How does the UAD 1073 compare to the 88RS?

[popvulture]

I just got UAD-2 Nevana...

I was just wondering if anybody could offer any suggestions about this - I'm new to UAD and have a $100 voucher, so I'm wondering what to buy next. There's also a sale on EQ's and the $25 coupon out there right now.

The 1073 - Obviously different than the eq in the 88RS, but different enough to be my first plugin purchase?

LA-2A - Heard great things about this, might be a more logical choice?

I'd like to get the Precision Maximizer, but it's not available for UAD-2 yet... if anybody has good experiences with these plugs or others they'd like to share, I'd love to hear em.

[Diegel]

I personally find myself using the 1073 ten times more often than the 88rs. And the things I would use the 88rs on like drums and percussion I use my duende instead. 1073 rocks on el. guitar ac. guitar and bass.

[fhames]

1073 is only eq with lot o mojo. 88RS is full service channel strip with lot of versatility.

[s.d.finley]

I have both the 88RS and the 1073, 1081 also.

The 88RS is more of a very good utilitarian channelstrip. The 1073 OTOH has, as the above poster mentioned, lots of "mojo", or character and general musical sweetness.
I enjoy using the 88RS on my drum tracks, Kick and snare, and the 1073's on guitars and bass.

The expander/gate function on the 88 is very nice. Lots of tweakability as regards to the ability of setting the gate/expander to open/close just right. The comps very useful, however, it has little mojo, as compared to the 33609.

The 1073 just sounds so sweet. Clear but not hashey or harsh on the top and the bottom is tight and big. These sound most excellent on med/heavy guitars.
The LA2A is great, as is the VCA 160VU style compressor. I am sorry, I dont think I am helping . I would take advantage of the demos and check them out a few at a time.

[gregohb]

To me the 1073 is good for bringing out high end and clarity. Its surprisingly lacking in harmonics or warmth as I was expecting. Its also a resource hog.

The 88 is very efficient and does a lot. However, there is a bit of a learning curve to it and even after I created a diagram to learn it, I easily forget what each thing does. It also seems to not have any character to it.

I am thinking to get the 1081 because it has more EQ bands, and perhaps a slightly different sound than the 1073 but not sure its worth it. The Pultec Pro is fairly cheap and a good value too.

As for compressors, the LA2a and LA3a are both very good. The VU seems very retro but limited in usefulness from the little I used of it when demo'ing.

I was disappointed in the Prec Maximizer. I like Vintage Warmer and BBE better.

[PhiloBeddoe]

Originally Posted by popvulture

I just got UAD-2 Nevana...

I was just wondering if anybody could offer any suggestions about this - I'm new to UAD and have a $100 voucher, so I'm wondering what to buy next. There's also a sale on EQ's and the $25 coupon out there right now.

The 1073 - Obviously different than the eq in the 88RS, but different enough to be my first plugin purchase?

I'm confused. If you have the Nevana you should already have the 88RS and the 1073, as well as the 1081 and 33609.

[Neon Heart]

Originally Posted by PhiloBeddoe

I'm confused. If you have the Nevana you should already have the 88RS and the 1073, as well as the 1081 and 33609.

I think he is talking about the basic Nevana 32.
there's only the 88RS included from the Neve series.

only with Nevana 128 you get the whole deal.

[Masochrism]

I can't say enough good things about the UAD 1073 and 1081 (also 33609) plugs. SCARY CLOSE to the original Hardware - at least when I demo'd them. I heard them at AES on the Singer/UAD Tech Tour - if anyone else went on that maybe they can weigh in.

[PhiloBeddoe]

Originally Posted by Neon Heart

I think he is talking about the basic Nevana 32.
there's only the 88RS included from the Neve series.

only with Nevana 128 you get the whole deal.

OK, sorry. You get them all with the 64 too, but hadn't noticed the 32 thing.

They have so many great plugs now it's really hard to recommend something without knowing the needs.

Some great ones I use all the time are (in no particular order):
1073
33609
LA2A
LA3A
Precision Limiter
SPL TD

[insomnio]

I find myself using the 1073 a lot more than the 88RS. The 88 is a nice one but the Waves SSL almost always beats it.

But I need to say something that I hate from this plugin. It's the layout. User unfriendly!

[chrispick]

Originally Posted by popvulture

The 1073 - Obviously different than the eq in the 88RS, but different enough to be my first plugin purchase?

LA-2A - Heard great things about this, might be a more logical choice?

My quick-take opinions, should they help:

1073 - I use it a lot. Great for tweaking fast transient stuff like guitars, percussion, etc. Good with edgy source material.

LA2A - A must-have if you process vocals ITB, I think. I also like it a lot on various acoustic instruments. Adds subtle harmonic content to a track, giving it some thickness.

[Farshad]

I have tried the 1073 along with the Waves V series one. I actually prefered the Waves one. Sounds way smoother.

[har5hreality]

I have a lot of the UA plugs for the UAD1 (haven't made the leap to the UAD2 -- still waiting for RTAS support or Christmas, whichever one comes first). I've found that with all the plugs in my arsenal, I always end up going back to my tried and true (all the analog gear I wish I had).

1176
LA2A
1073
Pultec Pro
Plate140
Precision Limiter


Any of these would be a great choice, you will not be disappointed. I definitely prefer a 1073, 1176, LA2A channel over an 88RS channel for most things, but that's just me. But if your card already came with the 88RS, then you should consider getting the Plate140 (awesome plate reverb), because the 88RS already has compression and EQ (it might take some time to dial in how you like it, but the tools are there). My advice, pick one and learn it well. Then get the next one on your wish list and learn that one. However, to me, a high-end reverb plug would make sense to compliment the 88RS and round out your tools.

