The Fairchild 670 Compressor In Action

The Fairchild 670 Stereo Compressor is the holy grail of vintage outboard. 11 transformers, 20 valves, 30Kg of weight. A Beast. Find out more about our Mix & Mastering services on www.DoctorMix.com
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[@oinkooink]

I picked up 2 of these about 3 years ago. One sits permanently on my shaker/ tambourine channel. The other I use solely to dial in headphone mixes for recording glockenspiels. Really sweet.

[@TransistorLSD]

Idk about that... Kinda too expensive just for the shaker/headphone mixes lol

[@Justnicerobots]

@@TransistorLSD lacking a sense of humor here

[@TransistorLSD]

@@Justnicerobots you never know. Fairchilds actually work well for percussion, so maybe he's just really rich

[@Terry-nx8kg]

​@@TransistorLSDIt's good to be rich. It's the only way to live. Don't be a pauper like me.

[@maxreaper25]

It’s amazing how much clarity it adds and distinguishing it adds to vocals

[@phillytee9106]

The sound of the valves add a lovely warmth to most of the sounds, I like the way the compressor hardly touches the weight of the bass going through it classic stuff. Vocals benefit the most from this beauty, they sound really rounded and smooth.

[@Causticghoul]

It has this cloudieness in the mid to high range that's just beautiful.

[@Nexfero]

This is one of those youtube channels I have to bust out the headphones to really appreciate. Just subbed to your channel, i like how you cover professional audio gear and not just mundane consumer stuff.

[@inmemoryofin]

The way it affects the kick drums in the examples is great. It was bringing out some weird modulated sounds in the vocal examples. Surprisingly the full mix examples sounded quite a lot like the UAD and Overloud plugin versions. Thanks for the video!

[@deadrituals]

To my ears it really stands out when tapped lightly, does something nice to the high end. It rounds it but at the same time makes it more sizzling

[@ModularLanding]

Sounds amazing to me. Even the synth sounded slightly fuller. Best on vocals and whole mix from your tracks. I came here because Stam Audio is now making one of these for under $3k... hope it’s good.

[@dismalfist]

Gorgeous machine. Happy to see one in action.

[@tedgerard333]

Cool video. You definitely had the sweet spot with the drums.

[@mattiemclean9882]

Oh man that is beautiful on the drums!!

[@oroszpeter]

a real beauty! i don't know what it does, but my ears like that a lot, and it seems to work on everything. like there's some saturation going on, especially in the high mids, but definitely adding clarity, definition and texture at the same time.

[@WassupFred]

Thanks man for this test!!!! This thing really does do magic ...

[@nebstaism]

Man it makes them drums just roll along like ..... gives them life.... so much vibe .... I wish I could own one

[@niklassilen4313]

This is an amazing video. Just shows how different some of these old ones can be. This one seems to be really "full" and "cozy" somehow.. very thick. Then I've heard others that seem quicker and are more transparent. Strange indeed. Wonder how pristine shape it was and the age of the tubes in it.

[@MrSomchiman]

Awesome demonstration!

[@axelfoley1768]

The most amazing compressor I've ever heard. Similar to the difference between a record & a CD. First time I've ever heard the hardware unit in action😃 It sounded fine to me on the synth too. Sounds awesome over the whole mix also. Instant angel dust to any sound! Awesome on vocals too. I want it...

[@gothamkeys4454]

awesome video keep up the great work

[@tedgerard333]

Just leave it in, mesmerizing.

[@Bassalicious]

It's a f***ing fairchild! I knew it couldn't have been a mistake liking before even listening to that beauty.

[@hayel2015]

Fantastic work

[@lfomelody756]

Very Transparent! Gentle!

[@1htimsgiark]

Keep Em Coming!

