Universal Audio Announces New Development Partnerships with API and Thermionic Culture

Universal Audio (UA) has just announced new development partnerships with API and Thermionic Culture, with plans to co-develop new plug-ins for the UAD platform.

With these new partnerships, UA will be able to bring software emulations of coveted API and Thermionic Culture products to a growing population of engineers and producers worldwide who are using UAD-powered products on Mac and PC.

“We’re thrilled to welcome our new partners to the UA family,” says Matt Ward, President of Universal Audio.

“The legendary API signal processors and high-quality boutique products of Thermionic Culture both have something unique to offer UAD customers. We’re looking forward to the products that develop from these partnerships.”

We are too!

Universal Audio Announces UAD Software v6.0, Ampex ATR-102 Mastering Tape Recorder Plug-In, More

Universal Audio has today launched a major software update – UAD v6.0 – and a brand-new plug-in…

The Ampex ATR-102 Mastering Tape Recorder – considered by many engineers to be the best-sounding tape machine for final mixdown – is now available as a faithful plug-in emulation on the UAD-2 Powered Plug-Ins platform.

Considered a perfect complement to the workhorse Studer A800 Multichannel Tape Recorder Plug-In, the officially sanctioned Ampex ATR-102 plug-in provides the final, cohesive analog polish and punch for any in-the-box mastering session, without the ongoing maintenance and calibration of a physical tape machine. According to the product announcement:

“Impeccably developed over a nine-month period in the renowned UAD engineering tradition – and incorporating presets from noted ATR-102 users Chuck Ainlay, Richard Dodd, Buddy Miller, and Mike Poole – the ATR-102 Mastering Tape Recorder Plug-In faithfully replicates the unique dynamics, frequency response, and saturation characteristics of the original hardware.

“Scrutinized and fully authenticated by Ampex Corporation, the sound of the ATR-102 plug-in for UAD-2 is virtually indistinguishable from its analog cousin.”

Available for purchase via UA’s Online Store, the Ampex ATR-102 Tape Recorder Plug-In sells for $349. Click for more information on the ATR-102 Mastering Tape Recorder Plug-In.

The Ampex ATR-102 Tape Recorder Plug-In is available as part of the new UAD Software v6.0 release (free to download HERE), which also includes the new Brainworx bx_digital V2 EQ and SPL Vitalizer MK2-T direct developer plug-ins, as well as Pro Tools compatibility enhancements and Mac OS X Lion support.

First, for Pro Tools users, UAD software v6.0 adds many new features to streamline integration of their UAD plug-ins into their DAW experience, including:

•    UA-developed RTAS plug-ins, replacing current VST-to-RTAS Adapter
•    Full support of all Pro Tools control surfaces, including customized control layouts
•    Fully automatable plug-in parameters, with values and ranges displayed in automation lanes and on control surfaces
•    Plug-in names clearly displayed in the Pro Tools Mix and Edit windows
•    Plug-ins sorted by category in the Pro Tools plug-ins menu
•    Quick installation process
•    Many other workflow improvements

And, the Brainworx bx_digital V2 EQ plug-in and the SPL Vitalizer MK2-T plug-in – now available with UAD v6.0 – are significant not only in their sonics but also as the first UAD plug-ins to be developed in their entirety by outside software engineers (in this case SPL and Brainworx) as part of a new UAD-2 SDK (software development kit). According to UA:

“The bx_digital V2 EQ offers three modes – M/S Mastering, M/S Recording, and L/R Stereo – with a unique “SixPack” Master Section, 11-band EQ with Shifter EQs to 22 kHz, and built-in M/S De-Esser, Dynamic EQ, and extensive metering options. An included bx_digital V2 Mono plug-in provides the same Mastering EQ-quality sound for mixing applications. For many engineers, this incredibly smooth-sounding processor is simply the ultimate software equalizer.

“The SPL Vitalizer MK2-T is an authentic emulation of the popular tube-based Vitalizer hardware unit, a longtime staple of top mixing and post-production engineers. Offering a patented technology for greater perceived loudness and clarity without unnatural artifacts, the Vitalizer provides independent Bass and Mid-Hi processing that works in both the time and frequency domains to effectively unmask overlapping sounds. As both a fixative and an enhancement tool, the Vitalizer MK2-T is a mixing must-have.”

Available for purchase via UA’s Online Store, the Brainworx bx_digital V2 EQ sells for $329, and the SPL Vitalizer MK2-T sells for $249.

UAD Software v6.0 is available as a FREE download for Mac and PC users worldwide. Click to download.

Review: UAD-2 Lexicon 224 Plug-In, by Chris Zane

TRIBECA: Reverb seems to be one of the most distinguishing sonic attributes for not only setting the mood of a song, but also identifying the era in which it was recorded. And few reverbs have left quite as big a footprint as the Lexicon 224.

Whilst at its core it is a utility that is used to present audio and the perception of space, to me, reverb has come become much more than that. It’s become very stylistic.

People in the recording industry seem to have really strong opinions – especially when it comes to gear. When I see people write or talk about a new or even classic piece of gear, I always think to myself, Whoa. That seems pretty extreme…So when it comes time for me to say something about how I feel about a piece of equipment or software, I’m always walking on eggshells. I mean, I’m no expert. I don’t consider myself an expert.

I think that on some level, making records really just boils down to closing your eyes, using your ears, and trusting your gut. This is how I judge music, and it’s how I judge gear.

OK, now that I’ve got that out of the way, let me tell you, I LOVE THE UAD LEXICON 224 plug-in. Love it. I think it sounds awesome.

Now, here is a great example of what I’m talking about in this war of words regarding equipment: I’m not an expert on vintage digital reverbs. In fact, how about this: I haven’t really spent much time with a real Lexicon 224. But that doesn’t mean that I don’t know what it sounds like, or what it should sound like.

I was excited to see that UAD was going to release the 224 as I was eager to explore some if its grainy, iconic plates, and incorporate it into some of my mixes using it for some gated reverbs.

Like a lot of people, I find myself lusting after those cold reverbs from the 80s, those classic long plate algorithms from Blade Runner or Talking Heads’ records, and I’ll tell you, the UAD Lexicon 224 is getting me there.

Also worth mentioning, is that I’m fairly new to the UAD platform. I only incorporated it into my workflow about 4 or 5 months ago. Needless to say, I’m over the moon about the sound of these plug-ins, and feel lucky to have jumped in at a time when the collection is expanding with super accurate, absolutely great-sounding plug-ins like the Studer A800 and the Lexicon 224.

