Way Huge Saffron Squeeze Compressor

Simplest pedal in the world. One knob sets your overall volume, anothers adds sustain.

Excellent. Very buttery. Crank the sustain and some volume swelling becomes apparent. Not noisy (it's true bypass) but if you crank the Sustain and stop playing it will amplify the hum of your pickups. This is to be expected and doesn't bother me. Compared to some other comp pedals, the Saffron is darker, rounder, with little "spank" on the attack and perhaps a slight attenuation of the high end. I tend to favor mid-rangey tone, so this isn't a problem, but if you're a treble-hound who needs top-end sparkle, it could be a problem. This pedal sound amazing after a Fulldrive II (in fact, I can't really stand my Fulldrive without it anymore) but I also like to run a distortion after it as well, for boost. With both distortions running (before and after the SS) you can attain endless sustain with extremely fluid, round tones and beautiful feedback. Yum.

People seem scared of the Way Huge switches, but I've had this thing for over four years now and it's never let me down. The build quality on the inside is RIDICULOUS. I compared it to an Analogman Comprossor, which is also well-built, and the SS blew it away. While the Comprossor board was hanging loose on one side and could flop around inside the casing, the SS has plastic pegs that hold the circuit board completely still. The casing is heavier and more solid than the Comprossor as well, and the art is beautiful. Everything about this pedal is over-engineered, I only wish Way Huge was still in business so I could buy a Swollen Pickle and an Aqua-Puss. Oh, well.

Out of business.

I love the sound of the Saffron Squeeze, and I leave it on whenever I play. It's not really an effect, but an integral part of my tone. In fact, I can't imagine playing electric guitar without it (or something similar, like the Comprossor)...when it's off, my ears revolt.

A little bit of history is probably relevant here. I bought this pedal way back in the day when Way Huge was still in business. I was listening to a lot of Phish at the time and lusting after Trey Anastasio's incredible sustain. I read he used a Ross compressor and happened across the Saffron Squeeze at a local guitar shop. I plugged it in and said, "That's it, that's the tone!" I put it in line after my Fulldrive II and kept it there. I knew I was doing something right, because everytime I jammed with people they commented on my tone and wanted to find out what gear I was using. What I didn't know, though, was that the Saffron Squeeze was in fact the first boutique Ross clone, which is why it copped Trey's sound so easily. Years went by, and now I'm more concerned about developing my own sound than emulating anybody else's, and I no longer listen to Phish, but the Saffron Squeeze remains an essential part of my rig. Interestingly, the past couple of years have seen a Ross-buying frenzy among guitar players, and companies have been putting out Ross clones left and right to meet their demand. I've even tried a few of them, and can say with much certainty that the Saffron is as good as anything on the market for this particular type of compression. I A/B'ed the SS with a stock (pre-Attack Knob) Comprossor, and they sound nearly identical (the Rossor seemed to retain a TINY bit more high end, but it was so close as to be subjective). Which means a) the Saffron can keep up with the best of today's clones and B) there's no reason to spend a ton of money scoring one of these on eBay--just get a Comprossor from Analogman instead. The key thing is that all these boutique compressors are just clones of the old Ross, with better capacitors and True Bypass. So don't believe the hype (Keeley!)... just wait for a good deal and buy smart. Enjoy!

Two knobs, one volume, one sustain, and of course the stompswitch. You use the volume to boost the signal and the sustain pot will then increase the sustain. Pretty damn simple. Inside the box, mounted to the breadboard is a small knob that can be turned with a phillips head screwdriver; I'm not completely clear on it use but I think it does optimize the signal sustain coming out of the unit (at least tweaking it will achieve this).

OK, I have used this pedal with Vox and Laney tube amps so far. The pedal does an excellent job of signal compression, with a sustained
signal that really keeps rolling on and on. The sustain is very, very smooth. The tone that this pedal generates is a bit problematic, in that the volume of your notes will begin to increase after you've plucked the string. In a sense, your sustain goes up, but unfortunately so does your volume, too. I have futzed with the volume knob a bit to control this effect, but it will persist nonetheless. This would be a problem if your are trying to sustain the notes but don't want an accompanying volume swell to go with it. I suspect that a studio compressor might be a better way to go (at least for me).

