DO NOT BUY THIS! - Klark Teknik KT-76

[@hinkleyhanley1577]

The reason videos like this are irresponsible, is that you have a large following some of whom now believe that the Klark Teknik KT-76 aimed to sound like the Blue Stripe, but failed. This is not the case as the KT-76 is an clone/ emulation of the black face which it comes very close to. This has been pointed out multiple times, and you have failed to even acknowledge that you were misinformed about this product, & sadly it seems you are happy to pass on this misinformation (to followers who are willing to accept it as fact), while telling people to steer clear of the product & unjustly damaging the brand.

[@thatjazzshow]

Agree.

[@johndewitt9093]

I struggle to find any video where this guy clearly illustrates he knows what he's doing with any toy he opens.

[@thatjazzshow]

@@johndewitt9093 I'm not gonna knock him, some of his vids are good. But the title "DO NOT BUY THIS" helps no one and hurts the people that are trying to make a living manufacturing and marketing the product.

[@kyrorocks]

I´ve got this unit, and the KT2A and the pultec clone. Very happy with them. Happy I bought them before getting misinformed. They are excellent value.

[@aLoudSi1ence]

Anyone wishes to actually know about this product, can read a long thread on Gearslutz forum and get an idea of what is this KT76 actually capable of. This guy is overacting and video is an example of his sheer ignorance about KT76.

[@otobotrecords]

Oh, White Sea Studio say not to buy a unit - that's a perfect reason to buy one. Thanks White Sea Studios for your reverse psychology endorsement.

[@larrytan73]

true so true man!

[@EchoReverb6]

haha so true

[@monoforone]

This is a respectful comment.. I would not trust anything this person says. This review is more of an attitude than a review... Well well well..... I have original 1176s and I purchased two of the klark 1176 for my own studio... at first you don't think you're going to like the Klark because how cheap it is.... I mean it's a knockoff right? But that's exactly what it is it's a knockoff... Is it EXACTLY the same of the original 1176? No.... Is it close? It sure is!! Are 1176's exactly the same when compared to themselves? No!!!!! AGIAN, ARE Original 1176 EXACTLY THE SAME WHEN YOU COMPARE THEM TO EACH OTHER????? NO THEY ARE NOT... Sometimes not even close. If you're on a budget and looking for an 1176 styled compressor you can't beat this. I've been Able to A/B gear my entire life.. IM old..... My creds are LA based working in all the Major studios in Los Angeles.....Cello, Sunset Sound Larabee, Capitol etc.. I guess it's the world we live in today anybody can post anything on social media. Wonder if this post will disappear..

[@Reggi_Sample]

I think his issue was he was comparing a blue face to the KT instead of the actual thing it was modelled on

[@InfoAbsorbent]

THIS GUY IS CLUELESS! The Blue-Stripe has a completely different affect on the sound. You're not comparing the right compressors. Blue-Stripes are used to really push the sound to the front of the mix. This is why the vocal seems so "present". It's actually the blue-stripes that are usually criticized because the affect is so different. This shootout couldn't have been any worse.

[@sirgashmbe_nwa5397]

Agreed

[@evoltap]

Yup

[@Dohpamine_Design]

I unsubscribed

[@kyrorocks]

Why does he not just correct himself....sad. Everyone can make a mistake, that´s ok, but he should´ve gotten aware by now that he compared apples to pears really.

[@DanHomeAtLast]

It's a fet compressor and should sound like one of it wants to be called an 1176. Pretty laughable that KT thought that could make one and then got it wrong

[@RallyDon82]

"do not buy this!" proceeds to list it on ebay for people to buy.

[@DivKid]

haha amazing

[@olivermaas1]

Crazy man 🤣

[@twingems5332]

:-D.

[@EhEsDeeEf]

"its a great unit! your gonna love it :) please buy it from me"

[@OrrantiaMusic]

😂

[@mohawkbear8768]

Its not meant to sound like a blue stripe, its a different circuit. Less color and lower noise floor. If you were to shoot it out against a black face rev the results would be closer

[@DanHomeAtLast]

Why would it be a different circuit and still call itself an 1176?

[@alexanderkhait]

Because engineers tried to achieve lower distortion and lower noise floor with each revision. Read some history before you get smart.

[@DanHomeAtLast]

@@alexanderkhait exactly, even by improving distortion that was done with better components, opamps improved over time, revised power supply, fets etc. The circuit is still identical at its heart; a fet compressor.

[@loudmammoth6166]

I bought a KT-76 and have used the warm before. Do not be put off by this review, it is a fantastic compressor, very crisp and when you push it in all-buttons mode still sounds very respectable.

[@arthurmelo8692]

the black revision (or revision C) is not suppose to add harmonics. if this KT-76 tried to emulate the revision C of Urei or UAD, your comment has no point at all.

[@alessandro.favero]

Arthur Melo Revision D, but exactly I agree

[@digitalnobody74]

The warm adds harmonics right??

[@kidcremezoo]

passing a sine thru it and using an analyser to see if it do add any harmonic at some point would have been interesting to see.

[@emanuelapascaritei8754]

They add a lot. I already did this. And btw, all analog equipment will add harmonics at some point when driven.

[@kidcremezoo]

@@emanuelapascaritei8754 in this case it sound so transparent that id be curious to see what is the harmonics addition at an average level. Obviously any analog equipement if overdrive will generate saturation and consequently harmonic. In this case i'm curious to see (as we can't hear) the flavour of the midas transformer inside the toy.

