Mike, by "nonplaying" I meant that I have NO keyboard skills, and that I use an arranger to help me get song ideas out of my head so they can be heard. Works better than just strumming a guitar, although I would much prefer a band!
As for the RNC, well this has my highest reccomendation. This is the absolute audio bargin of the decade. Plain and simple, this quality of compression has never before been available at such a low cost, and it is very easy to use. Most settings sound pretty good ,some just great, and you have to really try to get it to sound bad. This is NOT the case with many compressors. Buy from Mercenary Audio and if you don't absolutely love it, they will INSIST that you return it for a full refund! You won't be sorry.
Bill