Klark Teknik KT-2A Compressor Vs LA-2A | One For The Rack Or Send It Back?
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- Опубліковано 26 вер 2024
- Here's the long-awaited KT-2A vs LA-2A shootout!
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To answer the question in the title: send it back and get a properly working unit and run the test again. Cheers.
I agree. Although the factory should have checked it thoroughly before sending it off for review
The reason I found this video is because I’m experiencing distortion myself and sought out to see how others use it to see if I’m doing something wrong.
@@kayakbandits9894 There are multiple videos from professionals saying this doesn't work.
@@lightafluident.9950 I was going to say the same thing about deleting that bs reason and getting an MPC. Plus, if you're going to post such strong opinions about certain things, you should be able to back it up with your work for it to be valid, and you can't. When you ride that dunning kruger curve a little further let us know, I'd say you're at the top of the ignorance peak atm.
Wow. Mines work perfectly. Nice and buttery with a sprinkle of salt.
Why don't you have at least ten times as many subscribers?
Your videos are informative, entertaining and very well made.
I feel really happy to have found your channel.
Thanks for the kind words! We’re like a little secret on the internet haha! Shh.. don’t tell anyone!
@@PresentDayProduction I have literally just stumbled upon one of your videos yesterday and now I can't stop binge watching everything on your channel.
It's a VIP club here reserved only for a few awesome people :)
That accessanalog thing is unbelievable! Never heard of such a thing before. That's really amazing!
We're definitely living in the future.
purchased 2 of these along with the Blacklion T4BLA and I am completely happy with the results. In November during my down time Ill recap it and replace the tubes with Genalex. These units are perfect for you to learn how to mod your own gear because if you screw it up your only out $299. There are a ton of LA-2A schematics online with part list. Use that as your guide and Mod-On.
Those mods should smooth out some of the low end distortion. But I am totally happy with this thing stock. And for $299 - no brainer. Get two slap them in your rack and enjoy some happy analog. They sound better than any plugin, including my UAD and Waves ... although the T-Racks version from IK Multimedia does sound absolutely beautiful ... thanks for another great video @PresentDayProduction ...
What do yall work that you say $300 is cheap 😵💫
Wow I own 3 of these units and don't have any problems like this.. thats crazy..could be a defective unit 🤔
I have one unit and the waves, and mine sounds like heaven compared to the waves.
@@BesharALAzzawi Yes.. mines give vocals a little more weight.. the plugin is nice but it sound a little thinner.. plus personally I just like messing with the hardware its just fun.
@@BesharALAzzawi I agree
@@t3reeproduction314 indeed and to me it’s way more than little weight! I could use a full Slate Digital VMR with mic and preamps and just compare that to one KT-2A and man the KT-2A kills it
@@BesharALAzzawi I totally agree... I know these units are not like some of the original hardware units so I don't expect them to be that authentic for their price point .. but compared most plugins they can hold there own and I don't worry about updating some of those plugins I just patch and bounce keep on rolling...
You definitely have a bad unit that deserves returning for exchange. it's cheap so even if it's a good product, the quality check is not always there.
Thank you for all these side by side comparisons. I have a KT-2A that also had some distortion that was really difficult to control. I decided to do the Kenetek mod and when I opened the unit, I found that the tubes were not sitting properly in their sockets. I placed them properly and did the opto cell swap and now the unit sounds fantastic. I don't think the distortion had anything to do with the opto cell so I assume it had something to do with the tubes not being properly set in their sockets.
Tubes can cause these issues. As soon as I heard that distortion I recognized it!
hello i have currently the same problem et i don’t know how to know if the tubes are correctly placed can you help me?
@alexandre.a709 You just need to gently push in each tube to mate sure they are sitting correctly in their sockets.
@@quiquepuche6393i think i understand you mean that the tubes weren’t plug enough/correctly so i juste have to push a little bit each one in the emplacement ?
@@alexandre.a709Correct!
Never had a distortion or overdrive issue with mine. If you're getting that your output/input is probably set pretty hot man. Double and triple check your rig because that's not normal!
More cheap gear pls thxx. You are producing most fun videos ever in the music tech genre!
That singer is good.
Wait! I fell in love with the vocals on this demo! Fantastic soulful expression. Reminds me of the late Shawn Smith who happened to be a friend of mine. Bravo!
Check out Andy with Mamas Gun and Young Gun Silver Fox!
That KT is definitely defective. Never had this issue ever! I have 3 of these
Had 2 of them bought in around 2018/19. No problem with either.
Right, just got mine and it sounds dreamy.