THE INTERFACE

I was going to spare you the obligatory fader talk, but there are only six, so let’s take a look and go through them quick!

Bass Reverb Time/ Mid Reverb Time: The first two faders control the ‘main’ reverb time/length, but unlike a traditional reverb that would just one control for this, the Lexicon is broken up into Bass and Mids.

Crossover: Selects the frequency at which the two previous faders split.

Treble Decay: Determines the amount of high frequency information in the tail, leaving the decay of said information to the ‘Mid Reverb Time’

Depth: A lot of times seen as a “distance” control, this fader effects the apparent closeness or farness to and from the source.

Pre Delay: Controls the delay between the input and the beginning of the reverb.

This is the heart of the box. Just six faders. There are plenty more buttons for you to explore, but a vast majority of colors can be achieved strictly from these six faders.

IN USE: DRUMS

So the first thing I did, which I imagine a lot of people do, is pop an instance on an aux track and send a snare to it. I’m not as much of a fan of big reverbs on snares – never been able to make it sound as nice as I’d like, but when I threw some into the Lex 224 I was, like, “Oh. Right. There it is.” Even with very little tweaking.  Program #1, (Sm Hall B) #3 (Lg Hall B), and #5 (Perc Plate) are very familiar sounds. Small little tweaks like shortening the ‘Treble Decay’ and ‘Bass Reverb Time’ yielded instant results.

After using this plug on about 2-3 records lately, I can say with confidence, that whether it be a real snare, or a drum machine (I was using my Oberheim DX), drop a heavy dose of the Lex 224 plug, and a gate, and you are pretty firmly in the ballpark of a quite huge 80s sound, or lush early 90s drum ambience.

Also, don’t over look the ‘Pre Delay’ fader for some proper 80s size!

VOCALS

I’ve never been one to go subtle on vocal reverb. I’m of the thinking that if it’s going to be there, let it be there. If I just need some space, I’ll use delay. But I don’t mind a big swimmy reverb.

On the UAD Lexicon 224, I love both the Halls and Plate programs out-of-the-box for a vocal. Something I can really appreciate about this piece of gear, and how UAD has adapted it to a plug-in, is how quick and easy it is to get it sounding good. I find that this is an awesome plug-in for slapping across an insert on a voice and messing with the mix around 40%-60% wet, as opposed to strictly using it on an aux send.  A couple swipes of a fader, a tweak of the pre delay, the ability to go from all wet, to a blend… it’s just really flexible for dealing with a voice, which I think can sometimes be a little more taxing. Again, fast and easy.

It goes without saying, but one of the fringe benefits to have the Lex 224 in plug-in form is the ability to make subtly different reverbs for different vocal parts. I find myself pretty often making separate reverbs for the verse, chorus, and bridge of a song, and I noticed that I was working off a lot of the same starting point with this reverb, and just changing the decay time, and crossover a little depending on how ‘light’ or ‘heavy’ I wanted the voice to sound at that particular part.

Bonus note: Just like the original, UAD has included a Lexicon’s version of the “all buttons in” trick, wherein there is a kind of ‘hidden’ 9th program (which can be selected by shift clicking any of the additional programs whilst one is already selected – i.e. 7 + 8 = 9) which gives you what I find to be one of the most pleasing choruses for lead vocals, or background vocals. A lot of times choruses can sound tinny and metallic on a voice, but this is actually quite warm and rich.

I recently did a mix where I basically used the preset from Program 9 on an aux for the lead vocal, and then another instance with a longer pre delay inserted across a background vocal buss. The sound retained its pleasant tone and didn’t ‘stack up’ at all.

IN SUM

I have used this reverb a hundred different ways on drums in the last few months, on bass, made percussion ‘rooms,’ lush piano halls, the list goes on and on.

From long to short, bright and tinny, to dark – and I like them all. It’s also great for inserting directly on a tambourine track (a deceptively tricky task from time to time). It handled all of these things easily, and quickly (seeing a trend here?)

Lastly, it’s nice to see that, as per usual, UAD has gone above and beyond to try to capture every conceivable detail of a piece, in this case, including some hidden panel controls. Here you’ll find input and output controls, which can replicate the sound of the converters being overworked, pitch shift capabilities, and the hold switch. Hell, they even give you the option of enabling or disabling bug fixes that were in two of the programs. UAD hasn’t just sampled the algorithms, they’ve sampled the whole shebang. [Click for a video demo.]

As is my approach to things in general when I’m making records, I’ll say this in closing: Does this sound EXACTLY LIKE a vintage Lexicon 224? I don’t know. Maybe…But I can say that it sounds awesome, and to be honest, that’s all I (and you) should care about.

The Lexicon 224 plug-in is available for the UAD-2 Powered Plug-Ins Platform via Universal Audio’s webstore for $349. The UAD-2 Plug-Ins are powered by the UAD-2 SOLO, DUO, and QUAD DSP Accelerator Cards (PCIe format); the UAD-2 SOLO/Laptop (ExpressCard format); and the UAD-2 Satellite DUO and QUAD (Firewire 400/800 format). For more information, visit www.uaudio.com.

Chris Zane is a NYC-based producer and engineer who’s worked with Friendly Fires, The Walkmen, Passion Pit, Holy Ghost!, Ruby Frost, Les Savy Fav, Asobi Seksu, Suckers, and Heartsrevolution (among others). He works out of Gigantic Studios in Tribeca. For more on Chris and to get in touch, visit http://chris-zane.com.

Summing Up: Quad Launches Studio Q1

MIDTOWN, MANHATTAN: Blink, and you might miss it. The action in the NYC studio scene right now is raging fast and furious, with noteworthy new rooms opening up at a pace almost too fast to keep track of.

The latest big-time addition to the cityscape: Q1 at Quad Recording Studios. The flagship revision to this storied facility, Q1 represents the latest evolution in NYC’s world-class studio offerings for artists, producers, mixers, and songwriters in search of new creative options and inspiring surroundings.

With its arrival, the fascinating timeline of 723 7th Avenue gets yet another update. The seeds of this new room were sown in Quad’s 2010 sale of its 8th floor — emerging lean and mean, Quad President Ricky Hosn and his staff embarked on a $500,000 overhaul of its remaining territory, the 3500 sq. ft. 10th floor.

Ask Hosn about the current NYC studio climate, and he’ll readily admit that navigating the scene is more challenging than ever. “It’s kept us on our toes,” he says, “and restructuring the place was essential for us. Quad was five floors at one point, but the market won’t sustain that anymore. We had to reinvent ourselves, to move in step with a changing of the times — we feel we have the right formula now.”

