| Author
|
Hardware Compressor
|
mquirk1
IsraTrance Full Member
Started Topics :
63
Posts :
384
Posted : Jan 7, 2010 16:12
|
Quote:
|
On 2010-01-07 15:13, PoM wrote:
with plugins the workflow is easier and they do sound great only problem in 2 years you may have some other plugins to replace them so it can cost as much as some hardware in the end, with hardware you stop looking for new tools cause you know you have some classics that are unbeatable at what they do ,but yes it s expensive... a good comp and a chanel strip with pre/di eq is all you need imo but would cost you around 3000 $$ and all mono but it s not really a propblem you just can bounce the left then the right chanel .
with what you said i think it s not a comp you re looking for but a neve clone preamp/di like aurora audio gtq2 or their chanel strip ,a friend have a other neve inspired pre and when i heard it i knew it s the sound i was looking for since age... no plugins can replace that it really sound great with smoothing/compressing transients and a big creamy sound
|
|
compressing the left channel then the right channel separately is not the same as using a stereo or linked pair of compressors on a stereo signal..
i think a lot of people build hardware outboard up as some amazing sounding thing that will instantly make your mixes sound 10 times better but that's not true.. preamps and stuff like that are *very* subtle with the way they alter sound, i suggest you do some blind a/b tests with different preamps. i know more then a few people who have been disappointed that a high end analogue preamp did not do 'more' for the sound. likewise, people who talk of a sound instantly coming to life when it runs through some preamp are usually just hearing what they want to hear.. which is why blind tests are important.
i'll say it again, you can easily get what most people consider a 'warm/analogue' sound ITB just by creative use of EQ and other plugins. the 'mojo' that hardware imparts on a signal is just a sonic footprint, or an EQ curve which, if you have good ears, you can replicate using plugins.
|
|
|
mquirk1
IsraTrance Full Member
Started Topics :
63
Posts :
384
Posted : Jan 7, 2010 16:17
|
from the other side of the coin though you can look at it like: you are mixing for fun, and if you would find it more enjoyable to have a solid piece of outboard and in your mind that makes for a better sounding mix then you should get it. having a really solid connection to a piece of outboard is enough for you to really get to be able to use it in a way you couldn't a plugin since you didn't feel the same connection with it, and will be beneficial in that way.
the mind plays a huge role in these things. like i said about people hearing what they want to hear, if you have it in your head that you think plugins are far behind hardware (whether or not that be true), you may perform better with hardware simply because you *think* you should be performing better with it, if that makes sense.
in which case i would recommend a good all rounder stereo compressor like the api 2500 |
|
|
|
PoM
IsraTrance Full Member
Started Topics :
162
Posts :
8087
Posted : Jan 7, 2010 16:21
|
|
for plugins and warmth you should try the wavearts tube saturator , i would say it s 75 % close to hardware and the more you push it the more it sux ,still sound like a plugin but for the price it s hard to beat |
|
|
|
PoM
IsraTrance Full Member
Started Topics :
162
Posts :
8087
Posted : Jan 7, 2010 16:27
|
mquirk i agree still when you are after a sound you can find in plugins you have to go hardware to find it,i m not talking about good mix or not,if someone dont get a good mix itb i doubt it ll be a lot better otb.. but with hardware you can learn better too and sweet spots are big .it s harder to get the mojo and emulate it itb when you have no experience with hardware too imo.
about the stereo compressor most enginneers that i know and myslef like more double mono most of the time, as long as it sound good in mono, if i had stereo i would still use double mono on single tracks .
i dont wanna say hardware is a lot better and can do miracle , but for me i love the sound of some gears and it cant be replaced itb for now,i could get same mix quality with plugs but i just like the sound of these gears, it s all about taste |
|
|
|
mquirk1
IsraTrance Full Member
Started Topics :
63
Posts :
384
Posted : Jan 7, 2010 16:49
|
you can use the api 2500 in 'dual mono' mode as well, as it has a 'link' knob which you can adjust from 0% (dual mono) to 100 (stereo).
either way you still need either a stereo compressor or 2 mono compressors. running the L signal then the R signal separately through a single mono compressor is just not feasible, you can't even listen to what you're doing since you can only run a mono signal in to it. |
|
|
|
PoM
IsraTrance Full Member
Started Topics :
162
Posts :
8087
Posted : Jan 7, 2010 16:51
|
i updated my post i think if i had stereo compressors i would still use double mono on invidual tracks
about the api i m sure it s a great comp , never used one just heard it on some tracks , it seems it don t have as much mojo than a neve pre, for example i heard some tracks of infected from around 2007 if i m right, i could hear that color very easly, my friends got the same sound with the clone, its not sublte when you push it, it eat your transients for breakfast and remove the highs make something nice on the mids, i think it s what the op is looking for , i wouldn t say it make things soudn better, its just a vibe that i like (even if i didn t liked much the mixs of these infected tracks)
anyway for hardware like software always try before buy it s easy to be disapointed after the wow factor of the first use . |
|
|
|
PoM
IsraTrance Full Member
Started Topics :
162
Posts :
8087
Posted : Jan 7, 2010 17:20
|
Quote:
|
On 2010-01-07 16:12, mquirk1 wrote:
i suggest you do some blind a/b tests with different preamps. i know more then a few people who have been disappointed that a high end analogue preamp did not do 'more' for the sound.