[@LasseLammert]

I actually did an extensive comparison like that with a lot of hard- and software 1176 (sine wave as well as different types of vocals, very scientifically controlled with exactly matched mV readings etc.) you can find it on my channel. And the kt76 actually came out quite well

[@G_handle]

Lasse Lammert where’s your channel

[@painstruck01]

you can hear that it doesn't distort anywhere near as much as an 1176

[@krissheehy]

I own the 1176-KT and I'm a really big fan of it. I agree with some of the commenters below that we could be hearing the difference between the black and blue face model emulations. Regardless of my stance on this unit though, I must say that having an analog unit over a digital plug in will almost always feel and sound better to my ear. Not to mention you're totally getting your moneys worth when you think about all these damn yearly subscription fees and updates.

[@t74devkw]

2018: plugins that imitate hardware 2019: hardware that imitates plugins We've reached the pinnacle lads

[@Breakbeat90s]

don't forget behringer - hardware imitating hardware

[@emanuelapascaritei8754]

Pangeaner , and don’t forget warm audio, tube tech, Wes, aml, stam, bae, heritage audio, gap, and even Manley with their pultec...and the list goes on. That’s hardware imitating hardware. Does behringer have crap stuff?? A lot, but it also has some good stuff from time to time. I learned my lesson on keeping an open minded philosophy on everything.

[@aaroninja1]

Klark teknik is relayed to Behringer

[@IntheDAW]

we also have plugins emulating old pro tools plugins now

[@bangtherapy8321]

@@Breakbeat90s hey behringer got some good stuff though

[@soundpulse5693]

I don't like the way you go to the extreme and telling people NOT TO BUY THIS! You can have your honest opinion without pushing too hard. Maybe your review is not the most accurate, maybe you are not testing it as it should, maybe one month and some tracks are not enough to suggest someone buying it or not.

[@hinkleyhanley1577]

His review is 100% based on being misinformed. He has had this pointed out multiple times, but has yet to acknowledge it. Yet he is happy to have a large percentage of his followers who will take his misinformed opinion as gospel decide against the product based on that.

[@MrVinylistic]

Don't agree with this video. OK, the KT-76 doesn't sound like an old bluestripe, but very close to a new 1176LN. At the end I need an 1176-style compressor because of it's fast attack and release times to tame vocals and place them into the playback... and for this duty the KT-76 is a really great tool with a great price. What I can say is that it sound much better than the UAD 1176 plugin and doesn't cost more than a plugin. So why it should be useless???

[@AndrewCCM]

Of course, you can use a plug-in on numerous channels… so one mono piece of hardware isn’t apples to apples when bringing in price. Fwiw

[@gunnarwaage4343]

and why should i take the advice of a youtuber ?

[@chadmarx7718]

Why'd you click the video???

[@SadowickProduction]

About the 10 second thing: A printed circuit board on an PCB/SMT line can be assembled in seconds with super fast robots and they do multiple boards at once. The rest of it is machined and assembled by hand as human hands are less expensive then automation in the country where this is made. After its assembled its then calibrated (kinda) and they test a couple of units per batch. A higher end piece of equipment will have each unit QA tested, burned in for a few days and calibrated so there is consistency across units (think of linking 2 Distressors for stereo material). I would be amazed even if that VU meter is calibrated.

[@saardean4481]

first let me say that i am not a fan of klark or better said Behringer. Especially after their latest copy-clone projects i am fed up with this s..t. Just want to adress the concistency of high end gear. Yes its true but only in the more modern units. The older high end legendary hardware units are most of the time all over the place when it comes to measurements concistency. Hence the expression "No Compressor X sounds the same as another Compressor X" and same goes for synths like Moogs and everything else

[@RemyRAD]

American NAB specs only require 50-15 kHz ± 2 DB at 1% distortion at operating level. With a minimum of 45 DB signal-to-noise ratio. And about 15 DB of headroom above operating level. And so the meter only has to be within ± 2 DB of accuracy. And so why do you think all 76's sound different? That's why. I mean I suppose you could use nothing but precision ± 2 or 5% resistors, and it? Everyone has changed out there electrolytic capacitors at some point in time. With whatever capacitor brands they got their hands upon. It's a great low cost bargain version usable FET limiter. That's all that matters. Accuracy? What accuracy? Transparency? What transparency? They're all different. Every single last one of them. But if you know how to tweak them yourself. And all of the FET's are identical. You might get them real close. I have. I have gotten them very close. So close. That I've not needed, the battery-operated stereo adapter. And getting them that close. Requires that you get them well up to operating temperature first. And so I usually leave them on overnight.. Before I set out to tweak them during the day. And I don't take the top cover off. Until I am ready to tweak them. And I tweak them quickly. So as to prevent them from cooling down any. And if the FET's are closely matched. And you've got all new electrolytic capacitors installed. And the individual resistors are close in value. Even if they are only a 10% accuracy. You might be able to tweak them ultra close. Few people know how. I had to. I had to be the best at what I did, ya see. And I am. I've been doing this for over 50 years now. And I've learned a few things. That youngsters don't know. That youngsters, can't know. That you obviously don't know either. Not that I'm coming down on you mind you. You have to learn as you go. And I like to teach and mentor young engineers. Like I was. I like to pay it forward. I had a great couple of mentors when my career was just starting. And they were very special mentors. They weren't your average studio guys of that era. One had very high Department of Defense clearance. The other was the father of vertical hold for television when he was an engineer for Bell Laboratories after World War II. And they taught me more than I had even read in the library. Where you can get a college degree for free. Except nobody hands you a dead sheepskin with printing on it. Poor little sheep. And what's that supposed to mean? Dingdong the sheep is dead. And that's supposed to prove they learned something. RemyRAD

