Akai Hexacomp

Not the easiest unit to use. Small changes on the sliders have big results and you have to "suck and see" a lot to get the balance between compression levels and output mix right. The manual is useful for filling up the space in the box under the lid but not much else. A key discovery was to roll back the master input level a bit so the compressors don't trigger too much, then take the output level up to compensate (like using make-up gain on a normal compressor). Another key discovery was that running off a mains adaptor rather than a battery seems to liven everything up a whole lot - even the led gets brighter, and the sound takes on a whole new dimension.

I am using this box with a Gallien-Krueger RB400-IV head and custom 2x10 + 2xhf cab loaded with Eminence drivers and crossovers. I bought it specifically for a modified Peavey C5 bass to even out response and compensate for a weak top end and boomy low mids, and it has hit the spot big-time for this guitar. I have also tried it with my Warwick Corvette Active fretless and my Aria SWB electric upright and it does the trick with them too. The Hexacomp adds a little bit of hiss when in the fx loop but not too much.

No idea, not had it long enough. Although it has a major effect on my sound, particularly for my favourite fretted bass, I managed without it for long enough so wouldn't consider a backup vital. I would miss it if it weren't there though!

Never had any dealings with Akai so no opinion.

I play anything and everything, covers and originals, from jazz/blues to nu-metal and most everything inbetween. This is my only bass pedal, and it is most definitely the single best bit of kit in my rig. Although my amp/cab setup is custom and quite special I would happily gig with almost any other rig as long as I had the Hexacomp to tweak the sound. The only thing it lacks is the ability to store settings - I really need one of these for each of my basses.

Its Not easy, to get "Your" sound can take ages, took me about 3 hours to set it to match my rig, but now that its set I just leave it on those settings.

Firstly, this thing can sound truly fantastic or fantastically bad, its got lots of sounds in it.
I set mine up to match the exact tone of my Rickenbacker 4003 Bass and 300watt Solid State Stack(A quility one). Basically when its switched on it sounds exactly like my rig and just adds light compression throughout the Range, very subtle, very nice, I love this comp.
There is no noise, and as true bypass its never gonna suck the life outa your tone when not on.
For what I paid, its gotta be a Golden 10!!

I have only had this unit about a month but its built like a brick outhouse, way more solid than my other Akai units(Unibass and Intelliphase), I think being made in Japan and not Korea might have something to do with that. I reckon with care it should last years!

N/A

Great, if you have the patiance and inclination to sit and fiddle for a few hours with this unit, it'll reward you with truly great compression, if you fancy some over the top phasey comp, this'll do it too.

As others have mentioned, this is not the easiest thing to use. With 12 sliders and two knobs, of course it's going to be complicated, and I tend to agree with another reviewer that the way the compression sliders increase the volume is kind of counter-intuitive. The other trick is that as this is the ultimate tone tweak controller, it sounds different with every instrument, amp, room, combination of instruments, or whatever you throw at it. Experimentation is the key - of course it's not much good still having to experiment with your sound halfway through a gig, but with practise it gets a lot easier to control.

Oh yeah, I just discovered an online forum on which a support person posted the frequencies for the bands. They are: 90 250 650 1.4k 2.9k 6k

This thing is amazing. Once you tweak it properly you can get pretty much any sound your after. I sold a Boss Bass EQ, a Boss Parametric EQ, and a Sansamp Bass Driver DI to get it and I could barely be happier.

I mainly use this with either an actice Steinberger bass or a passive Maton bass with DiMazios through a Labsystems valve preamp. For either pick, finger or slap style it gives me the perfect amount of control to carve as close to the perfect tone as I've ever known. So far it has also improved the tonal characteristics of every amp I've used it with - from small guitar combos to big bass rigs.

Recently I've been having fun experimenting with an Aphex Acoustic Xciter which claims to boost certain harmonics. Well the Hexacomp seems to do the same thing and more - and there's more control over gain and output as well.

