I have a compact and it is a really powerful and versatile machine. Its probably the best all in one you can get. I personally don't mess with the settings to much I usually run it anywhere from 3.3 to 3.8 stroke and 8 - 10 volts and give clip from 0-2. Haven't used it in a long time however as the hawk pen feels a little more natural when tattooing and is quieter to. It is not adjustable at all save for the needle depth but that restriction makes it easier to tattoo as I an pretty used to the performance range and don't have any guess work or tinkering to do as I tattoo. Where the Compact excels at is in its range, for example it feels more powerful than my pen so when I need a powerliner for anything past 9r this can handle that better and faster than my main driver also I have the Vice version so I can use a standard setup with this machine and it performs flawlessly in this setup as well. I usually use it with a standard setup with blackclaw needles for fat line work and it is a small machine so it s not uncomfortable or anything. I'm gonna put it back in my main rotation now that I'm remembering the good times we've had together lol