UAD-1 Studio PAK

[ryanlikestorock]

Anyone using these plugs for mastering? I'm very interested in buying them. The company site doesn't seem to have an all-inclusive price... does anyone know of a site that does?

[laptoppop]

I have the UAD-1, and I really like the plugins....BUT... they are not totally useful for "mastering". For example, there is no multiband compressor in the toolkit.

What I use for the final touch up (I'm hesitant to call it mastering because I know a lot of folks do it a lot better than I do) is Ozone. Its a CPU hog, but it has all the tools you need. You can check it out for free from izotope.com (IIRC, it goes silent every once in a while in the "free" mode). They also have a "mastering guide" on their site for free (pdf file) that has a lot of good information, even if it is slanted toward their program.

Other folks like the Waves plugins (but not the copy protection), or other solutions.

CPU usage during mastering shouldn't be a big issue. By that time, you should have already mixed down to the stereo image, and so you are only working with a limited amount of data.

8thstreet.com has the studio pack (which includes all 20 plugins) for 899. http://www.8thstreet.com/product.asp...egory=Software

-lee-

[Massive Master]

GO BUY THE UAD CARD...

Yes, they're wonderul for mastering - Not the "end-all-be-all" but I have hardly even toucched my Waves plugs since I installed the UAD. They are THE reason that I'm barely touching my analog gear anymore.

Nothing personal on laptoppop, (honest - it's nothing personal) I've used Ozone and... Well... It's kind of like a Finalizer - It's sort of like mastering (we call it "Half-Asstering"), and I rarely use a multi-band compressor... There are better ways of skinning that cat...

YOU STILL HERE? Go to the store and buy a UAD card (or two). Make sure you get the Cambridge EQ (one of the best - period.) and the DreamVerb (takes a LOT of tweaking, but a wonderful yet very ugly reverb).

Run along now... Don't wait for them to run out.

Two things on my "when you pry them from my cold, dead hands list" are (1) my modified Smith & Wesson 910 and (2) my UAD card.

John Scrip - www.massivemastering.com

[Teacher]

i hear the sony stuff on the power core is supposed to be awesome too...and TC is coming out with the powercore element which is going for 500 street ,but the sony plugs are a tad pricey

[ryanlikestorock]

Is this Fairchild compressor as good as they say it is?

I'm looking for a software based compressor I can commit to.

[Teacher]

the 1176 and la2a plugs ins that come with the card are already great for a plug-in solution, the fairchild just adds more weapons to the arsenal

[Massive Master]

The Fairchild is "as good as they say" although I personally think there's a little "child abuse" going on currently simply because it's "new" at this point.

I'm seeing a lot of posts on a lot of forums where people are just going bonkers over it, saying "I've finally found the perfect mastering compressor" (a Fairchild? in 2004? For mastering?) and such things...

Don't get me wrong - It's a wonderful compressor with a LOT of flavor - Great on many instruments and some group tracks - Across the stereo buss, the mix needs to "beg" for it before I put it on there...

But yes, as Teacher states, just another weapon. You can NEVER have too many compressors...

John Scrip -

[Middleman]

Originally posted by ryanlikestorock
Is this Fairchild compressor as good as they say it is?

I'm looking for a software based compressor I can commit to.

The Fairchild is outstanding but extremely colored. It is also very midrange focused. If you want it to make a vocal stand out or to bring an instrument to the forefront then it's just the ticket.

However, the LA2A and 1176 get a lot more use on my tracks and are real workhorse plug ins. The Fairchild is for that extra sparkle at the end of the mix. The sleeper software on the UAD-1 card is the Cambridge EQ. Just by putting it on a track the digital hardness of ADDA goes away. Very smooth accurate and really enhances any track you put it on.

[ryanlikestorock]

The phrase "child abuse" makes me laugh, for sure. However, I'm glad to hear that if it's used in moderation, it can make for a great compressor.

That EQ looks awesome. Is it miles ahead of the Waves 10-band parametric?

I'm not afraid to spend the money if I know I'm getting better sound as a result.

[Teacher]

getting a better sound is up to you but the Cambridge EQ is more 'dummy proof' then the waves eq

[Massive Master]

I would put the Cambridge at or near the top of the heap. I prefer the Sonalksis EQ when adding high shelf, but that's the only time. On top of that, when I'm looking for high shelf, I usually need look no further than the Pultec. The Cambridge is amazingly (I hate to use this term) "analog" sounding and very easy to use.

John -

[TexRoadkill]

Is the UAD fast enough to use as a realtime effects processor in an analog mixdown situation? How many tracks can you process at once?