I'm from a valve circuit background and that Clark Teknik unit sounds like it has a toasted cathode bias resistor. It shouldn't distort like that, maybe the bias is running way too hot?
So much joy in this review and you used the Andy Platts song again, so good that someone is essentially writing original songs that could have been on a Marvin Gaye album, That the yoof are up to this sort of malarkey gives me hope. Did KT get in touch about the unit you got?
Another great video! Congratulations on the extra subs!
Thanks David!
I dont have a problem with my KT.
Did you check if the KT-2A was broken before shooting the video? Bad tubes? Seems strange to shoot a comparision with a probably faulty unit.
Yeah we did, and consulted with several other owners. Same problem. Many users say they haven’t had an issue, but when we got them to push it a little harder it’s like someone turned the clipping on
@@PresentDayProductionat what settings does this happen, and at what level did you send audio into it?
Look, i own 2 of these, and the only way i can make it distort even remotely like in this video is if i max the output gain, and not even then as bad as in the video, but why would anyone need to do that?
I say this test is either faulty, or angled to make the KT-2A seem like a rather bad product.
@@PresentDayProduction -9 db into the KT-2A was said in the video. i tested earlier, and at those shown settings at around 3:45 it is rather clear to me that you must have a fault in your unit, or something else that is causing the distortion.
Weird... the KT-2A we use at Otterhead doesn't sound quite so crunchy I think. Maybe a slightly bad unit? They great thing about these Klark retro boxes is they're eminently moddable. Otterhead has two of the Klark pultec clones, modded by Pomtec with period-appropriate transformers. Sound absolutely magic.
Hey Anthony! Yeah, I managed to tame it by bringing the gain up from the output elsewhere, and we have requested another unit to replace this one, so we’ll do a follow when we round up all the units in a future video. Generally I like it though, and was very impressed with the EQP-KT as well. It, again, got a bit nasty at more extreme settings whereas the original Pultec could do no wrong, but for the money they’re great units. And, as you say, are eminently mod-able - you could spend more money on a case and knobs alone!
Can you send me contact info to this fellow Pomtec? I suppose I could do a google search as well.... hahaha
Well, anything is 'eminently moddable' if one is so inclined, even SMD.
It's kinda why we call it _gear_ to begin with, no?
People really dont get how amazing and brilliant audio and video engineering is. Its shaped our world more than any other technology.
Antibiotics, refined crude oil, the internal combustion engine, and the coal fired steam driven electric generator are the greatest world-shaping technologies to ever exist. Had you at least mentioned the transistor then partial credit would be due.
@@legacyShredder1 Don’t forget freeze dried noodles!
@@SlinkiestTortoise23 I would have accepted canning or pasteurization.
@@legacyShredder1Cheese on toast, and we’ll say no more about it! Oh, and a cup of tea!
After the fantastic 1176 shootout video i had to do it myself and actually ordered a bunch of clones to try out...
And besides the fact that the Wes audio is the clear winner, the one thing i can say about the Klark is that it was "mostly harmless"
The very opposite of this noise generator .
So, would it be possible to get at least a second KT-2A to verify the result ? I almost think this one really is kaputt.
Thanks for the great video!
Oh bro I dont have any of these problems with mine. I'm running a pair in stereo too
Not only but I have a KT-2a and a 2A-KT hahahahaha
Never had the distortion problem on mine
Wicked vocalist! Great players all round
Thanks Jamie!
Would love to see a video on how you would change your mastering depending on various medium and various streaming services limitations.
That’s a great idea Davide, thanks for the suggestion!
Damn these videos are really good! Wow with the production mate
Thanks Manny! Thanks for watching !
The demo band and vocalist...HOLY SH!T they sound incredible.
You can find their information in the description of the video! They all helped us get the track together back in May for our 1176 shootout video, so we use that while we have another track being produced for next time.
Great video again. wow, this thing's distortion is really sad.
I loved the info. about the Behringer bulb too!
Thanks for your great channel, my new favourite!
Its great to see your Subs flying up too. You deserve every success!
Thanks Mike! 😎
Very informative🙌❤.. Mine doesn't have that problem either.. Could it be that unit?
I love the LA-2A from UAD
The KT-sA sounds very good , I have one. I just switched out my tubes and it sounds so good !!
