Use a compressor for slide playing?

[Big_Bend]

I'm curious if any regular slide players ever use a compressor. I have a Barber Tone Press and with the sustain up high it seems to help my slide tone.. Is this pretty standard? I'm new to slide playing, just wondering what are some good pedal choices to help really bring out the slide blues mojo.

Anyone know what pedals Derek Trucks uses?

[FMA]

Don't know about Derek's effects, but Lowell George used two Dyna-Comps in his chain and the man had himself some tone.

[RomanS]

If you count lap steel as slide - I use a homemade MXR comp clone with my lap steel sometimes, particularly for pedal steel-y stuff.

[Chiogtr4x]

Originally Posted by Big_Bend

I'm curious if any regular slide players ever use a compressor. I have a Barber Tone Press and with the sustain up high it seems to help my slide tone.. Is this pretty standard? I'm new to slide playing, just wondering what are some good pedal choices to help really bring out the slide blues mojo.

Anyone know what pedals Derek Trucks uses?

Dereks effects are an SG neck pickup, a wide open Super Reverb and his touch. I know he has occasionally used a Tube Screamer or simliar (on a few recordings) but that's truly the exception- no effects.

[songofthewind]

Ry Cooder used a Dan Armstrong Orange Squeezer.

[Chiogtr4x]

Bonnie Raitt (whose electric slide influences were Ry Cooder and Lowell George), and all 3 went for the Strat>compressor> overdriving, but still on the clean side, amps

Johnny Winter (still) and Duane Allman who had huge screaching, wailing slide tones (as they played Gibsons) did it with volume, and not with any OD or distortion effects(or compressors)- must have been LOUD!

[Edenfield99]

[QUOTE=Johnny Winter (still) and Duane Allman who had huge screaching, wailing slide tones (as they played Gibsons) did it with volume, and not with any OD or distortion effects(or compressors)- must have been LOUD![/QUOTE]

I read an interview with Johnny saying he sometimes uses a tubescreamer when he plays slide and I believe Duane Allman used a fuzz face when he needed a bit extra (he always used one with nearly flat batteries, it gave a mellower tone). I'm pretty sure they were basically boosts to push the amp further rather than for their fuzz/overdrive effect. It must have been VERY LOUD!!

I don't use a compressor when playing slide, I've never got on with compressors for any style of playing. Overdriven amp with pedal for boost.

[cuzzinmark]

Originally Posted by FMA

Don't know about Derek's effects, but Lowell George used two Dyna-Comps in his chain and the man had himself some tone.

I've made posts about this before, but reading this made me wonder: has anyone ever tried this? I searched youtube but didn't find anyone daisy chaining dynacomps to get Lowell's tone. I don't own 2 compressors, so I never have...

Just curious

[eddie knuckles]

I use a diamond compressor to a Boss CS-2. The Diamond is always on, and the CS-2 goes on for slide and funk...

[Chiogtr4x]

Originally Posted by Edenfield99

I read an interview with Johnny saying he sometimes uses a tubescreamer when he plays slide and I believe Duane Allman used a fuzz face when he needed a bit extra (he always used one with nearly flat batteries, it gave a mellower tone). I'm pretty sure they were basically boosts to push the amp further rather than for their fuzz/overdrive effect. It must have been VERY LOUD!!

I don't use a compressor when playing slide, I've never got on with compressors for any style of playing. Overdriven amp with pedal for boost.

Duane A used the Fuzz Face pre Allman Bros. (perhaps a little on the 1st album) on studio stuff (Muscle Shoals) back when he was playing a Strat into Twin Reverbs- you can hear it on the Allman Joys or Hourglass, but the classic ABB stuff was Les Paul>Marshall, no effects.

No way Johnny Winter used a Tube Screamer on his '60's or '70's playing- they didn't exist; He may have fooled around with other boosts or fuzzes- but I think he mainly was Guitar>amp. These guys played at incredible volume. He may have gone to a "TS" into smaller amps in his later playing though- I know he always plays with a little chorus on now...

[Edenfield99]

Originally Posted by Chiogtr4x

Duane A used the Fuzz Face pre Allman Bros. (perhaps a little on the 1st album) on studio stuff (Muscle Shoals) back when he was playing a Strat into Twin Reverbs- you can hear it on the Allman Joys or Hourglass, but the classic ABB stuff was Les Paul>Marshall, no effects.

No way Johnny Winter used a Tube Screamer on his '60's or '70's playing- they didn't exist; He may have fooled around with other boosts or fuzzes- but I think he mainly was Guitar>amp. These guys played at incredible volume. He may have gone to a "TS" into smaller amps in his later playing though- I know he always plays with a little chorus on now...

Fair play (although you didn't specify the time period you were talking about ). I think we can safely say any compression was coming from the overdirven amp rather than a compressor pedal.

[andrenighthound]

Lowell George used a compressor for slide, but he played very clean. He used it to give his clean sound more sustain, were Duane used overdrive for sustain.

I don't use a compressor.

[Paul in Colorado]

I've been playing around with compression on my converted acoustic with a raised nut in C6 tuning. It helps. I have an early block logo MXR Dyna-Comp and a borrowed Carl Martin. I want a Barber.

Experiment. Trust your ears. There's no magic formula.