Marshall ED-1 Edward the Compressor

Easy to use controls, though hard to see the settings on the knobs because they're very shiny. They are 1;Emphasis, to bias a certain part of your frequency range to be compressed, 2; Volume, you know, 3; Attack, attack speed, 4;Compression. The manual is pretty clear on what they're supposed to do. No setting has a bad sound, but in some the transparency of this thing makes it hard to hear if it's on. Not all settings are useful though. The manual can be downloaded from their site. It's a good bypass, too. No noticeable change in sound when it's off. On maxed compression there is some grit in the sound. I use the ED-1 to tame my angry fasel-crybaby and to define the sound of my guitars a little more.

I use an Epiphone Dot with a GFS Mean 90 in the bridge and a StewMac Golden Age in the neck position, mainly. Amps; a Session Rockette 30 or a Boogie clone studio preamp and a tube power amp through a Kitty Hawk cab with a decent Celestion speaker. Effects are a fasel crybaby, ED-1, TubeWorks Real Tube o.d., Maestro Stage Phaser, EHX pulsar trem, Akai headrush looper. The Ed-1 starts getting a bit noisy after compression settings of 2 o'clock, which is later (better) than the Boss CS-3. Quiet otherwise. It does very well in the chain I just described. I recommend it in front of an aggressive wah, and in this chain it can still make my o.d. "talk" like I want it.

Seems very well built. Would gig without, but that goes for all of my effects. I am likely to get another one for my practice space. It's pretty small too, good for pedal boards.

no idea

It's great for funky stuff cleans and to stand out more in a noisy environment, which are the 2 things I got it for. A bonus is that I could get rid of one wah that I kept because it wouldn't overdrive my amps, like the fasel one, even though the fasel sounds better. With the ED, the fasel-crybaby sounds great without overdiving my amps.
Been playing over 10 years. Have a few other upgraded weird guitars, and more effects which I use less, or that are cheaper alternatives to the ones already mentioned. Love the ED-1's small size, well-builtness and quietness. Nothing to hate, really. Compared to a Boss CS 3 I'd go for the ED-1 any day. It definitely helps me make music.
One downside to compressors it that I get used to the sound quickly, so once in a while I switch it off to hear what it does.. but then it's very obvious.

Well there are 4 knobs(volume, attack,emphasis and compression) so It will take a bit longer than just plugging in the Marshall ED-1 Edward the Compressor and playing as I'm guilty of.
There is a helpful manual to assist you to get the basics though

I'm using a 1982 Les Paul custom with Burst bucker puck ups, custom Strat,Gibson Explorer,a 1983 Gibson Invader (among others)thru a Planet waves tuner FoxxRoxx Octron,Fulltone Clyde Deluxe,Marshall ED-1 Edward the Compressor, Fulltone Full drive II,(these are in a chain direct to the amp)
Fulltone Choral Flange(n the flange setting)Fulltone Deja Vibe,MXR Phase 100,Pearl Chorus and a Pearl Delay,Pearl noise Suppressor (old school!) a MXR Kerry King 10 band EQ ,BBE Stinger in my effects loop, into a Marshall blues breaker.
I did have one of those generic "Ross Compressor clone "kits which I wrote a review about already,which got removed and now the Marshall ED-1 Edward the Compressor has taken its place.
A noticeable improvement with way more variations as well.
Setting the volume level at about 11 o'clock seems to get about the same volume setting you already have,the compression at about 3o'clock ensures an ideal sustain.
Theres also little to any noise from this pedal,Of course I leaned a while back NEVER to max out any effect unit too since that typcally cause the excess noise issures

Its built out of metal .can't imagine it breaking easily

Bought it used so ,N/A

I've been playing for 30 years .Playing rock,blues and metal.
I'm a gear junkie of the typical sort.20 odd guitar 4 different amps,you know the deal.
I've used a Marshall amp,but with all the pedals I have gone through never had any Marshall effects,I saw this on ebay cheaper than the handmade noisy piece of garbage clone I had and snapped it up, Since those are the only 2 Compressors I have used ,I'm happy with this one so I would more than likely replace it should something happen.Its not some handmade,upscale organic boutique pedal but its gets the job done and that what matters. Theres enough options for any player with this .I needed a slight sustain, with little to no noise and it more than performs its requirements.

It's a compressor, they're hard to understand, but once you know what's happening with what you'll get it.

It does it's job. It's a simple pedal - my only issue is that it was a bit buzzy at times, but that's what you get.

I thought I could depend on it, but then the piece of shit decided to die on me - the switch broke completely, and fell into the cavity of the box. All minutes before a gig. Bastard. And then had to get it re boxed by my local electronics guy, because the new switch wouldn't fit into the old box because it was too big. He fixed it up okay, but now I have to use a battery. And there's no easy battery access a-la Boss pedals.. dammit. Kent.

Couldn't bother talking to them about warranty or anything. Fuck it, dealing with that stuff is too much trouble. I don't know what Marshall are like so.. No Opinion.

I had faith in this pedal in it's use as a small booster pedal for "just a little more dirty" bits in songs. But then it fucked up on me. Hopefully it will survive now in it's new shell...

After reading the "suggested settings" in the document and playing around I got a good understanding of what each of the controls does and how they interact with my amp (and other effects). Like most good pedals it takes a little time to understand how to get the best out of it.

You can get a good variety of compressed and boosted sounds from this pedal. Its interaction with my amp (Cornford Harlequin) and other pedals is generally very good. FYI one exception is my Crybaby Wah which does like it for some reason - no problem just noticed it when I left it on. I can get a good range of sounds, straight forward boost, gentle swells, and on the edge of feedback.

No problems

No used

For the price this is a great unit. I had a Dod compressor pedal before and the Marshall offers far more tonal and functional possibilities. You can use this is several ways (which makes it tempting to put an additional one in my setup to add a switchable option). Would I replace it if I lost it - yes.

not easy to find your sound. after alot of fiddling around with it, eventually it will suit your needs (nicely too)

i use it for soloing. for my solos, i like the volume to be raised slightly and my distortion to turn more clear and predominant and it does just that.

one little comment. i have emphasis set to max hi so the high sounds are nice, but the lo end is a little groggy. i dont mind this but i bet some people might.

great. one 2 things to mention

1. i put in it a grocery bag to get a surprise band practice and i scratched the marker off my emphasis. you'd think the maker or some of the worlds leading amps could produce a pedal that the marker on the knobs doesnt scratch off...just be relativly gentle ( i dem mine back on with a permanent marker and havent hand a problem since.)

2. after it came out of the bag, i noticed the compression knob was bent ever so slightly.

these 2 were out of my own stupidity. this has inspired me to build my own pedal board so this will never happen again.

ive honestly loved this pedal since i got it for my birthday. i didnt know what it did then but i still loved it. i think everyone could benefit from having a compressor and id recommend this one for the price.

This is a touchy comp. It takes a fair amount of toying around to find the tones and sustain you are looking for. However, once you get it, you get it. Then this thing is gold.

I play a custom Borys guitar through a Crybaby, TS-9, ED-1, DD-3 and an Ernie Ball volume into a Fender Deluxe Reverb or Champ Amp. Like I said, touchy. There are some really great sounds that come from this pedal once you get it dialed in. I really like this pedal for the clean sound. The tubescreamer just sounds so good on its own so there is no need to add the compressor. If you like to mess around and try all kinds of different settings, this is a good pedal. The only sound issue I have is that there is a small "pop" when you turn it on or off...

So far so good. No complications.

This pedal has grown on me. It took a while to figure it out, but now I really like it. It is a compressor so there is bound to be a little noise but it's nothing worse than any other comp I've played. This thing can produce a lot of different sounds and has some very subtle adjustments (which is great). Overall, good comp.

