Universal Audio Releases Empirical Labs® EL8 Distressor Compressor Plug-In-distressor-gui.jpg

Universal Audio Releases Empirical Labs® EL8 Distressor Compressor Plug-In Exclusively for UAD and Apollo Platforms

In close partnership with Empirical Labs and its founder, Dave Derr, Universal Audio is proud to introduce the Empirical Labs EL8 Distressor Compressor plug-in for UAD hardware and Apollo interfaces as part of UAD Software v9.4 — an expert end-to-end circuit emulation of the iconic compressor that has been used on thousands of hit records.

“The UAD EL8 Distressor plug-in is significantly better in accuracy and operation than the other plug-ins that try to cop its vibe and sound,” says Distressor creator Dave Derr. “It’s the best Distressor emulation in the world and will stand the test of time as the definitive Distressor emulation.”

Introduced in 1993, the Empirical Labs EL8 Distressor is revered in studios all over the world as the modern, “must-have” compressor. Versatile, super fast, and offering tons of color, the Distressor picks up where the legendary UA 1176 and Teletronix LA-2A compressors leave off — a modern tool that’s equal parts utilitarian and creative.

The Empirical Labs EL8 Distressor Compressor plug-in provides all the features and coveted sound of the original Distressor design. UA’s team of DSP experts started with a complete circuit trace and component study of Dave Derr's selected golden unit. Simultaneously, the team analyzed three more Distressors representing the lifetime of the product — ensuring one of UA’s tightest circuit models to date.

Empirical Labs EL8 Distressor Plug-In Key Features:
  • Track and mix with the only authentic emulation of the EL8 Distressor — the world's most popular modern compressor
  • Radically shape guitars, drums, and vocals with nearly infinite gain reduction variations
  • Creatively color instruments and vocals with famous “Dist 2” and “Dist 3” modes
  • Embellish, pump up, or destroy bass, synth, and room mics with custom detector filtering
  • Harness plug-in-only features like Dry/Wet parallel processing and Headroom for user-customizable operating level
  • Mix with presets from Chris Coady (Yeah Yeah Yeahs, TV on the Radio), Chris Zane (Passion Pit, The Walkmen), Hector Delgado (A$AP Rocky, Selena Gomez) Jimmy Douglass (The Rolling Stones, Roxy Music), and more
Learn more about UAD Software v9.4 here:
www.uaudio.com/uad/downloads

Learn more about the Empirical Labs EL8 Distressor Compressor plug-in here:
https://www.uaudio.com/uad-plugins/c...ompressor.html

Learn more about class-leading Apollo audio interfaces:
www.uaudio.com/apollo

Learn more about award-winning UAD Powered Plug-Ins:
www.uaudio.com/uad-plugins