[@AragonDubs]

@@RemyRAD 👍

[@DynamicRockers]

The KT76 actually sounds really nice! This is probably a difference between the blue stripe and the blackface schematics. Blue stripes always have more harmonics and distortion compared to the newer blackface that are cleaner. But KT76 is more transparent that it should be.

[@SianaGearz]

No, they can't make it in 10 seconds, this is completely impossible, and many production steps are manual but highly optimised. They can however have one rolling off a single production line every 10 seconds, because the production steps are pipelined. I suspect they can get the manual steps to take only a couple minutes per unit, then they're golden.

[@christopherdunn317]

Maybe that's true, but all i can say is its all garbage anyway !

[@SianaGearz]

@@christopherdunn317 There's a baseline of effort in making the most horrible of equipment. Something adequate doesn't have to be fundamentally much more expensive than a piece of garbage. It breaks my heart how much effort goes into producing landfill products every day.

[@MonstarMk3]

0:56 "I don't have a confirmed story, so I will pass on this information any way, to try and make this product seem bad"

[@DBking773]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but wouldn't the transparent nature of the compressor, even when pushed, be perfectly suited as a cheap option for tracking vocals for example? That way you get control on the way in without having to worry much about distortion?

[@benjaminschultz6501]

That's what I thought too! 👍

[@DanHomeAtLast]

The odd part of all this is that modern compressors strived to become as transparent as possible and to remove harmonic distortion was considered a goal in past recordings, now we want it all to come back because our signal and gain is all super clean

[@woodstocktc]

Julia Roses voice was great but the review felt a tad incomplete without her singing to sandstorm from Darude.

[@mthomas1091]

woodstocktc it clearly was sandstorm acapella

[@deandouglas3855]

I have the KT-76 and I can tell you it distorts amazingly well with all ratio buttons OUT and the input cranked up.

[@pogomeal]

Got mine yesterday and just thried this. Gorgeous! Thanks for the hint.

[@MaVoid]

Awesome tip!

[@TheHithirteen]

I have pair of the KT76's and EQP's and though I have never owned a real Pultec or 1176, these units have made my tracks sound better than any plugin or hardware. Pleased and will buy more.

[@userroscoe]

Yeah agree

[@alborzmousapour3446]

Steven Hiers yes thats really better than plugins

[@gusdee4844]

Yup the kt2a is amazing. I want to buy this to catch peaks and the eq to finish my chain. I used to add 17 plugins (exaggerated) to get the sound I want which ended up being harsh and now I only have 3 and its where I want it.

[@lightafluident.9950]

Garbage

[@AdamSpade]

Compares to a completely different style 76 and then says it’s useless because it doesnt sound the same… 2 yrs later this pops in my feed. You ought to pin a comment correcting yourself, man. You made a mistake here and are hurting yourself and Klark T because of your misunderstanding.

[@altaego4829]

HOLD ON! THIS 1176 FET COMP IS £200!!!! This could literally be the beginning of the democratisation of analogue hardware!! Its exciting stuff! This guy has compared it at a 4:1 ratio with other blue strip 1176's even though it is base on a LN, furthermore not even a mention of the !!! All-Buttons-In !!! mode, crazy! Worst of all the AB testing is way off, not allot of care has been put into this video and i strongly recommend people don't listen to what this guy is saying. Im buying one for sure!

[@FeJotaTakinOva]

I think you missed the point...

[@JuanJacinto]

@@FeJotaTakinOva i think you did. 4:1 is nothing. No matter how much gain you put into it. I got myself one and I'm very happy with it

[@FeJotaTakinOva]

@@JuanJacinto damn, you missed it as well...

[@JuanJacinto]

@@FeJotaTakinOva No. Again: You did. The unit can't produce any sort of harmonic distortion or colour if you are going to be using a very low compression ratio.

[@FeJotaTakinOva]

@@JuanJacinto The 1176 produces harmonic distortion in 2 ways: Saturation on the input and quick attack and release times (produces by any compressor that allows you to have really quick attack and release times). What has been tested in this video was the input saturation, and is nowhere to be found. That will remain the same regardless the ratio you set. Some 1176 emulations even allow you to deselect every ratio so you can just crank the input and lower the output (and thus using it just as a colouring unit and not a compressor+colouring unit). Of course you will be able to obtain some harmonic distortion from this unit, but the point of the video was "you won't get THIS specific type of harmonic distortion". And that's the point being missed. I know the video is clickbait-ish in some aspects and not as scientific or in depth as it should be (for that kind of content I prefer different channels, such as Dan Worrall), but still he makes a pretty solid point.

[@SkeadFerdinandMusic]

I've got two Klark Teknik EPQ KT and I really like the way they sound . Bought the KT 76 cause all the videos I saw when comparing to software on vocals, this compressor sounded much better to my ears.Can't wait to use it and hear it in real life.