[@userthrusound]

your channel is a holy grail

[@GRequinBlanc]

best part was the oooooooo :-) great video - thanks

[@user-lx8ky9yf3b]

It adds texture to the sound

[@luckystrke]

To make a fair comparison, you should LUFS match bypass and "in" in every example. Sometimes it's just louder, and of course it sounds better. That said, it sounds amazing on vocals.

[@Doctormix]

The unit doesn’t hsve makeup gain, so you cant really do a level match test with it. Having said this, the fairchild is not for the novice who maybe cannot tell the difference between level and tone. In real mixing life you just drive the comprssor until it feels right and then you move on ;-)

[@checktheneck]

@@Doctormix obviously, there is no makeup gain on it, but you could easily have done it in post-production.

[@mojito6629]

heaven. If I have these, I would use them on any track possible

[@nichttuntun3364]

This is wonderfulls beautiful sounding with it IN. The Overtone DPS plugin, the FC-70 is very close to this, giving the feeling of legit weight and vividness due to the response action. The unlink function is so great to have in HW and SW :)

[@nichttuntun3364]

@@realityonx3063 hey. Thanks, I got this already. Like FC70 far more. The OvertoneDSP Pultec emulation again is from the many I own by far the best sounding one. They have t exactly that feel of weight I expect from an analog emulation. Try it :)

[@jonsubs9998]

Is it worth it? If you have a commercial studio. You tell your recording artists that all mixes are finished through an original Fairchild 670 at 0.5db of GR, just to give their song that "top of the charts" mojo, since it is an established fact that all music production innovation ended in 1931. Artists flock to your studio. Totally worth it. Also be sure to have a strat on the wall, signed by like Ritchie Valens or someone else that went too soon. And a beaten-up foosball or air hockey table in the waiting room. Make sure it was a hand-me-down from like Eric Clapton. You'll be making hit records like wow. Come find me and give me some royalties after you buy your first Italian sports car.

[@rbrianharris]

I'd like to extend your metaphor. Medical technology peaked in 1931. I insist that my dentist and my child's pediatrician conform to 30's technology.

[@cocinandoconfelismina1418]

@@rbrianharris 🤣 please don't Stop

[@saltyapostle44]

@@rbrianharris They've developed plug-in's for CT Scanners that emulate X-ray machines from the 1950's. All the doctors want thier CT scans run through them. Audio is one of the few things that people want to keep going back to the past becasue they feel like things were better with old technology. Most guitar player's wet dreams are guitars made 60 years ago - becasue they THINK that's what they are supposed to want.

[@homecottage875]

LOLOLOLOL No shit.. good point!

[@weneedtermlimits]

Yeah yeah you're hilarious. You don't have one and so you shit on it. I've owned four 670's and a 660 and done many blind shootouts of everything you can think of. The Fairchild wins everything everytime. If you actually used one, you would agree.

[@nickaleo7]

What a different sound than the more modern version of The Fairchild. This one just opens it up much more naturally compared to the more crushed sound you get from the newer version and waves plugin.

[@ValenteVillanuevaMusic]

What’s the modern version of the fairchild called?

[@beigela]

@@ValenteVillanuevaMusic theres no modern version, just clones. quite a few now actually: there's the unfairchiId by undertone, stamchiId by stam, and herchiId by heritage which does both the 660[mono] and 670[stereo] modeIs. anthony demaria Iabs, esoteric audio research and anamod aII have versions. even drip eIectronics has a diy kit and im sure im missing a handfuI too.

[@ontogeny6474]

What's not to love. Takes vocals through a velvet tapestry of sonic light and roses.

[@centretorresantvicent6523]

Happy with the plugin :)

[@gregtrela]

It transforms that piano part into a record straight away. Sounds great on the both full mixes too.

[@Dudderlyful]

I was gonna say that. It just changed into this dreamy record in an instant

[@gaborpetroci]

It is Impressive!

[@Punkdebutique]

This is one of those few videos that I hit Like before even watching it!