Which tube did you use
Strong D'Angelo vibes on that singer, my god. Im in between 2A and KT-2A mostly for r&b/hip hop stuff and really dont know which to choose. I really like the warmth of this but dont know if 76 is more versatile. You should have x100 subscribers btw!
edit: just listened to examples and CLA 2A is waaaay behind. Really good value on KT and Access
hahahah. i say the same thing when i watcgh this video . D angelo vibe . really goood singer
i just got myself a kt-2a and it sounds beautiful. none of this ugly distortion. just fyi for anybody thinking about it 3 years later.
many excellent reviews of this unit. these days it’s very very close to the original.
The singer has so much soul, great singer : )
Came in for the Klark Teknik KT-2A but found an almost newer version of Al Green! Nice track. Guy's, what is your opninon on the ART PRO VLA II compressor as a first outboard ?
I love mine wouldn't trade it for anything
Guys the unit is defectuous! I can't believe any one would put such a product on sale!
We want pictures with the HK pants! Great video, even if it's really a somehow broken unit, it sounded good for the price.
keep up best videos ever
I honestly think you must've been sold a dud; that distortion's dreadful. My one's fine mostly. Although, after modding a pad onto the output, there's in fact a nasty useless clipping zone that takes up half the output gain knob's range (around 60+). Either way, something is a iffy with their output stage design, maybe some mismatches, who knows?
Thanks Harvey, I did consult with several KT owners and there seems a 50/50 split - some say it’s fine, others say it just clips horribly so I guess it depends how you’re driving it.
He has to have a dud.. i dont have problem with my kt 2a
Send it back, that unit is obviously not in good shape. You should be able to crank the output without any problems, in fact it has tons of gain. Thanks for the vid anyway!
mine works perfectly. I love it!
Works fine for me, same audio interface.
I have 2x KT-2A and even with the output gain at max, I can *maybe* get that amount of distortion.
But you know, you didn't really bother getting a properly functional unit for the review, which is good, cause these things will stay cheap enough for longer to buy more of.
I agree. I got a pair of the KT-2A. Absolutely perfect and not a single bit of distortion. The self noise is also astonishingly low. Prefer it over any LA-2A plugin including the UAD MK2 version. And I didn’t particularly enjoy the Analog Access version, which could even be a plugin lol.
Maybe it's the responsibility of the manufacturer to send him a functioning unit?
@@morbideddie agreed, but someone needs to let them know that the unit they sent, is a lemon.
Love your content, but wish you'd normalize the samples, so I don't have to constantly increase the volume for the samples, and then turn it back down for talking.
Thanks for the suggestion
Why were none of the meters showing gain reduction in any of the compressors? Where they real time vids of the compressors or just pics of the compressors?
why Dara O`Briain talks about compressors?
Sounds like someone spilled a fine pint of John Smiths over the KT-2A.
Tiny correction around 2 minutes in: more light leads to the LDR's impedance *decreasing*, shunting more of the signal to ground to reduce gain.
Now im just waiting for the ssl bus compressor knock off!
I’m sure it’s coming!
@@PresentDayProduction they've been around for yrs
Too much exciter on your opening music ! ripping my tinnitus apart
Again the waves plugin blew me away, very impressive
Hi there. I notice the claret meter was over -6 dBFS light wich means over +10 dBVU...
Can you not just run UAD plugins on any PC/Mac? I’m pretty sure you don’t actually need their hardware to run their plugins...
Edit: So I just looked that up and what on earth! I’m so incredibly baffled right now! I always thought the dsp was more of a gimmick and you should just get a better cpu for a fraction of the price. I still think that’s the better alternative but now UAD stuff seems waaaayyyyy less enticing...
Yeah no distortion on my unit, you have a defective unit
This dude has a great voice...
I'm a bit confused, Example: when the Rhodes is playing and your saying Heavy 7-15DB Gain Reduction, only the KT meter is showing reduction. The LA2A and CLA Plugin look like they are doing nearly no GR at all? Or are the faceplates across the bottom of the screen just static graphics?
Correct. They’re just a sign to show which is playing. Static images
Defective unit
You got a bad unit mate, it happens. I have one and its really good. Sometimes it can distort but i just power everything off and clear the current then power it back on that usually fixes it. Its electronics sometimes they just act up 🤷♂️
Hi buddy ,hi every one, i own two of this units and they work fine. a couple of 76 KTs also and i love them too, besides two EQP KTs. Love them all. good job.
change that unit and give it new try.
Can you compare am la3a next time or even include cl1b or chandler opto
You know, I don't actually mind the KT-2A distortion on the Rhodes. It actually gives a bit of much needed grit to an otherwise overly polite performance. Also, maybe you should have used a song with a greater dynamic range to give those compressors a real workout
Really interested to know…
Did you get the hello kitty pants ?
this whole servo online mixing thing has given me an idea for a side hustle :3 basically do the same thing from home studio theres a lot of people with equipment that could be put to good use with some servos
I don't have anything like that on my unit. Defo a problem with the unit.