[@christopherdunn317]

Klark Teknik EPQ KT complete garbage ! Oh are they (super charged) as well ?

[@SkeadFerdinandMusic]

@@christopherdunn317 I don't think they are garbage at all. I think too many people compare it to the originals and diss many clones but not really take the time to really learn what you can use it for with the sound they have.

[@synthanatomy]

One thing you have to be aware of is that the Stam and the Klark are different incarnations of an 1176. The Stam is the blue stripe version (Rev. A) while the Klark is the black face version (Rev. F) So there are sound differences!

[@mfkrwill]

yeah isnt the black face version of the 76 way less aggressive

[@seanmiller6870]

@@mfkrwill It’s a little cleaner and less noisy.

[@KevinWale]

yeah but the full silver face he starts with is either a G or an H revision, which is even cleaner than a D, and it's still way way way more aggressive than either of the clones, or the plugin.

[@jimmyjamesguitarshack3343]

He gives you all the reasons you SHOULD BUY THIS for tracking in the studio. This Comp is perfect for using in line when recording. For Example: Vox>Mic>Preamp>KT-76>Audio Interface. These KT-76 have amazing "grab". This makes them great for tracking. You could still use it as a plugin in your DAW and get great use of it. If you have a minimal outboard analog setup, this can do that, or add to it. And it does have "color". It is very subtle, but there. You can hear it in the high end. It really helps brighten with smoothness. Tube swap could add a tiny touch to that as well.

[@jamesb44]

Swap what tube? It's a FET compressor.

[@FeJotaTakinOva]

... Tube huh? Okay...

[@jmccormick7253]

Have you unlisted/ taken down your SoundToys Decapitator "review"?

[@LuxElliott]

He was decapitated over it. Terrible review of a beloved plugin.

[@jmccormick7253]

To be fair, it was no worse than this review which is essentially a call to boycott the product

[@bryanshortell9703]

Wait, he didn't like the Decapitator? Literally every mix engineer that I hold in high regard has talked about using it at one point or another. Crazy

[@pashakrezh4209]

My two lovely kt-76 do what it suppose to do, for almost two years now. From lead vocals to all kind of bass, drums course, crashed room mics, choked, bluezzy, metal guitars, brass, choir, synth, you name it. Happy owner here.

[@miquifaye]

it's still a very good compressor if you know how to use it. anyone expecting an close recreation of an actual 1176 is foolish. i use this compressor for vocals and it's excellent.

[@swedishvoice]

Yes, I thought it sounded great. I can understand that it may not be so useful for a mixing and mastering engineer. But I can definitley see this compressor being a great tool when recording drums and vocals. Since it's a low price unit one could connect one of these for each microphone in the drum rig without breaking the bank.

[@Jay.Ramone]

"Do Not Buy This" in the title, and "Useless" in the thumbnail is a little harsh I think. I've got one, and it is not as transparent as yours seems to be. Mine has plenty of character, and it's better than any of the plugins which are admittedly my only current point of reference.

[@odiefrancis]

I like this channel it has a lot of great advice but....I bought 2 of the KT76s and they sound fantastic. they work for distorted or clean guitar tracks. The transformers really fatten the sound. I totally disagree that they are useless.

[@TeeraLucksanapiruk]

On Rose's vocal I actually like the online hardware and the Klark Teknik. Also if you want more color you can swap the input / output transformers for about 30 - 40 USD each.

[@MaximumBob]

Are there instructions and specific parts you can list for some of us Newbs?

[@alvincornistamusic8754]

What a great sounding Urei. What model is that one?

[@DaveZNoisebox]

I've been using my 76-KT for over a year now on over 100 vocals now. It sounds amazing and beats out all of my other hardware compressors for vocals. I LOVE this thing. I can't believe how awesome it is.

[@levijessegonzalez3629]

do you ever stack it with another compressor for vocals? I have an RNC compressor that's extremely neutral amd extremely fast... I wonder how it would sound to use the RNC to round out the peaks, then into the Klark for the color / fatness...

[@DaveZNoisebox]

​ @Levi Jesse Gonzalez ​ I love the speed of the 76-KT. It levels vocals out really well on its own. But I have paired it up with a 2A-KT and it is really nice. I put the 2A-KT first to generally level out the vocals and then the 76-KT catches the details. I love setting the KT-76 release time as fast as it will go on vocals and it brings out details like magic.

[@brianwynn10]

Thanks buying it now do it give the 3D vocal sound

[@edoChannel]

Yes, but what about ratio? Not trying to contest your review, but why didn't you try to listen at 12/20/ALL? I mean: I'm curious, how would it work then?

[@kadiummusic]

Really strange that it didn't sound good in this review because in the The Ultimate 1176 Shootout by Present Day productions it compared really well with many other renowned 1176's. 🤔

[@delusionwalker8852]

So if it's transparent sounding unit would you recommend it for tracking vocals like a level amplifier? My idea would be to get a nice clean vocals and then do all the colouring later. Am I ignoring it for no good reason?

[@playbuttonrecording4918]

I do agree with the idea that there are many plugin options for transparent compression, but it never hurts to have a transparent analog compressor in your arsenal for tracking purposes, especially considering it amounts the price of ~ 2-4 high end plugin compressors. Furthermore, it has Midas input and output transformers which is great value for the price, plus an input pad which is not available on the typical units. I'd happily buy one of these units if I worked in my own tracking space, appreciate the review!