Making the Update
The results of the remake are as easy to see as they are to hear. Visitors step off of the elevator directly into the atmospheric Qlounge, complete with a pool table, bar and a carnivorous fish tank (show up for feeding time – if you dare). Those familiar with the powerful audio pod previously known as Studio D – now Q2 – will be happy to know that that room remains intact, although it is equipped with a new lounge that flanks it to the left.

Also with a brand new lounge is the latest addition Q1, a space designed to make all kinds of waves. At 320 sq. ft., the comfortable Larry Swist-designed control room may seem slightly compact, but once the advanced functionality and exhilaratingly loud and accurate acoustics have been experienced, size no longer matters.

To the contrary, Q1 is already making a big impact with its extreme flexibility, both in workflow and capabilities. “In the past a studio would have a mix room, a production room, a tracking room,” Hosn explains. “We said, ‘Let’s put all three together, and make a room where any producer, engineer or artist can walk in and feel at home.

“That’s the approach we took. There’s a producer’s desk in the back where you can sit, listen accurately, and work. The producer or artist is never sitting too far from the controls and the engineer. It’s geared around the artist and production, and that’s the trend we see: A lot of producers are handling the whole project, and we built it around that reality. It’s the same principle we had with creating Studio D five years ago, but we made this a bigger format, with better gear and a much bigger live room, so you really can handle any kind of music project.”

Outfitted with oiled walnut wood appointments, Swist’s pleasing design employs generous views to the outside and the adjacent control room, providing Q1’s users with an expansive experience while they work. “Windows were essential: You’re in Times Square so take advantage of it,” Hosn says. “Both the live room and control room have windows out to Times Square, and the window between the live and control room is bigger than most windows in the city. You feel like you’re right next to the artist — it just feels like one big room between the control and live room.”

Once clients get settled into the welcoming environment, things get increasingly interesting. While the ICON control surface won’t raise any eyebrows, the Pro Tools HD 4 Accel 9.0 system is to be expected, and the comprehensive list of plugins is de rigueur, where the signal can flow from there is unique: three different summing mixers – a Chandler 16 x 2, SSL X Logic 16 Channel, and a Manley 16 x 2 Custom mic/line – flanked by a who’s who of outboard gear.

“We had the opportunity to go with a typical analog desk, but we said, ‘Let’s do something different and get creative with the equipment,’” Hosn says. “We focused on summing, with three summing mixers to give the engineer more of a choice for the sound. This is the best of the summing world: Chandler comes from the old EMI consoles, SSL is the industry standard, and we have something different in the Manley mixer, which is amazing on vocals. As far as outboard gear, we went for — not vintage, but brand new — Chandler, GML, SSL, Manley EQ/compressor, and of course the Universal Audio units like the 1176 and LA-2A.”

For monitoring, a pair of Augspurger Dual 15” main monitors, custom built by Professional Audio Design, supplemented with 2 subwoofers, throws down the gauntlet for mega volume listening in NYC. In a recent visit listening to hip hop, pop and rock through these speakers in the tight, well-tuned room was a sonically exciting experience, revealing extremely high levels of full-frequency detail cleanly across the stereo field. For those who need to craft, check or just feel their mixes at massive SPL’s, Q1 may well become a mandatory stop on the way to the mastering lab.

Design Assignment
According to Swist, whose credits include Tainted Blue, Premier’s Studio E, Eastman School of Music, SUNY Fredonia, and The Lodge, the directive for Q1 was to create a warm but contemporary look and feel. “We used a lot of sharp lines, and the sound has got to be there — the acoustics need to be spot-on because people are going to mix in there,” Swist notes. “The challenge today in an NYC facility is that you don’t have the cubic footage you used to, so you have to spend more time in the design phase ensuring that the room will translate in the outside world, especially with bass response. It also has to have a broad sweet spot. It’s easy to make it work right in the middle, but to make the room work for the producer standing next to you or in the back is a challenge.

“Most live rooms have an idiosyncratic quality to them: The great engineers find its good characteristics, the right places for the drums and mics, and use gobos,” Swist continues. “My approach is to keep it a relatively active room, and then you can come down from there. So Q1’s tracking room sits in a relatively live place: It’s good for drums, but reverb times can be cut down with gobos and more acoustical absorption. I think the live room is larger than most. It’s not huge, but then again most people are just putting in booths in a production suite today. This offers the ability to actually track a band. A lot of those rooms are going away, and this fills that void.

“Overall, the studio is something fresh, and you do have a really good initial emotional reaction to it. It’s positive creatively, and that’s what we were striving for. It’s like, ‘Wow, it feels nice and it sounds nice. We have a good combination there.’”

Under the Hood
Cleanly integrating Q1’s three analog summing mixers and outboard gear with the ICON was no plug ‘n’ play operation. “We wanted to do something focused on an easier workflow, quick mix recalls for engineers and easy accessibility for producers,” states Alessio Casalini Operations Manager and Chief Tech for Quad Studios NYC/Halo Records. “This improves the possibility to change little things fast and maintain top quality in terms of outboard gear and technical components like patchbays, wires, and connectors.

“The wiring of the whole studio and the patchbay’s layout were designed by Glenn Baughmann and myself,” continues Casalini. “We brainstormed in order to find the best result to yield a simple layout, one noted example being: The three summing mixers normalled to the multitrack outs, and the outs of those mixers normalled to the Stereo inputs of the (ICON) XMon (monitoring controller), and dedicated computer output to the XMon. Even the TV is on the bays.

“We started with the best quality wires and connectors, and used only two DB25 patchbays for connections with XMon and audio interfaces. All the other patchbays are soldered by hand and split to DL connectors panels.”

Connectivity in Q1 is obsessive: Every wallplate in the live room, control room and in the lounge are equipped with SpeakON plugs, Ethernet, instrument, MIDI, and BNC. “The goal being,” says Casalini, “to give the engineer every possibility, without trying to find a way around what he has in mind. In this scenario the artist, producer, and/or engineer will have everything accessible in the clearest way possible.

“New York City studios are looking to the future, and retaining our experience from the past. We expect that our careful planning yielded a room ninety percent ready for anything — with the client left only to decide the direction of the last ten percent.”