|
|
you re right i was disapointed when i heard the great river i thought it would be more colored ,the sound i was looking for... i m glad i haven t bought one blindly just by reading forums, i also heard few other highend preamps on gearslutz and they did nothing to me ( i was looking for color) |
|
|
|
EtherealMotive
IsraTrance Full Member
Started Topics :
56
Posts :
186
Posted : Jan 8, 2010 04:10
|
Quote:
|
On 2010-01-07 13:43, Fragletrollet wrote:
Personally wouldnt bother with hardware comp with FireFace either. Even tough its a good interface, its not High End, and there is a difference.
|
|
What do you mean Fireface isn't "high end" Its industry standard. |
|
|
|
mquirk1
IsraTrance Full Member
Started Topics :
63
Posts :
384
Posted : Jan 8, 2010 04:59
|
Quote:
|
On 2010-01-08 04:10, EtherealMotive wrote:
Quote:
|
On 2010-01-07 13:43, Fragletrollet wrote:
Personally wouldnt bother with hardware comp with FireFace either. Even tough its a good interface, its not High End, and there is a difference.
|
|
What do you mean Fireface isn't "high end" Its industry standard.
|
|
rme converters are fairly common in home studios, but are far from industry standard in prorfessional studios. with high-end converters you are looking at spending around $1000 a channel for ad/da, eg lavry/prism sound etc |
|
|
|
EtherealMotive
IsraTrance Full Member
Started Topics :
56
Posts :
186
Posted : Jan 8, 2010 08:23
|
|
Yeah true, but you can produce very high quality sound with RME and RME is an industry standard. It depends where your from. |
|
|
|
gutter
Inactive User
Started Topics :
54
Posts :
3018
Posted : Jan 8, 2010 11:20
|
Common you dont expect the music to be better, even the sound to be better with just good converters.
Im about to make a buy too and im seriously thinking of the Thermionic Culture Vulture instead of a compressor, i think thats a great tool needed for a better signal and for sure no plugin in the world can give you what this gives you and the use is almost everything from the drums to the bass or the hole mix to push and warm up signals, i think its a great choice but still thinking of the money
@mquirk1
man lavry and prism have the best and most expensive studios in the world ,i cant think of any psy artist having these equip , especially bedroom producers
|
|
|
|
Fragletrollet
Fragletrollet
Started Topics :
111
Posts :
1748
Posted : Jan 8, 2010 11:54
|
|
mquirk1
IsraTrance Full Member
Started Topics :
63
Posts :
384
Posted : Jan 8, 2010 15:29
|
Quote:
|
On 2010-01-08 08:23, EtherealMotive wrote:
Yeah true, but you can produce very high quality sound with RME and RME is an industry standard. It depends where your from.
|
|
rme converters are good for midrange, but they are not high end converters. and they are not an 'industry standard'. you would not find them in any commercial studios
Quote:
|
On 2010-01-08 11:20, gutter wrote:
Common you dont expect the music to be better, even the sound to be better with just good converters.
Im about to make a buy too and im seriously thinking of the Thermionic Culture Vulture instead of a compressor, i think thats a great tool needed for a better signal and for sure no plugin in the world can give you what this gives you and the use is almost everything from the drums to the bass or the hole mix to push and warm up signals, i think its a great choice but still thinking of the money
@mquirk1
man lavry and prism have the best and most expensive studios in the world ,i cant think of any psy artist having these equip , especially bedroom producers
|
|
i wouldn't expect bedroom producers to have high end gear like that either, but i was talking about what converters are considered 'industry standard' in terms of commericial studios, and those are the names they use.
and having good converters *do* make a huge difference in the quality of sound as soon as you go out the box. try recording something like a virus through shit m-audio converters then through the prism sound orpheus and compare and you will see what i mean.. same deal with using outboard, every time you hit the converters you are degrading the signal if they are crap quality.
the culture vulture is a nice piece of gear, but i suggest you try the demo of soundtoys decapitator first. same sort of thing. |
|
|
|
gutter
Inactive User
Started Topics :
54
Posts :
3018
Posted : Jan 8, 2010 15:43
|
Yes, i wont compare the awful maudio with prism lol no way, just with as an rme user i cannot say im disappointed by it, maybe this is the bedroom standard nowadays 
about the Culture im really thinking very seriously about the money but i cant find any better gear for my needs to buy, and commoooooon you cannot compare the real thing with soundtoys man!!!
|
|
|
|
mquirk1
IsraTrance Full Member
Started Topics :
63
Posts :
384
Posted : Jan 8, 2010 16:20
|
^
have you actually tried it? it obviously doesn't sound the same as the culture vulture as it is not supposed to be an emulation, however as far as distortion units go it is an amazing plug, and definitely has a 'hardware' sound. besides, it's price atm of $0 is a lot more friendly on your wallet then $1800 US or whatever of the culture vulture and you get all the workflow benefits working in software instead of hardware |
|
|
|
