Issue No. 67

Dynamics, Signal Processors

7720 Stereo Compressor

by Chameleon Labs  |  reviewed by Ralph Stover

At one time, I owned an Alan Smart C2 compressor, but these days, I mix in the box and rely on the Waves SSL compressor plug-in, so I was excited to try out the VCA-based 7720, which relies on THAT...

Signal Processors

ATS-1 Analog Tape Simulator

by AnaMod  |  reviewed by Allen Farmelo

The emulation of analog gear in the digital realm is nothing new, but the emulation of analog gear in the analog realm is a new concept-analog modeling. AnaMod was founded in 2006 by two long-time...

Monitoring

HR824 MK2 active monitors

by Mackie  |  reviewed by Andy Hong

In my personal studio, I've relied on ADAM S3-A's (Tape Op #33) as my main monitors for the past five years. But for many years before that, I counted on Mackie HR824's. I purchased the HR's after...

Monitoring

MR5 active monitors

by Mackie  |  reviewed by Andy Hong

The first time I connected these tiny speakers to my console's outputs, I couldn't believe the size of the sound I was hearing. After playing through a few more songs, I had to walk out of the control...

Direct Boxes

ISA One preamp/DI

by Focusrite  |  reviewed by Al Lawson

When the ISA One first arrived, I was worried that its features seem to be targeted at the solo, at-home recordist and that I wasn't going to get the best out of it purely because that's not usually...

Software, Virtual Instruments

Jupiter 8V software synthesizer

by Arturia  |  reviewed by Thom Monahan

It used to be that using a soft synth really felt like a compromise. Even with the best emulations, it's always been hard not to think that if you could get your hands on the "real thing" it would...

Recorders, Software

Live 7

by Ableton  |  reviewed by Dana Gumbiner

Yet another timely upgrade to Ableton's unparalleled DAW sequencing software instrument, Live 7 offers up a great number of optimizations, enhancements, and new instruments. I can be a bit wary of...

Dynamics, Plug-Ins, Signal Processors

De:Esser

by Massey Plugins  |  reviewed by Allen Farmelo

There aren't a lot of de-essers out there, probably because they're not very sexy and not at the top of many people's wishlists. But a good de-esser is invaluable, especially now that so many people...

Software

schOPE VST audio analyzer

by Schwa  |  reviewed by Garrett Haines

Schwa/Stillwell are a cool plug-in company. I'm going to start writing about one of their utilities to help our readers ease into this product line. Simply put, the titles you'll find at...

Mic Preamps

Model 5 mic preamp

by Gordon Instruments  |  reviewed by Mike Jasper

My first outboard preamp was the much-maligned Drawmer 1969. I wanted to keep the signal chain as simple as possible and use a preamp with a built-in compressor, so I chose two channels of Drawmer...

Mic Preamps

The Earlybird 1.2 tube preamp

by Thermionic Culture  |  reviewed by Mike Caffrey

Although Thermionic Culture's Phoenix compressor (Tape Op #63) gets raves from everyone I know who has one, as does the Culture Vulture (Tape Op #45), The Earlybird 1.2 has yet to receive the...

Signal Processors

Masterpiece 2

by Legendary Audio  |  reviewed by Garrett Haines

The Legendary Audio Masterpiece 2 is a comprehensive 2-bus analog processing system conceived by Billy Stull and designed by Rupert Neve. Physically, the Masterpiece is a 6RU-height 19" rack unit that...

Mobile Apps, Tools

Masayuki Akamatsu Oscillator

by Masayuki Akamatsu  |  reviewed by John Baccigaluppi

This is a great little app for the iPod Touch or iPhone available from the iTunes store. It outputs a sine, square, or sawtooth wave with variable pan and output gain. It also outputs white noise....

Consoles/Summing, Signal Processors

Fat Track tube production suite

by TL Audio  |  reviewed by Neil Mclellan

These days, my business partner Neil Mclellan spends just as much time working on the road with his laptop or on his home rig as he does in big SSL and Neve-equipped rooms-that's just the current...

Accessories

micKing 2200 mic stand

by Latch Lake Music  |  reviewed by Garrett Haines

A few years ago, we lucked upon an old Neumann U 87. Cosmetically, it was pretty beat up, so it was only $1200. After testing it, we were exceptionally pleased with its sound. I supplied Neumann with...

Mic Preamps

MicPort Pro USB mic preamp

by CEntrance  |  reviewed by Andy Hong

In my review of the Samson Audio G-Track USB mic (Tape Op #64), I praised it for its ease of use and affordability as well as its built-in zero-latency monitoring. Without the latter, a USB mic would...

Plug-Ins

UAD-2 plug-in processor

by Universal Audio  |  reviewed by John Baccigaluppi

Universal Audio more or less set the standard for hardware plug-in processors with their UAD-1 series. They were one of the first to release a product of this type and currently have one of the...

Plug-Ins

UAD-2 plug-in processor

by Universal Audio  |  reviewed by Eric Broyhill

Universal Audio more or less set the standard for hardware plug-in processors with their UAD-1 series. They were one of the first to release a product of this type and currently have one of the...

Mobile Apps, Tools

BPM Tap Tempo

by Audiodog  |  reviewed by John Baccigaluppi

Another iPhone app, this utility helps you determine tempo and delay times. Just tap the tap button in time to a track, and it outputs the tempo and delay times in milliseconds for whole, half,...