In Action
Online since June, Quad has quickly been breaking in Q1. Sessions include Engineer/Producer Andros Rodriguez (Shakira, Oh Land), Music Producer Rico Beats (Justin Bieber, Niki Manaj), and Universal Music Artist Stephen Marley. One frequent visitor has been the NYC engineer Stuart White (Alicia Keys, K’Naan), who’s gotten to know the room via mix sessions for the artists Borni, Fumibella, and Sunny.

“The mains are really smooth,” he says. “They sound good and balanced. The ProAc monitors I use a lot and they’re dialed in, very smooth on the top end. Having three different summing boxes gives you three different colors. The Chandler is really punchy, with a lot of transformers in it: It’s got color to it, with some punch when you drive it hard. I typically use that summing bus. The Manley is all tubes, which provides a fat tubey sound, and the SSL is a different color.”

According to Stu, Q1 met Quad’s objectives in smoothing out the NYC studio continuum. “I think in a lot of ways Q1 is bridging the gap between the old-style, large-format console style way of working and the new summing bus-style way,” Stu adds. “There’s not a large format console, but still a plethora of analog gear so you can mix with the speed of what we need today. You have clients that expect you to mix in the box for speed, but at the same time Q1 makes you and the analog purists happy by being able to sum in analog gear.

“I think it’s a new breed of room in that sense. A few years ago, most engineers didn’t want to mix on an ICON, they wanted a large format board. But Tony Maserati is working exactly this way, and he’s the one who kind of inspired me to do it: You’re mixing with faders, and tactile controls, so you can stay creative and not use the mouse so much. But if someone wants to come in and change the song, it’s very easy to pull your mixes back up. It bridges the gap between the older generation rooms and the newer ones that are all digital.”

Cue the Q
As New York production possibilities continue to morph, at least one thing is clear: As previously noted on this site, a subtle sense of cooperation is weaving itself into the intensive competition between NYC studios. Facilities are avoiding blatant duplication in favor of an overall sense of regional integration, where each new room creates a fresh niche, rather than further crowding an existing one. “You don’t want to build what’s already there, and then compete against the same thing,” Hosn says. “The key for us was to make it a top notch room at an affordable price.”

As Ricky Hosn points out, the big winner in the friendly NYC studio arms race are music’s avid listeners, whose insatiable appetite for new sounds are increasing yet again with the availability of Spotify in the U.S. “Who knows what the next big record will sound like?” he says. “There’s a lot of opportunity to come up with something that hasn’t been heard yet.”

– David Weiss

Blue Microphones Spark Review, by Ariel Borujow

Blue Microphones have always had a reputation for making great-sounding microphones at reasonable prices.  When SonicScoop approached me about doing the review for the Blue Spark, I had no hesitations.

The moment I received it, I was already impressed with the packaging.  My next thought was, “Will this mic sound as good as it looks?” The timing was perfect because I had been working on several mix projects and was really looking forward to getting some recording done, and I couldn’t think of a better excuse to try out some new microphones.

The Spark is a cardioid, solid-state condenser microphone, designed using Class-A discrete electronics. The result is a versatile all-around mic that is colorless and designed to handle multiple jobs ranging from vocals, to drums, guitars, pianos, brass, and woodwinds among other sound sources.  Also having the Focus control, a mode selector which I explain in detail later, users have access to broader control of the Spark’s high and low characteristics.

IN THE STUDIO

I was scheduled to record The Clatty Lads, a NYC-based folk/rock/pop/country band and felt it was the perfect application to put the Blue Spark to the test.  The decision was to use it on a pedal steel guitar played by the very talented Matt Knapp.  Matt brought in a Peavey Nashville 400 amp to record the song at Stadium Red in Studio A, here in NYC.

In an effort to get the sound I was looking for I decided to record in their live room. This was the first time I had ever recorded a pedal steel and I decided to put the Blue up against the old trustworthy Shure SM 57. I also employed two sets of room mics to capture some ambiance for this recording: a pair of Audio Technica 4040’s playing as overheads, and two AKG 414’s in an MS configuration.  Both the Spark and the Shure mics were put up against the amp’s grill right off center. I ran them both through the Grace 801r pre’s, which are very transparent, then straight into Pro Tools, with no compression in the recording, as I tend to lay off compression on instruments when I track.

Once I had the chance to listen, the first thing that was apparent was how much fuller the Spark was compared to the 57.  The Spark was a bit duller above 10K — which was perfect for what I was looking to achieve, while the low end was very silky and smooth.  I started mixing the song and — believe it or not — with the blend of the various microphones, there was no need for EQ.  I have provided an audio example of what I recorded.

Hear the Blue Spark on Pedal Steel:

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Once I heard the Spark on the pedal steel I was curious to know what it would sound like rocking through a Marshall with a nice clean tone.  My good friend, the guitarist Maki Athanasiou, was a perfect subject for this test. Here, I had Maki play some clean blues riffs and also some acoustic chords just to hear the details of the mics on two different styles and guitars.

Maki brought in his Fender Strat, and hooked it up to a Marshall cab with a Line 6 head.  Upon finding our sound I placed the mic on one of the four speakers, using the Universal Audio LA-610 with a 4:1 compression ratio running directly into Pro Tools. The Spark was able to capture a very pleasing, full sound on the electric.  However, when mixing, you might find yourself cutting some low mids to help it sit better in the song. Of course this is to taste.

Hear the Blue Spark on Electric Guitar:

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After hearing the Spark on the electric guitar, we thought it was only right that we grab an acoustic and see how it compares on that end, so we picked up a Takamine guitar and set up the Spark pointing to the center hole a bit off axis.  First thing I noticed was the fullness on the low mids which I love on acoustics. The highs were not where I wanted them, but it was nothing a little bit of EQ can’t handle. Overall the sound was really pleasing.

Hear the Blue Spark on Acoustic Guitar:

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FOCUS: FOCUS

One thing I didn’t touch on yet which I found quite interesting was the Spark’s “Focus” control button, providing you with two different tonal characteristics when pressed, and de-pressed. I found this very useful and unique since I have never seen this on a microphone.

With the electric guitar and acoustic I tried both settings and provided some examples so you can listen for yourself.  When you have the Focus in the Normal position (de-pressed), the low end seems to increase with less emphasis on the high end.  When Focus mode is pressed, the clarity in the high end was immediately apparent, and the lows seemed to decrease slightly, but without losing the richness. I found this to be very useful and unique.