[@xanataph]

Is this a different revision of the 1176 circuit? Isn't there a version that is supposed to be more transparent?

[@MixedbyToryG]

xanataph yes. The black was more transparent.

[@RodrigoPiccoli]

I have the unit and i love it! On Bass and vocals or whatever you put into! Clickbait and very bad comparison. I love your channel but this video wasn't correct.

[@arctic_wind]

I know this is a year old... is anyone gonna mention the attack/release settings at 6:37? I thought all 1176s had fast vs slow inverted? Might be a reason for the transparency...

[@ACRev]

I think your unit is defective. If I crank my KT76 all the way up on a vocal, I get a pleasing distortion. Mine is not transparent like yours.

[@markwyman6429]

A.C. Rev unit is definitely not defective. %100 user error.

[@nolanneal]

How can you hear anything with no acoustic panels? Nothing worse than a control room with bare Sheetrock walls.

[@tecno8335]

This unit is AWESOME, it's a clone of the 1176 LN, This guy is just a weird skeptic. It has a bunch of great reviews FOR A REASON.

[@Wizardofgosz]

Yeah, maybe that reason is that the people have never TOUCHED a real 1176 let alone used one?

[@DaveZNoisebox]

Yeah, it's awesome! I love mine and use it daily on vocals.

[@creativeheadroom]

He literally compared it to an 1176LN in the video and it sounded completely different, lol. I've worked with that 1176 at Sound Vision Studio in the past and it's an absolute beast! :D If they start making a cheap version of that unit I'll buy a whole stack of them in a heartbeat.

[@DaveHuizing]

Klark is owned by Behringer. That says enough

[@AntonNidhoggr]

The Behringer flaw was that they dropped the price. When KT cost around 500 (at start) the audiophile public praised him, and now cause it's so cheap they're gonna hate it :D I use mine as kinda limiter/level control for my synths. Works fine.

[@digilyd]

So you are complaining that the KT-76 only compresses when driven hard but does not distort?

[@noir4659]

Here's one reason to have a transparent analog compressor: you can't run a plugin between your mic pre and your converter; having a transparent compressor in between helps you maintain the sound coming from the pre while ducking down peaks that might clip the converter, basically a piece that makes gain adjustment way easier without introducing any unwanted tonal characteristics

[@conrow1157]

Sure, uad!

[@whathuh6965]

Wrong. You literally just wanted to prove him wrong, but introduced a useless point of view. A recorded sound is already "Transparent". Adding a compressor of high enough quality is intended to add a tonal character to the sound source. The unit presented doesn't achieve that, so simply resulting to a plugin would instead of purchasing a useless piece of hardware.

[@ctrlaltcreate3827]

@@whathuh6965 Or you just want to compress your vocals.. Your comment makes no sense. I’m almost certain you don’t even know what a compressor does.

[@whathuh6965]

@@ctrlaltcreate3827 Like literally, what are you talking about? A Hardware compressor of High end quality is mainly used to add color and variable harmonics to the sound source. What Audio Engineering school did you graduate from? This is common knowledge among industry Mixing Engineers. Ask Dave Pensado, Manny Maroquin or Chris Lorde to name a few famed Mixing Engineers; they all literally reinforce this concept. It's not about knowing how a compressor works, it's about knowing which hardware compressor adds what distinct sonic quality and color to the sound source. A prime hardware component of this concept is found in the compressor titled the 'FairChild' 660 engineered by "Rein Narma". By default, it adds a varied dynamic color to the sound source, compared to a clean sound absent it's use. This compressor is Joseph Jack Puig's favorite compressor. You still have much to learn. You're way too arrogant.

[@ctrlaltcreate3827]

@@whathuh6965 A compressor is used for compression. How are you arguing this?

[@petefaders]

On a side note, notice how different the plugin sounds from the real comps. It's like you have to crush it on a parallel comp as well with the plugins to get it like the real thing.

[@dzezydzerk]

As i know blue stripe has biggest amount of distortion from 1176 series. Is it really good comparison?

[@onderov]

No, it is not. He's comparing apples to oranges.

[@simamedia6601]

hi can you advise me which mixer or interface is best to connection with dbx /scl2/KT-76 ETIC for this kind of system ?

[@brentvalleywhag3477]

I have the 2a and absolutely adore it

[@EpithetMusicTV]

have you compared the kt2a to any other 2a compressors?

[@brentvalleywhag3477]

Epithet Music Not directly. Used several versions including the UA hardware and plugins in the past and it compares very favorably in my opinion. Good for tracking vocals and bass here.

[@fishpotpete]

I just got one and it's great so far. I've bought/sold to many VCA compressors that just didn't sound good to me - as soon as I hook this one up on bass I knew it was exactly what I was looking for. Super easy to set the controls.