This is a damn easy pedal to use, the manual is handy if you dont know the kinds of sounds a compressor produces because, as with most Marshall products, it comes with recommended settings.

Lets face it, this really is the top of the price range as far as compressors go, you dont need to go higher than this, it does everything you want and it sound great,exactly what you'd want.

i have gigged it many a time without problem. very reliable.

I ve had absolutely no trouble with the unit what so ever and from working in a music shop, i feel i can big up marshall service, they are very good too deal with

Fantastic. Whatever you want in a compressor, its perfect for it and for the vein buyers out there its good lookin too.

Well whats more to undertstand? four simple knobs and a switch.

It's hard to explain. I bought the pedal a few days ago, I have a standard fender strat and play through a marshall mg100. I am in a band where I play both rythm and lead - mainly progressive rock and a bit of indie. I really hoped for the pedal to add sustain (it does) and increase the volume when i switched it on for lead solo's - using the volume control on the pedal... the volume actually works for clean channel on the amp... but seems to only increase gain on the distortion channel, not volume. I figure this is because of

Well I wouldn't trust the wriring in anything marshall... most of it is constructed in the same way haribo might be, especially leads. However apart from one footswitch cable marshall have never let me down.

Never dealt with them, re-soldered a lead myself, always the best way.

Good for the money, I just figured that if i put it through fx out and in i might get the sound I want (possible that the volume WILL actually alter the volume on the distortion channel when used in this way) In a way I need it, but I can;t seem to get what I want from it... I know marshall intended for the distortion channel to increase volume when less signal or decrease volume when more signal is fed but it gets in the way when using external equipment, so if you want to use this then use an external distortion pedal or an amps distortion that doesnt change the signal in any way apart from distort it etc.

This is not the easiest pedal to use. See other reviews below to confirm this. I think some people are misusing, or maybe not understanding the main features on this pedal.

Manual is okay, but they have a counter-intuitive setup on the "hi-lo" knob. I think this is screwing up some people. Some even claimed they can't hear a difference. See if this helps...

The way you test a feature on a pedal is to first EXAGGERATE IT!
The way to find out what the "hi-lo" or "attack" is doing, first set hi-lo, attack to mid 12:00. Then set the compression full on. Set it to "10". Now play a trill or let someone else play the same riff over and over...now tweak the hi-lo slowly throuh it's whole range. Then just max and min..fast. The thing is you have to both play high notes AND then do it with low notes. Then you will see what it does.

The "Attack" is very hard to understand. I did the same with compression at 10, and even then it is weird...you have to try it yourself, but remember to 1) wait between different settings to be sure the compressor turned off again...wait til the signal dies down. and 2) try different attacks...hard pick attack, or soft strum.

unfortunately, Marshall chose to not stick to typical compressor settings/names for controls. The hi-lo works to compress that section more...I would expect it to be "I set it to high, I want more highs".


I agree to, bonehead "hey. let's make it really retro, y'know like a '55 rambler, let's chrome the hell out of the knobs!!" oughta have been fired from Marshall..or consigned to a hell where he had to tweak knobs in semi-dark stages, and be right on the money.

You cannot SEE the settings if you aren't outside on a sunny day, with a magnifying glass. Stupid. Also they are long, which concerns me as far as accidentally changing settings.

I use this with a Carvin MTS3212, es335, strat (main guitar), and tele. Used it most with the strat. I play blues, and this little pedal really can add sparkle. I was getting the "too clicky" but turning down compression (I only want the sparkle..) under 10:00 o'clock, and trying various attacks works for me. I tend to have the hi-lo just at about 11:00.

This pedal is tricky. Sometimes I have dialed in just sublime, perfect tones, other times I have gotten it where it deadens my dynamics on my leads. It is not easy to use (see above) and takes someone with a "love to experiment" mentality to get the best use out of it. I have done home recording for years and was very familiar with compressors, but this is a tricky unit. STILL, I love it (and sometimes hate it) and I know that it is ME that has to learn it better. When it is used in conjunction with other pedals, you need to adjust it.

One thing too...I think somewhere in here someone didn't know if this really was "true bypass"...it is. The way to tell, ALWAYS, is this, you take out the battery, you do NOT plug in power, and then you patch the guitar into the effect and out to the amp. If you have sound through the unit (obviously ONLY when the unit itself is in the off position) into the amp and out, it is true bypass. If not it is not and is buffering.

Seems solid enough. I trust it, though I, like others, wish like hell they had used black knobs with white pointers, or SOMETHING so you can see where you have it set. In a semi-dark env there is just no way to see where things are set!

I think it looks a little more rugged than it is. But other than with time, I think this category USUALLY is a little strange...folks think because something is built in a "brick shithouse" housing it must be rugged. Electronically maybe it is flaky...you just can't tell by heft or look. Time will tell. When someone sets in a rating for this category it ought to be justified by either logic (i.e. something just obviously wrong in the design where you can tell what it is. Example. the Digitech RP-7 has a power cord (like a MIDI plug) that just hangs out there. I've had it for years no problem, but the design is stupid....it is too easy to knock it out by accident, and possibly short!) OR because the person has had it a long time before reviewing.

All others ought to have "No opinion" on this one I think.

No idea.

Blues. This thing REALLY can sparkle up some music.
I would buy it again (maybe not my first priority, and it would depend on if it died a "natural" death, from use, or prematurely died because of design flaws) I believe. For the PRICE this thing is great! For me the key is using it so subtly that you can't really tell it is being used...

In fact, I have had times where I was playing away thinking "man, nice tone I'm getting now) and forgotten I had it on. I look down (again, even the ON LED is obscured by the knobs. Marshall! You guy ought to be designing for functionality ALSO, as well as preserving that "Marshall-quasi Harley Davidson" look!) lean over, and see I have it on...so I think "it can't be doing much" and turn it off and just so slightly have gotten back to a duller sound without it.

This thing shines with a tube amp. Can really change the dynamics as input for OD pedals, etc.

I am thinking about getting two, one set for nice tight rythm guitar playing, the other for solos...

I do like this pedal! But it is tricky!

Easy to setup but you need to tweek it to your liking to be able to really enjoy this pedal. Not to difficult to edit.

I really only use this on solo's mainly. It does sustain very well and also gives the sound that country/southern rock "pop". I run this through my Marshall JCM2000 DSL401 and it loves this thing. I can get that 70ish 80ish sound from Dire Straits to the hair bands. like I say though, I dont notice it to much with the OD on but clean takes it to another place for sure.

Havent had any probs with it. I step on it and it works. I dont notice it eating batteries as I use a Boss PSM-5 power supply and its in the chain with my other Marshall pedals.

Havent had to use them so far, which is a good thing from what I hear about Marshalls Support team.

I play Rock/Country/Southern Rock/Blues and this pedal will get you there. I have been playing now for 25 years and have a full Marshall pedal board. I like the way these are made. Solid as a rock even down to the knobs. Great Sustain. Beats the Boss I used to run.

I don't have much experience with compressors. However, I was using a compressor effect on my pc multitrack program the other day, I loved what it did so I decided to get a pedal for my guitar. It is quite easy to get sounds out of this thing, even for a compression amateur like myself. The manual comes with 4 very good suggested settings to get you started, but it won't take long to get a hang of this thing.

I'm using a very simple setup right now. Playing a Schecter C1+ into this pedal, the ED-1, into a V-Series 1512 Tube Amp. I also own a vox wah, and an ibanez chorus/flanger... but I don't always have them connected.

There is a bit more noise then I would like to hear from this pedal, particularly when you turn the compression level up - I guess that's to be expected. It isn't too bad though. At low/medium volumes with low to medium compression, there is very little noise at all. This pedal sounds best with clean sounds, particularly minor barre chords... the notes glisten and almost seem to melt together. You can also get some very jazzy/funky sounds by plucking single notes and using jazz-type chords. Whereas most compressors I've heard tend to "pop"... this pedal kinda "clicks". However, I actually like the clicking sound! It's great for funk-type playing.
Overdrive and distortion isn't out of the question either, I've used this pedal to get some cool twangy power chord sounds.