As far as Waves is concerned, I've always preferred the UA warmth, but I've used Waves when I didn't have access to my UA plugs and some of their plugs are just as good as the UA stuff (the L series maximizer/limiters, R series, API series, and SSL series -- all very good).

Also, you should look into AudioEase's Altiverb -- hands down the best IR reverb plug out there.

[gregohb]

It seems most of you guys like the 1073 and don't mention the 1081 - but the 1081 seems to have finer control over the tone. I am thinking if I should buy it or not now as a matter of fact - they just put out that $25 coupon for the TEC award celebration and its already on sale - so you can get it for $186 I think.

[tombuur]

I demoed the plugins in question about a year ago and ended buying the 88RS as a general "channel strip". A great concern was that the other Neve plugins were such resource hogs. Since then I have acquired the hardware version of 88RS, i.e. AMS Neve 8801. I like the idea of having the same channel strip in boht hard and software. And comparing I have found that at least the EQ sounds the same ...

Now, with the advent of UAD-2 I am now getting the quad version, and this will give me enough power to run several 1073 or 1081, so I will get at least one of them. Probably the 1081 which I remember as being more useful because it has one more frequency band.

[JPeters86]

Most of the time I prefer the 88RS. It's a plug that works on everything. And I certainly do not find it user unfriendly, I consider it to be the opposite of that.

The 1073 is awesome as well, more colored and viby than the EQ in the 88RS. But the EQ in the 88RS is very musical and sweet as well. It's what you're after. I recently had to mix a song in a very short period of time, and decided to use only the 88RS (comp and eq/filter) and some Plate 140. I was very impressed.

[TMB]

I have the the 88RS and the 1081 and I'm always using the 1081. It really can just bring a sound out in a mix. I use it on synth leads and stabs and things of that nature and imagine it wound be great on guitar too. It just has a hell of a lot more character. But u can always just demo em

[DrSax]

I like the 1073 for a no frills EQ that is quick to dial in the sound - colorful and vibey in a vintage way.....

I use the 88rs for cleaner sounds...... it still has a cool vibe and can be aggressive but is less colored....

Very different from each other. They are very complimentary and useful together on a mix.

[gregohb]

Originally Posted by TMB

I have the the 88RS and the 1081 and I'm always using the 1081. It really can just bring a sound out in a mix. I use it on synth leads and stabs and things of that nature and imagine it wound be great on guitar too. It just has a hell of a lot more character. But u can always just demo em

I'm in the same boat with the 1073 and 88. However, it seems the 1073 is mainly good for brightening and high end.

The thing about the 88 user interface, is that Neve clearly tried to cram as much as possible into the hardware strip so they could have 128 channel desks that take up a room. But there is no need for the software to be so cryptic and jammed together. I have to consult a cheat sheet to use it. I know UA likes to make their stuff look vintage, but they could also have an alternative skin with a larger more organized and easy to read layout - maybe even includ a meter or two. I love the meter on the Waves Vox Compressor for example (although when I compared it with the LA3a and Vcomp, it seemed to give a "honky" midrange bandpass that sounded cheap in comparison to the other two).

[popvulture]

Thanks for all the responses - I started demoing the 1073 and definitely like the way it sounds. It's good for sweetening the highs, but at first glance its "sculpting" ability seems less versatile than the 88RS. That judgement is based on very little comparison time though, so we'll see how that opinion evolves.

And yes, I got the Nevana 32. I'm new to this whole thing and wanted to start with a small step, and additionally I prefer making more paired-down, lower track count mixes. I just like the resulting openness, and I like to keep the instrumentation very close to what you could achieve in a live setting. Maybe I'll end up getting another (bigger) card, but no need as of now.

[mardyk]

I have all the Neve plugs and they're all great, but I think my favorite is the 1081. Vibey AND versatile.

[JPeters86]

How do you guys think the compressor in the 88RS compares to the 33609?

[4damind]

The 88RS remembers me to Waves SSL channel. Snappy and punchy and not much coloured.

The 1073 is not comparable with the 88RS, only with the EQ from the 88RS.
Neve 1073 is more a broadband eq with more colouring. I love it to get some more brilliance or lowend. For more technical equing or a more "sculpting" EQ, the EQ from the 88RS is a better choice because it have more bands, better tuning, low and hi cut (1073 only has a low cut filter) and so on...

I found the 88RS better for a wider range of use. Also it loads with more instances then the Neve 1073 (UAD1: 3x1073, 18x 88RS EQ only (9x All).
For a first buy I would prefer the 88RS!

[sheever]

Originally Posted by 4damind

The 88RS remembers me to Waves SSL channel. Snappy and punchy and not much coloured.

The 1073 is not comparable with the 88RS, only with the EQ from the 88RS.
Neve 1073 is more a broadband eq with more colouring. I love it to get some more brilliance or lowend. For more technical equing or a more "sculpting" EQ, the EQ from the 88RS is a better choice because it have more bands, better tuning, low and hi cut (1073 only has a low cut filter) and so on...

I found the 88RS better for a wider range of use. Also it loads with more instances then the Neve 1073 (UAD1: 3x1073, 18x 88RS EQ only (9x All).
For a first buy I would prefer the 88RS!

+1 for 88RS

all in one,and with comp/exp functions you can have a killer drumms.
if you ve got less channel projects you can cover all of your channel with that.
easy to use,and my oppinion with all function worth more than others.
if you need colour just use the 1176 all button mode!
one of my favorite stuff,awesome on everything