Keeley Bassist Compressor

After a long association with the Empress compressor (my go-to bass compressor), I knew I had to at least try it, based on the previous reviews here and also on the recommendations on the net...This is the first Keeley pedal I've ever owned. I'd heard the stories about how good they were . This limiting amplifier falls into the "how good" category; I love the thing! Right out of the box, within 5 minutes, I was breathing a sigh of relief. It is super easy to set up and get a decent sound from. Simply setup the ratio, adjust the threshold to the amount of signal you want compressed, and then adjust the level to match the bypassed signal. It gets no easier that this! It sounds clean, nearly transparent, and does what it is advertised to do - Limit the bass's peak signal in a similar way that much more expensive (and rare) compressors do, be they rack, stomper, or otherwise. It holds onto the deepest end of my hot output 70's P-bass, as well as dealing with tonal subtleties and agreesive overtones of my Ibanez ATK and Orange O-bass. Since it's loosely based on two very awesome products- the original DBX-160 studio compressor (not the 160A rack) as well as using a THAT corporation VCA chip, its noise levels, fidelity and distortion are all top notch. It doesn't sound like a typical "pedal" compressor (some of which are "pumpy", "breathy" or just downright aweful). I've modded rack compressors in the past with THAT corp. VCA chips, and they are top notch (should be, as THAT corp is run by a bunch of DBX ex-patriot engineers!) and have almost always improved the perfomance.If there is only one quibble that I have (and this ins my reason for only 4 stars), I wish they'd included an Attack control. Hard picking tends to get through just before the attack clamps the signal. This might actually be a GOOD THING in recording or live. Since I've only had the chance to use the Keeley at home so far (through my full rig, of course), I noticed this. You might. then again, you might not. Get one, hook it up, and just play!

This is a fantastic piece of kit. It really is studio grade: I use 4:1 to smooth out the loudest peaks a little, and there's no noise and no loss of tone at all. The gain makeup knob is great if you're using a lot of compression, and it's really easy to set it so there's no volume difference between on and off. That said, it's permanently on for me - it's utterly transformed my sound, and now every note on every string is the same volume. The threshold control and red/green LED makes it simple to set when compression kicks in. I specifically wanted a pedal that wouldn't colour my sound, but instead simply tame my output a little - and this pedal does that brilliantly. It'll fit on your board, too - the box itself is 31mm tall (the switch adds another 17mm height), by 110mm deep by 57mm wide. Can't recommend this enough!

Research:
I spent many hours reading all the reviews and watched all the available videos before taking the plunge.

The decision:
I formally owned an MXR M87 bass compressor, which is a good compressor, but wasn't quite what I was looking for. I had previously tried several brands of bass compressors before settling on the M87, but it did the job until I could find something better.

Verdict:
The Keeley Bassist Compressor is everything it claims to be and more. It definitely produces the sound that I was looking for and it is so much easier to dial in my sound.

Conclusion:
Overall, the Keeley Bassist Compressor is a very professional pedal that cannot be beaten in my opinion. It has taken a permanent spot on my pedalboard.

Overall, its a super pedal. Its doing its job almost perfect. No coloration, very transparent but you can feel that its there, you need to know a bit how the compression work so you can dial in according to the style that you are playing, there is a video of Mr. Keeley himself go check it.
One thing, It could be a little cheaper, maybe.
Second, sometimes im looking for the attack and release time settings. (There is a pro version for that which is more expensive obviously)
If the compressor is in front of the signal chain, and your tone is bright and present, you can hear the release happening rather slowly, and you can hear that down swoosh type of sound.
So, if im using a huge tone im using preamp first, comp second and using that as a high peak limiter, less compression.
Otherwise, for regular tones, comp first with slightly higher comp and lower threshold.
You can find your sweet spot in the end. Depending on your instrument and playing.

After trying several compressors for my bass, this is the one I kept. It beat out serious contenders: MXR Bass Compressor (clamps to hard, and is finnicky to set up), Wampler Ego Mini (could not handle high output and distorted), and Seymor Duncan Studio Bass (fine, but Keeley is simpler and smaller).

I use Keeley at the end of my chain, to even out the signal a bit. I use quite minimal settings. Somehow, the bass sounds the same, but just a little bit more authoritative. It especially works well after overdrives, it somehow makes them sound fuller. Having this compressor at the end of the chain allows me to slam an overdrive with a signal boost, but then not have a big volume jump. With only three knobs, it's extremely easy to use. You can't make a mistake with settings, it sounds good throughout.

Cons: I like simplicity, but some might find that limiting. Also, placed at the end of the chain, it clamps the octave pedal a bit too much (but that's the case with all comps I tried).

Definitely recommended!

Switching from the very good EBS compressor to this. I took a risk but actually, this compressor is, from far, much better.

First: setting the ratio and threshold independently is a big advantage (if you know what you are doing).

Secondly: the sound is very transparent, this compressor handles very well different input levels. It was my main issue with the EBS one. My JB on steroids was blowing it up, even with the -15dB on.

I would recommend this compressor to every bassist who knows the theory behind compression and likes to test settings. If you are more like jumping on stage, turning all the knobs all the way up and play, maybe find a "one knob" compressor then.