I used it with my chorus/flanger pedal... and got way too much noise/feedback. I imagine if I had a better quality chorus pedal that wouldn't happen.

It's quite solid. I would depend on it, although I'd wanna have some kind of backup always.

I play lots of styles, but lean toward garage rock-ish power-pop/punk/metal. The sound I envision in my head is sort of like if the pixies, the white stripes and the queens of stone age got together and had a big psycho jam session.

I've been playing for around 4 or 5 years.
If this was stolen/lost... I would do some comparison shopping before I made another purchase, as this pedal was a bit of an impulse buy.
I do like it a lot though, the only thing it needs is a release control.

Simple - twiddle the four knobs until you find the desried effect.

Ive had 2 of these now - I shouldn't have sold the last! Dumbass. Never mind I got this one very cheap and its really battered but it looks great! I wonder if they will introduce 'relic' pedals. Ha ha. They should. I have comperd this to 2 different pedals and I must say I found it better than the Boss CS3 and I really wanted to like the CS3, however its not quite a pro sounding as the Route 66 comp. Still it is a nice squashy compressor and if you have a decent amp, guitar (and fingers!) this thing sounds great.

Marshall quality.

Marshall are the best at customer support. The unit had a knob missing - phoned Marshall and they sent one to me next day at no charge!

Comps are fairly boring pedals and should not be expensive. Tis one isn't and sounds great.

Four knobs and a well written instruction manual => no problem. Just the suggested settings in the manual sounded really bad, better think out your own.

My setup consists of a mexican Strat, the compressor, a wah pedal and a 65W Laney TubeFusion combo with a Zoom 505 processor in the effects loop (just for a bit of modulation and delay). With a clean or soft distorted tone, at lower levels of compression (max 12 o'clock) the stompbox sounds really great, it lets your tone breathe and come out. When you raise the compression and attack, the sound becomes too much "clicky" and the compressor gets very noisy, too. But I think that's what all the stompbox compressors do. With more distortion the tone becomes unclear and harsh, but I don't see a point why use a compressor with lot of distortion.

It's pretty new, so I don't know yet. But it seems well built.

Never dealt with them, no idea...

Well, I live in the Czech rep. and for the price it's the best you can get here. I have been playing for 7 years now (mostly some rock, blues, funky and jazz fusion) and although this is the first comp I bouhgt, I tried the Boss CS3 and MXR DynaComp before and in my opinion the Ed-1 didn't colour the tone so much as CS3 and it's also a bit less noisy. The MXR sounded far warmer, but it costs also two times more... If it was stolen or lost, I would buy another one.

My ED-1 did not come with any instructions, but it was very easy to figure out...Just play with the knobs until you like the amount of compression.

My currect setup is BOSS DD3 - BOSS CE2 - DigiTech DigiVerb - MXR Phaser 90 - Boss DS-1 - Marshall ED-1 - CryBaby 535Q

I find the ED-1 compression much better than the old BOSS CS-1. I heard so many good reviews about the CS-1, so I paid $104 and bought it. Unfortunately, I did not like it at all.

My compression knob is almost in the center...I don't like too much compression...I find it really helps with leads and solos.

I have only had it for about a month, but it seems to be well built.

N/A

I got this pedal in like new condition for $50 & it sounds great!! If it was stolen I would definitely buy another one.

See it all below in other reviews, especially the 'emphasis' control (I'd call it the 'flab' control) Also, knobs are rank, try and see your settings on a dark stage.. impossible.

Just dumped this off my pedal board because of the 'clicky-ness' of the notes. I've owned it about 2 years+, and have monkeyed with it from time to time, but I just keep being totally put off by the clicks. It also colors the tone quite a bit when on, but I expected that.

Like a tank.

no idea

Wound up using it just for a volume boost, and still didn't care for it much...

My Setup: Epiphone Flying-v -> Volume Pedal -> Attax Preamp (Ed-1 in Effects Loop) -> Crate Combo (Just Poweramp).

I know It's unusual to set the Compressor after the the Preamp section but I use it just for clean settings, and they sound awesome with that setting. Distorted it's crap, but I don't use it that way, so what...

The Compressor gave me tons of sutain, single notes never sounded that brilliant and fat the same time before I had my ED-1.

Built like a tank. You can't destroy it if you use it how it's supposed to. No backup needed.

It has true bypass and it's an improvement to everyone's sound.

Fairly easy to use, as long as you can figure out what "Emphasis" and "Attack" do. "Emphasis" controls which side of the EQ spectrum gets compressed, and "Attack" controls the delay before the compression kicks in. I got it used on eBay and it didn't come with a manual. A friend had to help me out, but once I figured it out, it's easy to adjust and tweak.

I play an American Tele through a true-bypass Vox Wah>>ED-1>>TS-808 modded TS-9 (might be replaced soon with a Fulltone Fulldrive 2)>>Keeley BD-2>>Boss NS-2>>Ernie Ball Volume>>Line 6 MM4>> and Dan-Echo (delay). I primarily use the ED-1 as a clean boost, but also for mild to moderate compression. It's very UN-noisy and really does wonders for keeping the guitar's tone. I play through a Behringer 210 right now (simply for pratice usage and for small venues) but find that this pedal is fantastic. It replaced a Boss CS-3 in my lineup because the CS-3 was coloring my guitar's tone far far far too much. I didn't like the compression characteristics of the CS-3 either but couldn't be more pleased with the ED-1! Being true-bypass (this is argued both ways) is simply a bonus, too! Fantastic pedal all around! The true-bypass (actually called "passive bypass" by Marshall) helps give it a 10 in my book.

Built like a tank. Almost literally. It's HEAVY which shows what it's made of. The knobs are a little tall and I'd almost be afraid of them breaking off in the event of me dropping the pedal. Luckily, it's on my pedalboard and I don't have to worry about dropping it. Seems to be built much more sturdy than a Boss pedal, too. I wouldn't really have to worry about using a backup as I don't STOMP on my pedals. Stepping gently does the trick and helps prolong their lifespan. Great pedal. I'll give it a 9.

Never dealt with them.

I didn't want the Dynacomp because of it's individual tone and more "country" type application, and definitely didn't want my Boss CS-3 anymore because of how much it colored my tone. I couldn't afford a Keeley/Ross/Analogman compressor, and didn't want a big ol' one like a Carl Martin with it's own hard-wired power supply. The ED-1 does the trick with ease, functions as a GREAT clean-boost (with or without much compression), and the passive/true-bypass is a total bonus! For the $80 it costs new at most places, it's well worth it. I'm honestly surprised it's not more popular.

I guess it's simple, we're talking about an effect pedal with 4 knobs (emphasis, volume, attack, and compression). It's impossible to get awesome tone out of it. Manual is simple with basic settings. I'd rate it a 2 overall but the ease of it's operation is included so I'll raise it a few points to a 5.

I play American Deluxe Fender Strats with Vintage Noiseless pickups through Marshall tube amps (heads, cabs & combo). I'm not big on effects so my 'pedal board' is fairly small. I have a Clyde McCoy Vox wah, a limited edition Fulltone Fulldrive 2 S-FR, and a Fulltone CF-1. I bought the Marshall ED-1 compressor and the Marshall SV-1 chorus pedals because they looked like quality gear at a cheap price (I had to special order them because the store didn't stock them). Well, both of the Marshall pedals are absolute junk. They are very solid and really decent looking but the sound is terrible. Now I know why they are only $60.00! Mine are for sale and I only hope I don't take too big a loss on this garbage. Keep in mind that they were farmed out to a half assed company in India that uses an assembly line process with manufacturing gear that we would consider really outdated. The 'tech' at Korg / Marshall told me that though he liked them, he understood they weren't very well recieved and that Marshall HQ in the UK really didn't have much control over the pedals (more of a Korg forced sales plan). He asked me to keep in mind that they were only manufactured to compete with Boss (I admit, compared to Boss, they look, sound, are built, and seem much better) and that he admitted they wouldn't begin to compete with the leaders (i.e., Fulltone, H & K, Robert Keeley, Klon, etc). I agree, these are pathetic and a waste of money. What a mistake... I would never put this crap alongside my Fulltone pedals, my music is too important to me.

