TeleGuyLondon
TDPRI Member
I've had several Xotic products in the past and have found every single one of them to be one of the very best, so after trying many compressors when the need arose, I went for an Xotic SP compressor without hesitation.
I have to say that for a long time I stayed away from compressors because I didn't like the way they...compressed(!) the sound, but after burning some serious rubber on an old Boss CS-2 (i.e. finally learning how to use one properly!) I felt that I could definitely do with one!
Also, I don't really use a lot of effects, I have a "big pedalboard" (6 pedals) for big gigs and a smaller one (4 pedals) for... smaller gigs, but more and more for the vast majority of jobs I've been asked to do, I've found myself bringing just a couple of pedals: after all, a studio's outboard gear can do most things, and so can live sound engineers at gigs!
Few days ago I took delivery of an Xotic SP and I have to say that it exceeded my expectations: below there are some pictures showing some of the gear I used to test drive it, and what I found is that at almost any setting you can still tell what guitar is being used, even going from Tele to Tele, Les Paul to Les Paul, and a Strat (not pictured).
The floor noise is there but way less than some of the competition (I rather not mention any names here as they're all companies at the top of their game, and deservedly so) and the Blend control is pure genius, set the Volume at unity gain or, as in my case, a little over 12 o'clock so it'll give a little boost, which to us guitar players is always welcome(!) and find the right balance between dry & wet signal: few seconds and I got the sound I wanted!
I generally set the amp for light crunch, a basic gutsy 70s-type Rock sound but nothing too distorted, then use a pedal to push it over the edge and the SP does that brilliantly, allowing me to go from clean to "Keef" all the way to searing modern leads just by varying the attack and by turning the Volume on the guitar up or down, and "The Tone Remains The Same", always delicious. Perfect!
I've also tried it with an EP Booster, placed before or after the SP, and the results were spectacular, hence I really think that from now on in my bag I might just put the SP, or my trusty Ibanez TS808DX (a wonderful "two pedals in one" unit!) or the SP/EP combo!
I have to say that for a long time I stayed away from compressors because I didn't like the way they...compressed(!) the sound, but after burning some serious rubber on an old Boss CS-2 (i.e. finally learning how to use one properly!) I felt that I could definitely do with one!
Also, I don't really use a lot of effects, I have a "big pedalboard" (6 pedals) for big gigs and a smaller one (4 pedals) for... smaller gigs, but more and more for the vast majority of jobs I've been asked to do, I've found myself bringing just a couple of pedals: after all, a studio's outboard gear can do most things, and so can live sound engineers at gigs!
Few days ago I took delivery of an Xotic SP and I have to say that it exceeded my expectations: below there are some pictures showing some of the gear I used to test drive it, and what I found is that at almost any setting you can still tell what guitar is being used, even going from Tele to Tele, Les Paul to Les Paul, and a Strat (not pictured).
The floor noise is there but way less than some of the competition (I rather not mention any names here as they're all companies at the top of their game, and deservedly so) and the Blend control is pure genius, set the Volume at unity gain or, as in my case, a little over 12 o'clock so it'll give a little boost, which to us guitar players is always welcome(!) and find the right balance between dry & wet signal: few seconds and I got the sound I wanted!
I generally set the amp for light crunch, a basic gutsy 70s-type Rock sound but nothing too distorted, then use a pedal to push it over the edge and the SP does that brilliantly, allowing me to go from clean to "Keef" all the way to searing modern leads just by varying the attack and by turning the Volume on the guitar up or down, and "The Tone Remains The Same", always delicious. Perfect!
I've also tried it with an EP Booster, placed before or after the SP, and the results were spectacular, hence I really think that from now on in my bag I might just put the SP, or my trusty Ibanez TS808DX (a wonderful "two pedals in one" unit!) or the SP/EP combo!
