S
severinsteel
New member
Boss Pedal Review #19: Boss CS-2 Compression Sustainer
I've never been a big compressor guy. Some guitarists have to have one in their rig for clean tones, but I have always shied away from them. A compressor to me is the least intuitive effect. It can be very subtle by nature, so it took me a while to grasp how the controls interact (not the CS-2, but compressors in general). Also, people tend to set them so they pump and don't sound natural. I hate unnatural effects. The CS-2 CAN be set to be natural, so that it fattens and evens out your tone.
The controls are actually pretty simple. The level controls the overall volume level of the CS-2 when engaged. You want your bypassed tone to be as loud as your compressed tone, so set accordingly. Unless, you want to use the CS-2 as a sort of boost, and in that case, crank it! According to the manual, the Attack knob adds 'attack' when you turn it clockwise. I think what's really going on, is that when you turn the knob clockwise, you get a slower attack time. Counterclockwise, the attack time is increased. Finally, Sustain controls how much the signal is being compressed. I believe this to be a threshold control, and the more you turn the knob clockwise, the lower the threshold. When it's maxed, you end up bringing all of the amp noise and static, so you have to be careful.
My favorite setting, is this:
Level: 3:00
Attack: Maxed
Sustain: 9:00
You get some nice evening out of the strings, but not a whole lot of nastiness. I want the compressor to be transparent, so that you only really notice what it was doing when you bypass it.
Overall, the CS-2 is indeed classic. I'm a big fan now, and I just might start compressing some clean tones in the future. Maybe.
-Cameron Johnson
Music by Atma Weapon
atmaweaponnc.bandcamp.com
facebook.com/atmaweaponnc
I've never been a big compressor guy. Some guitarists have to have one in their rig for clean tones, but I have always shied away from them. A compressor to me is the least intuitive effect. It can be very subtle by nature, so it took me a while to grasp how the controls interact (not the CS-2, but compressors in general). Also, people tend to set them so they pump and don't sound natural. I hate unnatural effects. The CS-2 CAN be set to be natural, so that it fattens and evens out your tone.
The controls are actually pretty simple. The level controls the overall volume level of the CS-2 when engaged. You want your bypassed tone to be as loud as your compressed tone, so set accordingly. Unless, you want to use the CS-2 as a sort of boost, and in that case, crank it! According to the manual, the Attack knob adds 'attack' when you turn it clockwise. I think what's really going on, is that when you turn the knob clockwise, you get a slower attack time. Counterclockwise, the attack time is increased. Finally, Sustain controls how much the signal is being compressed. I believe this to be a threshold control, and the more you turn the knob clockwise, the lower the threshold. When it's maxed, you end up bringing all of the amp noise and static, so you have to be careful.
My favorite setting, is this:
Level: 3:00
Attack: Maxed
Sustain: 9:00
You get some nice evening out of the strings, but not a whole lot of nastiness. I want the compressor to be transparent, so that you only really notice what it was doing when you bypass it.
Overall, the CS-2 is indeed classic. I'm a big fan now, and I just might start compressing some clean tones in the future. Maybe.
-Cameron Johnson
Music by Atma Weapon
atmaweaponnc.bandcamp.com
facebook.com/atmaweaponnc