With the right settings it seems to emulate both the tone and characteristics of valve amplifiers at least to my ears.

I've also been using it with my SX Strat copy, and once again, I'd have to describe it as excellent. I no longer have an urgent desire to buy a Fender Twin as this seems to get the sound I'm after through a bass practise combo!

It's also pretty good as a foldback feedback buster, though I'd recommend trying better solutions if this is your only intended use.

Used with other effects such as distortions, overdrive, chorus, envelope filters and phasers, this thing can greatly enhance their dynamic range to varying degrees depending on whether it is post or pre. I think I prefer pre at the moment.

Just a note on my settings - I've discovered that when used with bass it is best to totally kill the second lowest band, as using it seems to muddy the natural sound of my instruments. This does not however appear to be the case with guitar (I've been loving the sound of this so much with my basses that I haven't paid a lot of attention to my guitars recently).

It's also worth mentioning that this thing has what I would consider acceptably low noise for a foot pedal and is True Bypass. Of course, being a compressor, higher settings will exaggerate any unwanted noise in your signal chain.

I've had this thing for about a month and used it for on average about two or three hours every day. It has never failed - even after I spilt a glass of water on it after a gig. As with most pedals, it really sucks batteries dry very quickly, so an adaptor is pretty essential.

The build quality looks really tough, and the metal bars really do protect the sliders.

They don't make em anymore, so I'm pretty sure they wouldn't care. The Manual was next to useless, but was available online.

Thus far this has proved to be some of the best money I've ever spent on musical equipment - and I've spent quite a bit! After reading the reviews here and doing some research both on the net and with various pieces of equipment I scoured eBay for about 6 months before I found one I could import from Scotland (to Australia). It wasn't the most reliable seller, and was a bit more than I had hoped to pay, but in the end was worth every cent. This is now a staple in my musical setup.

Hopefully one day some manufacturer will bring this back to life so I can stop worry about it getting broken, and give the Rottweiler it is permanently chained to a day off.

Wow, finally had some time to play with this animal & thought I'd add a couple comments to the mix here, and it does take a bit of time to find out what this Hexacomp is capable of. If you don't take the time, you'll miss out on all that's in there! This is to a compressor like my VHT G-100-UL is to a Pignose. The Pignose is useful in many situations, turn it on, & get a passable sound. The VHT wants me to get incremental, try multiple combinations, make the clean channel dirty, make the rhythm channel clean, & so on, because it has so much depth. So, is the Hex easy to use? I suppose a child could use the VHT & be OK after a fashion, but the Pignose would at least be always ready with that sound it makes. For me, Ease of Use has to do with "can I get something I like from this box?"

I am sorry that the overall rating above is not reflective of the true depth and coolness of this pedal. It's more complex than many are ready for, so I can't fault anyone for their feelings. I don't really like Opera, but I do understand the excellence and power it exhibits, and the enjoyment of others. This pedal does so much more than just squeeze my signal.

Couldn't be more solid.

Don't need it!

I was almost in Jr. High when the Beatles first came to the US. Been playing almost 2/3 of my life. I'm willing to goof with anything a bit if there's some possibility of goodness in it. I'm glad I took a chance and bought this Hexacomp, it works in so many ways, including as a graphic eq boost, a notch filter, a hiss filter, a volume boost, oh yeah, and also as a top-notch, multi band compressor.

Ok..first! this thing is fantastic! Ive owned lots of pedals over the last 30!!! years and this is up there at the top!..You just 'fiddel' and theres a lot to fiddle with!..this is a good thing because there is always an option to get what U are looking for!! Dont think!! feel!! and U will get heaven!!

Ive used it with a range of valve 70's Fender amps..from champ to twin...its not noisy.. SOUNDS? Its versatile....good, bad, medium, fantastic,..the choice is yours!....

Dont know? to soon to say...would have two for a gig! because you wouldnt want to carry on playing if it did break!! its that wonderful! but if looks are anything to go by and construction! it will stay and last

No Idea?

