IT'S GREAT BUT IMPOSSIBLE TO USE! || Black Box Analog Design HG2

[@AlexHernandez-li6ui]

Turning up the pentode knob while pressing command will automatically compensate the output gain. It's in the manual 🧐

[@AlexHernandez-li6ui]

Just a reminder to myself that useful manuals exist outside youtube. Took me 5 min to read it.

[@kwamalascience]

@@AlexHernandez-li6ui good looks

[@MUNRO13]

To my knowledge this is not correct - does not work.

[@Mi_Mono]

​@@MUNRO13 Page 14 of the user manual explains that it does just that. look up "Black Box Analog Design HG-2MS manual"

[@NoSurrenderMuzik]

Shift click​@@MUNRO13

[@jakematters2454]

I like White Sea Studio's content! The live demonstrations are helpful and he's quick to form an opinion. This review however missed the mark for me. I felt the "trial and error" approach was fine but a deeper understanding of the circuitry would have really helped the review. To clarify for anyone wondering: 1. The saturation unit with its 3 stages, LOW/ FLAT/ HIGH run in parallel, toggled with the in/out. The ALT Tube button which wasn't really explored switches between the 12AX7 tubes in the saturation circuit which changes the voicing. The ALT TUBE voice is more aggressive. ALT TUBE does not affect Pentode/ Triode. 2. Pentode generates even order harmonics for warmth (not cold like it was mentioned in the video) 3. Triode is grittier like overdrive and has colder, odd harmonics 4. AIR when turned on increases the saturation up to 10 kHz which has little effect on this older song specifically. 5. Comments about not improving on the analog model: a) For starters the analog model costs $3,000+ so there's already a huge improvement... the price. b) The AIR on the hardware is only a button where the VST allows you to dial it in. c) The VST has undo/ redo. The VST has 38 presets set by industry heavyweights. d) The VST can bank settings so you can A/B test or jump different settings over the course of a song. e) The VST can change between DARK/ NORMAL/ BRIGHT without having to recalibrate the whole console. f) The VST has a Density tool to increase saturation while maintaining overall gain settings 6. Contrary to White Sea Studio's comments all buttons can be reset with a single click while holding Command (Mac) or CTRL (win). 7. All knobs are mappable to midi controllers so you can easily use it like real hardware with two hands. ...So basically all of the negative comments in this review are not from the VST being of poor design but rather the reviewer being poorly educated in using the VST. To add an improvement that would be helpful. Having an LUFS metre instead of VU/ PPM would be nice.

[@highpeakrecordings]

Well said.

[@phadrus]

Very helpful, thanks.

[@ChristianBoragine]

From a User Experience point of view being MIDI mappable (a required feature in the modern age btw, nothing to write home about) is not a valid point. The user want a quick action, mapping to a midi controller is an additional, time-consuming step which is unmotivated and annoying. Your comment sounds a lot like "I've spent 250 bucks on a VST and now I have to defend it (and by proxy, me) from any criticism".

[@jakematters2454]

@@ChristianBoragine not sure what DAW you use but for me and Ableton, midi mapping a vst one time takes about 1 minute and then you can save the instrument rack. I wouldn’t spend $250 on this vst, I think I got it on sale for about $30 and just put forward my thoughts on it. Not sure why you think I’m using bias, or am being defensive, but that’s up to you to decide so believe whatever suits you :)

[@shine_uno]

@@jakematters2454 *I GOT FOR FREE*

[@DomSigalas]

I own the hardware and I think that Plugin Alliance tried to emulate the same experience like the hardware which works exactly the same way-it does a lot to the sound so I wouldn't crank it up all the way up like that so auto-gaining is not so critical. Yes, an auto-compensate function would be great as you said but this plugin comes VERY close to the hardware so it is worth it in my opinion. This one of my top favourite plugins, your friend was right asking you to review it :)

[@russell_szabados]

VERY close to the hardware...that’s Dirk & the Brainworx people for ya. If I could date a company, I’d ask Brainworx out.

