Any new improved mastering compressor plug?

[nbarts]

I've been using my current setup for a while, never kept track of what's new happening. Used to have L2, then switched to Oxford Limiter, which is kinda better.

Is there something warmer sounding out there (PC platform, vst.)?

[ed littman]

Paul Frindle's DSM dynamics processor

Here's the link: http://www.proaudiodsp.com/products/dsm/

I just downloaded the demo. Hopefully soon I'll have an useful opinion to share
Ed

[nbarts]

Cool, share your experiences after you give it a spin.

[lerone]

L2 and oxford are for bw limiting, not traditional compression. (sorry your post was a bit unclear) The oxford can be pretty warm as far as limiters go (enhance). If your after warm gooey compression itb, then maybe the abbey road chandler plugs or t-racks fairchild? They both sound pretty warm, hi quality & are Win VST + dont require external dsp. Look at the oxford inflator for some warmth and a bit of fatness, look at voxengos elephant for a nice clean & transparent limiter in the veign of the l2, but much much better.

[goshalev]

For traditional mastering compression:

Voxengo Polysquasher V2

[Tarekith]

I wish Polysquasher had a wet dry control :(

[bmanic]

Originally Posted by ed littman

Paul Frindle's DSM dynamics processor

Here's the link: Pro Audio DSP - Professional Audio Plugins - Audio Units, Pro Tools and VST for Mac and PC

I just downloaded the demo. Hopefully soon I'll have an useful opinion to share
Ed

I just tried this one and think it has potential in a "nothing else works.. needs a miracle" scenario. It's kind of similar to Voxengo Soniformer.

However, I do think it has some problems with added distortion of some kind as it always sounds a wee bit harsh.

It's range of frequencies, being linear instead of logarithmic, makes no sense either. Perhaps he is using a very small FFT window size and thus "hides this fact" by using a linear scale? Who knows.. it has a lot of potential but the current implementation did not convince me.

Cheers!
bManic

[tonmeister]

Originally Posted by Tarekith

I wish Polysquasher had a wet dry control :(

It does in the comp mode editor

Originally Posted by bmanic

DSM dynamics processor: It's range of frequencies, being linear instead of logarithmic, makes no sense either.:(

I was immediately put off this one because of this - it's more of a "dynamic EQ"?

[kjg]

Regarding DSM:
Don't think about it too much, don't judge it based on what you think it is or should (not) be. Just demo it. You'll see that in use it does not really feel as a MB or dynamic EQ.

The fact that it splits the spectrum up linearly (as a result of the nature of FFT) is actually a good thing. It allows you to control the energy in the low end more broadly and deal with specific frequencies in the high end more precisely when needed. These processes do have attack and release times and a ratio though, so it is really does not have to be all that drastic (and "plastic").
But I can see where the person comparing it to Autotune is coming from. It seems artificial to limit a spectrum to a given curve but in normal use that is not really what DSM does, although you could come close if you want to since it is indeed very powerful. It is also very flexible though which allows for very subtle and smooth processing.

Give it a spin. It is really a very well thought out tool and has many uses, in mixing as well as in mastering.

best,
kjg

[tomasrangel]

Originally Posted by bmanic

I just tried this one and think it has potential in a "nothing else works.. needs a miracle" scenario. It's kind of similar to Voxengo Soniformer.

However, I do think it has some problems with added distortion of some kind as it always sounds a wee bit harsh.

It's range of frequencies, being linear instead of logarithmic, makes no sense either. Perhaps he is using a very small FFT window size and thus "hides this fact" by using a linear scale? Who knows.. it has a lot of potential but the current implementation did not convince me.

Cheers!
bManic

Thanks for your overview.