Gainlab audio DICTATOR Dual Pentode Vari-mu Compressor

The Dictator is a tube dynamics controller modeled after classic vari-mu compressors. Theoretically similar to the legendary Fairchild 670 and Gates STA-Level, it also incorporates contemporary solutions for greater control over the sound. The custom design of the bypass circuits is simply called "mu-follower." The two compressor channels can operate in sync across the entire crossover curve range, resulting in excellent gain reduction. The time-varying operating parameters and saturation characteristics are very similar to those of well-known tube compressors.

The Dictator is a true vari-mu compressor consisting of a pair of pentodes mass-produced to exceptional quality during the Warsaw Pact in countries such as Hungary, East Germany, and Poland. The tube amplifier's surrounding circuitry utilizes the latest technical solutions that allow for the most precise operating characteristics of parallel channels, making it possible to achieve extreme configuration conditions. For example, it can pulse on a master bus or produce clean saturation with unprecedented transients and breaks. It can also function as a simple saturator with minimal dynamic control. Our intention was to create a master compressor and a bus compressor for mixing, but in expert hands, the Dictator can also be used as a sound design tool. The Dictator masters all aspects of sound; it is precise but not always clean, like all dictators in the history books.