Klark Teknik 76-KT

Introduction: as a classic compressor the UA 1176 has been on countless big albums, can the Klark Teknik 76-KT hang with it's inspiration?

Pros: I've had this in the rack for a good while now and it's in regular use on vocals to tame the peaks and keep things sounding nice on the way into the daw it gives you all the functionality you'd expect of an 1176
and does everything you'd expect this type of compressor to do and has served me well,
It's also built like a tank which is a definite plus at this price

Cons: While it gives you all the functionality of it's inspiration
it will introduce some hiss if driven hard enough but set properly with a bit of common sense and good mics and preamps it's negligible in practice

Should you get one?
well I've used this regularly as an insert compressor both while tracking and on mixes and and have had many happy clients,
it makes my workflow much faster with less need for post processing after tracking through it and sounds great on vocals and acoustic instruments
given that it's an affordable and accurate take on
a classic compressor it's really hard to fault,
perhaps it's a touch more transparent than it's inspiration but this is being overly picky and a good thing in my view as more saturation can always be added in post

Overall: it's worth it,
countless plugin emulations exist but tracking through this will save you time and get you to the sound you want faster, the original will always be the most desirable version but this is very very close at a price that wont break the bank :)

I wanted for a long time to buy a real hardware compressor for my home studio. So my choices for the budget version of 1176 were either WA76 or KT76. In the end, I chose KT for the price. So far I used it on vocals and a bass guitar. And with no doubt, it sounds better than a plugin. I compared it with the Waves 76 plugin. The difference is subtle but noticeable. I like the simplicity of operation, and in my opinion, this is a good quality build. I cannot tell how it compares to the original but many reviewers are saying it is cleaner and neutral sounding. For some this is a pro, for others, it is a con. You should make your own decision about it. There are plenty of videos online. For me, I can say that it suits my needs. If you want to learn how to use outboard gear in your studio, I'd say this compressor is a good starting point.

I've read and heard a lot about this machine from the Internet and I decided to give it a try. It does what it is supposed to do. I ended up returning the thing back because I am at a point in my experience where I want to deal with hardware only if it has a certain "mojo" you may call it. This machine has not. It works okay but it doesn't bring excitment to me in the process of recording or mixing. On some sources I've liked it better than some plugin emulations. Definetly delivers something on bass, vocals and drum room (especially with the "all buttons" mode). It tends to hash a bit the top. After 1 o' clock the make up gain (output) knob adds some kind of pink noise.