It's basically an all-or-nothing compression (none of this studio soft knee / hard knee bullshit) so if you are looking for something more sophisticated get a Nanoverb, Behringer, dbx, or other rack unit to do the trick. You can get a good distortion / overdrive type of sustain, but if you are looking for a Byrds 12-string compression, this is not the unit for you.

Yeah, it's an anodized aluminum chassis, so scratches and such will show up soon enough. It seems strong enough to withstand the usual
gig insults. The vol/sustain pots have bakelite-plastic knobs which could shatter if you drop the unit on its face. The stompswitch is small with a plastic head; I treat it carefully (not like a electro-hamonix, boss, ibanez, which you can beat the shit out of).
In short, if you use this with care, there will be no problems. However, knob damage/stompswitch damage are a real concern, and since the company no longer exists, you will need to "walk the earth" to find any sort of replacement parts (although I'm sure that generic stuff can be fitted on to replace the damaged stuff).

The Way Huge company is for sale (as of 10/20/99); it went out of business about 1-2 years ago and these pedals are rising in cost and
popularity, but I would caution you that not all Way Huge pedals are worth the asking price. Some of the stuff (Tone Leper, Red Llama) are
pretty good, but this particular unit is overpriced for what it does.
And, I might add, considerably limited in terms of compression signal.

Well, I paid through the nose for this thing based upon other people's recommendations. In all honesty, it is a good working, straightforward pedal that will generate great, smooth sustain. The signal compression is really oriented towards that end, and not much more. So if that's your goal, go buy one, but try the Carl Martin stuff or even the Boss/DOD stuff first before you search all over the USA for this (which I did, and I have to say, was not really worth the effort). I'll use the pedal for certain things, but I really can't say that this is all that I need.

Basic. Level, and Sustain knobs.

Great comp. Always was curious as to his stuff. I have a couple of other real quality pedal compressors, but was interested in the true-bypass of the Way Huge.
Anyhow this one is really, really clean. Not as spanky as others, and doesn't mess with your attack like others. Just does it's job, simply and effectively.
Basically a Fender into Fender person. It's a nice one to use with lap steel, and great for playing rhythm guitar or smoothing out a lead passage.

I like his stuff. I have the Red Llama as well which is solid, and basic as well. Great aluminum boxes.

You know the story.

Anyhow, I was happy to find this used, as they are probably going to move up in price now. I would have like to have found a Tone Leper and an Aqua Puss before they all vanished. Oh well.
In comparison, I have an Ibanez CP-835 that I love, an old White V-shaped Vox Compressor (check out p.158 of 'Stompbox'), and the Ross grey/Trey comp, which is a jewel as well. However, when I want a comp that doesn't color the tone, I use the Saffron. When you want that spank though, you have to go with the Ross.
If you want the cleanest comp with a true bypass, grab the Way Huge.

The pedal only has two knobs -- level and sustain -- and we all know what they do! (There's no manual, but who needs it?) It's very easy to get a good sound out of the SQ-1 -- just set the controls anywhere and play!

Excellent compression -- period! This pedal is so smooth sounding it's scary, especially when you crank the sustain contol -- the pedal sustains for weeks on end. I use it at the beginning of a long effects chain, and it's no noisier than any other pedal compressor out there. Also, the pedal has true bypass switching, which as we all know is quite a desirable feature.

Built like a tank. I probably won't need to use the lifetime warranty it came with -- good thing because where would I get it fixed now that Mr. Huge is off making the big bucks!

If nobody's there to pick up the phone or read the e-mail, you're on your own!

I play hard rock and all sorts of melodic "pop" (e.g., The Sundays) -- what a combination! The SQ-1 suits me just fine. If this pedal were stolen, I hunt the thief down and torture him, as this baby's now worth a lot more than the $145 I paid for it! If you can manage to find a Saffron Squeeze out there somewhere, don't hesitate to purchase it!