[@misterkrotos]

My personal view is you should treat this with delicate tweaks :P Plus I just bought it for like $24 so I am not going to moan :P

[@misterkrotos]

@@weet1574 Dom is a Don :)

[@misterkrotos]

Just a shout to you :) Keep doing what you do mate :D

[@marceldesmith9958]

I’ve been fortunate enough to use the hardware black box a handful of times. Although gain compensation would be a cool feature I’d rather it work one to one so that all of my old tricks still work. So glad this was available for free this week. Never really seemed like an essential purchase for me but now I’ll pro ably use it on everything!

[@pintademan]

I use it 20% of the time in mastering BUT i use the mix, and it's rarely more than 15%, that's why no volume compensation is kinda interesting in this case, to add harmonics, saturation but also a bit of gain to hit the limiter (with pentode or triode instead of outpout level). It also sounds amazing on acoustic music, vocals, guitars. I never really saturate it. Just subbtle and it's magic.

[@Cyberdut]

Good point about the volume thing.....

[@Richard-et8eu]

you have plugins that can do auto gain for you.

[@lordshiva83]

Yes. Gain compensation should be a MUST for ALL plugins moving forward. Along with window re-sizing

[@eraldlesi]

Sometimes the auto-gain feature doesn't work great. That's why maybe they have it on manual.

[@silhz9201]

@@lordshiva83 we don't have the technology for that yet HAHA

[@ricogauthier5270]

DENSITY: Continuous toolbar knob, -100% to 100%. Density adjusts the input gain and compensates by making a comparable adjustment to the output gain, achieving a denser signal while preserving loudness. Note: This parameter is located in the toolbar.

[@jaimepainortiz]

I have the hardware in the Mastering room and the plug-in in the A & B rooms. I can honestly say I use this on almost every client mix not being in house recorded and or mastered. It's possibly the best type of plug-in on the market of this kind. Using the plug-in on a chorus Vox sounds incredible when Receiving sessions from studios where you get a stereo bounce out or print. I could give examples All day why this plug-in and hardware should be in the daily driver bag, so I'll just cut it short and say this plug-in is by far well worth the investment.

[@peterbrandt7911]

Do not worry about the price, all PA plugins are regularely on sale for 39-49 bucks.

[@Dylanklinemusic]

Peter Brandt true haha

[@TheNoiseFloorav]

Thing is, output compensation isn't as easy as just adjusting the peak level to match the input peak level. I know you didn't say it was, but a lot of plugins take this approach with their so-called compensation. It's better than nothing, but it's not accurate for equal loudness gain matching. Adding to the complexity is the fact that this is a non-linear processor. While EQ's may be able to approximate an equal loudness compensation amount based on the moves you've made by turning down everything else...non linear processors need a moment to analyze the incoming signal and compare it to how it's changed in order to compensate correctly. The argument could be made that, as a REAPER user, you can use parameter modulation to match the output peak level to the input level. I haven't tested it yet, but you may also be able to use parameter modulation to set the output level to decrease as the sound becomes louder. I need to test that, I just thought of it. The argument could also be made that, as a hardware model, since the hardware doesn't have that output compensation there's no reason to put it on the plugin. I don't agree with that, but I know some who would make that argument. And of course one could always assign the parameters to a midi controller and still use it hands on. All in all, it's a fair review and a fair critique of the output gain structure.

[@jfilbert]

Sorry for the , er, plug, but I have HoRNet CLMS on all my strips. Cheap and 'just works' for all your gain compensation needs.

[@elowine]

​@@epilektric There is a max for live device that can compensate for volume changes. It's not perfect but I haven't seen anything else like it maxforlive.com/library/device/4571/volume-compensator

[@Elmex_1]

There are a lot of plugins that have good auto-gain implementation (SGA Inferno and Phoenix, and the more recent Fuse VPRE-2C). And yeah, even a bad gain-match implementation (soundtoys decapitator comes to mind) is "something", and something is always better than "nothing". FF Saturn doesn't have perfect auto-gain, but it's close enough that you only slightly need to adjust the output. It's funny how Fabfilter seems to get this stuff (8x internal oversampling with low cpu and 8spl low latency, and the autogain), whilst rest are struggling to implement this stuff.

