For those of you who love the 80s music Softube have a nice sale on their Essentials collection. €49 (normally €299) until May 16th, 2024. When I log in the price is just €39 to upgrade as I already own Tape and Model 84.
And? Did you buy it? 
I have more than enough plugins, but I am very interested in the FET compressor v1, which sadly is discontinued. The v2 is not preset compatible with v1… Sadly all Softube plugins use fucking stupid pace ilok, so a resale will always cost like 25$ or more… Why are they using this? I mean, I think it’s cracked for Windows already?
Back to topic, the Model 84 seems to sound very retro out of the box. Not sure if the effects added in the examples come from the synth itself, too?
Not sure what for you need a channel strip plugin (also there are millions of these already). The example song here sounds very good, but might be not because this plugin:
Maybe good if you mix real instruments…
I haven’t bought it because I already have good channelstrips especially I like bx_console SSL 4000 E and I love Arturia FET-76 compressor and I have Tape and Model 84 there’s little need for me to get this bundle but I do fancy the British Class A, anyway anyone who don’t have these then it’s a really nice deal.
It’s hard to get rid of iLok even if Softube ditch it we still too many other developers using it, I just checked my account and have following publishers in the manager:
AIR Music, Exponential Audio, Krotos LTd, Moog music, Relab development, Slate digital, Softube, Solid State Logic, Soundtoys, Universal Audio and UVI so it’s vertually impossible to get rid of that crap.
The thing with channelstrips for me is and maybe that’s exclusive to the SSL 4000 E plugin but it’s really quick to dial in a good sound/tone to it that you then can work on more surgically with other EQs etc.
Ah interesting, so you first use the channel strip as a “base setting”, and then add a graphical eq afterwards? Have to try that workflow, too.
Yes me, too 
But what I find the most annoying is that transfer fee actually. I mean, how do they justify this 25$ upwards? Literally the system does all automatically, the user(s) do the actual work. Should be opposite, if somebody wants to sell his/her plugins, pace should pay the user for the extra work. C’mon, EU, this is a gatekeeper, too, break it. I bet von der Leyen, our European lobbyists’ queen, is max into Renoise, and will read this.
I don’t use it all the time but that’s the workflow I use on instruments I feel need what my SSL channelstrip offers.
The default settings of the SSL EQ/Filter are quite good to tweak around, they found some magical sweet spots back then:
bx_console SSL 4000 E:
16Hz (HPF), 200Hz, 1kHz, 3kHz, 8kHz and 22kHz (LPF).
The British Class A appear to have EQ/Filter defaults at:
45hz (HPF), 60Hz, 3.2kHz, off, 14kHz (LPF)
British Class A and SSL 4000 both share around 3kHz as default setting which is one of the more important areas right.
I wonder how steep the British Class A filters are because a 14kHz low pass filter seems extreme as a default?
I didn’t know iLok charged 25$ for transfers, well that’s just extra annoyance 
If I buy this as an upgrade I don’t think I’ll get another license for Model 84 and Tape though else we could have swapped instruments, maybe that’s why the charge is there to prevent such deals - could be something the publishers require of iLok.
You could switch to developers who don’t use iLok, which are way more than developers who do. 
In my iLok manager you will find only one single product that is not from Softube. So I only need to use iLok to be able to use VSTs by Softube, so to say. But I could also use other equal products instead if I want to.
That’s indeed outrageous, I didn’t know about that. Well, I didn’t plan to buy that much iLok stuff anyway.
To me it’s about not using iLok at all as I don’t want that running on my machine all the time.
It’s a really great retro sound indeed but it has no other effects than its classic chorus.
SSL also have a Essentials bundle on sale which include Channel Strip 2 and Bus Compressor 2 at $50 SSL Essentials Bundle
Interesting, kinda… I actually think that the price still is quite high for such a feature-wise limited compressor, but media says different. I really wonder why, what’s so special about the ssl compressor? I already tried derivants like the glue, waves ssl g-comp, using those as master comp with those usual remcommended settings (long attack, short release), but it never improved my shitty mix! No, for real, I really wonder what’s so special about it? If I use MDynamics, I iiterally can draw the compression curve by myself, Which I think is always superior about such really oooold approaches. What do you think is so special about it? Do you have good experience with ssl comps, maybe even an example?
I do use the Bus Compressor 2 on my master bus and it does “glue” it together nicely. You really should just trial it out, I was genuinely surprised when I toggled it in and out the first time.
I paid $30 (you can get it individually) for it and that’s fair I think especially as I couldn’t get a similar result with my other VCA compressors, the SSL has got to be doing something unique. I used the trial before buying and really tried make the Arturia VCA-65 do the same thing but couldn’t make it sound like the SSL, I will try with the Softube VCA later today and maybe make an example.
Cool Just trying VCA comp, seems to me way more useful as master comp (than SSL?), also the drive is an excellent clipper like thing, giving even more volume…
I have just tested Softube VCA, Arturia VCA-65 and the SSL Bus comp2.
I’ve uploaded MP3 test files to file.io a service I’ve never tried so proceed with caution.
I tried my best to make the settings on each compressor as close to each other as possible and get the same integrated -13 LUFS output. When you listen focus on the rhythm of the kick and bass.
Download: https://file.io/DvadHlqwXi6P
Softube VCA - I don’t think it’s easy to set up, for some reason I often end up in a mess of transients which is head scratching when there are relatively few controls. I like the HF make up gain, the punch not so much… I’m not sure I will use this due to the many transients I seem to get, I even made an image comparison of all the plugins but scrapped it as I eventually figured out some working settings. Yes the drive can be used as a clipper to control the many transients but I don’t think it’s very transparent.
Arturia Comp VCA-65 sounds very similar to the SSL I think. The advanced panel has a nice set of features, don’t forget to set the high pass sidechain filter in particular, on a master I put it some where between 100-150Hz so the kick won’t interfere with the glue concept, I did that on the other compressors too when testing of course. The adv. side-chain control wheel is ugly but it has many nice controls like the Softube.
SSL Buscomp2 has a lot fewer controls but the most stable output of transients, looking at the waveform it looks like there’s a clipper/limiter afterwards but it sound transparent, you can then turn up the output a bit more than on the other compressors. I’ll keep using this at the glue compressor on my master bus.
The difference isn’t that big but it’s there.
Interesting, thanks for sharing. Indeed the SSL version might sound the most stable. But again, I like the uncompressed the most, since it has a bit more dynamics. What where your sttack/release settings? Maybe on the arturia, the release shouldn’t be that low…? Same for the VCA?
file.io btw does not seem to be a problem as long as you have ublock origin installed. Not even a single ad or trojan popup 
If you want dynamics then I guess you are good with the Softube VCA just with a better limiter/clipper afterwards but to get a loud master for EDM we need a few dB here and there and doing this glue compression will give you a few LUFS right. I just used auto attack/release on Arturia and auto release on SSL.
I actually like the FET compressor, did you try it? Not sure, if suitable on master though…
I love FET compression but no I haven’t tried theirs, I use the Arturia FET-76 compressor 
Free 80s style VST from Behringer: Vintage
Bitwig, the biggest edition, is now available for 199 EUR, quite a steal I think:
Until 20. may…
I only own Pigments by Arturia, my offer price for the entire FX Collection 5 was 99 Euro - needless to say, I have jumped on it. The amount of included plugins is insane.
If you own any of their stuff, it’s well worth checking what offers they have for you. It’s usually 499 Euro, general discount at the moment is 399 Euro.
I had FX Collection 2 and just upgraded for 99 Euro which is still a great deal but yours is a steal.