[@jsres838]

Me too!! LOL

[@dazdavison1]

Its like having your ears cleaned out , for the first time in ages its so more clearer

[@MrJvandal]

It's adding warmth, distortion and controlling the volume. If anything it's removing clarity. But it does sound good!

[@marcosaldinio2835]

You are the BEST

[@OriginalRaveParty]

It's a smooth saturated sound. It thickens the bass, and doesn't make the mids and highs overpowering.

[@fabiendebenestcoachetconfe7492]

Sur la voix ça envoie ! En fait, il faut tout faire passer dedans à la prise, et masteriser à la fin. C'est de la bombe !

[@allanlimaverde6201]

It is worth it!

[@greganikin7003]

it sounds the best on any type of horns, brass etc

[@numanuma20]

That is exactly how I use the plugin version. I barley have to dial it in to get an amazing sound.

[@fernandopobletebyfepo4820]

Hola Querido, hoy... 5 años después de este video, veo "How I Produce Disco Remixes..." ahora tienes uno... me encantó... tiene tubos, me recuerda a mi Padre que arreglaba radios a tubo en los '70. Saludos desde Chile!

[@m9shamalan]

youd think for that price they would do a better job racking it.

[@greggodonnell6938]

Unless you have a death wish you never put these in a rack. This thing weighs 70 pounds without the rack, and the sides and back can potentially arc. It has 14 transformers, is decades old, and the power supply is over 480 Volts!

[@HP_____]

Everything sounds louder when IN and a shimmering gloss to the sound. I guess you call it "glue." It's beautiful!

[@checktheneck]

Everything sounds louder, because there is a bad volume match in the examples, but despite this, it is still clearly audible that the compressor has its own character and it really glues perfectly.

[@u2ooberboober]

Made that piano stand out. Good for higher energy track.

[@coolbro6969]

damn this thing rocks

[@troycopeland5156]

That Fairchild is worth every penny

[@sentokistudios4480]

this the best around for drums

[@craigsanderson4330]

It really is the Rolls Royce of compressors, one can only dream of having one. TONE machine. I like setting 5, trust me setting 5 :)

[@nandoblondemobydick5438]

seems to work best on vocals to me. the drums i don´t know a bit better but i have not a good listening speakers, either on vocals it is a game changer

[@mattiemclean9882]

It is famous for being a vocal compressor....

[@nuurnwui]

I try the plugin version on every mix. It doesn't often fit, but when it does I love it. Check out overdrive DSP fc70.

[@ChrisPhoenixBMR]

OMG... after listening to this... I don't even want to work on my music without one hahahaha. MAN! I will surely be getting the Stam version. His units are amazing (I have SA2A and SA4000+), so I trust this will be either spot on or so close I do not care.

[@AboveEmAllProduction]

It's lat/vert mode is amazing

[@annother3350]

Yes

[@ricobonimusic]

Wow!

[@fattyboombatty7736]

Thanks for the review. Not sure I can hear £30K or even £3K worth of difference - the Pultec EQ you reviewed embellished the sound to a far greater degree. May be a bit of volume compensation when demoing at reduced threshold levels would have brought out the differences for my less educated ears.

[@louderthangod]

Really interested to hear how the StamChild compares when that comes out in a few months.

[@JayTheLane]

Formative Dr Mix.

[@blahblahblah1787]

This thing does a good job at smoothing down the spikes without killing the life of the input but if you turn it up to 11 it will punish you and do just that; this was very evident in the drums and vocal sections. Is it worth the price? Probably not for most people but I can definitely see a lot of mastering engineers that sit in the studio for 12+ hours a day seeing the value in it. Just a few knobs seem to be able to do a lot of the heavy lifting and get you to a decent starting point, which is a lot more attractive than tinkering with 20 different menu options from the get-go.

[@joost3783]

it really does sound magic, would have been interesting to hear some emulations in comparison

[@tutorial4779]

8:30 You can really hear all of the tubes. This is incredible. It s one of the only analog gear that is still outstanding but still very expensive and maybe not worth because of the high price.

