UAD 1/2 favorite plugs

[jdhogg]

uad do some great ones for sure eg fatso.

I wish I had a UAD-2.

btw. Is it subtle or "obvious"? I´ve tried a few tape sat
plug-ins and none of them are "furry" enough to my taste

Magneto is still the best tool for that in my arsenal.
(it´s a prehistoric Cubase plug-in, in case you´re wondering )

- JH

I have not had the chance to use it but people with better ears than me say it sounds great. I did look at the uad site and the guy that built the fatso got it right in the way tape compresses the peaks to flatten them out.

If I bought a uad it would most probably be for that plug.

Hey lets not get carried away with compressor plug envy.

Compressors dont write melodies.

[jh]

If you compare the input signal to the output then yes the threshold is moving relative to the amplitude of the wave, but moving the threshold cannot replicate what we are trying to achieve with this trick. So I dont think you should visualize it this way.

That´s what I (thought) I said "Idea is basically/kinda the same, but it´s not THE same".
The concept is in the same ballpark, although the end result isn´t the same.
But I guess you´re right, maybe that just created further confusion.

eg Using a 24bit vox signal unprocessed on the way in and now mixing.

1. set the comp up for the verse so it levels out nicely eg 3db max peak reduction.
2. when the chorus comes the singer will often sing so much louder that the compressor is crushing/distorting the signal to death. eg 13db max peak reduction.

So if for the chorus you can ride the fader down (10db) that feeds the compressor you have only 3db compressor peak reduction again. (in reality it will be a bit more )
So you have achieved 10db of transparent "manual compression" and reinstated 3db compression.....end result is the chorus vox sounds as undistorted and clean as the verse.

Exactly. And most of the time I also bring up some passages and little nuances, which is actually expanding, not compressing.
(For anyone interested, here´s a video about the concept : http://bamaudioschool.com/audiocourse/1 ... ldvoc.html)

In reality I dont ride the fader with my finger (some do). I put the comp post fader and draw the fader moves into my daw automation.

Me too

- JH

[mazz]

Why not create a separate track for the chorus? It could have a different compressor setting, EQ, etc. It could be bussed together with the verse track if certain common FX are being used.

In the DAW world, it's easy to do this kind of thing and it's a departure from the old school analog way of thinking where you had the vocal on the same track coming through the same channel on the mixing board. There's no reason to work that way anymore unless one really wants to. It's so easy to duplicate a track and an entire mixer channel, inserts and all. The only issue would be if you're running out of CPU, but maybe at that you have too many plug ins going anyway and the mix has other issues!

Just more food for thought, fueled by caffeine!

[jh]

Why not create a separate track for the chorus?

Well, at least in Cubase it´s very easy to just change the gain of the file,
so you don´t even have to create a separate track. If I want to just avoid
too much compression, I´ll do just that, but that´s not the point.
The idea is the same as with expression controller (enhancing dynamics).

If you´re interested, check that link.


- JH

[jdhogg]

Why not create a separate track for the chorus? It could have a different compressor setting, EQ, etc. It could be bussed together with the verse track if certain common FX are being used.

In the DAW world, it's easy to do this kind of thing and it's a departure from the old school analog way of thinking where you had the vocal on the same track coming through the same channel on the mixing board. There's no reason to work that way anymore unless one really wants to. It's so easy to duplicate a track and an entire mixer channel, inserts and all. The only issue would be if you're running out of CPU, but maybe at that you have too many plug ins going anyway and the mix has other issues!

Just more food for thought, fueled by caffeine!

I use both methods ( 2 tracks different levels to a group with fx )
but what you will find, especially if you want to ride the occasional note anyway, is that it is quicker to do it on one track.

For me, the bigger the difference verse to chorus the more likely to split and that is more based on EQ eg rock vox I do it...... mellow jazz I dont.

[mazz]

Yes, it comes down to what you're trying to accomplish and what makes sense, and of course, the most important thing, the song itself!!

It's just that something that used to take finding an extra mixer channel and compressor and patchcords can be done with one mouse click these days!

Still love those UAD plug ins!

[markjsmith]

Sorry I'm a bit late to the party!
I LOVE the UAD stuff!!! I'm still UAD-1. I think if you've been exposed to the hardware they're the best software versions out there. I haven't even touched the Waves stuff since using these. I use the Precision Comp and Limiter on almost every mix buss, and having VCA, LA 2A & 3A, 1176, Fairchild, Neve, SSL compression is pretty awesome. I also use the Helios alot.
There are TONS of great plugs out there! I just REALLY LOVE these a whole lot!

[rnrmachine]

I am jealous in a good way though, happy for you guys to have those. I do have some waves stuff that I use which I am glad to have. I will eventually get a UAD card, but I have to priortize until the royalty checks start to add up to something significant. hehe

I do have the SSL 4000 channel from waves, which I understand is in the UAD line up. Do any of you have both and can compare them? I do really like the Buss Comp too, that came with the package.

Rob

The SSL 4000 is better than the uad 4K imho.

Uad do great stuff but the alternatives eg softube are excellent. The big plus about uad was the increase in power....thats not so much of an issue now......the plugin quality is the dealmaker and uad do some great ones for sure eg fatso.

Thank you.

Rob

I do realize how the UAD plugins sound, it's the reason I asked, I have the Hal Leonard book 6 on Mixing and Mastering.. I picked it up some time back and he uses some waves and some UAD. His mixes sound quite good (lol, one would hope eh? on a DVD and he, Bill Gibson, wrote a whole series of these books). I just haven't seen him use the SSL channel at all. (In the DVD that came with the book he has videos.. what he used, how he changed it.. A/B of it etc... makes me wanna grab some UAD for dinner )

[mazz]

A nice interview with Hans Zimmer who is loving his UAD plug ins. And he has some real Neve hardware to compare them to!!

http://www.uaudio.com/webzine/2010/may/ ... rview.html

[ckbarlow]

Mazz et al -- what happens when you move (presumably) to a new machine with PCI-e slots? My super-quick Googely check says you can't use a PCI card in an Express slot, which is what the new Mac Pros have.

In other words, if I'm pretty sure I'll need to move to a new Mac Pro in the next couple of years, maybe this is an investment I should wait on?

Oh, wait -- the current UAD-2 IS PCIe. So for me the question is whether my current dual G5 has pci or pcie....