All-Analog FET Compressor and Preamp Pedal
Where many compressors can be fickle and complex, the Catalinbread NiCompressor is refreshingly quick and straightforward in its tone-evening capabilities. With the Compression dial below noon, the NiComp is a balancing act of lows and highs, attack and sustain. But crank it past 1:00 and this compressor rewards the player with thick speaker-moving chunk and laser-beam leads. Additional gain and EQ controls make this pedal a bona fide preamp for guitar and bass, with discrete analog circuitry that will delight today's tone fanatics. Your choice of pearl white and black enclosure colors mate the Catalinbread NiCompressor from Sweetwater perfectly to your pedalboard.
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Catalinbread Founder Nicholas Harris' Swan Song
The Catalinbread NiCompressor remains mostly faithful to founder Nicholas Harris's original breadboard design. Its internal through-hole construction is carefully hand-assembled from premium analog components, including an op-amp based drive circuit and an MPF4394 FET-based compression circuit. Together, these give the NiCompressor a juicy analog squeeze and a sophisticated touch response that is sure to please choosy players.
Inspired by a quirky '70s comp
Nicholas based his NiCompressor prototype off a two-knob compressor marketed under several names — most notably, the LocoBox The Choker from the 1970s. Though with its premium audio-grade components and expanded architecture, the Catalinbread is a good deal more sophisticated and better built than the original.
Interactive Gain and EQ
A gain control and musical two-band EQ section make the NiComp a veritable preamp unto itself. Dial in the right amount of analog saturation and sparkle, then compress to taste. All controls are highly interactive, making this compressor a tone tweaker's playground.
Catalinbread NiCompressor FET Compression Pedal Features:
- Refreshingly quick and capable analog compressor
- Subtle tone balancing to full-on squeeze
- Enhances attack
- Maximizes sustain
- Doubles as a guitar/bass analog preamp
- Powerful 2-band EQ section
- Op-amp gain stage imparts varying degrees of analog sweetening and saturation
- Hand assembled in Portland, Oregon
