overall: I was building a 'short board,' and I got a Super Comp. It is really priceless at the beginning of my chain. I have a DynaComp, a Soul Preacher, and a couple of digital multis that do compression. Sould Preacher is by far the best. Edges out the Soul Preacher on having a really fine attack adjustment. The EHX comp is just lacking. DynaComp is okay, but it is NOISY. The noise difference alone is enough to justify the $10 to step up to a SuperComp. It's maybe a little bit better sounding than DynaComp, and slightly more adjustable with the attack setting. SuperComp is for sure my favorite comp right now. I know I will draw some complaints with this one, but I would see absolutely no reason to own a DynaComp with the SuperComp available. $10 gets you soooo much…. IMO of course.Michael

I can't profess to be an expert on compressors but I understand the concept. I wanted to add a ringing sustained fullness to a fairly full sounding rig and browsed myriad reviews of the MXR line. [Going to MXR was a no brainer. They are analog – Boss and most others are digital.] The Super Comp seemed to best suit my needs and it has made a remarkable improvement in my overall sound. Having the attack control knob is a huge plus. I play a lot of sustained notes and placing the Super Comp between the MXR 10 band EQ and Dist.+ creates a creamy fluid sustain that oozes for several full measures – it can begin to feedback but that isn't entirely bad, is it? The compressor isn't a drastic pedal like an OD or distortion but once you find your 'right' setting, it is a pedal you will turn on and leave on. Attached is a photo showing the FX chain with the settings for the Super Comp. and the Dist.+ highlighted. [Not shown is a reverb and Bad Horsie wah. The wah goes in between the Super Comp. and Dist.+] (For more "zing" bump up the gain slider on the EQ to a +3.) A Gibson Les Paul, Epiphone Les Paul, and Fender Tele and Strat were all used and all sounded more powerful and dynamic. A Kustom KG210FX 20w was the amp I used. I first used my vintage 6 watt 1979 Fender Champ and quickly learned that you could blow up a small amp with this rig. I built a home studio in a spare bathroom and a compressor is a must-have piece of equipment for recording, especially undistorted sounds. I didn't notice any coloring of tone on clean settings, the Tele lead pup is a Duncan vintage model and it rings like a bell and sustains almost like an organ. Almost. I have one of almost every type of pedal and a compressor was the last effect I bought. Hindsight being 20/20, I would have bought it years ago. Oh, and make sure you get the Super Comp. The attack control knob is worth its weight in gold.Les Paul Disciple

Excellent piece of kit. Beautifully designed and well made. Fender have also really thought about the functionality too. It has made me consider Fender for future pedals.Customer

Not only does it do its job as a compressor, it adds something to your tone. Could easily be an always on pedal. The overdrive for your clean tone, as Dan and Mick say.spongefrank

Excellent range of adjustments,doesnt colour the sound. Pedal is solidly built and battery compartment is clever. Switchable LEDs are a great idea.gordonlaurie

Nice boost, however it is a bit dirty. If you're interested in buying one of these I recommend reading up about it as much as you can. can't beat it for the money it's well-built. It has good controls. I bought this in Hope of using it for an acoustic guitar boost that didn't work out so well but it's fantastic for electric guitar before and after certain pedals. For conversation purpose I also have a EP booster buy exotic effects. However there are very different just to draw a distinction.cashflowkid61

Great quick shipping in original box. Absolutely like-new (cool sparkly powder-coat type finish) – sounds terrific! too bad this box (itself a re-issue) is discontinued… great to smack your pedal chain or amp with a nice clean (but edgy) boost!helix-28588

I have been on the fence about boosting effects for a while, never Really Thought I NEEDED one but at this price I decided to give it a shot. Searching and transaction were both easy, the sale was awesome-PERFECT price and shipped in practically 2 days! I love the pedal, really breaths life into my secondary set up. I'm honestly contemplating if I want to grab the dod Comp or overdrive!BUCKROGEZ87

I can get this pedal to do three things: a very subtle reverb that adds a touch of space, a room-like reverb, and a super long-tailed ambient reverb that's so expansive it almost sounds like it's mixed with delay. There are other reverb pedals for a bit more money that have more options built into them-spring, plate, hall, room, shimmer, modulated reverb, and so on. With this pedal I find it difficult to switch between the different sounds since it's a lot of knob fiddling. It does sound absolutely killer, which is why I gave it 4 stars, but I don't recommend it if you want to easily switch between different types of reverb. For me it will be more of a "set and forget" pedal for long ambient reverbs.Andrew

I was recently using one pedal board for all my guitars, and the chorus I had was mainly designed for use with acoustic guitar. Now I'm rearranging things to have one board just for my electric guitars and all I needed was a basic chorus pedal of quality build and tone. I knew from reviews the JHS 3 series was perfect for me. I've been playing for 57 years and have owned pedals in the $100 to $500 range to provide my chorus effects. No matter if I had mulitple options in some stomp boxes I usually settled on a good subtle setting, so I knew there was no need for me to get anything fancier than the JHS. It sounds are good as the little blue Boss Chorus I bought way back in 1980.Jon

