The Aphex 651 is a compressor built for rack use, sitting in the same family as other compressor pedals and units players use to even out dynamics. It is the predecessor of the Aphex 661, and the main difference between the two is that the 651 has no tube gain stage, where the 661 does1.
What it does
As a compressor, the 651 reduces the dynamic range of a signal, evening out quiet and loud passages. What the 651 is noted for is how little it gets in the way. Cyrus Joaquin Heiduska, reviewing it at OvniLab, called it "one of the most transparent compressors I've heard"1.
"Playing through it I do not lose any of the subtle nuances of tone or texture that some other compressors may dampen or muddy up."
That transparency matters for players who want compression to control dynamics without coloring their core tone, the opposite approach from compressors that add their own character or, like the 661's tube stage, a gain stage of their own1.
The 651 is an older design, superseded in the Aphex line by the 661. Related current Aphex units include the Aphex COMP 500 and the Aphex CX 500.
Videos
gstormelectro
Sources (1)
- Aphex 651, ovnilab.com