Whirlwind OC Bass at the BKLN Stompbox Exhibit 2015

There’s a little bit of Whirlwind on every stage you have played on, not just because the Rochester, NY based manufacturer makes extremely popular break out boxes, cables and other electrical items useful in a live settings, but also because they pretty much invented the DI box as we know it, back in 1979.

But Whirlwind’s engineers have always been interested in stompboxes too, and produce – among others – one of the best optical compressor/limiter for bass, called “OC-Bass.”

While most bass players should be familiar with the word “compressor,” the concept of “optical” might raise some eyebrows – no, it’s not just an illusion! We won’t get into the technical stuff here, suffice to say that optical compressors tend to impose a certain character on the sound being treated, and have the tendency to make things sound larger than life but still transparent.

The OC-Bass does exactly that, with the added flexibility of three attack settings (accessible through a toggle switch), and an added limiter option, for those who want even more control on their instrument’s dynamics.

Bass players based in and around NYC will be able to try this and other bass pedals through real amps at the upcoming Brooklyn Stompbox Exhibit 2015!