It often seems impossible to get a mix finished, sweet and powerful without it sounding "glassy," or to keep vocal takes from sounding "small" and kick drums from sounding papery or puffy. The devices that solve these and other problems are compressors, which bring the signal closer to the dynamic ceiling, smooth out its peaks and give us the presence we need.
Over its long history, British company DRAWMER has made high-quality, renowned analog processors (especially noise gates). Its catalog includes compressors such as the 1960 and the 1969 Special Edition, which rank among the best in the world. The TS2 is not a unit of that class, where half a million old pesetas is just the calling card, but rather an attempt to bring the flavor of big productions to the average studio, offering the possibility of a great finish and that "authenticity" so sorely lacking in "DAWs".
A good compressor is absolutely essential for any self-respecting studio, and while we can usually work with plug-ins, they won't get us past small mixes and bland takes that cry out for something to make our studio sound bigger.
The temptation of a good compressor is very strong, and the main brake is the wallet. I've seen people spend fortunes scrapping old NEVE consoles to extract their compressors and preamps, and you can even spend enough to insert one on every channel. Now all that's left is to see whether you'd dig into your pockets for the TS2...
Description
The TS2 is a module with two compressors in a single rack unit. They can work individually in dual mode or as a stereo pair, where each channel keeps its own separate tube circuit. In principle, each channel's compressor is the classic design based on a VCA and low-noise op-amps (the ever-present TL 072), which is effective and high-quality in its own right. It has attack and release controls like other compressors, but with a first big difference: nowhere do we see threshold controls, "knee" controls (the compression onset curve) or compression ratio controls. Instead we find a single general compression knob, calibrated from one to ten. Here lies the basis of the concept Drawmer carries over from its "high-class" units to this new series, a concept dating back to the early days of compressors where, as in the FAIRCHILD 660 of the '50s, the balance between threshold and ratio depends solely on the input signal level and how much we want to compress.
The absence of a knee control is due to the "soft knee" design inherited directly from its more aristocratic siblings, specifically the 1969. It is a system whereby we won't clearly notice the compression kicking in, even with very short attack times on percussive sounds, where we leave hardly any signal unprocessed. On the front panel, a chain of red LEDs for gain reduction metering is clearly visible.
After the compression circuit, the processed signal passes through a small tube amplifier that not only boosts the level but also adds a special coloration, which we can adjust with a "drive" control, with its own progressive LED, and an on/off switch that lets us compare the tube drive by ear—very useful for correcting differences in EQ and added distortion. The tube is an ECC83 (12AX7) branded EDICROM, a British company that usually supplies material to other manufacturers, who then print whatever brand name suits them. This circuit behaves progressively and linearly, reminiscent of guitar amp preamp designs.
Finally, each channel has an input gain control and one for the analog output, which doesn't affect the optional digital output. We can monitor these levels with the same LED meter, but we'll only see the input level if we press the "bypass" button. That makes me want to ask the designer in charge whether I'm supposed to keep turning to the console while adjusting the compressor instead of using the TS2's gain, or just hit bypass in the middle of the gig. Somebody explain that to me...
The potentiometers are Alpha—functional, not high-end, but of proven durability, so we will have noise-free control for many, many years.
The overall quality of the soldering and boards, as well as the components (some, like the calibration pots, made in Spain), is very good. No component is surface-mounted and all boards are double-sided fiberglass. All of this gives us confidence for heavy use on the road.
Around back
On the back, our module has electronically balanced XLR inputs and outputs per channel. They are made by NEUTRICK, which guarantees durability and good contact. There is also an unbalanced set on ¾ jacks, and a "key" input for the sidechain so we can trigger each compressor externally and use them as de-essers, for example.
For power, there is an IEC socket and the corresponding cable, which feeds a generously sized toroidal transformer. Each channel's startup is protected by an individual relay, and there is a general internal fuse to prevent damage from power surges in the mains.
With the test unit, we were left wishing we could insert the "slot"-type module with digital outputs into the slot on the back of the TS2: AES/EBU and S/PDIF, plus a "wordclock" sync input. The slot module, called DG1, switches between 44.1, 48, 88.2 and 96 kHz, always at 24 bits. We don't need to worry about "clipping" the digital output; this time you can tell they thought it through and included a fixed-threshold limiter on the output. This limiter takes a certain amount of abuse without suffering too much from it (according to data from other articles).
Working live
Out on the road we discovered some nice surprises. The most pleasant is how fast and comfortable it is to use. With four moves you're close to the result you want, and the final fine-tuning is sensitive and very warm. That warmth or coloration makes it easy to overdo the tube drive, which shows how pleasurable it is to use. The quality of the processed sound is ideal for use with digital consoles, and it happily accepts high amounts of compression, although we still have to be very careful with the release control to avoid pumping, which on this unit takes a while to appear.
Distortion is low and well controlled, but the "deep" sound promised in the ads is there. The low-noise circuits deliver, and the sound is very transparent, as if nothing were inserted at all—which is how it should feel in units of this range.
Live vocals clearly gained in warmth and presence, which makes up for EQ settings where we push the upper mids in search of intelligibility, removing excessive harshness and filling the space with great presence.
In the studio
In the studio, the impressions were very similar to live, but with the difference that we could analyze the processed waveforms. This is where we see a compressor on par with the competition but with two big advantages: an almost insulting ease of use and a very musical feel, no doubt produced by that circuit design, which is ultimately a nostalgic search for bygone times...
When it comes to mastering tracks, we can't expect a record-ready result in a single pass. In the end I used a combination of a first pass, then a session with the WAVES Ultramaximizer, re-equalization and a second pass, which left me with a powerful but honest mix.
Conclusions
The truth is that the TS2 can be a great choice as the studio's main compressor. The overall quality is good, as are the finishes (metal knobs, etc.), and the sound is not only good but easy to achieve. Live, it more than fulfills its role, while offering an ease of use that will forgive more than one inexperienced engineer. Its rugged finish and the use of components of proven quality make it a good fit for rental use.
On the other hand, let's not kid ourselves: top-quality compressors still cost a fortune, and that is not what the TS2 is aiming for—although with the digital output, and without costing an arm and a leg...