Hear the Blue Spark on Acoustic Guitar with Focus:

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Hear the Blue Spark on Electric Guitar with Focus:

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Being that I never used a mic with this feature, I found it to be extremely useful for a few reasons. One being that with a single mic, you have the option of having two different flavors. This can help tremendously for being a bit creative and having different sonic qualities when tracking. Another is when tracking vocals, I tend to like the slight high end boost depending on the vocalist. Focus would work great for the application.

For the price tag of $199 for the Spark, I would recommend it for the project studio owner and the seasoned engineer: It has its own unique characteristics and would be a solid addition to any mic locker.

Ariel Borujow is an NYC mix/recording engineer. He has worked with a wide range of clients including P Diddy, Black Eyed Peas, Kanye West and Chiddy Bang. He currently works out of his C4 Room @ Stadium Red Studios in Harlem.  Connect with Ariel at www.stadiumredny.com.

Universal Audio Releases Lexicon 224 Emulation With UAD v5.9

Universal Audio (UA) has just released v5.9 of its UAD Software, which includes the new Lexicon 224 Digital Reverb plug-in for the UAD-2 platform, along with new features for the UAD-2 Satellite Firewire DSP Accelerator.

The Lexicon 224 Digital Reverb plug-in is now available for $349 via UA’s Online Store.

The original Lexicon 224 Digital Reverb – with its tactile, slider-based controller and famously lush reverb tail – came out in 1978 and has remained one of the most popular digital reverb units of all time.

According to UA’s press announcement at Musikmesse in April:

The Lexicon 224 plug-in for UAD-2 precisely captures all eight reverb programs available in original 224 firmware version 4.4, including every tunable parameter, with unique fader-style controls – inviting easy experimentation and sonic exploration.

In UA’s exhaustive modelling tradition, the Lexicon 224 emulation also incorporates the original unit’s input transformers and early AD/DA converters – nailing the entire signal path right down to the last detail.

Additionally, the Lexicon 224 emulation for UAD-2 features direct input and presets from notable Lexicon 224 users, including Chuck Zwicky (Prince, Jeff Beck), Eli Janney (Jet, Ryan Adams), David Isaac (Eric Clapton, Luther Vandross), E.T. Thorngren (Talking Heads, Bob Marley), and Kevin Killen (U2, Peter Gabriel). Visit the Lexicon 224 product page for more details.

In addition to the Lexicon 224 Digital Reverb plug-in, v5.9 features improvements for the UAD-2 Satellite Firewire DSP Accelerators, including support for Avid/Digidesign 002 and 003, support for connecting up to two UAD-2 Satellites on qualified Intel-based iMac, MacBook Pro, or Mac mini computers, lowered latency specs, and other enhancements for optimized performance.

Learn more about the UAD-2 Powered Plug-Ins platform HERE, and download UAD Software v5.9 HERE.

Visit www.uaudio.com for more information.

Review: The UAD-2 Satellite Quad Firewire DSP Accelerator by Bo Boddie

When Universal Audio first debuted the UAD-1 system in 2001, I have to admit that I didn’t pay it much mind. At that time I was still pretty skeptical about the quality of the mixes that I could get out of mixing in-the-box (ITB), and only used plug-ins for minor utility work and making roughs. Most of the work I was doing was in recording studios anyway, so I had access to great gear – why would I use a plug-in 1176 when I could insert a real one? However, I always liked the idea that I would someday be able to work completely within the computer and still get the results I was after.

A lot has changed in the music production world since 2001… CPU power has grown exponentially, and the quality and flexibility of both DAW software and plug-ins along with it. Engineers and producers who are so inclined have adapted to the idiosyncrasies of working ITB, adjusting working methodologies to compensate for the differences between the analog and digital domains, and it is becoming commonplace for us to make great sounding records without all of that analog outboard that set the bar so high.

And as a specific milestone on the timeline, I still remember the first time I used the UAD plug-ins. Between 2003-2008 I used to work at Stratosphere Sound (shout out to Geoff Sanoff!) pretty frequently and they had UAD-1 cards in both of their rooms.  During one session there, with an artist who was on Island records at the time, I decided to check out the UAD 1176 just out of curiosity. For someone who didn’t really care about using plug-ins, it was a big moment. It actually sounded like a real compressor! I was pretty floored and so I went and did the research on the UA software products.

Although I was skeptical of having to add a PCI card for processing, I liked the commitment that they had made to creating emulations that went the extra mile, and so said, required the additional DSP to do the convincing work.

These days I do most of my production work in my home studio, and so last year I purchased a UAD-2 card. Although the Mac Pro I use has a ridiculous amount of power which I have yet to max out, I still had that lingering memory of the first time I used the UAD-1 at Stratosphere, and growing gear envy over the ever-expanding line of UAD plug-ins. I was sold on the plug-ins; the fact that all processing took place on the PCI card was just an added benefit.

When SonicScoop asked me if I wanted to review the new UAD-2 Satellite Quad – Universal Audio’s new Firewire 400/800 UAD-2 plug-in platform (with Quad processing power) – I jumped on it. I was really curious to see how well the system would work over Firewire, and hoped I’d also get to try it out with my laptop.

SIMPLE SETUP

If you are new to the UAD system, the setup is extremely easy. The Satellite ships with the latest version of the UAD software, which includes all of the plug-ins (more on that later), all necessary drivers, and the metering and control panel application through which all features and authorizations are managed. The Satellite requires that you use software version 5.8.1, in which the “.1” offers the Firewire support.

If you don’t already have a UAD account, you will need to create one, as it is a necessity for managing plug-in and hardware authorizations.

The software must be installed first, after which, authorizing the Satellite is as simple as turning it on and plugging it into either a Firewire 400 or 800 port. To complete the authorization, you must click the “authorize plug-ins” button. Without following the instructions it took me a moment to remember this, maybe it would be a little more self-evident if there was a separate button for hardware authorization, but it’s hardly a sticking point.

Clicking the button brings you to the user area of the UAD website, and it is here that your system is recognized and authorized. As with all UAD authorizations, both software and hardware, a file is downloaded through your web browser which must then be dragged into the window of the UAD system software; which in turn enables the use of the hardware/software.

All versions of the Satellite include a stellar collection of plug-ins, which Universal Audio calls the “Analog Classics”:

1. 1176LN, 1176SE

2. Pultec Pro

3. Realverb Pro

4. LA-2A

All of the other UAD plug-ins are pre-installed along with the system software, and have 14 day demo periods which can be authorized through the control panel, or via instantiating the desired plug-in from within the DAW environment — a dangerous proposition to be sure, given the amazing sounds you are sure to get! An extensive manual is included on the CD-ROM, which details all of these steps, as well as detailed descriptions of all of the plug-ins.

