Manual

not one of those guys who leaves it on everything, but I'd have to say I've used an1176 on

everything at one time or another.”

“They have an equalizer kind of effect, adding a coloration that's bright and clear. Not

only do they give you a little more impact from the compression, they also sort of clear

things up; maybe a little bottom end gets squeezed out or maybe they are just sort of

excitingly solid state or whatever they are. The big thing for me is the clarity, and the

improvement in the top end.”

“The 1176 has that same kind of phenomenon, where, when you patch something through

a Neve equalizer and you don't even engage the EQ, it sounds better. It's just a

combination of the amps.”

“I've also used the 1176 as a stereo buss compressor-you just have to be a little bit careful

that your mixes don't go one sided. Tom's [Petty’s] records have often been mixed

through 1176s. I've also done that with LA-2As --they are of course, more inconsistent

piece to piece than the 1176s, because of the tubes and the difference in fatigue of the

tubes.”

“My big mentors were Andy Johns and Lee DeCarlo and Ron Nevision because they

were all Record Plant guys. I learned how to make a rock and roll record from them.

Although over the years it's become my own thing, my style still tends to be that Record

Plant style, U87s, 1176s, LA-2As, 47 F.E.T.s...it's what I like.”

Producer/Engineer Mike Clink (Guns N' Roses, Sammy Hagar, Pushmonkey) also comes

from the Record Plant school of recording. "I find that I actually use 1176s more now

than I ever did," he comments. "I like them because they bring out the brightness and

presence of a sound--they give it an energy. It seems like when I'm mixing I end up using

an 1176 on the vocals every time. And if I want to compress a room sound I'll take a

mono room mic, put an 1176 across it and push in all the buttons."

Bruce Swedien is a master engineer who needs no introduction. He also is a die-hard

1176 fan. “I have two silverface 1176LNs in my rack that Bill Putnam personally picked

out for me," he says. "I remember sitting at Bill's place in the Channel Islands, and

talking about the 1176 and how I wanted a pair. The next time we went over he'd picked

this pair out and they were sitting in his garage waiting for me. I love them on vocals. All

of the Michael Jackson and James Ingram vocals that everyone has heard so much were

done with at least one of those 1176s. I couldn't part with them for anything. They sound

fabulous.”