Origin Effects SlideRIG Compact Deluxe MK2

The Origin Effects SlideRIG Compact Deluxe MK2 is a dual-chained compressor pedal from Origin Effects, the British maker founded by designer Simon Keats. It is the second compact version of the SlideRIG, a compressor line designed primarily for electric slide guitarists, and Origin Effects described it as "the latest evolution of Origin's unique dual-chained compressor"¹.

The idea behind the SlideRIG is to chain two compression stages in series, the way slide players historically stacked studio compressors to get the long, even sustain the style demands. MusicRadar's reviewer Trevor Curwen described the concept as "two identical Cali76 blocks chained together for double-stage compression", linking the pedal's design to Origin Effects' Cali76 compressor line². Origin Effects says the MK2 delivers "awesome slide tones and endless clean sustain that's perfect for slide"¹.

What it does: dual-stage compression for slide

The SlideRIG line began with the full-size SlideRIG, a compressor designed primarily for electric slide guitarists⁷. The original pedal gave guitarists "a more affordable, practical and portable way of replicating this tone", in the words of Delicious Audio's Paolo De Gregorio, referring to the stacked-compressor slide sound the design emulates⁸.

The compact versions shrank that circuit considerably. A Sound On Sound reviewer noted the SlideRIG Compact reduced the size "to roughly a third of the original's dimensions"⁷. Inside, the pedal chains two identical Cali76 compressor blocks, so the output of the first stage feeds the second. Delicious Audio notes the Compact Deluxe gives access to "conventional single-stage compression, as well as the SlideRIG's trademark" dual-stage mode, and credits the pedal's "high-current, low noise preamp" for its clean output⁸².

For a slide player, the practical difference is sustain. Delicious Audio described the result as "clean infinite sustain in true Little Feat fashion", a reference to the slide guitar sound associated with Lowell George's playing⁸.

The controls

The control set descends from the SlideRIG Compact and Compact Deluxe, with one significant change on the MK2¹⁷.

On the earlier SlideRIG Compact, attack and release times were fixed, as was the compression ratio, a parameter that had been adjustable on the original full-size SlideRIG⁷. The MK2's combined Attack/Release control addresses this by sweeping both stages at once. Origin Effects describes the range as moving "from glassy and percussive at one extreme (slow attack, fast release) to smooth and uniform" at the other (fast attack, slow release), changing the initial transient of each note¹.

The Sound On Sound review highlighted the Compact Deluxe layout that the MK2 inherits: individual level controls for each stage plus a dry level knob, allowing parallel compression, a technique where compressed and uncompressed signals are blended so the attack of the note stays intact while the sustain is fattened⁷.

History and versions

The SlideRIG was designed alongside the Cali76, Origin Effects' first products. Simon Keats told MusicRadar: "The first Origin Effects units were the Cali76 and the SlideRIG [compressors], and they were designed simultaneously"⁴.

The line then ran:

1. SlideRIG: the original full-size pedal, with adjustable compression ratio⁷
2. SlideRIG Compact: roughly a third the size, with fixed attack, release and ratio⁷
3. SlideRIG Compact Deluxe: the Compact with per-stage level controls, a dry blend and a blend knob between single- and dual-stage operation⁷
4. SlideRIG Compact Deluxe MK2: introduced May 2019 at US$349, adding the combined Attack/Release control¹

By 2018, That Pedal Show noted the SlideRIG Compact was "no longer made, links to new versions"⁹, and the MK2 became the current version. At launch it was available from Origin Effects dealers worldwide and direct from the company¹.

In 2022, for Origin Effects' tenth anniversary, the MK2 appeared in a limited edition of 100 pieces in a laser-engraved aluminum finish inspired by the company's in-house prototypes⁶. Premier Guitar noted that these anniversary pedals "feature the same highly-acclaimed circuits their compressors are known for", so the finish was the only difference⁶.

In February 2025, Origin Effects discontinued the SlideRIG Compact Deluxe Mk2 along with the Cali76 Stacked Edition, replacing both with the Cali76 Stacked Compressor's sibling, a dual-stage compressor in a smaller enclosure with more headroom⁵.

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