I can't answer, I won't be using this thing for one gig.

Marshall amps are legendary and pioneering, the company stands behind their amps (though the JCM 2000 DSL 401 seems pretty poor IMO. Plastic circuit boards right next to the burning hot tubes, cold solder points adversely reacting to the unusual heat, the spring reverb tank bouncing around against the speaker, etc). These pieces of junk are trying to cash in on the name ol' Jim built for himself. They are made in India which doesn't make me feel any better. All my Fulltone pedals are handmade in the good old US of A, I guess you get what you pay for.

Bottom line. Stay away from this fraudulent piece of crap. If your looking for an average $60.00 pedal that sounds ok, buy this. If your looking for tone that makes you giggle and motivates you to play another 6 hours straight, buy something else. Preferably, an American made unit that is handmade. It's unfortunate, I expected way more from Marshall than to slap their name tag on lower than average garbage and I told them that. It's very telling that the guys at Marshall agreed. I'm surprised to read here that several people proclaim this pedal to be the best thing going. Obviously, these people have never heard the top quality gear that costs three to four times as much as these 'kid toys'.

Hey, if you know what a compressor is for, you would not have trouble working with it. However, It comes with a nice manual and sugested settings.

I play a rockwood guitar trough a Fender Deluxe 90 amp. I also own The Jackhammer and it matches pretty good with this unit. I guess it is one of the mos versatiles compressors out there (for guitars).

I use it gigging, recording, practicing and for my electric and acoustic guitar too. it is built like a tank, exept for the knobs that could be broken if you trow it from your second level window.

I have never had trouble with is so far. I konw that Marshall would do whatever to make costumers happy again.

Hard rock, alternative, blues. If stolen, I would buy it again certainly. I hate that everyone wants to try it out, so I get a little pissed off. I don't like someone to touch my stuff like if it was a toy. It is a proffesional thing.

If you need a compressor for your guitar, this would be an excellent choise.

For me its not exactly streight forward enough and needs tweeking to get best sound out of it. Manual is similar to all manuals from marshall easy to read and diagrams of recomended presets to help you get the sound your after.

Im currently using it like this. Cry Baby Wah - Marshall Jackhammer distortion - Edward Compressor - Blues Breaker 2 - Marshall AVT150 head through 1960A cab.

With the actual compression, anything over half way and it starts getting noisy. but dont they all.

Good thing is the volume knob. When playing live, If you want to keep you level in line with others for a more rythm guitar sound without comp then go ahead. Just switch the Edward on when its time for your solo and extra volume is applied without altering your distorted sound or tone although now its compressed for extra sustain. Another way I have used it although only once (maybe I should use it more often) is through the FX loop in my pre amp. So I should get the sound distorted going in to the amp and compress the signal on the way out. This should reduce the backgroud noise level but sustain may suffer. But with the distortion from a Jackhammer sustain isnt realy a problem.

If it wasnt for the marshall badge you would swear it was a shiny metal brick. God help you is you stub your toe on one of these things. as for the insides, its marshall. Itl still work after youve stopped.

Not been in direct contact with Marshall since they refused to produce custom Dave Holmes series of amplifiers. Whose Dave Holmes they said.... pfffft.

As for in regards to this product. Not yet I cant see it dying on me any time soon.

First Compressor Ive tried thats an individual stomp. Apparently its one of the best but it does require tweaking a bit to get right.

This thing will probably last forever unless it was stolen in which case I think I could find another 45 pounds to buy a new one.

Marshall ED-1 Compressor... The King of Compressor/Sustainer Stompboxes. As easy to use as any on the market and, to my ear, the best sounding. Set your amp the way you like it, and tweak to suit.
Just remember that compression is best used in moderation, and you'll be fine.

Effects chain on a SKB pedalboard goes like this: Fender PT-10 Tuner, Marshall ED-1, Snarling Dogs Blue Doo OD, Cry Baby, Danelectro Fish & Chips EQ, and Boss DD-3 Delay. This runs into the front end of a Mesa/Boogie .50 Caliber Head and a Johnson 2-12 Cabinet loaded w/ Celestion Vintage 30's. The pedal board on the whole is very quiet, and even with the compressor on, is tonally sound. I use this with a Les Paul, Lucille, and a '74 Tele Deluxe. Perfect for Humbuckers.
The compressor, used in the Lead Mode tightens the sound, and takes the extreme highs down to a palatable level. Very good for Gary Moore/Santana types of things. In Rhythm Mode, it makes for a nice, chunky tone, and can give you a volume boost, if desired.
We play mostly Blues, but also Soul and some Rock. Lots of B.B. King, Albert King, Stevie Ray and Gary Moore.

This is the thing about Marshall pedals, they're tougher than a armor-plated Humvee. You would really have to try to destroy it. Tougher than my Boss and Ibanez 9 series pedals.

Never had to deal with them.

For Blues/Rock, this can't be beat. I like the Boss, but this is the best to my ear. I've been playing since the mid '70's, and I like this compressor better than any I've owned.(I've owned several)

Couldn't be easier. Needs tweaking to find the sweet sounds of course.

Excellent. I fount it actually improved the tone from my guitar unlike other compressors which suck tone out. Extremely quiet too.

It's built like a brick you-know-what.

Never needed any!

Nicest compressor I've tried. The only other one I like is the Boss CS-3 which is a little noisy at high settings but not unreasonably so.
You'll be hard-pressed to find another compressor as good as this without paying five times as much.

The knobs are quite self-explanatory, but a compressor is an effect that's best used subtly... So by default, it should not be easy to use

Have you read reviews about the ProCo Turbo Rat? Great flexible pedal, but takes your sustain... Well the answer lies here! Now this effect is OK for reproducing your tone to add sustain, but when used with distortion correctly, you can get a great synth-like quality to the notes! Terrific! The emphasis control works well to this effect, and with heavy distortion and the right attack, you can get slight volume swells! Overall, a good pedal, best used with distortion to make light bluesy tones sustain for longer or for slightly synthy effects! Good also for holding harmonics for longer and emphasising them, as they are naturally quieter than normal notes.

I'd rely on this, but it is pretty battery intensive for a compressor... And those knobs are way too tall, one of mine has been knocked crooked.

N/A

As stated earlier, a good match for the Turbo Rat, and with careful settings capable of good tones, such as Electioneering by Radiohead, all those squeeky, trebly tones are there when mixed with the Turbo Rat. COuld possibly do twangy country, but I'm sure there are better compressors for that, that's probably not the right scene fpr this...

It's not very difficult to get the kind of sound that you're looking for out of it. You do need to be patient when dealing with the emphasis, and compression knobs, though. It took me a while to work out a good tone when I was clean, and also distorted. For the most part, it does the job fairly well.

I use an Epiphone Nighthawk into a Morley Pro Wah II>>Boss OS-2>>Marshall Bluesbreaker II>>Edward ED-1>>Danelectro Dan-Echo>>Pignose G40v. I can't say that the pedal makes any noise that was noticeable enough to be a nuisance. It gives me a nice boost for when I'm doing clean rhythm playing, and tightens up the distortion sound pretty good, too. I get a close enough version of the kind of sound that I want, perhaps a different distortion box would be helpful. Some people say that this pedal colors the sound of their guitars. Maybe so, but I have no issue with that. I still get what I'm looking for. I give it an eight, only because you have to really work at it to dial in what you are trying for, soundwise.

