I wanted to replace my aging Devilbiss pancake compressor. My space is limited, so that narrowed my search. I did quite a bit of searching and researching. For whatever it’s worth, my conclusions included these ramblings…
The nearly undisputed pinnacles of best in class in small(ish) compressors are the Makita Big Bore MAC2400 (no wheels) and/or MAC5200 (wheels and a fold-down handle). The 2400 is $320 and rarely on sale. Amazon does, however, have it at $299 right now. The 5200 is $330. They are oil crankcase units, which (some say) last longer under heavy use, but require oil changes. They use the less-common 1,725 RPM motors and a larger (single) cylinder, which contribute to somewhat quieter operation (compared to most of this ilk), but are still noisier than what is a generation of compressors that use low-RPM motor/compressor modules that look like this.
These
remarkably quiet 1,725 RPM, two cylinder motor/compressor modules once seemed to be an exclusive of California Air Tools (C.A.T.). Now, however, they are appearing on compressors offered by other brands. I too read C.A.T reviews that ranged from glowing to "never again", which gave me pause.
I then ran across this unit at Northern Tool.
NorthStar Electric Air Compressor 1.5 HP, 8-Gallon Vertical Tank, Portable, Quiet Operation | Northern Tool + Equipment
The form factor/footprint was ideal for me. It is very quiet and what noise it does make is less of
less objectionable nature. With an 8-gallon tank, it’s smaller than many vertical machines, but is twice the capacity of my pancake unit. Two output connections are a nice plus and the gauges are larger and much easer to read than most. Very robust construction and heavy, but easy to move though (once it’s on its wheels). The Northern Tool store price is $319, but the website lists it as
on sale at $249 (12/6/2018). With the common $20 Northern Tool discount card, it was $229. Lastly, the Northern Tool NorthStar warranty is 4-years (4 times than of anything else I shopped for).
I've been using this compressor for over a year now. No issues whatsoever.
Far less noise than my previous 4-gal, Steel Driver pancake unit. Smooth running. in other words, it doesn't dance around when running. Plenty of air pressure and air volume for my small shop. I don't run air sanders or grinders and I spray with an HVLP turbine.
Ed