[@millenniummastering]

Sounds really really similar to my Fairman TMC. Slightly more mid-forward but other than that very close.

[@Paolocampitelli]

my god.. wow........

[@Racingheartrecords]

It's great to hear the real thing! It seems to exaggerate the transients as major part of the sound. I wonder how difficult it would be to simulate this with just a regular ol' compressor plugin and a transient designer. I will have to test this. I also plan to check the IK Multimedia emulation that I have to see if it does what I'm hearing here.

[@rickyanthony]

You would need the same audio sample and also a saturation plugin I think to check it out. Did you manage to do any tests?

[@AlekVila]

@@rickyanthony In my latest production (coming out very soon), I'm using Waves TransX to bring up transients on the drums bus, inspired by this video. I'm also using IK Multimedia's VC-670 in the mastering channel since I'm mastering it myself. It doesn't sound exactly like the real thing, but the mix is better with than without. I'm using it lightly like Doctor Mix does at 5:33. :)

[@kalidesu]

Stop making me lust after unobtainium equipment! XD Damn you!

[@artoriasentertainment4004]

vocals for sure

[@pepe7drum]

Sounds beautiful, the detail on the release or the tail of the sounds is so rich and it sounds, well... expensive lol that's why this thing is pricey

[@johnnyapostal]

Absolutely loved it on drums & even more so on the whole mix! Really brings it to life & Sounds so musical! How can a plugin match that..... but hey i dont think anyone in their right mind would pay £30K for it...

[@braincoral9866]

^^ what Johnny said. 30k, no way..Listen to the A-Designs Nail. Tube compression to die for, and only £2500! I have mine on the stereo bus and it really does bring stuff to life in the same way as the Fairchild.

[@Doctormix]

Johnny Apostal maybe dogital will catch up with that one day. But I just don’t see that happen anytime soon. In the meantime most hits that came out of Abbey Road went through one of those units. FACT.

[@johnnyapostal]

Doctor Mix fingers crossed for that day...But that's why I cant understand engineers who mix completely ITB say that they can very much achieve the same result of high end equipment like this... Absolutely no chance they can achieve that sound ITB... Otherwise this unit wouldnt be worth £30K... I totally believe u when say Abbey ran every hit record through it coz it sounds bloody Amazing! I totally would too if I had one next to me!

[@jameslong289]

@johnny, You have to factor in that most top mix engineers are using source material that's been already recorded on consoles. So even if they do "mix" with plugins, you most likely won't get the same results sonically as the Pros unless your source material has also been summoned on analog gear. Not to mention the final product that you'll end up hearing (Album, radio, youtube, etc...) will be that of the mastering engineer who will most likely end up using a few analog pieces even if the person who mixed it didn't.

[@DemisDjPit]

Siempre genial todos los videos!!! Que cancion dice Rumba? Thanks!

[@bilahmiat2698]

it's worth every penny. and it'll last 30 years...the Rolls Royce of compressors. great on any analog sound, especially drums and vocals

[@D.Uwins777-music]

I would definitely need a pair of output/makeup amps installed.

[@rickenbacker40011]

Holy shit, it's no wonder that is the best compressor in the world Or one that's as highly revered

[@NYlathecuts]

It makes the vocals come upfront louder and a bit more harsh in the IN position that I heard at 11:48 minutes. It almost sound like it is expanding the audio than compressing it.

[@smokemapleinc2412]

It really opens up the sound guys no doubt but is it worth the money?

[@masterpiece6455]

30 K of magic

[@johnvender]

No wonder 660 and 670 are legendary. Please do the same for Bill Putnam's 175 and 176 :)

[@bubz75]

Holy Moly, you guys own that?