[@matthewtoomer2181]

yes do buy this comp. It sounded awesome despite the KZbin audio compression it applies and as a producer I can tell he wasn't pushing his DAW hard into the unit and to just say just" use the plugins"? the plugin was dog poo compared to the KT? even thou he had the KT sounding less distorted and I could still hear way more harmonics in a beautiful clean way from the KT. This guy must have awful hearing if he honestly thinks the plugin was better. So please get better at mixing and train your ears (research and knowledge not needed to be mention) before trying to give good advice especially as all of us producers, composers and audio engineers who clearly have why more professional ears beyond yours all say your WRONG. This is NOT fair on the company or for new people who still have not developed their ears yet or know anything about vintage circuits of analogue gear. I have extremely little knowledge of analogue gear as I come from psytrance (no vocal or live recording experience) background so im so glad so many comments from professionals in the comments have addressed this for me so thanks guy :):):) I do want a clean compressor one day so will defo look into buying this compressor along with colourful one. You have completely trashed talked a company by not even comparing it to similar sounding comps. If you have any honor you would take this video down as its not fair Klark Teknik or fair on any new engineers with false information. This comp sounded awesome

[@ruthlesscutthroat4030]

the plugin didn't belong in that comparison, it really was crap, but the KT was just a margin better. So who can say?

[@cozy2005]

i agree. i have been using this compressor for about a year now, running mainly vocals and bass through it, and i can confirm that this compressor really delivers. it has very punchy clean lows and silky smooth highs, and the attack sounds very good on vocals. it makes everything i put through it sound cleaner.

[@danielepizzuele7083]

There also something wrong with the plugin, it is compressing way less and with different A/R settings. There is no "tail" on drums, but i'm sure i can replicate time constant from an hardware comp to a plugin even if not it's clone! (i mean i can easily replicate time constants from a real 1176 to a Steinberg stock comp plugin by ears!). This video is useless, not the kt76....

[@lokalbredstudios]

This will be my 1st 1176 hardware purchase. I want to turn a physical knob. From you comparisons that were expertly recorded, I've seen and heard that this is my 1st. Love your work sir.

[@David-kv4qm]

White Sea Studio: "Hello Klark Teknik-Team, can i have a KT-76 for free for my next review Video Klark Teknik: "No!" Review uploading 56%

[@Jjf109nine]

Best comment I have read this month

[@andinbriwel1092]

🎯

[@mikahirvilammi6262]

What you get wrong here is that klark teknik doesn't mimic blue line compressor but black face and those are completely different beasts

[@fearlabsaudio7815]

You're comparing the 1176KT (which is a clone of the rev-D black face) against the rev-A blue face units. Of course it's cleaner sounding.

[@ricksalt6860]

but if you do all 4 , does it get some cool shit happening on vocals ?

[@brentvalleywhag3477]

You’ve lost credibility

[@garbygarb31]

He lost credibility with me years ago. And honestly it started with his glasses shape

[@LukeSchneiderEWI]

Ok...but what about the Clark Teknik Pultec EQ clone ? That any good ?

[@MixedbyToryG]

Out of all your videos this is the one that I have to disagree with. The black 1176 was never meant to add harmonics. Even so, I have found that mine (same 1176-KT) adds some character in the hi-mid freqs. I actually appreciate the transparency because I also use a U47 clone that already has its own character. Just as all other mics do. I wouldn’t say that it’s useless rather that it does an extremely job well done at what it’s intended to do - COMPRESS!!

[@s0realstudios]

It's such a shame he didn't do his research, how is he not aware of this????

[@John-e4p1x]

He’s too busy putting on his makeup for the KZbin video...

[@KevinStCroix]

You can hear the difference even through KZbin. The original unit has that certain character and bite but still keeps it up front the KT doesn’t. Not sure why others can’t hear it. Maybe they are trying to justify their purchase.

[@BIGCHUNEx]

Kevin St Croix 😄 i feel so too, but sound is subjective too

[@andrearayner6675]

This clown would complain about a free lunch. It sounds great. Is it an actually 1176- no but for budget it’s great.

[@conceptSde]

Sorry, I don‘t agree. From my perspective an 1176 is not about harmonics (except the blue stripe maybe) but about dealing with transients with a low attack time. I had never considered buying a KT-76, but now I do. At this price point it sounds like the perfect complement to my LA-2 and LA-3 units in a vocal chain. Quite surprised as well that you did not mention the poor performance of the 1176 plugin.

[@davegamble1694]

Heya. Big fan of your videos. However, the differences you're hearing here are EXACTLY the difference between the 1176LN circuit and the 1176A. I've just spent the last year with the 1176D, and that KT is behaving precisely as I'd expect. Historically, the 1176A is a micpre with a sidechain to attenuate driven from the output. UREI got a lot of complaints about the distortion, and developed the "low noise" (LN) circuit, which replaces the entire front end of the micpre circuit. The 76B/C are compatible with the LN upgrade, and the 76D has it build in. I have a 76A and 76D here, and the differences are precisely what you've found. I'd go a step further and suggest that if you haven't sold that thing, you could re-engineer it to 76A spec with an extra FET and some resistor changes. You'd get what you want from that. The circuit topology is really very different.

[@garyshirinian]

What is your opinion on DBX 160a compressor for vocals. Thx.

[@kenbronowski3765]

DO NOT BUY INTO THIS REVIEW! So, this dude claims that the only purpose of an 1176 is the saturation you get if you drive it hard. My buddy bought two of these. I have 1176's and LA2A's in my work studio, and I can tell you that the basic compression quality of the KT unit is close to the UA 1176. DUH! That's what I buy a compressor for, not for the distortion that it adds to the signal. I mean, yeah, I get it. I like the saturation of the UA 1176. But it's not that huge a deal. I get saturation from my Neve 5024, SCA N72 and other hairy preamps. I use the 1176 for compression. This kind of clueless review from some dude who seems to have a following is sad.

