I have quite a few compressor pedals, going back to the original DynaComp. The Empress Compressor MK II has few rivals in the pedal compressor world. I have it at the end of my dirt chain, along with an Empress Para EQ Deluxe. I use this sort of chain when recording for final fit and finish anyway, so it saves some rack gear having it on my pedalboard.

I love listening to a studio guitarist named Jemual Mahoney and he said this was his secret sauce to his tone so I wanted to try it for years. Finally got mine and it's as good as he said it is simple AB testing made my mouth drop with the tone and articulation difference. I won't be trading this will stay on my board.

God Bless you!

This is a great compressor. Super clean and transparent. I own a Cali76 as well, and that gives a bit of character to the signal. This doesn't. If that's your thing, this is your thing.

Really great all around compressor. Theres plenty of ways to tweak it until you get the exact sound youre looking for, and it sounds great at all levels. It just makes all the other pedals in your chain speak a little better. The LEDs on the side are a nice feature as well when dialing in sounds just how you want them - and they look cool too. 5 stars.

I am mainly using this compressor for an acoustic guitar setup and it is excellent. Works perfect for my Les Pauls too. This is the best compressor you can get for guitar and it's all analog! I cannot recommend Empress Effects pedals enough! Do yourself a solid and get one!

After weeks of researching I landed with the Empress and love the tones I can achieve with it however for the price it feels light. I have a plethora of pedals and it weight is similar to my Boss WL-50 which is plastic. Overall stunning in looks a functionality. Just nervous to take it off of my pedalboard.

Feels cheap for almost $ i expected a tank performance wise it's great so far just wish it didnt feel so cheap

I had already purchased an Origin Effects Cali76. I love its headroom and the parallel compression but it colored the tone slightly warm, and low strings were too compressed when it was set up to sound good on the DGB&e strings. The Mark II also offers parallel compression but it is more transparent, tone-wise, and the HPF side chain feature solves the mushy bass string problem. I prefer the 240Hz setting.

This is a great compressor, beautifully made, sonically outstanding, and a Boone to my pedal board. I've thrown acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass and synth at this box and it has handled it all taking my tone to a very full, pro level sound that it's never been to before. Boasting many great features this box is like a little channel strip at your feet. Makes overdrives and fuzz ROAR.

I'm not going to say that I have a ton of experience with compressors, but this thing does well with my set up.
Guitar: Ibanez S6521Q
Amp: Tone King Sky King
It's subtle and effective. Which is what I was looking for. Super quiet and transparent. I didn't want to drive the front end of my amp or drive pedals harder, but softer. Setting my output so it is quieter than unity adds headroom to everyrhing thereafter.
Also, my Deep 6 v4 did well for single pups and pushing power, but, in my opinion, is unusable on hot humbuckers. Just not the sound I wanted. Empress nails it!

This is a great sounding pedal and the amount of control you have with it is outstanding. The LED metering is also a big win. Some of the downsides of this pedal are as follows:
1. They put the small switches right next to where the stomp switch is. I mean c'mon Empress, they are like an inch away from getting destroyed by a stray foot.

2. The build quality doesn't seem terrible, but not exactly great either, in my opinion. This feels less rugged than many of my cheaper mxr and tc pedals. The potentiometer shafts also wiggle a bit if you apply a little pressure on them.

Overall I am keeping this on my pedalboard. It's the best sounding compressor I have used and the control is great. Would have liked to have seen a bulletproof build though, especially at the price it is selling for.

This compressor is perfect. Tons of control and a super dope sound.

Can be dialed in how you like. Set it super light, or enhance the attack. Turn it up and get a really nice fat tone. Really interesting distortion if you set it very aggressively.

I have owned, still own or have tried almost every compressor pedal on the market. They all either don't have the control I want, color the sound in some way, are too "squishy" (even at low settings) or some combination thereof.

The Empress Compressor Mark II is the first one that has all the control I want and DOES NOT color the sound in any way I can hear. And the LED ladders are so useful to actually SEE, in real time how much compression is being applied to your signal. I am very grateful the Empress MKII Compressor Pedal has been released. I was convinced I'd never find a compressor pedal I could live with, but this unit checks all the boxes and sounds wonderful. This is a fantastic product and I give it my highest recommendation.

Perfect for anyone who wants full control of compression and extreme transparency in sound. It's a totally different circuit than a Ross or Optico, for anyone who is generally bothered by what compressions do to their sound, coloration, excess "ploc", will love this one. It keeps exactly the sound of your instrument, VERY transparently adding the benefits of compression, bringing the sound forward, adding sustain and fat...

So far it's the only compressor that does really well on acoustic guitars too!

Ahh, and it's a very beautiful pedal, super well finished!

This is like having an outboard studio compressor as a pedal. The sidechain switch is so handy to have too. I found myself using that a lot. You can really fine tune and dial in any style of compression you want since you have that mix knob. I highly recommend this for anyones pedal board.

I'm not usually a big fan of compressors, found them mostly noisy and somewhat pointless with a lot of the genres I've played. I've softened up a bit, but my heavy right hand from hardcore days has made my cleanish tones have lots of spikes. I didn't want something super super noticeable, just a subtle taming without getting in the way.

This thing is super duper quiet, barely any noise at all added unless you crank it super hot.

It has added to my clean tone, gives it something you feel that's hard to explain, without taking over. I love the led lights showing how much input and how much compression is going on.

I really like this pedal a lot and love my first empress experience (and it certainly won't be my last)

Just bought this along with their phaser. Awesome company and great sounding pedals. I got this pedal to boost my lead lines and solos in my project that I'm in. It sounds amazing and keeps the original tone of my signal. Can't wait to dig in more and explore the creative realm that this pedal can influence. If your looking for a more tweakable compressor and this is one of your options, get this pedal.

If you want a super transparent compressor, this is it. The Empress compressor does not add any unwanted color to my tone. This pedal can do it all. If you're into the super compressed squeeze thing, yep it does that also. Very flexible and is perfect for leveling out your signal without killing your dynamics if you choose. I run a bit a verb + delay at times and love how well this compressor puts it all together. Honestly, this is the only pedalboard friendly compressor I will ever need. Amazing!!!