Tc Electronic Hypergravity Compressor
117
DECEMBER 2015 GUITARIST
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TC ELECTRONIC
Potential compressor users may have
been put off by the fact that compressing
their whole signal might mess with their
sound too much. But the latest pedals offer
parallel compression – via a blend control
mixing compressed and uncompressed
signal for natural-sounding blends.
The HyperGravity features that
blending facility but also ramps up the
versatility by offering a range of different
types of compression. A three-way switch
enables you to select Vintage or Spectra,
representing respectively the sort of
squashy tone typical of the most-copied
of stompbox compressor designs and
multi-band compression that offers a
more transparent signal control. Both do
a decent job, but the jewel in the crown is
the TonePrint option, where you can load
the pedal with compression programmed
by TC, one of its roster of guitarists, or
create your own with the software editor.
There’s plenty of extra gain, too, so you
can use the pedal to drive an amp.
[TC]
VERDICT
A compressor pedal that you can program
exactly to your needs. About time!
VERDICT
If a noise gate is a necessity in your signal
chain, this one offers real versatility
ORIGIN: Thailand
TYPE: Compressor
FE ATURES: True bypass,
multi-band compression,
TonePrint facility
CONTROLS: Sustain,
level, attack, blend,
Spectra/TonePrint/
Vintage switch,
bypass footswitch
CONNECTIONS:
Standard input, output
POWER: 9V DC adaptor
(not supplied) or
9V battery
DIMENSIONS: 72 (w)
x 120 (d) x 48mm (h)
TC Electronic
0800 917 8926
www.tcelectronic.com
Noise gates can be lifesavers if you have
a rig bedevilled by an excess of unwanted
noise – be that low-frequency hum from
single-coil pickups or earthing issues, or
unwanted hiss from a massively cranked
amp or dirt pedal.
The Sentry features both traditional
hard gating that shuts down the signal
depending on its volume, and multi-
band gating that can zero in on specifi c
frequencies for a perhaps more natural
noise-reduction experience. With knobs
to set the amount of noise attenuation and
the rate at which the gate closes, there’s
plenty that can be achieved with those
two presets, but for really zeroing in on
the exact noise reduction needed, the
TonePrint facility lets you fi nely edit your
gate’s characteristics. What’s more, send
and return jacks let you use it solely, say, on
a noisy high-gain distortion pedal to set up
gating that works very naturally, the gate
being triggered by the direct guitar signal,
but closed after the noisy pedal.
[TC]
ORIGIN: Thailand
TYPE: Noise gate pedal
FE ATURES: True
bypass, hard gating,
multi-band noise
removal, TonePrint
facility
CONTROLS:
Threshold, damp,
decay, Gate/
TonePrint/Hiss switch,
bypass footswitch
CONNECTIONS:
Standard input, output,
send and return
POWER: 9V DC
adaptor (not supplied)
or 9V battery
DIMENSIONS: 72 (w)
x 120 (d) x 48mm (h)
TC ELECTRONIC
SENTRY NOISE GATE
£95
TC ELECTRONIC
HYPERGRAVITY
COMPRESSOR
£99
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GIT401.peds_tc.indd 117 10/29/15 2:38 PM