I have an always-on compressor
My amp has a built in compressor and I leave it on. I can't hear any difference though. I also never see the light on which says the compressor is doing it's thing. Is that because I tend to play with a light and consistent touch (thus naturally limiting the dynamic range) or might there be something else going on?
Every compressor is different. One aspect is the controls - some allow you to adjust the threshold so you can tailor it to your playing. It also helps if you have different basses with different output levels (which I do) - if it has an indicator light that shows when you are hitting the threshold, then you can change that depending on each bass.My amp has a built in compressor and I leave it on. I can't hear any difference though. I also never see the light on which says the compressor is doing it's thing. Is that because I tend to play with a light and consistent touch (thus naturally limiting the dynamic range) or might there be something else going on?
Nope, not too fussy - the loss of bass frequencies is a real issue, especially live. That's what I like about the Pork & Pickle - you can dial in some clean signal, and there is a tone control for the clean as well so not as much clank but nice fat bottom with it turned down.Not much of a pedal guy, here. When I was playing more guitar, I ran straight into a 5E3 Tweed Deluxe to get natural OD rather than using a pedal. Now that I mostly play bass, I only have a compressor, a preamp and a 10-band EQ between the instrument and the amp. I've flirted with OD pedals but end up never using them since I've had trouble finding one that yields a sweet spot between clean and "too much wool" (for my liking). Darkglass MicroTubes came close, but not close enough. Many bass OD pedals seem to drop out low frequencies as well. Maybe I'm too fussy...