It's built like a tank, just like the rest of their pedals, so I would think it has the ability to withstand much abuse. Using it without a backup? I never thought of needing a backup for a pedal. A guitar, yes, but never a pedal.

Never dealt with them.

I play mostly blues, classic rock, and some swing tunes. I think the pedal fits in nicely. I've only had it a month, and I really didn't have much time to sit down with it, and get a feel for what it was capable of. I got it a few days before a big gig, and I just mounted it on the pedalboard, and went from there. Since then, I've gotten to know it a bit better. My previous experience with compressors was limited to ones from Danelectro, and Boss. The Dano model was OK, but I think this one clearly beats it for nothing more than the fact that you can shape your tones on the ED-1. The Boss model was also good, but gave me problems in other areas. Plus it never sounded just right. Can't say exactly why, just never fit the bill. I had planned to try a Dyna Comp, but this one was suggested to me, and I figured what the hey. I've never been much of a compressor guy, until recently, when I've actually had a chance to see just how much of an improvement they make. I think from here on, I'll always have one on my board.

Well with only four knobs you wouldn't think it'd be too hard to use, but it is a little awkward to work out what the controls actually do (apart from volume, obviously!). The manual is pretty brief, but it does give valuable advice when it says to experiment. Once you have an understanding of what each control does, it's simplicity itself to use - it's a stompbox for God's sake!

I bought this primarily to use as a volume boost for solos, and placed after my distortion box (also Marshall - Jackhammer) it certainly achieves this, although it seems to cut a fair bit of gain out of the tone, which I wasn't too happy with. On clean channels it sounds superb, and you can get quite a fair range of tones from it. If the compression is turned up too high then it can get it bit nosiy (could be my crap Peavey practice amp though, and it's completely silent when it's off). One thing worth mentioning is the difference between placing it before and after the distortion box - after and it gives a more rounded tone and more of a boost, vice versa if placed before.

It's remarkably sturdy, and I've never had a single problem with it. I'd be pretty happy to kick the thing around on stage, although I suppose the clicky switch might be a bit fragile.

Never needed to deal with them, so take that as you will.

I wasn't entirely happy with this purchase, but then not only did I not try it in the shop, I had no idea what it actually did. Call me stupid if you like. It doesn't entirely suit the stuff I play either (thrash and alt. rock), I guess it'd be a pretty useful tool for a jazz guitarist for one. It still occupies its place in my setup, but I doubt I'd replace it. Good quality though.

not that hard just getting use to the emphases knob

I think this pedal has a good sound to it. The only thing i have a problem is that it really blows my done when i try to distort. Also it is great for my strat but is much harder to use on my gibson. Over all it is a good quality pedal. The compression is smooth and is preaty quiet
The thing i really like about it is that it is true bypass so this thing is silent when off.

dunno really just got it yesterday but it survived the drive home with me so i figure it could hold up to a gig for sure.

Over all i likes it. the tone is ok and it has its draw backs but over all it is a good pedal and has a good tone and plays well.

if i lost it i would buy it again

Fairly simple to set up although the emphasis control takes a little getting used to.

I've had the ED-1 for a good long time now and continues to make the cut in my pedalboard lineup. After a brief attempt at using it first in my effect order, I've moved it to immediately follow my overdrive pedals. My lineup is currently wah-->Green Rhino overdrive-->Rat 2-->ED-1 compressor-->Dan-Echo-->Voodoo Lab tremelo-->amp. With the ED-1 set with compression at around 10 0'clock, attack at full clockwise, emphasis dead center, and volume to taste, I can get a volume boost that fattens up either my clean or overdriven sound perfectly. I've tried the emphasis control at various settings but it always seems to wind up back at dead center. You can use it to add presence to your tone at the expense of low end response. I've never really liked the way that most compressors ruin the dynamic control of the tone of the guitar. I would guess that most players who dig the touchy-feely approach would eschew the use of compressors altogether. Instead of deep-sixing the ED-1, I've found an excellent alternate use for it as a boost.

Has worked flawlessly for over 1 year of constant use. I don't beat on my equipment though so YMMV. Looks pretty rugged though.

Never dealt with em. Haven't needed to yet.

I've tried the Boss CS-2 and CS-3 and verious multi-effect compressors. The Boss CS-2 was very warm sounding. The CS-3 was rather neutral sounding but fairly uninspiring. Most compressors I've used were unacceptably noisey at minimally usable settings. Don't even think about using multi-effect compressors for more subtle compressor duties. The ED-1 is an excellent compressor for the price.

Very easy to use.

Easily the BEST pedal type comp.out there.Smooth UNCOLORED sound,very quiet it really lets the personality of your guitar come through.I replaced a BOSS CS3 that was coloring everything to much and was noisy as hell.What can I say the ED1 blew the BOSS away!

Built as a tank,ALL METAL and true bypass.

Go get it what are you waiting for,the only other comparable pedal comp.is the CARL MARTIN that costs 6 times as much!

As easy, I suppose, as anything can be.

Not a bad sounding comp. pedal for its price...however...there are some problems with its sound. By far the biggest problem, and an annoying one as time goes by is that clicking sound you get when you pick notes. NOT what a compression pedal should do, not at least to the degree this one does. Another problem is that this pedal will make any guitar sound the same...so does it color your sound...I'll say it does; it will make any guitar sound like a clone of itself. Also, this pedal is very BRIGHT and spiky. I replaced it with a Boss CS-3 and could not believe how much smoother this run of the mill Boss was without losing the feel of the instrument. Plus, I've noticed the Boss makes OD and DISTORTION pedals feel and sound much smoother.

NEVER WILL I BUY THIS PEDAL AGAIN. HELL, I MAY NOT EVER BUY A MARSHAL PRODUCT AGAIN! I HAVE HAD THREE REPLACEMENTS AND THE COMP. AND SUSTAIN EFFECT HAVE DETERIORATED AFTER ONLY MONTHS ON ALL THREE. I DON'T KNOW WHY, IT MAY HAVE SOMETHING TO DO WITH A BADLY DESIGNED AC ADAPTOR OPTION. ALL OF YOU WHO HAVE ONE...LISTENING CAREFULLY TO YOUR PEDAL AND FEEL OUT YOUR PLAYING FOR ANY LOSS OF RESPONSE BECAUSE I GUARANTEE THIS PEDAL HAS OR WILL FAIL ON YOU!!!

Straight forward except for the "emphasis" control, which doesn't do much on electric, but is great on acoustic.

HOWEVER: I give it a 3 because of those sorry chrome knobs with black pointer marks. If you've ever tried to set them in stage lighting you'll understand why - no way will you EVER see the pointers or visually know where the knobs are set. I suppose they look really cool in the glass case at the guitar store though...

This is a loaded subject for sure! The sound of the ED-1 is noticeably colored in my opinion, but in a way that I personally like and find useful.

On electric, the tone is quite a bit beefier in the middle, which works out great for me since I play American Tele, Gretsch Pearl Jet, Dano 12 string, all of which are thin compared to a Paul. I would never use compression on my Paul, but it's very useful for the afforementioned, particularly at lower amp volumes.

On acoustic (Marix II equipped Collings), the ED-1 has found a permanent home for acoustic leads in a full band mix. It goes back to the coloration. In this case, it is extremely useful for fattening up the middle, so when you add some 'verb, you have this unbelievable lead tone with piles of sustain. Nice thing about the ED-1, when you bypass it (and kill the 'verb), the Collings tone has not been messed with. I didn't like using a non-true bypass pedal (or rack unit) for this application. Interestingly enough, I absolutely hated the ED-1 on my classical guitar (any genre of music).

