Quote:
Originally Posted by synthoid  AD2044. I love it for tracking stereo synths. I'm with DSMrehearsal: last CD I made I tracked all my Virus parts through AD2022 -> AD2055 -> AD2044. I was very happy with the sounds I got.
The only problem is that it raises the noise floor a bit, so that on recordings where you want a very silent backdrop you have to be careful what the analog front end is introducing in the way of noise. This is especially true for the preamp, because in effect what you are doing when you run the Virus through a preamp is attenuating the signal and then re-amplifying it, and that will necessarily introduce at least some noise even using the best preamps. (I thought the tradeoff was worth it last time, because the preamp gives you great control over the level of the signal through the rest of the chain and adds some sparkle. But there's an argument to be made for skipping the preamp and going straight to some other analog signal processor.)
-synthoid |
yes, AD2044 - thanks for pointing out the spelling mistake
I think it's because they "sparkle" (good word for what it does yes) they also take up the high freq noise that's normally buried somewhere in there. It would be a good idea to keep the signal path as short as possible, and maybe add a good lowpass filter to it (just before the preamp). Not so much that you can hear it, but enough to get rid of the high freq trash. Did you try that? IME a lowpassgate (vactrols) helps smooth these out before compression.
In fact I'm looking for a "sparklehorse", in about two months.
I used to have a Urei BL-40 for that (sort of 3d-aliser), now thinking about another BL-40 (generously offered for sale by astrnmr), and either a Pendulum ES-8, or a DW Fearn VT-7. Both for tracking and for polish and overall compression during mixing (to make it smoother, without losing the relation between the dynamics of the instruments too much).
The compression action of the ES-8, just like the Avalon is very mellow, soft almost, but there's other tools for grab and slam. The VT-7 does grab, but in such a way that there's no added punch. I haven't had the chance to test either unit thouroughly, so my experience is limited.
The Anamod 660 is also on the chart. Loved the sound of that. It does have a very specific coloration.
If I didn't have a bunch of VCA compressors already I'd also look at the UBK Fatso. Getting that would probably overlap with my other transformer based stuff dynamics processors. (API 525 clones, U473a, U273b Kultube, 2500) Maybe I have to test them all.
Sorry for the long post, and sundaymorning ramblings. Compression on my mind.
Any advice from slutz that compared either unit (Pendulum, DW Fearn) would be appreciated. I like Avalon EQ but not so much the compression. I got two months to narrow it down.
