FMR Audio RNC 1773 Really Nice Compressor

I've had a lot of experience with this compressor. I lived in Austin, Texas, where FMR Audio is. I had been to a few studios where the engineers were telling me about the RNC and applying it to every instrument and vocal track. Everyone was so jazzed about it. I got one when I lived out there and used it for home recording and classical guitar. About 7 years later, I bought another one for home studio, then I bought FMR's Really Nice Leveling amp (RNLA) compressor. Then I bought both the RNC and the RNLA in 500 series. But I like this one better than the 500 series. The downside is that there is no XLR in/out. For the price, though, the RNC is amazing. And it does stereo source. As in, you can mic an acoustic with 2 mics and use this compressor for both mics, or mic a guitar cab with 2 mics and run them through this. And you can side chain other sources and link other FMR compressors. I currently bought another RNC to use for playing classical guitar again. The difference between this compressor and a normal compressor pedal for guitar is that this one is more transparent. The super nice mode is like applying 3 compressors at the same time. I don't know exactly how this works. They say it makes the signal more transparent. But it has a tightening affect. If you're playing bass, the bass gets punchy. With the classical guitar, it makes it more musical, and takes the extreme dynamic levels and tames them a bit, because some sources can really be aggravating to control. I have an Xotic SP compressor and a Boss CS-2 from years back. The Xotic comes a little closer to what the RNC does, but I think the RNC can take on just about any signal source - vocals, acoustic guitar, bass, drums, etc. It's that kind of compressor, and perfect for home studio. And if you like a syrupy kind of compression, where there is some color added, kind of like old Van Halen records, try the RNLA. That is a sweet compressor. It's got a dreamy, slurry sound. Between these two, you can do anything you need to in your home studio.

The Really Nice Compressor does exactly what FMR Audio says it does, no surprises. The output is clean, and the 'Super Nice' mode is a great feature. I gave a 4 for the sound since you can get a better sound from much more expensive compressors. But for home use it is perfect.