Has stood up well for the first year.

It has a permanent home in both my electric and acoustic rigs. I would have to buy another if lost.

I hope the next one has better jacks, I had to take needle nose pliers and tweek the contacts on mine so they would quit scraping the nickel of of my (expensive) switchcraft cable plugs.

No problem/versatile/powerful

I compared it to my MXR DYNA COMP because a friend had said that it would do the DYNA and more ..... well... it does do more albeit with a nice bite on everything.

Even when you dial in an interesting feature called EMPHASIS which supposedly compresses different frequencies you can't just get the regular guitar tone you begin with with the pedal off.

On the other hand the DYNA COMP doesn't color the tone other than the normal darkening through extreme compression.

Just got it but I love the look and construction and it seems very very solid.

I do original music in with a wide range of colors and tones. I am planning on recording a Danelectro Longhorn re-issue direct today and I bet it will work great with it. I have used my DYNA COMP for all sorts of things in the past and it will be nice to have a more versatile compressor as well.

4 knobs, it's easy.

ok...well, i bought this pedal for a lead boost and it did the job well. i put it in my effects loop, cause otherwise it doesnt boost your volume, just adds gain, well, unless youre using it with pedals, and not the amps overdrive like i am. ok, so, i'm not in a band anymore, so i dont need lead boosts so i tried using it as a part of my regualr rig. the thing is, it sounds unnatural. it doesnt sound like real guitar tone anymore, it sounds too smooth and clicky. you can obviously remedy this by turning the compression down, but then whats the point of using a damn compressor? so anyway, i delt with my weird clean tone, but with overdive, it sounds too clicky. like, it makes my strat sound toooo stratty. u can hear the single coils too much, instead of hearing the single coils with overdrive. its weird...cick click click. so i dont know what to do....anyone have any suggestions? so...basically, for now anyway, this pedal is a paperweight. i should mess with it some more...

its heavy as hell for being a stomp box.

blah. england. too far.

until i really find a use for it besides lead boosts..i cant really say anything great about it.

I bought the compressor not knowing how to use it. I just read somewhere that it's a vital piece of equipment of care about your TONE. The controls are a bit tricky, but when you figure them out, it's okay. I think the company should have included some more setting samples. come on Marshall. your amps are great.

This box is just one on my pedalboard. I'm using it with a Les Paul black beauty with '57 Classic+ humbuckers, a marshall JCM200 DSL 50 and matching 1960A cabinet. It is very nice if you want a smooth overdrivin tone, but try using the compressor with a good amount of gain while playing the intro to Oasis' "Supersonic". Catch my driftin'???
I haven't noticed any noice coming from the unit...but watch out in high gain situations!!!!!!!!! if you turn it on in the wrong position(to the amp) it'll feed execively. and it's not the good feddback.
This box is really quite good for it's price. I'm sure you can get a better compressor, but you'll have to buy a rack unit taht costs 5 or 6 times as much

no problems yet

For rock 'n' roll music it's a must to have a compressor.
would I buy it again? probably.

Metal-cased (seems sturdier than a Boss, really), silver in colour, with a big logo up front and four rather hard to read buttons on top (gloss black on chrome, onstage, is a pain in the rear.. could we just have had notches on the knobs?!) It's got a real footswitch (like you'd find in a Marshall amp footswitch), and it's true bypass (no power supply, no battery, effect on = mute; effect off = sound comes through) which is really something else considering I've got 5 Bosses, a Phase 90 and a Vox wah on my pedalboard and none of those are... Controls are the fairly well known Volume, Compression, Attack and a tone control called Emphasize, which I can't quite figuire out and just leave at the 1 o'clock position. All in all, it's very solid, though it clicks on and off (not as silent as the Bosses on my board, for instance, but not quite as noisy to turn on and off like my wah). So, ten, minus one for the clicking equals nine.

Guitars are an Epiphone LP Classic birdseye top (gooooorgeous), with SD Jazz neck and 59 bridge pickups, and a Fernandes Stratocaster (LE-1) with DiMarzio Virtual Vintage 2.2, Virtual Vintage and VV Blues neck to bridge pickups. Amplifier is the marvelous Fender Blues Junior. Before settling onto this pedal, I had a short stint with a Boss CS-3, but OH MY GOD, was it noisy. Anything above 11 o'clock on the Compression dial on the Boss was WAY too noisy for me. This pedal can go up to almost 2 o'clock on the Compression knob without making as much noise as the Boss (it does get noisy past that setting, but not quite as much). By tweaking Volume you can get a rather good, unaltered if you set Compression to zero, useful if you want solos to cut through, but then I've got a Boss SD-2 (the dual channel overdrive) right after the ED-1, and I set that Boss's crunch channel to zero drive and full volume. Neck-pickup Stratocaster runs with a clean tone on the amp and around 11-1 o'clock on the Compression dial is heaven. Cranking the amp just ever so slightly higher but still on that setting gives me instant John Frusciante and Dave Navarro. It richens up the Stratocaster sound to a great point, I never seem to use my Strat clean without this compressor on. And the fact that it blows the Boss compressor to bits makes me give it a 10. By the way, I've never been a big fan of compressed humbucking sound, so it's not the pedal's fault, but I never seem to use it with the Epi LP.

It seems sturdier than the average Boss stompbox and I'm pretty sure my Bosses will be around for a long long time. But then, I take GOOD care of my stuff, cause I know how expensive it is.

Don't know who their importers for Brazil are, and don't care. If it breaks and is in warranty I'll want a new one or I'll sue their rears.

Overall, I think it's the best footpedal compressor. It's pretty easy to use (if you go right past the Emphasis knob, or manage to figure out what it does...), cheaper than a Boss, sounds darned fine, has true bypass and feels like a rock underneath your foot. Was it not for the clicking sound when you turn it on and off, it'd be the absolute champ. But as I've said, the fact that it's so much less noisy than the Boss pedal compressor makes it my choice. I'd give it a 9.5 if there was such rating, but I can't give it a 10, so it's gonna be a 9, as in an A rating (not A+).

I have to say that it's easier to use than a rack compressor but not as quiet.
The manual is not hard to understand for what it says, but the suggestions are all for clean settings maybe because they figure that during tube compression when a amp is overdriven actually compresses the signal anyway.

I am using a strat thru a fender amp or Boogie amp, I use EMG pickups but if you dial in past 3/4 on the compression knob it gets "hissy".
This effect is actually better in my mind than the bluesbreaker pedal because it adds compression and boost without the coloration.
It really brings out the sound of the Marshall chorus pedal.

This pedal is true bypass and not a tone sucker.
You can check to see if your effects pedals are true bypass by switching off the effect and while you're still plugged in, disconnect the power supply.
It seems sturdy enough, time will tell. So far so good.

I don't care to comment on this, as far as my experiences go, if you had a problem with this it would not be worthwhile to pay to have someone fix it. Bench fees to troubleshoot it would cost you half the cost of this $78 effect.

It's as good or better as anything out there for what it does, and for a lot less than you would pay for a 'custom' pedal.

Let's put it this way, it's no more difficult to fathom than most "pedal" compressors! In other words, they can seem a little difficult- particularly in conjunction with distortion, (natural power tube), or other.

The sound is fine, and a sturdy little pedal too. By the way, contrary to some opinions, the "Ed" in the name has absolutely nothing to do with Mr. Van Halen. The guy who named it, in fact, wrote and told me that. It's actually a pun on "Edward the Confessor" of English historical fame! Another nice pedal (by Tech 21) is the "Comptortion".

