The DSM & Humboldt ClearComp is the new compressor pedal by a company that, a couple of years ago, made a big splash with their Simplifier cab simulator.
The ClearComp is a studio-grade, incredibly quiet and transparent compressor featuring all the imaginable controls a compressor can have, including knobs for Ratio, Attack, and Release plus two bigger knobs for Level and Compression. There’s also a 3-way toggle switch for Threshold.
The Gain control features a “variable gain bandwidth” circuit which keeps the tone tight and clear at any range, while keeping noise under control.
A very cool, multicolor 5-stage LED bar visualizes the compression levels in real time.
Here are the videos of it, including the one shot at our NAMM 2022 Stompbox Booth.
DSM & Humboldt ClearComp, Builder’s Notes
INSPIRED BY STUDIO COMP/ LIMITERS, BUT AT YOUR FEET
DSM & Humboldt Electronics proudly presents the new ClearComp Compressor.A BRAND NEW TOPOLOGY TO GUARANTEE BOTH: TRANSPARENCY AND LOW NOISE
The ClearComp is a super transparent compressor with a unique Dynamic Threshold topology engineered and developed by DSM & Humboldt. Most compressors dynamically reduce the gain progressively as the level rises above the threshold.Our DT Topology dynamically modifies the threshold with a fixed gain reduction, achieving a natural and transparent compression effect with a lower noise floor, less coloring and higher dynamic range. A multicolor 5-stage LED bargraph is featured to visualize the resulting envelope level in real time.
CONTROLS
The ClearComp feature a full set of controls: Compression: Controls the input gain of the compressor, hence, the resulting overall compression.Ratio: Adjusts the gain reduction ratio, from slight compression (1:2) to full limiting (1:20).
Attack: Controls the attack time, from 5ms for snappy slaps to 100ms for a more natural feel.
Release: Adjusts the length of time the gain reduction is applied, from 30ms to 3s.
Blend: Blends the compressed signal with the unaffected input signal. Level: Sets the output level of the compressor.
Threshold switch: 3 position switch that sets the starting point of the dynamic threshold on either HI MID or LOW. depending on the output level of the instrument being connected, select HI for high power pickups or active instruments, MID for regular output guitar and basses, and LOW for low output instruments, like vintage single coils.
FROM SCRATCH, searching for the most versatile and useful drive, that adapts to your playing style and gear, and capable to produce from the sweetest clean jazzy whispers, to the gnarliest of high gain chugs. The range of tones rivals any digital modeler around, but with that immediate response and complex dynamics that only analog circuits can deliver.