That's what I was suspecting! Thanks for making that clear!
I own 4. No distortion. It’s got the original tubes. I love them. Blows my plugins away.
Lol you have a defective unit. Replace and do it again. I have never heard any distortion on mine.
your videos are the best...I'm hoping its a dud as i had it on the purchase list, I'll keep working with the UA plugin for the moment
Hmmm… besides the obvious distortion (and it’s not even a pleasant distortion, it’s harsh and “fizzy”) what’s going on with the VU meter on the KT during the comparisons of solo’d drums, bass, etc. ??
From what I can see, The KT’s meter is sitting static at around -3db, while both the AccessAudio’s Teletronix and the Waves CLA meters are at 0db…
The evidence does seem to point to the KT (or at least this KT) as being defective…
And if it’s not defective? And this is the way that the KT’s actually do sound? Then perhaps they’d still be useful…as a big, expensive paperweight.
oooh nice!!!
La2a sounds amazing at heavy compression settings
Your explatation of the 2 release stages was ... different and gave me a good laugh.
I wonder if your unit is slightly broken. The distortion was really gnarly and it's impossible for me to imagine, that the guys at Klark just went, well here you are. I can't compare it myself, so maybe it's a huge design flaw.
And again, as well the last times, maybe the best KT-2A review so far.
One last though, maybe the guys at Klark got digestive problems and therefore messed up the release?
Thanks Peter! We did compare with several other units, and they all exhibited the same issue, so I reckon it’s the digestive issue that’s the problem! 🤣
@@PresentDayProduction Let's wish them well then^^. Although it's kinda sad, even if a good chance for some DYI-ing.
@@PresentDayProduction I don't share Peter's views... Could you just leave your 'toiletries' out of the videos, please?.. Some of us are having dinner while watching these.... Ugh..
Also it's *very* unprofessional... Not against being silly, but being disgusting and infantile is another story...
@@galgogergo I had a laugh about it, so I humbly disagree.
I bought a kt and the bell shapes don't even match so some frequencies are more resonant than others. QC is very limited on mehringer. I also think these units might benefit from removing the transformers.
@Lighta’ Fluid Ent. You’ve commented this so many times - why? We got the message the first time
Love the song who is the artist?
It’s a track we produced specifically for these videos. The singer, Andy Platts, is in Mamas Gun and Young Gun Silver Fox, so check them out! Thanks for watching 🤓
I didn't find your promised review on Audio Access, are y'all still planning that? Great job matching the levels on the comparisons.
Just got my Horizon upgrade, it's nice to hear cla still at the top of the pack.
Thanks! Yes, we're planning it but there are a lot of videos on the to-do list! Thanks for watching.
KT2A didn't only hold up to the LA2A, but showed off it's own take on that classic comp.
I liked the low end color most on the Klark. If they can fix the distortion, I'd be very interested to hear again.
Also, if you did this video pantless, none would be the wiser!
We fixed the distortion by reseating the valves. And weren’t wearing pants for either the video or the fix…
You guys pack a lot of informative stuff in these videos, and keep it entertaining! You could cut a lot of the nice graphics and make it more bare-bones, but you don't, and this level of polish is so appreciated! I agree with others, you must have gotten a lemon, that bad gain-staging problem doesn't pass the smell test for me.
Thanks for your compliments. We really put the effort in to make our videos great quality. This one in particular took quite a long time and lots of remakes. We are definitely going to do a follow-up video soon on all 3 or 4 of the KT units that we have, and investigate the distortion issue
@@PresentDayProduction I can tell it takes time and passion. I work in live sound and video production, and I know it can be a real drag with re-shoots and giving it that last 20% of polish. Lots of temptation to give up/or "that'll do" but I genuinely appreciate that you haven't compromised. It makes your talent and your knowledge come across that much better than others!
Did you guys use it as an insert into a preamp or cosole? It will distort with an unbalanced connection.
Balanced all the way.
@@PresentDayProduction Appreciated the reply to a 2 yro video... I love your videos. I'm an IT Director for a Uni and manage few audio engineers. Your expertise is spot on without any snake oil, that often gets misunderstood in the audio industy.... Wonderful production quality as well!
Hey guys, great video again!