[@itzyaboybugz]

Does yours make a electronic noise similar to a computer loading when you turn on the power switch etc. mine seems to be “noisy” even without a mic plugged in to it seems finicky lol

[@bobklopfenstein8249]

I've had 3 of the Klark KT-76 units in use in 3 studios around the country for over 4 years and they are still performing perfectly. They are a bargain for the money and I highly recommend them! - Bob K - BOB K Sound & Recording

[@mumbles215]

Same. I’ve had 3 for 4 years now and they sound great

[@bdking57]

My background is as the controller of a large manufacturing company. People are mind blown by price And think there must be something wrong but this is really just how they are looking at price. If your price things based on how much you could get for it. Your market isn't very inclusive, but if your price the other way, based on your profit margin then your are ultimately going to sell a lot more units, drive cost efficiencies and have more money at the end of the day to put towards Uber quality items, like those $10k midas preamps

[@SonVoMekongDeltaBluesman]

Amazing how many reviews are slamming you for the lack of accuracy in this review. What would be wise is if you did an updated review of this compressor, clarifying your lack of information that you received, and comparing it against another 1176 that was clearly made for different purposes. It would do a lot to help your reputation. A little humility goes a long ways.

[@michatroschka]

isnt the attack on 7 actually the shortest and 1 the longest? or how was that again

[@RegebroRepairs]

The kicks was really different, and on the kick, the Klark Teknik sounded *most* like the Urei. The plugin always sounded worst. The hard driven Klark Teknik wasn't THAT different from the Urei, but yeah, the Urei gave the vocals a closeness and presence none of the other had. Very interesting.

[@peterbrandt7911]

You're right, the Urei had more harmonics. BUT even the KT had a few in your last test. And you asked, why someone should buy that thing. Well I think it's nice for tracking. And since I cannot open a door and step into Soundvision Sttudio :), like most people I have to pick up, what I need and can afford.

[@peterbrandt7911]

And may I add, that on all buttons in mode, the KT can produce some nice harshness, for parallel compression quite nice.

[@lightafluident.9950]

Save your pennies and get quality man. Don't cheap out and end up with garbage like this Klark BS.

[@peterbrandt7911]

@@lightafluident.9950 I bought neither one :).

[@jmccormick7253]

My KT76 arrived, and it's far from transparent on... everything.

[@AgapeSignal]

well,, the art pro VLA II this guy recommands sounds like garbage to me... so maybe i should just go against his advice and buy this unit

[@DoctorJezz]

In case nobody else has said it (I'm sure they have) - a unit being completed every 10 seconds is very different from making one every 10 seconds, which is likely to be much nearer the truth. You just have to make them in parallel ... and even then only for as long as it takes to make that measurement - it will take much longer to complete each one ... you just start each one 10 seconds later! This is how mass producing works in industry. Sounds confusing at first I grant you ;)

[@garyshirinian]

Hi you always put things together nicely. What do you think of budget compressor made by Golden Age . LA2A or the LA3A . Thx

[@TheNightquaker]

8:45 hey Wytse. You call it an 1176 clone, but doesn't it have to have the 1176 sound to be a "clone"? Otherwise it's just a transparent analog compressor, with 1176 face but no 1176 soul.

[@AgentZero]

Yes that's what he said

[@TheNightquaker]

@@AgentZero He said that KT doesn't have the 1176 sound. My point was is that a compressor can't be called a clone if it doesn't have a sound of whatever it's a clone of.

[@NicStride]

Are there any good LA2A copies for cheap?

[@MarlonKingShow]

Thanks for the demo. I tend to agree , if it doesn't have a form of character, I can already use something else like my dbx. Guess I'll start looking at the warm reviews next 😀

[@danielmiller5521]

That's a shame, the kt-76 rules. Try it yourself before taking this guys advice. I just got one from GC used thinking I could return it. It's the best vocal compressor I now own. I have a Summit DCL-200 that will never be used on vocals again.

[@danablett]

If it had a different name and different shaped knobs, do you think you'd like it more?

[@imdurc]

You're bang-on with this comment, Danablett. :) I like that.

[@KhasrouhRecords]

this video is stupid . the Klark Teknik KT-76 sounds good and different . if you want the real 1176 go buy it then .

[@imdurc]

@Hardlee Theyer Where did you see it advertised as a clone? I don't own one, but it sounds pretty decent for the money.

[@soxxy8588]

Perfect! Thanks man, you can hear it's not quite right. I'll use the SW until I find a good one!! What analogue compressors (on a budget) are good?

[@AlistairMaxwell77]

art pro vla II . FMR RNC or RNLA .

[@johndewitt9093]

Anybody who comes out swinging saying a product is completely useless in all caps better back it up with some knowledge. Really missing the mark in that respect. the KT-76 isn't trying to be a Blue Stripe emu. Pretty lame to steer people away from gear you can't even illustrate competent usage of. Tried to find some of your stuff online and only tracked down a Soundcloud of overcompressed Moombah mixes. It's one thing to build a following off the back of hot takes and claims of snake oil, but it's straight up disingenuous to do that without even knowing what you're talking about.