[C D'Asta]

I have been using the Waves Gold Native Bundle for about 3 years now and would have to quit tracking and mastering if I lost the plugins. I have never heard a virtual device deliver such world class performance. Sonic Foundry's (Sony) stock plugins are actually pretty well suited to both track effects and main buss mastering as well, and are much cheaper. There are a number of freeware plugs that you can check out, go to Cakewalks' DirectX Files page for a list of DX plugs, if you need VST plugs they are out there as well. What is the recording/mixing application you are running?
Chris D'Asta CEO, Nanolabs Multimedia
www.nanolabsmultimedia.cjb.net

[C D'Asta]

I just realised that Scrips over there at Massive sounds a bit like Hunter S. Thompson waxing philosophical on his favorite handgun, I like that...Sorry to digress, folks....

[Middleman]

Originally posted by TexRoadkill
Is the UAD fast enough to use as a realtime effects processor in an analog mixdown situation? How many tracks can you process at once?

Not sure what you mean by fast enough on analog mixdown so I'll wait for clarification.

The number of tracks depends on your overall load. There are several cycle hogs in the suite such as the 1176, LA2A and the Fairchild. Nigel, the amp simulator is a pig. I try to use it sparingly.

I have one song with 6 - LA2As, 4-1176, the Fairchild and 10 Cambridge EQs. I also had other Plug ins such as the Lexicon on that tune. Past this you would probably need a 2nd UAD card. Although it all depends. This particular track also had numerous midi things running.

A common configuration is 2 of the UAD-1s, and a Powercore for its verbs. The UAD excels at compression and EQ. It lacks on the verbs which is why a lot of people opt for the Powercore.

[TexRoadkill]

Thanks for the info. JakeOWA had asked about using a UAD as a real time effects processor and got me curious. The idea would be to get a multi input card for the computer and patch it into the aux sends or inserts on the mixing console and use the DAW as a dedicated realtime effects processor.

I would think it could pull off the reverbs and delays but trying to do insert compression or EQ might be a little more tricky with the latency.

If the verbs suck then what is the UAD good for. Is it mainly the EQ and compressors?

[Teacher]

Originally posted by Middleman
I have one song with 6 - LA2As, 4-1176, the Fairchild and 10 Cambridge EQs. I also had other Plug ins such as the Lexicon on that tune. Past this you would probably need a 2nd UAD card. Although it all depends. This particular track also had numerous midi things running.

this was at 24/44.1?

[reel buzzer]

ryanlikestorock wrote:
"I'm not afraid to spend the money if I know I'm getting better sound as a result."

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Well allright then get some gear that is being used in a real mastering suite and take your tunes on a ride through some Class A circuitry:

First you got to get your stuff out of that little computer thingy don't you?
DB Technologies DA-924 D/A Converter should do the trick.

For EQ you should try to find a Sontec MES-432C Stereo Program equalizer, or an NTI EQ3 equalizer.
Neve 4-band EQ's are nice additions too, there is no plugin that can compare.

For compression try to find a Smart Research C2 Stereo Compressor.

Ok, so unless you are cutting lacquer you need to get that signal back into the quaint little tiny puny digital world, right?
So DB Technologies also makes an A/D converter, AD-122 96K 24 bit.

At this point plug-ins are not needed, Sonic Solutions 5.4 has everything you need, ie 96k/24bit to 44.1k/16bit conversion.

Sony 1630/Studer CD recorder will actually make the master disk.

[ChristopherDawn]

I just got a UAD-1 off of Ebay. I'm happy.

[Middleman]

Originally posted by TexRoadkill
Thanks for the info. JakeOWA had asked about using a UAD as a real time effects processor and got me curious. The idea would be to get a multi input card for the computer and patch it into the aux sends or inserts on the mixing console and use the DAW as a dedicated realtime effects processor.

I would think it could pull off the reverbs and delays but trying to do insert compression or EQ might be a little more tricky with the latency.

If the verbs suck then what is the UAD good for. Is it mainly the EQ and compressors?

I have no idea if this would work or not. Sounds like a fun project though.

[Middleman]

Originally posted by Teacher
this was at 24/44.1?

Yes. Actually I could probably squeezed in 1 or 2 more low cycle plugs if I tried.

[Mountainmirrors]

I love the UAD-1.
It's worth it for the compressors and Pultec alone.
I have the Voxengo GlissEQ and PSP MasterQ, which I love. With the Pultec Pro, I'm stoked for EQ.
As for verb, I suggest you try out the PSP Easyverb. The name sounds cheesy, but its' sound is great. Or check out Pristine Space at Voxengo.com.