[@MichaelCosta_]

Yep, spot on Brandon. Even if they did it, there would be people lining up to tell them they did it wrong. Manually trimming the output by hand isn't that big of a deal.

[@mathyoooo2]

Yes, loudness compensation isn't trivial, but for 250$ it's a feature I expect.

[@68Snaps]

Hi, I just bought the MS version of the plugin, and I don't know if it's new, or if you perhaps missed it, but the MS version definitely has auto-gain. On a mac, option-click the pentode (or triode) and as you change its gain, the output knob will move in the opposite direction, adjusting the output gain. It's clearly explained in the manual btw, and I made a super short video of it: kzbin.info/www/bejne/gqawe36cbqmArbc

[@robbieb]

what a cool trick thank you for sharing

[@ricogauthier5270]

DENSITY: Continuous toolbar knob, -100% to 100%. Density adjusts the input gain and compensates by making a comparable adjustment to the output gain, achieving a denser signal while preserving loudness. Note: This parameter is located in the toolbar.

[@EnricoDiLauro]

wait in the toolbar of the blackbox plug in ? or the daw?

[@ricogauthier5270]

@@EnricoDiLauroplugin

[@tmengucor]

I want to explain how volume compensation works. Volume cmpensation is (almost always) not linear but it depends by the kind of input, the audio stuff you are processing. I mean, if you process a Kick or an HiHat using the same settings, the two volume compensations will change a lot. In analog world you can adjust the volume in real-time using your ears, in digital domain this would require a FFT analysis. But using a FFT analysis implies that you cannot tweak the volume as you want with the result of a strong limitation of the simulation. Volume compensation works great in synthesizers, limiters and sometime in very few sound-specific compressors. If you need more info don't hesitate to reply to this message.

[@0oTHEJACKo0]

There are countless plugins that do a really great job in gain matching Before and After. Izotope's stuff is generally great there. You are totally right, it is not that easy. Many factors to consider. But it is possible, and there are a couple of plugin manufacturers out there who know how to properly volume match. Pretty sure other ones can do it too! :)

[@Negmdaproducer]

I use this plugin all the time. It is tricky to use. Try these setting as a starting point. 30 % saturation only in/out button checked . Turn up the pentode knob just a little bit. Turn on the Air button as well. I like to turn it up all the way most of the time . Adjust the mix parameter to taste .

[@matrixate]

Oh yes. I have this one and it is a serious secret weapon for highs in mastering. BEWARE: Add saturation with caution because it's easy to overcook your sound, especially the lows. Something along a similar harmonic distortion but better/different depending on the content, IMO, is Vertigo VSM-3. Then I stick IK Classic Clipper right after for a dirty sound or Kazrog's KClip3 for precision pushing of the Kick. This is for EDM of course.

[@bonchbonch]

If accurate automatic gain compensation isn't technically possible, then at the very least, it would be convenient to be able to hold a key while rotating a knob to simultaneously rotate the volume knob in the opposite direction, and then you would only need to make minor further adjustments to the volume knob for accuracy.

[@kimseniorb]

Its called link and its been there in soundtoys and other pluging for at least 10 years

[@rossco78]

Or if you’re an Ableton user you can download the free Send/Receive compensation plugin....plonk the plugin of choice in the middle and any change in volume is kept linear.

[@nolanneal]

yep! It's in the slate distressor input and output. :) I have the real thing too and the plug in really is great! Just make sure you engage oversampling when you start pushing the drive super hard ;)

[@veredasestudio3122]

@@kimseniorb hey man you can't say that decapitator's auto works! cmon

[@lexluthor9705]

The automatic gain compensation in the Disto plugin by SKnote (distressor emulation) is quite effective

[@nyfbby10]

THIS ONE OF THE GREATEST PLUGINS OF ALL TIME !!!!. .. I USE IT EVERYTIME LOL

[@1wretchedsoul]

TIM BROSKI I love it too!

[@garbygarb31]

I need to find a torrent

[@robertszordykowski4919]

@@garbygarb31 You can buy it for like 10$ during a sale.

[@ivanhdez7948]

I think they listened to you and improved the new version of the plugin a lot! Bravo!