IN USE

I was pleasantly surprised at how well the system works over the Firewire bus. I tested it at both 400 and 800 speeds, in both Logic and Pro Tools 9, and although less plug-ins can be used with lower data bandwidth, using the Firewire 400 bus did not seem to radically affect performance.

The UAD control panel offers extensive control over how the Firewire bus is used, and allows the user to make decisions about how much Firewire bandwidth is allocated for the card’s usage. This is a wonderful feature given that there will almost certainly be other devices on the Firewire bus, either drives or an audio interface, and being able to have some control over how data bandwidth is distributed is paramount.

Universal Audio recommends that the Satellite always be the first device in the daisy chain, if there is one. The Satellite does not distribute bus power to devices that may need it, so that will also be a consideration. The manual offers a several different connection schemes, all of which were helpful. I tried many different configurations myself, and I’m happy to report that the Satellite worked well in all of them.

All of this said, it is preferable to use Firewire 800, simply to maximize the power of the DSP card. The Satellite uses the same SHARC DSP cards as its PCI-based brothers, the only difference being the way it interfaces with the CPU.  There is no question that more plug-ins can be used with PCI-based cards, however, the Satellite’s major offering is its portability and compatibility on computers without PCIe, like MacBook Pros and iMacs.

It is here that we see the one major difference between the Firewire and PCI based systems: LiveTrack mode cannot be used with the Satellite. The major consideration with all of the UAD systems is latency.  Sending audio data out to an add-on card for processing, either PCI or Firewire, creates significant latency. Hence, tracking with a UAD plug-in instantiated can be difficult, and the PCI-based UAD-2 cards and software introduced a low-latency mode (LiveTrack) as a workaround for those of us want to use the plug-ins while tracking.

Because of the lower data throughout offered by the Firewire interface, this option is not available with the Satellite. For me, this certainly isn’t a deal-breaker, as I rarely incorporate any software-based processing while tracking; as long as I can mix with the plug-ins I’m happy. Perhaps we will see a UAD Satellite in the future that incorporates Apple’s new Thunderbolt interface protocol, which would undoubtedly offer the data bandwidth necessary to include this forgone option.

The only issue I had with the Satellite will not be a factor for most of you, but may possibly save a few people the disappointment of discovering too late that their laptop is not compatible, as was the case with my 2007 Core 2 Duo MacBook. The Satellite works with Intel-Based iMacs, select MacBook Pros and Mac minis. Just make sure you check out the UAD-2 Satellite Support Page to find your hardware on the list of compatible systems.

As you’ll see, the Satellite works best with later model MacBook Pros, iMacs, Mac Minis and Mac Pros, and is partially compatible – running at FireWire 400 speed, but requiring an adapter to run at FireWire 800 speed – with earlier models of MacBook Pro, Mac Pro and iMac. Based on how well it worked with my desktop system at both Firewire 400 and 800 speeds, I can only assume it would work perfectly on any of the systems on the list.

CONCLUSIONS

In my mind, there is one compelling reason to use this product, and that is to have access to the dizzying array of analog emulations that Universal Audio has developed. They all sound fantastic, and have made a noticeable difference in my ability to more easily pull off great sounding ITB mixes.

While I was only able to use the Satellite with my Mac Pro for this review, the ease of set-up was fantastic, and I really enjoyed having 4 extra chips worth of power with which to go hog-wild with the plug-ins for a few weeks.

I should note, that even with my DUO PCI card alone, I usually do not max out the available DSP. A friend recently asked me if I thought the Satellite would be a good addition to his TDM Pro Tools system, as he had run out of PCI slots.  After seeing how solidly the Firewire interface has worked I can say yes!

The UAD-2 Satellite comes in several different configurations: DUO (2 chips) with $50.00 voucher ($899.00); DUO FLEXI with $500.00 voucher ($1,199.00); QUAD (4 chips) with $50.00 voucher ($1,499.00); QUAD Flexi with $500.00 Voucher ($1,799.00); and QUAD OMNI with all the UAD plug-ins up to version 5.7 ($4,499.00). Visit http://www.uaudio.com/uad-plug-ins.html for the full range of UAD-2 powered plug-in systems.

Bo Boddie is a Grammy winning engineer/producer and composer who has worked with Santana, Everlast, Korn, Reni Lane, and many others. He is currently beginning work on Imperial Teen’s second release on Merge Records. Also check out Psychic Friend, his new band with Will Schwartz (Imperial Teen) and Patty Schemel (Hole).

Game Scoring: “Need for Speed: Shift 2 Unleashed” – Remixing Anberlin, Rise Against and More

FASHION DISTRICT, MANHATTAN: Strapping yourself in to play the heart-stopping EA race game, Need for Speed: Shift 2 Unleashed, you realize that reality rules. From the helmet-cam to the tire pressure and every bump on the racecourse, everything here is as real as it gets. Except for the music – which is as unreal as they could make it.

Available on the Xbox 360, Playstation 3 and PC since the end of March, Unleashed intentionally messes with the standard notion of licensing tracks for video games. First, EA’s famed, Vancouver-based Black Box Studios got the rights to 10 killer rock songs: “Night Of The Hunter” by 30 Seconds To Mars, “We Owe This to Ourselves” by Anberlin, “Mountains” by Biffy Clyro, “Ours” by The Bravery, “Issues” by Escape the Fate, “Levitate” by Hollywood Undead, “Action Needs An Audience” by Jimmy Eat World, “Help Is On The Way” by Rise Against, “Take A Load Off” by Stone Temple Pilots, and “The Sound (John M. Perkins Blues)” by Switchfoot.

Next step: get seven top game composers on the case to create a multi-genre slew of remixes, making “heroic”, “surreal” and “dirty” versions of each song to play out at various stages of gameplay.

GETTING IN ON THE PROJECT
Here in NYC, it was the composer/producers at Heavy Melody that emerged as the top choice to give the songs the “dirty” flavor (read twistedly gritty electronica), joining them with what would be one of the largest composition teams Black Box had ever hired to score a game. Ramin Djawadi, Troels Folmann, and Mick Gordon were selected for Heroic (Epic, Hybrid Orchestral), and Stephen Baysted joined Djawadi for the Surreal set (Ethereal Orchestral, dreamy).