[@hazardmouth]

Agreed. White Sea Studio is the Snake Oil Distributor (educated details never included)

[@nate_creates]

@@triple_x_r_tard Not one of those mixes was exceptional. Sounds like pretty standard modern production. If that’s “fantastic” for you, I would suggest broadening your horizons and raising your bar for what a “fantastic” mix sounds like.

[@AndrewCCM]

You do realize he compared completely different 1176 flavors. Blue stripe colors sound…the LN which is later 1176 is what the Klark is based on and is a cleaner circuit… LN=Low Noise. This isn’t an accurate comparison. If he’d compared to a black face UA 1176LN…that would have been fair. Apples/oranges

[@seenbelow]

OMG the vocals on the UREI sounded fabulous. Never heard it before on vocals

[@rogerheathcote3062]

Yes you have!

[@leopoldbluesky]

@@rogerheathcote3062 Oh yes!!!

[@lassorb4752]

On every single album ever made but ok 🙄😂

[@johnkaplun9619]

Well what if you just bought a tape machine like me and don't have plug-ins or 2k for a UA?

[@remikristiansen489]

I actually liked the sound. Good value at that price! And it looks great!! ;)

[@GlobalOffense]

Thanks for the review. What are those white speakers?

[@e.b.e.4078]

Avantone Pro Mixcube

[@updown5238]

The KT-76 has been a great addition to my studio so far, been using it on mono piano blocky chords and loved it so much i bought a second one today. Looking forward to trying the Andrew Scheps back buss trick with this pair of 76s, they're a steal at the price and sound fantastic. Great for learning about audio outside the box too. In response to this video i say DO BUY THIS!

[@brianwynn10]

What about on vocals will it make vocals 3d

[@romenpheonixx7005]

Why aren’t the settings the EXACT same on each unit. And I heard distortion.

[@Featherlightstudio]

Wow, just saw this review and I have to say that normally your reviews are interesting and entertaining but, this review is borderline irresponsible. Of the more than 25+ mix and post rooms we deal with on a daily basis that use these units, literally none of them have reached this conclusion. In fact, most, if not all of them insist that they are nearly indistinguishable from the intended reference, the blackface URI models. Thats a lot of full time productions houses reaching that conclusion. This is starting to look a lot more like a youtube ratings grab than an actual review and thats a disappointing trend here, if thats the case.

[@Hassan_Omer]

On the URI the kick sounded bigger than the rest. So if we say that "there isn't a big difference", probably when it will be used on many tracks of the song, these small differences will add up to make that 5% to 10% in the end and make the difference even more prominent or sound even better.

[@Jordan-rb28]

Not quite, that's if you assume that he nailed the relative settings for each compressor (the blueface/Rev. A compressors are literally diff models and sound quite different and more colored, so not really possible anyway) but he failed that badly anyways because he was getting on average about 7 dB GR on the blueface plugin, meanwhile the hardware was getting around either 3 or 5 dB GR, sooooooooo the differences in his settings alone (orrrr the differences between the hardware Rev. A clone he as and the UA/Urei Rev. A modeled plugin he has) are just not nearly scientific enough to say whether or not they're 1% or even 20% different.

[@mewfan84]

I think there's an actual market and need for this, but it's very specific: first analog compressor for live tracking. While tracking, zero latency monitoring is very important. Even a little bit of latency can shift the phase relations in a headphone mix, and often this will alter the performance for worse. Of course separate DSP-processors or powerfull computers with super low latency interfaces will make this kind of product kind of useless, but there are a lot of people with systems that simply aren't powerfull enough for live tracking through plugins.

[@coolvibesradio3267]

have you tried the warm audio stuff? what is your opinion?

[@lishsboy]

Lighten up, Francis. I've got a pair of these comps and I love them. Plus, what the hockey sticks does a vintage Blue Stripe even sound like, considering how many times some baked intern has soldered them back together? I hope folks watching this vid don't abide by the advice. And while the KT's do seem fairly transparent when driven at moderate levels, I have NO problem overdriving them to get some hair on vocals / bass / etc. Hell, if you want character, slam the input FROM THE DAW (no indication of how hard the input was being hit in this vid) or mash all the buttons in. But stop pretending that a few low gain tests are enough to prove that some piece of gear has no character or sounds bad, especially when you admit that you are EQing first, which means that the comp is working against any subtractive EQ you used. And everyone else, buy the 2A that KT makes as well; quality stuff, IMHO.

[@sundaysopranosessions4942]

Also be good if the levels were a little closer KT is down 5.7db to the Urei. Also KT is not a blue face be interesting to hear it against what its aimed at emulating.

[@updown5238]

Well said mate, i've got a pair of 76s myself. Happy trails.

[@updown5238]

Should've mentioned i love them too :)

[@BrandonElliotSmith]

@White Sea Studio What type of lav mic are you using in this video?

[@Whiteseastudio]

Tascam

[@krobo]

Given it's transparency, would a pair of these be tasty on the master bus?

[@producerdevelopment]

Rarren Doe No internal sidechain filter

[@jmccormick7253]

You'd have to mod two units. It's not actually that transparent in my experience, but you might want a gentler ratio on master bus.

[@saardean4481]

its a bit contradicting saying "i need time before i can make a review about this unit" but on the other hand call plugins "Snake oil" after 5 minutes of use and without even reading the manual on the ones you dont immediately understand.