when DO you use a Sonic Maximizer?

[jcooke]

Every post I've ever read bashes sonic maximizers. Who uses them, and for what? When do you feel that they become a problem?

Jcooke

[JWL]

I NEVER use them on an entire mix. Bleah.

The best sound I ever got out of one was on a snare drum track. Gave it just the life I was looking for.

[idylldon]

Every post I've ever read bashes sonic maximizers. Who uses them, and for what?

I use them for the case, transformer, switch, fuse holder, IEC connector, and various other bits. The rest I discard and replace with a GSSL stereo buss compressor circuit:





This is an old picture. The unit now has a selectable sidechain high-pass filter.

All of this was done with the help of the Prodigy DIY community. These compressors are truly remarkable.

When do you feel that they become a problem?

When they have the original bits in them.

Cheers,
--
Don

[ckeene]

Not to hijack this thread, but that compressor looks awesome.

[kayagum]

The "Big Bottom" feature on the Aphex 104/204 is useful for adding low end to cassette recordings, and for judicious fattening without eating headroom.

[contramark]

If i am mixing any sort of music that is current rock type stuff i always use a little high end sonic maximizer (usually ozone or BBE). It helps get the crispness and highend of todays pop music.

[Jeremy Garber]

Has anyone ever side chained a sonic maximizer with the untainted stereo bus? I'd like to try that. I like parallel compression. heh

[RoyMatthews]

I've found 2 uses for maximizers. They work well on kick drums that need some bottom end. A little artificial but it helps when I put the mic too close to the beater and need to save it.

I've also used exciters and maximizers the same way people set up parallel compression. I put it on a buss or aux and send tracks to that. Usually Snares, OHs, Ac Gtrs, et Vocals. I'll blend the original tracks and 'excited' tracks to taste.

With any of this be sure to press 'bypass' often as you're getting the sound. You can quickly get used to the effected sound and then the original sounds worse by comparison but is probably fine to begin with. It's like salt.

[DJ RELAX]

The only positive use Ive found for my bbe is running my turntables through one. But it works fantastic for that.

[Eric Rottmayer]

yeah, i've been dumping my old 7" records to cd and running my record
player thru it before the cd recorder. works OK for that. i think i used it on
a bass guitar track once...once.

[A-Barr]

Can anyone explain exactly what a "maximizer" does?

[trodden]

My bandmates, both play bass, have them in their racks actually one has the pedal version and the other has the rack version.. Gives some more ooomph, like we need more ooomph playing music with two basses. But yeah, especially in the distorted bass, gives some more bottom to that sound.

[JWL]

Back when I was a lead guitarist and had the guitar rack from hell pushing 2 Bag End 12" speakers, I kept a BBE maximizer in my rack. Sounded great on guitar....

In terms of what the maximizer does, my understanding is that it splits the music up into 3 bands, and time delays each one slightly, which makes it sound as if the highs are brighter. Gives everything this fake sheen that can sound good in some situations.

[junkstar]

I always use them when transferring from cassette and LP/7'' to CD. I have the Aphex and it helps a lot for those applications. I also use it as a last step in doing amateur mastering for local bands who are simply passing out discs to friends and selling homemade copies at their High School shows etc. I always give them a clean set of mixes, but give them a sweetened set too. They always like the Aphex versions a lot more (prob because they are all listening to their music on iPods and small computer speakers etc).

[fremitus]

i just feel like applauding all who posted to this and all who didn't, resisting the urge to once again simply slam the sonic maximizer.

which i will do now.

nah. jk. i will take this opportunity to say that i still hate the c1000.

maybe a c1000, thru an original mackie 1604 pre, routed through a maximizer and returned to a behringer (any model will do) for mixdown, that's a path. mmmmmm. audio.