Brit POP with a TWIST...unusual piano, jazz chords, mixed with power/ standard bar chords. Fenders, fenders, fenders, fenders..amp and guitars...I want MORE hexacomps I love em!! I actually believe the people who have rated it bad....just dont want anyone to find out how good it is! so they keep the secret! UM? not a bad idea ..I will buy them all cheep he he!! It helps me make music never hinders!

First, I have to say that those who've rated the Hexacomp so very low must have some difficulty with interactive controls. There are so many possibilities here... This pedal has capabilities I've not even tested yet. The six level sliders and the six individual compression band sliders are highly interactive and can be used to make this unit (and these are just some of the configurations I've tried) a graphic eq, clean boost, crunch boost, variable frequency limiter, notch filter, band pass compressor, phase tweaker... It's as easy or as complicated as you want, but it will keep you playing!

I'm using a Parker & a Fender through the following: Hexacomp > Reverend DRV2 > Doobtone/Boss BD-2 > Keely/Boss DS-1 > Sundholm Conrad 210 (if you've never heard of this solid little amp, you need to! Go to http://www.sundholm-acoustics.com & email them or contact them: Sundholm Acoustics, Box 68794, Milwaukee, OR 97268; 503/794-2661; fax 503/786-1550). Also occasionally use my Austin Gold, Zinky True Grit, Boss OD-3, Boss SD-2, Barber DDrv, Geo Dennis DistMindBlues, Butler BlueTube, and Johnson DEQ2 (a nasty, scooped screamer--noisy as all get-out, but highly strategic).

Hexacomp sound quality? On many settings, it's an absolute 10! There are some experiments I've conducted where it has just discombobulated my tone, but I think this just points out the capabilities of the pedal. The range of adjustment is wild. I've found so many different sweet spots, but not really yet begun the voyage of discovery; time, my friends, time...

I can't decide if I like it better as an EQ/Boost, or as a limiter/comp. I actually bought 3, and have been toying around with the Hexacomp in several different board configs (I like pretty much straight tone, 3 or 4 pedals max, with occasional bits of crunch for flavoring). There is really no noise to speak of, unless I shove all sliders and the level knob to max, which is like, why?

I'm giving it a 9 because giving it a 10 would mean spending the rest of my days collecting each and every last unit out there for myself alone, squandering my personal fortune, forgoing sleep,disregarding personal hygiene, you get the picture.

Have not had a glitch. I worry about my other gear much more. If I lost my framing hammer, the Hexacomp, duct taped to a good stick, would suffice, and be ready to gig with that night.

I've never dealt with Akai. But I've not needed to for the 2 years I've owned these three Hexacomps. See reliability above.

Again, I'm rating this a 9 because of the reasons stated above. It has taken a bit of time to explore the goodness of this pedal, but well worth the investment. Looking around at the auction sites, I've not seen any being offered up to date, so people seem to agree with me that it's a true keeper.

The styles I cover range from Blues to Bach, Rock to Hymns, Jazz to Hip-Hop. When I need the Hexacomp's kick, it fits. I've been playing professionally & privately for 32 years this spring & not seen another pedal (or piece of rack gear for that matter) quite like this one.

If one of my Hexacomps were stolen or lost, I would ask the Lord to bless the thief or finder, and use the other two. If I find another one at a good price, I may purchase it anyways for posterity.

I've used quite a few comps, the original MXR Dyna, Boss CS series, several rack units (Symetrix, Rane, dbx) & always found something unique or interesting about each, but (stop me if I'm repeating myself) this Hexacomp is the most.

This unit keeps me playing for the sheer joy of it. I'm not the practicing type anymore (more than enough playing at gigs), but found myself going back to goof around and rip through riffs just for the fun of it.

