Sixtyfive reasons
The developer De la Mancha already has a number of compressors available. Currently in my possession are the GTX, GTO, and GTS compressors (a family that I use quite often on my projects). Sixtyfive is a musical compressor, which not only compresses but also provides a pleasing colouring effect on the audio material which you run through it. The modelling is said to bring 'colour and warmth'—a lofty goal. Aside from the technical aspects of a compressor (which allow the user to compress the sound by evening out the score between peaks and lows in any material), the musical aspect of Sixtyfive is one of the reasons why De la Mancha has earned a reputation as a solid independent developer. Although we are not talking about a strict emulation, Sixtyfive is inspired by hardware: namely the dbx® 165A, a classic 1970's
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www.WusikSoundMagazine.com
May 2011
compressor. I’m not a hardware fetishist (or else I wouldn’t be writing for Wusik Sound Magazine, would I?), but there has been an interesting comparison with the hardware done by Rhythm in Mind. (Note: You can find a link to this comparison at the end of the article). Listening to RiM’s comparison files, it is clear that the attack characteristics are somewhat different between Sixtyfive and the dbx® 165A, but that doesn’t bother me as much. I would guess that this is why it is said that it is inspired by and not a direct emulation of said hardware. Using it in my mixes, while not taking it to extreme levels, it gives a very pleasant musical compression that suits some of my work much better than the GT offerings. They actually complement each other nicely.