I bought this pedal hoping to get the old Ibanez sound without spending a lot of money. Although it didn't cost much it doesn't get the old Ibanez sound. It's easy to use and fun to play with but I really wouldn't recommend it. You can get a different Behringer compressor pedal which is much better than this one. I would recommend doing that.motocross824

I have used Behringer effects for years now, and have never been disappointed. This Compressor does what it is intended to do, smoothing out the notes from guitar, and evening the output for a pleasing musicality.will_bush312

It is a great pedal except for the fact it's plastic. I wouldn't use my foot to stomp on it. But if you treat it gently it's actually really cool. Just use your hand to put pressure on its button and it will be gracious and give you exactly what you expect from a compression pedal.rmc.rtk.xrzsxdqx3

Great service from PMT – ordered Friday with free delivery on Saturday (most other places seem to charge extra for Sat delivery). Pedal arrived safely and well packed. The combination of compression and clean/dirty boost works perfectly on the front end of a Strymon Iridium as I'm using it – and I think would work equally well for other amp modellers and definitely in front of a good tube amp. The 3 eq curves for the boost make this pedal super flexible and versatile. This is definitely one of those always on pedals! Great product and service from PMT.Shaun M.

28 Ott. 2021. Merce arrivata in tempo da record. La Vs. professionalità è indubbia e vi ripaga. La qualità del prodotto si commenta da se. Complimenti al vostro staff ed un caro saluto da Gorizia. Grazie.-Paolo Russian

This it's a very high quality, low noise, compressor and boost pedal. The compressor is subtle but I really miss it if I switch it off. It offers both studio and stomp-box style compression which, along with a solid boost function, makes it invaluable to me. I've dropped a star because there are no compression ratio, attack, or release controls on the compressor although this may not be entirely fair as is seems to be set up perfectly as is. It's expensive, but was well worth the money.Paul, S.

Having purchased this unit among other pedals to replace a Zoom B2.1u Multi FX unit, I found myself wondering whether there really was anything to gain from the change. I was very quickly convinced that it was worth every cent, as the MXR compressor gives you all the versatility you could want in a compressor. The LED bar graph shows you exactly how much compression is being applied at a given moment, and serves as a fantastic way to adjust your settings so that the signal is being compressed exactly where and when you want it to be. Your eyes will tell you what your ears may not! Unlike many of my other pedals, the MXR Bass Compressor stays in the state you leave it in. Other effects need to be toggled on or off to suit my 'default' sound every time the pedal board is plugged in, but thanks to the 3PDT toggle switch, this unit stays in the state you left it in. If it was on when you unplugged, it'll be on when you plug in again, and vice versa! The other benefit of this type of switch is that you get true bypass. Overall, the MXR Bass compressor is very compact, built tough, versatile, adjustable, doesn't color your tone, and leaves you believing it couldn't possibly be improved, as it's already PERFECT! I would absolutely buy another one if this was stolen and would not even need to consider the competition!leftybenno

it's hard to tell what is really happening here unless you really pay attention very closely to the sound of what's NOT happening, meaning, you are trying to focus the sound, tone, ambience, etc. yet at the same time, you want it to do what it's meant for – very hard to discern when there's no manual to go by. The manual for this unit is absolutely TERRIBLE – sure it's in every language in the world, but NO real directions for setup or how to make the sound improved. No theory of operation, nothing. Worst manual I ever opened. For anything ever bought in my lifetime. And no link to direct you to better, more detailed instructions on how to use. Very disappointed in that regard. Other than that, it does seem to make my overall sound less sloppy ( less speaker "wow" & flutter is the goal, when playing bass, with one of these compressors) so it seems to be eliminating what you DON'T want to hear, but it takes some time to get this pedal oriented correctly, with the controls. And you really have to pay attention to what you're NOT hearing, as you tweak it – that's the only way you'll know if you are improving on the sound.bass player # 69

This is the 3rd and final compressor I tried. I like the visual readout which is quite helpful. This pedal has a lot of different sounds it can help create. I play 4 to 5 times a week in two different bands. The one band is a hard rock/funk band and the other is a country band. Needless to say my tone is different in each situation. This pedal helps me get to where I need to and quickly. Once you figure out the pedal, it is really easy to use. Check out videos on youtube, there are several tutorials to help you get the sound you want/need.4stringassasin

Fantastic compressor with side chain. I'm using it for a live electronic setup where I want the bass synth to duck when the kick is playing. Basic really but since I'm using different machines for each sound the Emptess Comp has been a life saver. Great build and relatively easy to use although the side chain output needs strange cables. But you can get around it.Reviewed by SX Pro customer

Great compressor with LED lights to aid sound choices. Will have to be more careful with this one as the power input is a bit fragile.Reviewed by Andertons Music Co.

Amazing compressor, super transparent but allows for some tone sculpting if transparency isn't your thing. Sidechain works a treat (you need a stereo breakout cable for it).Reviewed by Andertons Music Co.