I forgot to add an Orban 414 to that list.

Good god man, seeing as you have a great preamp and good decent compressor already, I would not suggest anything on that list. For what your going to pay for three half ass comps, you can get a real good one.

Well, the 2 comps that I have (Chandler LTD2, not TG2, though I have that also and it's great) are wonderful- I need some more for mixing. I'll be mix on a desk soon and I hate dynamics plugins... and I compress a lot... So I just needed a few to fill up some channels, you know? I've heard that all of these comps are anywhere from "useful" to "actually pretty damn good," but I'm a sucker for too many opinions.

I fully agree that plugs suck. Ok, Then for a few extra channels, the dbx 160x and the RNC. You do know that you don't HAVE to use compression?

:lol:
Of course I HAVE to!!!
Well, if I've got a 24 track mix going... chances are that I'm going to want more than 2 things compressed, you know?
Although, just buying 1 good one has it's merits, also...
but then I'll end up throwing that freaky little MOTU MW Limiter on something, because I won't have enough, telling myself, "just this one time..." and then it's down hill from there.

How about a Sony Oxford Dynamics plugin? IMHO it's a better comp than any of the ones you've listed. Then you can have fairly good compression on remaining tracks while you collect outboard compressors.

I make it no secret that I'm a big fan of the Pro VLA. I wouldn't exactly associate it with the word "dirty" though... "Colorful" is nice...

Well, I mean "dirty" in a colorful way. Not clean. You know it's there. I didn't say "filthy."
I have actually seen you stick up for ART before, Mr. Mastering. I have always felt pretty strongly about ART being on the bottom level ever since I made the discovery that my Tube MP wasn't the greatest thing ever, but you've made me second guess the quality of the vla, at least. It would be nice to have a linkable, dual mono comp.
I do mostly rock and roll stuff, acoustic, some fusion, some straight up jazz. My thinking of what the vla might be like, would suit my current and future set up. I should just try one out for a while. They're cheap enough to do that.

Mumbles,
The answer to your problem is to get another good compressor ... and then use what you have to do double duty ... by compressing track when you record. There is nothing wrong with doing this ... contrary to popular opinion. The whole idea of putting all decisions off until mix, is silly IMO. Use vision, make a plan ... have a concept of what the end product is going to be ..

Sure, you may make a few mistakes a few times but after a while you will learn what works and what doesn't .. Compress a little on the way in and the add more compression to the things that need it in mixing. Loading up on cheap dynamics processors (quantity vs. quality) is not the answer.

I do, actually, compress going to "tape" all the time. I don't think that there is anything wrong with that, as long as you know what you want by doing it.
Maybe I should just buy another Chandler LTD2 or get a Summit DCL200.
"Quantity vs quality..." Yeah... it's a trap, but I've been going with quality so far, so there's no reason to stop now.

Mumbles, I recently got a RNC and used it as a main mix bus compressor on a couple of quick mixes, it paid for itself right there. I also have good luck with it while tracking very dynamic vocals. It's very easy to dial in and the price is right. I have a 160x also, pretty nice but not great for everything. Wish it had adjustable attack & release.

I have heard great things about the rnc. I didn't realize that the 160x didn't have attack and release control. That's kind of annoying.
The rnc is either mono or stereo but NOT dual mono, right?

Correct. The nice thing about using it in a channel or bus insert is that you only need one TRS cable (or two for stereo). They wired the insert jack in reverse of how a console insert jack is wired. I plan on buying at least two more of them.

hate dynamics plug ins?...i personally looooooove compression, and although i do love analog compression, the waves rcl for me is right up there with an 1178, summit or tube tech....for mixbus the alan smart or ssl is the best though..
i think..

I love Waves RCL too, I do final mixes in Sonar, so far it's my #1 go to comp, although for colored squash, I love the freebie Blue Compressor.