Simple to use, make sure you read the instructions concerning direction of knobbage in the 'Hi-Lo' control. This is the diff between a 'round' sound or an 'edgy' sound. I chose 9 o'clock but with the right amp, i.e., a brighter amp, I might go higher. The manual is as good as they get for guitar effects pedals, but don't misunderstand, this is a good compressor, and, maybe the best of the new Marshall pedals. I have owned the Carl Martin, both Boss models, DOD Milkbox, MXR, and Orange squeezer. (They tell me the old Ross pedal is maybe the best but I can't tell you that from first hand experience.) This is worth owning, definitely.

Tele set up for slide, Les Paul set up for Dobro,(I'm serious), Strats and a Yamaha 12 string electric. My amps are: Tweed Super, Rivera M100, Silvertone Silver Medalist(two alnico 12" speaks, one preamp, two power amp sections, kind of like a Victoria Double Deluxe only Dano built, 1959), Tweed Bassman, Tweed Deluxe.
The eddy-1 is quieter than all those other pedals I mentioned, especially the Carl Martin which is radio receptive - ('Welcome to AM radio station, 'Anywhere Local All Day' or call letters, 'A.L.A.D.') The MXR can be set up to perform quietly but it doesn't begin to do what this pedal does when it is equally quiet, nor is it as noisey as the MXR when both are dimed. (And hey, 'dimed' it is REALLY working compared to the MXR.)
The effect is pretty obvious if you want it to be or not so obvious. Yes, you can set it up so you know it's on or dial it back to where you have to look at the pedal to see if it's on.
This is as good live as anything Robert Cray uses in the studio...and, you can track with it for pretty similar results. (Sorry, Mr. Cray.)
I say '10' for a PEDAL compressor, and sometimes it might be all you need going to tape/dat/hard drive...

I took a look inside, actually a good switch, micro components like anything else these days. I have a good feeling about the pedal, I don't perform with a backup of any pedal I own, just a backup amp, so I would say go for it. The pedal is too new, ten years from now I will tell you about reliability.

I've talked to Marshall before about other things but not this pedal. I will have to let you know about it.

Blues, hmmm, elements of many things, fan of Jimi and SRV, Albert King, Ry Cooder, heavey compressed Byrd 12 string solos...
I said most of what I wanted to say. I WOULD replace this pedal if it was stolen because there is nothing else out there that can do what this pedal does. I have tried a few other new Marshall pedals but they did not stike me as something special like this one does. If you were into pedal compressors, you would buy this unit.

Very easy to use. Little to add to what's been said in other reviews. Even if you're a complete novice like I was it shouldn't take you too long to get to grips with it. I found the settings suggested by the manual to be completely useless - but then I haven't found a manual for any pedal that useful. It really is down to you to find a sound that you really like. I'm sure that the people who write these manuals listen to completely different music than the rest of us. Best advice, especially if cash is tight and WHATEVER you are buying is a major purchase for you: try it out fully in the shop and try to get the assistant give you as much data as possible. Better still, if you can, take someone along with you who really knows their stuff!

Personally I find this pedal a little noisy. I currently use four other pedals in my chain and whenever I switch it on I get a slight hiss. That apart the sound's ok. If, like me, you didn't even know what a compressor did before I bought this one, it'll take you a while to figure out the best way to use it.

I wasn't really aware of its full potential until I started playing Mike Rutherford's solo from the song "That's All" which uses stacks of compression through a clean setting. If you play the song with and then without heavy compression you'll see just how it can enhance the sound. I have all the settings on three o'clock (ie about 3/4 quarters full on).

It's also useful for enhancing chordal sounds. I like playing songs like The Jam's "That's Entertainment" through a neck pick-up with loads of compression. It gives me a lovely smooth sound. I very rarely play acoustic guitars and this pedals gives my Pacifica just that little bit more punch and smoothness. It would be interesting to hear how this would sound if used in conjunction with an acoustic simulator.

To date I've only used it through a Marshall G10 MII; it's great because it really boosts the sound without losing too much clartity. The real test would be to use it live, ie in a club, which I haven't done yet. I'll probably update all my reviews once I've tested my equipment out in a live setting; it's only then that you know how good (or how bad!) each effect really is.

I've only given it 8 because I haven't had the chance to compare it against other compression pedals.

Haven't really had it long enough or used it enough to make any worthwile comment.

I don't have enough experience of compression pedals to make a really worthwile assessment. I bought this pedal because I was recently trying out all the new Marshall pedals in a shop and this was the one that I like the best; I was also curious to see exactly what a compression pedal does as I'm always reading that such and such guitarist used compression on such and such song and I wanted to see what difference it made.

This pedal's useful rather than vital, unlike my distortion and digital delay pedals which I use all the time. If I were you I'd try loads of other ones before buying this one.

4 knobs: emphasis, volume, attack and compression. Fairly straight forward. Booklet describes its features well.

The sound quality is good for a compressor pedal in this price range. I use many guitars and many effects, but my main setup includes a G&L Legacy Strat to a Peavey Classic 50-212BT amplifier. This pedal works best for me with compression around 2 o'clock, emphasis around 11 o'clock, volume around 12 o'clock and attack around 4 o'clock. I play blues, rock, and jazz.

Guitar Player reviewed this pedal a few months ago and stated that it has true bypass, however the manual states that it is passive bypass. I can't tell which it is.

Although it appears to be rigid, the switch feels loose and undersized. Additionally, this pedal is not produced by the Marshall factory, they're produced in some child slave labor camp in India. So who knows how long it will stand up.

Typically, I wouldn't buy any new Marshall product because of all the Marshall products I have bought in the last 7 years (mostly amplifiers) they've all been junk and I've had problems that their warranty wouldn't cover. However, this is a pretty good sounding pedal for the price.

Customer support sucks. I have emailed them twice and called once to ask if this unit has true bypass or not - with no response.

Jim Marshall is an asshole who probably has nothing to with the Marshall company as we know it today. This will be the last new Marshall product that I will ever buy, I've had too much bad luck with their products and their lack of service and non-comittal to stand behind their products. I would still buy their used products from the '60s and early '70s but nothing produced now. Buyer Beware!!!

This pedal is O.K. I think the Carl Martin Compressor/Limiter is a much better pedal for professional work, but that pedal costs $199.

For an $80 pedal this thing o.k. for the amateur guitarist (like myself). Don't buy this pedal if you are a serious musician, get the Carl Martin if you want a studio quality compressor.

Very easy to use, although it has two more controls apart from the usual Level and Compression knobs, namely Emphasis (which is a tone control) and Attack. It also has a 9V input. This little beauty is part of Marshall's new line of stomp boxes, along with the new Guv'nor, the Jackhammer etc. The controls are very even and all settings sound good. The On/Off switch is very reliable. It also has a LED light indicating bypass or in use. The manual is OK, with a few suggestions to classic sounds.

I was using a (reissue) MXR Dyna Comp earlier, but sold it after about a year because I felt it was too smooth, ie sucking out all the guts from my tone. I love the character of the MXR but it was a bit too mushy. I play power pop/country rock and my set up is a stock '50:s Reissue Jap Tele (unbelievably good, btw, although I'm planning to refit it with Fralin high output Alnicos) and a Vox AC-30 Reissue equipped with Greenbacks. Recently I bought a 12-string Charvel Surfcaster and to get that Byrds/Beatles sound, you really need a compressor. (I don't use the compressor that much with the Tele, just occasionally if I want a slightly bigger, but not necessarily more distorted sound.) I haven't really been considering Marshall as a serious pedal manufacturer (ever since I had the crappy early 90:s version of the Guv'nor!) but since this one also has a tone control and, even more importantly, an Attack control, I decided to give it a try, and after just five minutes I knew it was the right one.
It hasn't got the same strong character as the MXR; instead it leaves your sound more or less intact. I don't know if it's True Bypass, but it doesn't damage your tone at all while it's off. The compression goes from "just slightly" to "sustain for days!" and the Attack control makes it possible to use heavy compression without killing your guitar's dynamics. The tone control (which Marshall prefer to call "Emphasis") is also great since you can boost the high end, which often gets too soft while using heavy compression. For example, my fellow guitarist's Dyna Comp totally rubs out the heavenly twang of my Surfcaster. With The Compressor, you can actually add a bit of high end complexity, since it's tone control is very subtle and musical.
A lot of people use compressors to boost their signal in order to distort their amp's preamp, and with the Compressor, that's a piece of cake since it's really powerful. I typically set the pedal's volume at about twelve o'clock, and even that gives me a slight boost.
The sound is big, clear and very transparent, offering heavy compression without mushing out the sound. Easily the best guitar compressor I've tried. It does exactly what I want it to do; adding sustain and lustre to my 12-string sound, without changing the personality and dynamics of either guitar or amp. If I kick in my Roger Mayer Voodoo Bass Distortion along with The Compressor while playing my Tele, I get the most awesome lead sound ever! Perfect if you like alternative country rock bands like Jayhawks, Wilco and Son Volt. It's actually less noisy at heavy settings than most pedals are at low settings, which is cool. But of course, you expect a certain amount of noise while using a compressor. I'm afraid I have to give it another ten!