In some ways a tricky beast, I think it was mismarketed as a traditionas compressor alternative instead of an advanced EQ

so people didn't know how to approach it and the manual didn't really have example settings

I haven't put the guy on the o-scope, but I think what the previous user might have ben hearing is interaction with the compression threshold (or not really aware of the overall behaviou - note he mnetions this is an "unheard of" architecture...multiband compression has been around for a long whle...just not in pedal format)

think of this more like a special, level-correcting EQ than a compressor and things will become clear.

Some very useful effects and corrections can be pulled out...but like compressors / EQ in general (more so when combined this way)...a heavy hand will yield poor results
Less is more

I wish the compressor controls were more comprehensive than threshold

Gaurds for the sliders is a nice touch
metal housing

I DO get a little concerned with the quality of the sliders, but haven't run into any actual problems

I asked supprt a fewquestions...the answer was unrelated boilerplate and I don't think the respondant could speak Englush to any functional level (not a slight on ESL guys...but you figure if you are manning, say, a French support operation, you should probably speak French)

A misunderstood box -- If you've worked with mastering compressors, etc it gives you a leg up as it doesn't really follow "stompbox" philosophy
That's it's strength though too, you can do some unique things, you just have to learn how to use it

+/+ What you see is what you get. You see all the knobs so you know exactly what you adjusted.
-/- When you want to explore the possibilities of the hexacomp, you'd better do it in a studio or at home. Or use only one mode/sound. Re-arranging while playing live isn't a good idea because the slides are to sensitive for changing. Under 'Sound Quality you will notice why. No patches can be made, but only one! The one you see. There's no memory. Manual is poor. For example: No frequency values, doesn't say if compression slides are to to adjust input gain for one compressor or to adjust compression rate. Hexacomp was dumped for low price and I know why.

It's about time somebody says the truth about this machine. I used the Hex in different set up's; before or after overdrive etc. One thing is perfectly clear: THE ELECTRONIC DESIGN OF THE HEXACOMP DOESN'T FIT INTO REALITY. IT's A GREAT FAILURE. Know why? There's a major phase problem in the equaliser. If you don't get a good sound outof it but cannot discribe why, try turning down the (for exemple) 3 even output slides to eliminate these freq-bands. Your Hexacomp will sound BETTER. Turning them up will REDUCE THE SOUND and make it sound as if the channels are working against each other. No electronic engineer should give his approvall to this machine!.

In some reviews or press releases you can read that beautiful phase effects are obtained. Kiss my nose!. These are the same phase effects as to be heard when connecting one of your speakers +/- reverse.

Slim Jim is not Smart Jim

Must be great being a tank of a machine. No really. The outside is perfect though not programmable.

Brought it back to the dealer and got my money back.

My advice:
Get it from the market AKAI (probably slim Jim is the designer)!. Update the inside with phase corrected electronics and it will be a SUCCES and worth the normal (not-dump) price of over 300 Euro's. The principle is beatiful and never seen before !! Really really beautiful. But not in this internal configuration.

well, it's not really easy to use, but it is easy to get many amazing compression effects from this baby!

I use a Les Paul>Akai Hexacomp>Blackstone Overdrive>Morley Emerald Flanger>Voodoo Lab Micro Vibe>Way Huge echo>1966 Fender Deluxe Reverb. Well, I think I finally have my ultimate setup, all my pedals sound perfect to me. The Hexacomp is incredible, expensive, but worth it! I keep it set to one setting live, and kick it in for solos, or ocassionally clean rhytmns, it works great live. The real surprise came when my band recently went into the studio, and I used the Hexacomp on seven songs out of nine! I got different sounds for each tune, sometimes very subtle, sometimes totally squashed. My bass player even used it on two songs, prefering it over the studio's tube compressors for articulate passages. The Best stompbox Compressor I've ever heard. Very Quiet also!

Built like a tank, over 250 gigs without a problem!

No Need!

I hope this box never gets stolen, I've never seen another. Perfectly executed unit in every detail!