The Heavy Melody squad – Dave Fraser, Neil Goldberg, and Ari Winters – was first paired with Black Box Audio Director Charles Deenen to score Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit for Wii. Their software development alter ego, Heavyocity, had made a big impression on Deenen when he heard the Evolve and Mutations virtual instruments in action — it wasn’t long before he wanted the men behind the machines to be in on his game scores.

“A couple of months after Hot Pursuit wrapped, Charles called us and said, “We have this new concept for Need for Speed,” Fraser says. “Licensing songs for video games is not new, of course, but in this case they wanted to use the songs in a new way, remixing them into three emotional states: epic/heroic/gladiatorial, surreal/ethereal, and aggressive/electronic/industrial/dirty.

“Our job in doing the dirty remixes was to take the original songs and then reflect the angst and excitement of the driver before the race – give them this aggressive, racy kind of vibe.”

CREATING THE ELEMENTS
While typical video game scoring famously makes demands on composers to deliver a wealth of flexible stems and elements, Goldberg explains that Shift 2: Unleashed had less-daunting-than-usual deliverable requirements. “With games, there’s usually a long list of what’s needed to make it interactive. That wasn’t the story here – in this case, the music primarily had to be hard-hitting, and aggressive.”

Although the approval process would prove arduous, the reduced advance planning necessary gave Heavy Melody time and energy to do a lot less math and have a lot more fun. “We could focus on making beautiful tracks,” says Winters. “We didn’t have to say, ‘Will just one or two stems work by themselves?’ It was about making the track sound cool as a singular entity. The litmus test was if it would work on radio.”

Working in their spaciously stylish Fashion District studios, where they’ve worked on projects for clients such as 2k Games, Atari, The NFL, Sony, NBC and more, Heavy Melody started with each song’s vocal stems and then took a big detour from there.

“We took the lead and background vocals, and then recreated virtually everything else underneath,” Fraser says. “We took the tracks to places they hadn’t been before. We roto-rooted the sound of these tracks, and twisted them with a lot of weird experimentation. There were completely new bridge sections that we created, we would stretch the vocals, and really go extreme with it. It was pretty exciting.”

SOUND SCULPTING TOOLS
With tools like Digital Performer 7.22, the Dangerous D-Box, Native Instruments Kontakt 4, Evolve, Evolve Mutations, UAD-2 cards from Universal Audio, Waves Platinum, Soundtoys Decapitator, Ohm force, PSP Audioware, and the Brainworx Digital V2, Heavy Melody radically restructured the songs.

Listening to the stuttering mind-burst of remixes like STP’s “Take a Load Off” or the crushing pulsations of Anberlin’s “We Owe This to Ourselves” (several of the remixes are streaming from the Heavy Melody Website). You’ll hear the composer team was in their element as they attacked the remixes.

“Throughout the process, we focused not so much on the song structure, as the sound of the remixes,” Winters notes. “For example, we’d take three different versions of a snare – weird, punchy, echoed – combine them, and then continue to tweak. It was about making new sounds, sound by sound.”

LONG DISTANCE LISTENING
With audio director Deenen and the Black Box studios on another coast in another country, developing a common sonic language over long distance was essential.

“We had sonic tracks to reference and match in terms of frequencies,” Goldberg says, “and we spent a lot of time early on making sure we knew what was good sonically for him, so we could figure out how to duplicate that in our studio. Charles was very particular about the style and what he wanted it to sound like – very current.

“The sonic delivery of the remixes was equally as important as how cool the parts were. Charles is a recording engineer with a lot of years in the music industry, and an incredibly talented sound designer who’s mixed trailers for Hollywood films. He has an amazing 5.1 studio in Vancouver, and he really gets it.

“It was refreshing to talk to someone who says, ‘Can we increase the frequency range of this sound?’ Rather than the typical producer who says, ‘Can we just make it bigger?’ For example, he’d be listening there, and we’d be listening here in NYC on Genelecs and subs. He’d say, ‘Turn your sub off, and give me the biggest wall of low end you can pump out.’”

SURVIVING THE APPROVAL PROCESS
With not just notoriously exacting video game creatives to please, but also the rock stars that they had just remixed, Heavy Melody held their breath for the approval process.

“The final stage was the band, the label and the management signing off on the work that we did. After we spent two months honing these tracks we said, ‘What if the band hates these?’” says Winters. “We were really psyched when the emails came back, ‘Anberlin, approved. Rise Against, approved…’ Only STP requested slight changes to their track.”

NEXT THEY GET TO PLAY IT
With the game on the market and garnering great reviews, Heavy Melody has been glad to make it to the true final stage: The part where they grab their controllers, and play Shift 2: Unleashed with their music crunching hypnotically out of the speakers.

“You work so hard on a project, and when you’re at the end of it you get to the point where you’re burning out,” Goldberg says. “Not because it’s a bad project, but because it’s really hard work. You’re going back and doing the same thing over and over again to get it right. When it’s done and it’s the can, you get to take a breath.

“When it’s finally on the shelves and you can actually play, all you can say is, ‘Wow, this is the fruits of our hard labor.’ You get filled with goosebumps hearing it in the game itself.”

– David Weiss

Studio Sweet Spot: EastSide Sound

Facility Name: EastSide Sound

Website: www.eastsidesound.com

Location: Lower East Side of New York, since 1972!

Neighborhood Advantages: The LES is the heart of live music; there are musicians everywhere, rehearsal spaces, venues etc so musicians are very familiar with the area and feel right at home… no uptown traffic hell and office scene…plus EastSide Sound is in on the ground floor and right in front of a park so you can avoid elevator gear load ins and you can go take a break surrounded by greenery, shoot some hoops, throw a football or kick a soccer ball in the nearby courts.

Date of Birth: We’ve been in business since 1972 when Lou Holtzman opened the original EastSide Sound on Allen St. In 2001 Lou Holtzman partnered up with Fran Cathcart and we moved to Forsyth St, just a few blocks away.

Facility Focus: We are primarily a tracking and mixing facility although we occasionally do mastering sessions and we do have a production suite often used as a writing room. We are also set up for audio post and to sync audio to video for film/TV work.

Mission Statement: EastSide Sound believes that your music and your vision come first and we are committed to working hard until you are satisfied with the results. Many Gold, Platinum and Grammy award winning records have come out of EastSide Sound which shows how many artists have made EastSide Sound their home.