It's sturdy as a tank and made out of high quality gleaming metal so I don't expect it to break too soon. I haven't checked it out on the inside, but not a terrible lot can go wrong in a compressor, since it's simple technology. It doesn't eat batteries either, it appears. However, I guess the on/off switch with will wear out in a few years, since all switches do, no matter how expensive the pedal is. But this is a heavy bastard which has never failed me yet.

Have never been in touch with them. The only other Marshall product I use is a Power Brake with the Vox (something that every non-Master Volume amp owner should get) and it works really well.

I've been playing for about 12-13 years and semi-professionally since '97 and I'm getting real cranky about my sound. The reason I chose the Tele/Vox AC-30 setup is that it's a real simple and dynamic guitar/ a real simple and honest amp. That's the same reason I like Marshall's The Compressor; it's simple, discrete and high quality. I would get one again immediatley if it was lost. The tone and attack controls also separates it from the rest. It seems the revival of the stomp box plus the innovation/competition of custom manufacturers (like Fulltone, Roger Mayer etc) has forced Marshall to do a great job on their new pedals. Compared to the MXR it is more flexible and musical and it totally kills other crappy and thin sounding compressors like Boss's and Dod's. It has "liberated" my 12-string and it soups up the Tele whenever I feel that's necessary. Its usefullness goes beyound my rather limited power pop/country rock scope; metal guitarists will love the Attack control; funk players can't really live that long without its tone control, which takes out the muddiness in your bass strings and ensures that it sounds terrific both with humbuckers and single coils; guitarists wanting a vintage sounding booster to their old Marshalls, Bassmans or Voxes will also be very pleased. It might even work great with bass guitars, Fender Rhodes etc. Another great thing is the low pricing.

Firstly can I just say that I like the fact th The Compressor is also called 'Edward'. Edward The Compressor. Get it? As opposed to Edward The Confessor?! Never mind.

The manual is remarkably informative, especially when you consider there are many guitarists who aren't entirely sure what 'compression' actually does, and will still fail to see its value after a demo. Okay, so it doesn't create any obvious aural effect (i.e. it doesn't distort, it doesn't delay, it doesn't wah), but what it does do is make your output signal a bit more even, and the manual makes a point of explaning the advantages of this.

The Compressor pedal has four controls:
-- Emphasis; will allow you to alter the compression effect to emphasize the Hi or Lo tones of your sound
-- Volume; allows you to balance the effect level with the uneffected level of your amp
-- Attack; determines how quickly the compression is applied to your sound after a note is played
-- Compression; determines how much you cut-the-peaks and boost-the-troughs in your sound

The manual gives the user some good descriptions of these controls and also provides a few useful settings for getting started. The only item which I find potentially confusing is the Emphasis control which starts at Hi and turns clockwise round to Lo, completely opposite to most tone controls. Also, the manual is equally confusing in its description of Emphasis, and hence my slightly lower rating.

I must say that the ED-1 is the best quality compressor pedal for this money! Okay, so you'd expect a stopm-box compressor to create a bit of noise (even goldfish don't swim silently!), but I have tried the other two main competitors in the equivalent price range, i.e. the BOSS CS-3 Compressor/Sustainer and the DOD FX84 Milk Box, and the quality was dreadful. The BOSS generated a lot of hiss which cut in whenever I wasn't playing, and the compression control on the DOD was excessively hissy anywhere past the 11 o'clock mark. This pedal generates some hiss, as expected, but really not much at all for a #45 ($70) pedal. If this Marshall pedal had sounded as bad as the other two then I was considering the MXR DynaComp, but here in the UK the MXR pedal seems to be twice the price of all its competitors, i.e. anything up to #95 ($155)

Well, how many of you guitarists go to a gig with their range of stomp-box pedals PLUS a range of backup pedals? Not many! OF COURSE I would take it on a gig without a backup... but not without taking a spare battery just in case. You'll also have to remember to take a flat-head screwdriver or a small coin if you want to get into the battery compartment!
This pedal is built like an iron brick! It's made with a solid metal construction in a very pleasing vintage style, and would be really handy weapon if someone jumped you in a dark alley. It's only a small looking pedal, but when you pick it up you can feel the quality in the weight of the thing.
My only very minor reservation is that the on/off button seems a bit smaller than those normally found on these vintage pedals. I like the big switches found on DUNLOP and VOX pedals, and I wonder if this is a bit more fragile as a result?! However, it doesn't appear to have affected the performance so far, it just seems a bit odd considering its otherwise rugged construction. Overall, this is about as reliable a box as you could possibly get at this price!

I've never dealt with Marshall before (I'm still a Strat and Fender amp person, not currently having the money to afford the additional Les Paul and Marshall amp setup!), but I would expect a company of this size to have exceptional customer support services if I ever need to use them!

I play mainly in a bluesy-funky-rocky sort of fashion, using an American Standard Stratocaster, a Fender Blues DeVille 4x10" amp, and a range of other pedals including the obligatory JIM DUNLOP Cry Baby Wah Wah, a JIM DUNLOP TS-1 Tremolo, a VOX Valve-Tone, a VOX Distortion Booster, and an ARIA AFL-1 Flanger (the first pedal I ever bought, and I just can't get bring myself to get rid of it and buy anything newer... it's really a very good pedal!). I've been playing since the age of 15 (I'm now 30!).
The MARSHALL ED-1 'Edward' The Compressor suits me perfectly. I was looking for something to even-out those funky, Nile Rodgers-style chords, to provide Santana-like sustain on solos, and to generally keep everything at the same level when I'm having to switch between finger-picked arpeggios and plectrum-hard power chords in the same song! This pedal is just the job. The additional Emphasis control (despite being a little confusing at first) is an added bonus and really helps to get that Hendrix/SRV sound... booming twang on the bottom E string with that punchy 'n' funky E7#9 chord.
If it were lost (I'm going to be careful that it doesn't) or stolen (and if I were poorer I'd go and steal one myself) then I'd certainly go and buy another. I may be tempted to go to my local music shops and try the MXR DynaComp (especially as I can get it ordered and shipped from the US for less than it costs to buy it here in the UK?!), but the MXR only has controls for the volume and the compression, and the Emphasis and Attack controls on the ED-1 are useful in getting just the right tone!
All in all I'd say that here in the UK your most likely compressor choices could cost you under #30 (ARION, ROCKTEK), around #50 (BOSS, DOD), up to #100 (MXR) or up to #150 (CARL MARTIN)... but for 45 quid ($70) you can get a vintage-styled, rugged-as-lumberjack, quiet-as-a-goldfish, funky-as-Starsky-&-Hutch little chap called 'Edward' The Compressor!!!