For self-produced/engineered musicians and songwriters, the Comp II delivers professional sounding results quickly--results you can commit to when recording so that later, you can use the Comp II again when mixing.

The Comp II offers switchable dual mono or stereo linked operation and has few controls to cover all recording or mixing tasks. Like all Daking gear, the Comp II is built in the USA, has a flat frequency response out to 65-kHz, and has fully-balanced inputs and outputs.

The VCA's design and implementation (that's voltage controlled amplifier) acts and sounds more like a FET (field effect transistor) circuit with its feedback topology--most VCA compressors are feed-forward designs. Also unlike most VCA compressors, the Comp II uses a peak detector circuit plus an all-discrete class-A output amplifier.

Daking Comp II Close-Up Left Channel

All controls are continuously adjustable; threshold is called Compression and the variable makeup gain control is called Output. Basic as it seems nowadays--this is of the same design mindset as most of the coveted vintage compressors and limiters of yesteryear.

The other parameter choices use two position lighted switches. Attack is either fast or slow and Ratio is either a low compression ratio (Comp) or a higher limiting ratio (Limit). Release time is switchable between fast (Fast) and a program-dependent automatic (Auto).

The Daking Comp II sells for $1,399 MAP and comes with a world-ready outboard power supply.