+1 thanks a lot for your comments Jim!

Another +1 thanks for joining in Jim!

I've been working on this great product for a week. It is really an amazing tool. But its annoying not having the option of open a console 1 plug in in your DAW and have immediate automatic control of that channel without selecting it on those tiny white BUTTONS on the controls surface! C'mon guys, please give us that "C1 follow DAW Channel Selection" soon! In my opinion its the only thing missing for a great useful tool.

Sotftube, I think you deserve all the awards you are winning because this is really a game changer, but without this feature you are killing the workflow for many, many users like me.

Please implement this soon, I'm begging you!

is this really a contest. Duende algorithms are atleast 15 years old and come straight from C200 which is a broadcast desk.

Softube is brand new code that is based on the analog ssl sound.

its incomparable really and the softube should have much more vibe to the sound.

Duende have been updated the last 15 years though

One feature that really attracts me to the softube console 1 is the drive knob.
I used to mix on an old Midas console and 50% of the mix shaping was done with gain staging, driving the input, hitting the bus correctly...

The one thing that turns me off the console 1 is the actual hardware, I don't have room for that and don't feel like changing my workflow.

Is the duende nonlinear? Can you drive it's input or not?

No, there isn't any intentional distortion at Duende except of X-Saturator and X-Valve Comp. So you can't really drive for instance channel input stage for your desired effect.
Of course there is some distortion products from compression, like with any non-linear processor, but not what you've mentioned.

Anyway I personally don't mind and actually prefer its clean sound to other simulations with analog like nonlinearities.. It is always possible to insert one of emulations like Sonimus Satson/Britson, Klanghelm IGVI or for instance Waves NLS.

Michal

The SSL channel doesn't add harmonics but they have x-saturator that seems to do something similar to console 1 based of the description that Softube gave.

Ok that answer my question, thanks

The SSL Channel certainly has a "sound", and it sounds very good IMO.

I favor it before the Waves SSL4000. But that's me

Yes, the X-Saturator is the VHD pre/distortion. This thing is thee best!
Haven't messed with the Console 1. Not getting anymore hardware.

Marc

I wish there was a demo for the console one, the videos I've seen of it seem to sound pretty wide but I'm not crazy about buying it with its hardware at that price without trying it first...
I'll demo the duende soon.

Any developer who comes on GS should be ready to take the good with the bad. I think it's great to have input from them, however they aren't doing people favors IMO, this board has a lot of eyeballs on it and is a great marketing tool, the bickering and hair splitting is part of it. Some developers are very active and use GS to listen to complaints and better their product. If I was the SSL guy I wouldn't have been so dismissive of the offer's expiration. If I'd seen an offer from one date to the next, I'd be figuring the expiration was until the date changed in my country. His reaction didn't make me feel warm and fuzzy about buying the product which I was interested in, since I just got an e-mail about them offering discounts on Duende. Turns out it's only for the add-ons.

The Duende channel strip is about the best sounding plugin I've ever used. It doesn't degrade the sound passing through it at all, which is rare with plugins. The high frequency shelf is simply incredible, and the compressor is great. I don't like the buss compressor plugin at all though. But, the Softube TubeTech CL1B is really nice and smooth sounding also on acoustic guitar of vocals. Very tubey and analog sounding. The Softube TubeTech PE1C is great for enhancing the master buss. It is extremely transparent even at high boosts. I usually put it after a limiter, and it doesn't degrade the mix at all, it only adds a little something and that something is very pleasant. No detail loss at all from the Softube TubeTech, much like the SSL Duende channel strip. They actually sound surprisingly similar being that one emulates tubes and the other is straight from a digital console. Both are smooth and transparent.

I gave your post a +1 for the comment on the channel strip.

But I personally LOVE the Buss Compressor when used on the master. It is an old algorithm, but it still glues amazingly well. Better than any other SSL emulation I heard. The Duende BusComp just creates a coherent sound without adding harmonics. So you can just decide through other plugins (tape emu's etc.) how much 'analogness' you want without the bus comp dictating it.

I have never tried 'the glue' though, which should be able to do that very well as well (considering the name).

IMO The Glue has a slightly stronger impact than the SSL bus comp, but it really depends on the song which one I prefer.

I prefer the Sonnox Dynamics compressor in linear mode for the master buss, after the limiter and before the TubeTech PE1C. Or the Duende channel strip compressor if it's acoustic music. I'm also a fan of the WaveArts multiband which nobody ever talks about anymore haha or Sonalksis multiband EQ.

Actually I was reinstalling Native Instruments Guitar Rig today and accidentally stumbled up on the NI version of SSL processors. They were amazing! More SSL-ey than Duende but just as transparent with regards to preserving the original signal. Guitar Rig was in demo mode which gave me access to them. It's called "Solid Dynamics", "Solid Buss Compressor" and "Solid EQ." I'm sold. Fantastic plugins! I usually don't like NI stuff except for a few models in Guitar Rig, but these were quite exceptional!

Would agree here. Also the comments on the EQ. It was amazing how that thing just worked on a tough acoustic guitar track. I created a few presets and when I mic'd the guitar a certain way, I would just throw that on the track and whammy.

Duende good stuff. Still using those plugins on a regular basis.

Cdlt,

I agree. I have them as part of Komplete 10 Ultimate.
I think especially the Solid Buss Compressor is really good.... however, I rarely use it. It is just not in my system to go to the "native instruments" category when I need a compressor or EQ (I need Auganizer I guess...).
Not sure if I like the NI one better than the Duende one. I suppose it has to do with the style of the music as well.



EDIT: Oh I feel really stupid... apparently there is a Plugin Manager in Logic since 10.1! Finally! No need for Auganizer then...

Are the NI SSL emulations just Softube plugins in disguise?

I believe NI SSL are coded by Cool Stuff Labs.

I think I would rather use Duende as mastering or on the master buss. The NI seems better at giving individual instruments character. The EQ in G-series mode is really amazing, I'm glad I stumbled on it!

Their Reverbs, premium tube series and Vintage compressor collection are coded by Softube.

The SSL emulations are indeed coded by Cool Stuff Labs, as is Supercharger.
Cool Stuff Labs - Portfolio

Cool, thanks for clarifying

The transient shaper tool from NI is really nice too. Better than Sonnox. But that's a discussion for a different thread. By the way, Cakewalk Sonar has always had a plugin manager. Producer edition (now called platinum edition) also comes with some of the most useful plugins ever made. You can do a whole world class album production with nothing but that program and a some decent input channels.

ANYWAYS. Yes, Duende is freaking great!!

I have UAD's transient designer and so far I haven't felt the need to try something else, but I'll give this a try, thanks!

I too have the Duende plugs since day 1 (almost) of their release with the DSP hardware. I'm always using the channel strip first to dial in simple eqing and/or compression. Either it stays in the insert until I hit the mix stage or gets partially or completely replaced by analog gear. I always know what to expect and it always is good right away. But I'm old school anyway. I guess it just makes me feel at home.
That being said I have WAY TOO MANY PLUGINS!!! I'm always rediscovering forgotten plugs but I still always return to the CS because it always works.

I use it on bass guitar inside guitar rig along with the Solid EQ (NI SSL EQ).