[@Doctormix]

We don't own it, but have it available for special projects ;-)

[@terrydoylemusic]

Thanks for putting this together. It's probably as close as I will get to a real one. I have decided NOT to buy vintage gear/microphones because I live in Ireland and it's just too difficult to get tech support and you can't have vintage gear without proper tech support. Or you can have an ulcer :-)

[@oinkbastudios3150]

Awesome! How much was it again?

[@jimcatmandude9316]

It's like dumping everything into a funnel so that it comes out evenly at the bottom or the output as it were...

[@Hogboy345]

Sounds like standard compression to me, what am I missing?

[@LaTigerGenesis]

It seems like you're paying for nuance and subtlety. Maybe not super noticable in a mix but surely missed when bypassed. Pretty cool!

[@u2ooberboober]

If you could get more stereo separation on your track this unit would put the sound out in front of the speakers!

[@amanray]

The sound is just louder, you should test a Chandler Zener, many more changes

[@smokemapleinc2412]

Guys just a question. Cant you get the same effect with ajusting eq and slight reverb?

[@user-gv4bf4zx2s]

Weren't these for final mix? They make recordings both fat and brilliant.

[@lushkordz6643]

this shit is so DopE bRo ...i could listen forever to this sound... i have a really inexpensive little brother of this Boutique Komp which do this very subtle analogic compression in a very nice manner 4 under 500$= the ART Pro VLA II

[@MorenoMusical]

come and get your love drums intro 🤣

[@Zooney1]

Hmm. In my view any decent compressor plus a bit of eq could sound just the same as what this monster piece of equipment achieves for all practical purposes. It would be interesting to hear the Fairchild 670 against say an Electro-Harmonix Black Finger tube compressor which costs about $230. That would be the test!

[@leifd381]

I never got why all the people are freaking out about this one and I still don't. I really tried with the UAD Version ( which I think sounds really similar like this video) and It kills every kick drum and adds frequencys to pianos that I don't want. Its doesn't work as good as a Manley or SSL on the MixBus for me. On the vocals in the Video its absolutely amazing though, but I would never use for pop vocals. All that for 30K Bucks?! haha that was my 2 negative cents. cool that we all have different tastes! :)

[@paulmolive1821]

It makes the kicks sound splatty, if that makes any sense. I wonder how the Unfairchild holds up with modern program material?

[@frankjamesbonarrigo7162]

I have a feeling a couple pultecs could do the same and even more.

[@kubancossack8496]

The key fact of 670 is it makes sound warmer and textured even when no actual compression happen - all just because of tubes and transformers. And this is what impossible to digitally emulate for now. If talking on compression ballistics, saturation - - there are alot of nice plugin compressors that are as good or even betterm depending on situation.

[@douggie4665]

It's really hard for me to hear the difference, can somebody explain what I should be looking for?

[@cocinandoconfelismina1418]

Nothing, just see the rack and enjoy his $30.000🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@thesethreekings]

Sound like a Neve 1073 + light compression...plugins.... Looks cool af though.

[@MusicGearNuts]

The piano was most impressive. Synth was a waste, bass was definitely thicker but hissy, drums were flatter (to be expected) but I'd use a faster compressor, vocals were a huge improvement! Full mix was way juicier. It definitely works well as a final compressor! Great video mate! Thank you :)

[@CA-es2pf]

Classy piano! Sounded like Chicago

[@Olpaj]

This is very impressive, too bad we can't hear all of the nuances because of KZbin audio compression :/ Even though, the difference is very audible.

[@_-_Michael_-_]

Sounds oukey, I heard Beatles used it, I would take one. *checks price* Well, I can afford one in 120 years. Cool!

[@bijouxbijouxbijoux]

It is worth 30k because it is a piece of history. And because if you decided to build one for yourself, then the hours of labor, parts, design and everything else would bring you in the ballpark of 30k, if not more. You don't need a Ferrari to go fast nowadays, but it's a Ferrari ;)

[@libanx8248]

hey do you want to sell it ?

[@juanleonardocamachomedina6014]

es bueno