Schaffer replica: What am I supposed to be hearing?

[guitarnerdswe]

So, I've played around with this numerous times (2 compressor blocks in series, dynamics type etc). To be completely honest, I don't really hear or feel any difference compared to not having the compressors engaged. What am I supposed to "get"? Could the fact that all my guitars are active diminish the effect?

 

[Heinzi]

It´s a compander system and should feel like a sort of compressor playing-wise.

To avoid the noise floor of the vega system, you have to increase the treble on the transmitter side (preemphasis) - by the way, just like with the analog delays, which also have to deal with a noisy transmission path. If you undo this increase on the receiver side (deemphasis), i.e. lower the highs, the more annoying noise components are also reduced. You just don't need to activate this reduction on the receiving end, and you have a TrebleBooster effect. Now the signal has to be limited on the transmitter side, because if a certain level is exceeded, this suddenly leads to over-modulation, the associated intermodulation (hum and difference formation) sound cruelly non-musical, sounds very different from the overdrive sounds known to us, ... are to be avoided whenever possible. And that leads to the use of a compressor on the transmitter side and an expander on the receiver side.

I´d try using two compressors in series - with dynamic decreased on the one and the other increased by the same amount. Don´t use too much gain on the amp so the compressors can do their job.

 

[Smittefar]

Didn't we recently get a compander type that should be the same as two dynamic blocks in series

 

[Jan Geerts]

I've been using the two compressor trick on many presets, but this evening, I got the Storm pedal from SoloDallas.

Let me tell you: that dual compressor trick sounds nothing, nothing, like the real thing. The amps in the AFIII do, I tried a real Bassman yesterday, and then in the Axe, that is spot on, but this pedal, and probably others, not even close.

You thought you had a great sound from the Axe? I did. Well, turn this pedal off and it sounds as flat as a tarot card trampled by an elephant ridden by that shady shrimp dude from Hawai Five O. I can send the perfect signal to the Axe, making it much louder and fatter, without even tickling the red leds and adjust to different guitars on the fly.
The fact that the Axe responds so well to this pedal, probably speaks volumes on how amplike it truly is.

I really see little room for improvement of the amp models, but apparently a lot for the pedals. Not that I was in any way dissatisfied with it, or am, but it gives us something to look forward to.