Re the distortion - just checked my unit with output round full at 100 and there is no distortion. My unit is a little bit of a 'Franken Teknik' though as I changed a few things (Photocell, Tubes, Transformers, Coupling Capacitor). Don't remember any distortion before I changed these things but the output has always been pretty hot.
Could be a couple of thinks - possible bad tube? (but guessing you checked / changed these) Could also be potentially a bias issue?
Anyway great videos! 👍
Thanks Piers! We’re looking into it, many users have experienced no distortion, many have. Interestingly, all the ones that have are in the UK. Maybe there’s a technical difference with UK models... don’t know... looking into it! Can I ask where you’re based?
@@PresentDayProduction Yeah sure, I'm based in London - the unit I have came from DV247 I think in Romford. It could just be sloppiness with biasing the units, but I could be wrong. There is a way to test with a 1khz test signal and an Oscilloscope, which would show if it was bias problem - it would have to be way out though so not sure if that's really what it could be.
I was planning to run the files you guys have provided through the one I have here could send them over to you if that was of interest?
Great shout with the Access Analogue site - I didn't know about this and wanted for a while to test a couple of things against real units.
Mine works perfectly.
The musicians - are they a band or just separate guys pulling together to record some songs? (I mean, they're really good.)
They are friends of ours, this song was written for our 1176 comparison video back in May, you can find the links to all of the musicians in the description of this video!
And no, they’re not a full time band. They were together for this one song.
Thx for the video! Are you sure distortion is not specific to your unit?
great work guys.. love the videos.
appreciate all of your hardwork.
How much for mastering work btw?
Thanks Roberto!
Head over to cosmic-audio.co.uk/mastering for all the info :)
Yep I returned my surprised sweet water still has it in store
Mine actually sounds great! I’m using RME UCX with perfect gain levels and noise free beautiful sound! 🤔
Mine definitely doesn’t do that, pls run the test again with a working unit!
great vid as always. surprised this unit made it out the door with what is obviously a gain issue. can't wait for the follow up when you get the replacement.
Unfortunately it seems a lot of their units are making it out of the door with issues...
AND again - @Lighta’ Fluid Ent. - you realise you’re commenting on literally every single comment, this isn’t constructive at all
Asscess analog and such things seem like a great way to not worry about getting ananlog equipment for quite some time... as long as you don't need it all the time
It's good that it's not awful and can be alright
Your KT unit is definitely defective. I bought one from Amazon and had to send back for similar issues. It was used or refurbished I believe. Took a chance and got another from sweetwater and I absolutely love it. So much I actually bought another. Now I can’t compare it to a $5000 unit. But my ears say it sounds good. I can set my interface gain at 2 and crank up the KT and it is clean tight. Not noisy at all.
Thx for sharing great video.
For vocals and acoustic guitar.
KT2A OR DBX 160A. in your opinion.
Or something else that's not so pricey.
Thx, hope to hear from you soon.
Infact any experienced musicians from the comments thx.
Subscribed! What a great channel find! Looks to be a problematic or defective unit.
Can you revisit this with mods?
The CLA sounds muffled in comparison to the LA-2A, which just has more air, the KT sounds useable on drums but really craps out on high frequencies. That said, the CLA has it's place as it is very smooth.
I’m sorry but I thought the distorted Rhodes sounded wicked...am I a pervert?
Yes, you are! I actually quite like it too... just not in this song!
hmmm weird, sounds like something's clipping (doesn't sound like tube saturation) sounds more like a clipping IC or DAW. I own a KT2A, and it sounds great, not like this at all..I can push it very hard, it'll just saturate the transformer and tubes, sounds good.
oh dear - you've definitely got a duff unit. I've one and it sounds great. It works great paired up with an 1176 on vox, fab on bass. Hope you get another to try. This will be the only risk with KT. QA. Get a good one and it will be a very useable tool. Its possible the switch mode supply is the problem - and that is the only thing that concerns me about life of these units, having the switch mode supply go south on a TC Electronic M3000 before...
oh, and tell the drummer the Oktava ML19 cardioid ribbon is thoroughly approved of from here. Assume he got it from Stewart of Xaudia,
I can’t believe you did a review with a bogus unit mine is straight awesome it’s not a LA2A. But it’s better than the plug-in
The Waves seems to have a mid/high boost, and a lack of bottom end, and the KT seems way too lumpy in the bass. I only like the LA-2A
The waves plugin sounds "dead and flat" in comparison to the hardware.
I had the same problem with a defective Kt 2a, I've sent it back for a good one and then it works good
wow..The vocalist has a Marvin Gay vibe...(sounds really good and soulful).