Clients/Credits: Gold and Platinum records, 5 Grammy Awards; clients include Les Paul, Lou Reed, John Zorn, Santana, Sting, Joss Stone, Eric Clapton, Pat Metheny, Jeff Beck, Laurie Anderson, Luther Vandross, Sevendust, Mariah Carey, Cindy Lauper, John Leguizamo, ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons, Buddy Guy, Keith Richards, Joe Perry, Goo Goo Dolls, Edgar Winter, Chico Freeman, Peter Frampton, Beyonce, Herbie Hancock, Toni Braxton, Hanson, MeShell Ndegeocello, Joe Claussel, Steve Torre, Robin Eubanks, Isaac Mizrahi, Randy Brecker, Frank London, Violent Femmes, Twisted Sister, Gravity Kills, System of a Down, Leela James, Lila Downs, Estelle, MTV, VH1, HBO, BBC, Comedy Central, Target, Grupo Latin Vibe and many, many more.

Key Personnel: Lou Holtzman (owner/engineer/the oracle), Grammy-winning Fran Cathcart (owner/producer/engineer), Grammy-winning Marc Urselli (producer/chief engineer/studio manager), Eric Elterman (producer/engineer/multi-instrumentalist)

System Highlights: EastSide Sound is the perfect hybrid between analog and digital. We believe in and offer the best of both worlds. We have a fantastic Harrison Series Ten B board, a warm and punchy sounding 96 channel true analog board with total digital recall and full automation (no converters, the sound stays analog but you can automate anything and everything: faders, EQs, sends, inserts etc). The Harrison is complemented by a 64 output Pro Tools HD system and by a vast amount of analog outboard gear (LA2, LA3, LA4, 1176, Altec’s etc) and pre-amps (API, Neve, Trident, Ampex, Universal Audio, TF Pro, Summit, Altec’s etc).

We have analog reverbs (Lexington 480′s, 300, MasterRoom II, Demeter, PCM60) and of course have loads of plug-ins for any need and any sound. Our mic collection spans from the early ’50es to today’s best microphones (Neumann, Coles, RCA, Sennheiser, Telefunken, Microtech Gefell, Shure, AKG, Rode, Oktava, JZ Microphones, Electro Voice, etc).

We also have a beautiful 1977 Steinway B grand piano, a Fender Rhodes electric piano, vintage Rogers drums, bass and guitar amps, guitars and basses available for anyone to use.

Distinguishing Characteristics: The single most distinguishing characteristics of EastSide Sound is the fact that we are the only studio in NYC and, to our knowledge, the only or one of very few studios in the world that has 6 isolation booths in addition to a good sized live room which means we can have up to 7 musicians (or just their amps) completely isolated, with good line of sight and headphone mixers in every booth. If the musicians want to all play live in the same room that is also possible. The studio is cozy and welcoming, with comfortable chairs, a lounge, a fridge and freshly brewed free coffee all day!

The building is on fire, you only have time to grab ONE thing to save, what is it?

Is this a trick question? Of course I will risk my life throwing water, milk, coffee and juices at the fire to save everything! …but if in the fire I were to spot a wild dragon running at me I guess I’ll grab the hard drives with all the sessions and get the hell out!

Rave Reviews: When people keep coming back, record after record, it must mean something, right? John Zorn has made hundreds of records and the last 30 or so were done at EastSide Sound. He also said that his records have never sounded so good, and others have said the same thing.

Everyone that comes by EastSide Sound always comments on what a cozy and relaxed vibe there is and everyone that records at EastSide comes back for more. They love the ability to choose between recording in the same space or being isolated in different booths so that they can later edit all the tracks without leakage. They love the ability to have total recall to instantly continue working on something unfinished a month later, with no downtime. They also love our professional, award-winning, cool and down to earth staff. And last but not least they LOVE the sound we get!

Most Memorable Session Ever: Too many… but one I recall is when Les Paul was over for some tracking and we were about to order in some pizza and he said something like “1947, Corona NY, First Pizza: I was there!”

Session You’d Like to Forget: The no-shows, the guys that think they own the world and arrive 4 hours late, the singers who can’t sing for the life of them but think that Autotune and capable audio engineers are an excuse for them to attempt a career in music anyway!

Dream Session (if you could host ANY session with any client, living or dead, what would it be?): Some of my personal favorite sessions are the ones with John Zorn, an incredible composer, genius and fantastic personality. Every session is always populated with incredible musicians.

Living or Dead? Would love to have worked with Hendrix, The Beatles and a… how about a Led Zeppelin reunion? But I guess we can’t complain considering many of the other giants have worked here (Les Paul, Eric Clapton, Sting, Lou Reed and many others). – Marc Urselli

Visit www.eastsidesound.com for more information and to get in touch!

Universal Audio Announces Lexicon 224 Digital Reverb For UAD-2 Plug-Ins Platform

At MusikMesse this week, Universal Audio (UA) announced the impending release of the Lexicon 224 Digital Reverb plug-in for the UAD-2 platform.

The original Lexicon 224 Digital Reverb – with its tactile, slider-based controller and famously lush reverb tail – came out in 1978 and has remained one of the most popular digital reverb units of all time. “The 224 was really the product that launched the Lexicon brand,” noted Michael MacDonald, of Lexicon parent company, Harman Professional.

According to UA’s press announcement: The Lexicon 224 plug-in for UAD-2 precisely captures all eight reverb programs available in original 224 firmware version 4.4, including every tunable parameter, with unique fader-style controls – inviting easy experimentation and sonic exploration.

In UA’s exhaustive modelling tradition, the Lexicon 224 emulation also incorporates the original unit’s input transformers and early AD/DA converters – nailing the entire signal path right down to the last detail.

Additionally, the Lexicon 224 emulation for UAD-2 features direct input and presets from notable Lexicon 224 users, including Chuck Zwicky (Prince, Jeff Beck), Eli Janney (Jet, Ryan Adams), David Isaac (Eric Clapton, Luther Vandross), E.T. Thorngren (Talking Heads, Bob Marley), and Kevin Killen (U2, Peter Gabriel).

Available for purchase via UA’s Online Store in Q2 2011, the Lexicon 224 Digital Reverb plug-in will sell for $349.

The Lexicon 224 Digital Reverb plug-in will be available as part of the new UAD Software v5.9.0 release, slated for Q2 2011. In addition to the Lexicon 224 Digital Reverb plug-in, v5.9.0 includes UA’s first-ever Direct Developer plug-ins from Brainworx and SPL, as well as improvements for UAD-2 Satellite users.

For more information on Universal Audio, visit www.uaudio.com, and learn more about the acclaimed UAD-2 Powered Plug-Ins platform here. Oh, and click to enter our current contest to WIN a UAD-2 Satellite Quad!

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