[@richardsomerville5725]

Funnily enough this also reminds me of the old technique I still use today on my Korg MS-20.Running an input through its sweet filters and then you place a rubber band in a figure of eight pattern over the filter knobs.Set the cutoffs where you want and the you can turn one dial and both move, hey presto sweet Bandpass filtering by moving one knob.:-)

[@jensnln]

This is what I've been searching for

[@bennethos]

love the fix

[@julianknowles7450]

This is the best saturation plug-in out there. I’d go so far to say that it’s better then analog hardware I’ve owned - eg a Culture Vulture and yes, it has recall which is important because a lot of people use it on the mix bus. It also seems to have much finer control and range than analog equivalents. It’s not really fair to compare it to tape saturation. You’d find it hard to get the high end the same and it won’t compress as much as tape, which is good. A suggestion. Don’t be so heavy handed with it, use the mix control to blend it in at more subtle settings and the magic happens. Also try bypassing it - you could demo it by flicking it on/off on lighter settings. There is a reason this plug-in is super popular. You’ll find it in the more subtle settings with some mix/ blend.

[@greedokenobi3855]

This has been my favorite saturator for almost a year. Got it for 50 bucks flashsale. Pluggin Alliance indeed has lots of discounts going on.

[@HuffwareStudio]

I just got it for 10 bucks with a discount. I'm loving this plugin on my mix bus so far. Can't wait to try it on my bass bus as well as other tracks..

[@rev1595]

They don't even need automatic gain compensation. They could give us a button that links both knobs so you can trigger the compensation whenever you want.

[@arthurallsopp9344]

Used the hardware multiple times. One of the best audio treatments you can do to any dance track to make it fuller richer and have weight.

[@emilandersenaudio]

agree with your complaint about automatic gain.. I use the letimix gainmatch with this plugin to dial in the setting for that reason

[@slowpokeproductions]

I just picked this up today for $19.99 with a loyalty voucher! So stoked! The presets are amazing starting points! Love this plugin!

[@ASOC4]

hey, might I ask, where did you find the presets? there should be some, but there is no "button" for selecting them... I went over the manual several times and still can't find it... thx

[@nathanaelthomas2945]

If you use Ableton you can just map those knobs to an Audio effects rack knob. Do one with a positive and the other with a negative value and BAM!! You have gain compensation. I love my Ableton 😌

[@KYTHERAOfficial]

Yeah man great idea!

[@devarni]

I prefer the Vertigo VSM3 on the master but the Black Box is great on bass and stuff, so IMO more for single sounds

[@desperateBeauty]

a big reasons why so many 'subtle' plugs don't do auto-comp is because many users can't hear the difference (it requires a lot of training to hear eg. compression or subtle saturation) - so a volume gain sounds impressive. but that's absolutely not OK - the _smallest_ perceived volume increase (and I mean tiny) tricks you into thinking it's better. when you truly volume compensate, you hear how a lot of saturation just makes the sound worse. without it you cannot make reliable decisions, and every serious plugin developer should take this on board. of course if you're going for deliberate distortion, that's different.

[@desperateBeauty]

re. Black Box, I just got the free first version and while it does sound good, I agree it's horrible to use for those reasons.

[@conanliquid]

Why don't you just set up the knobs so they are controllable on a controller? I have all my effects set up this way especially this kind of effect so I can adjust more than one knob at the same time. It's not hard to do and computers, as you say, excel at processing such things. #justsaying #useacontrollerdude

[@carlos.e.flores]

One of my favorites plugins.

[@OriginNowSound]

When I come to think about it they probably expect you to have some type if controller to map the controls too... That way you can manipulate the plug in as you would analogue. What do you think 🤔

[@YungGoatBeats]

5:29 i was thinking exactly the same thing. like the Decapitator plugin from SoundToys automatically turns the output gain knob down when you turn the drive up right? why don't all distortion/saturation plugins work like that haha

[@davelordy]

The 'Density' knob (at the top) - which you didn't touch - is where the magic it, you pay for the Density knob, it's what this device is all about.

[@chrisxeraton828]

Automatic Level Match includes some kind of compression, which sometimes is not wanted. For all saturation mostly manual input and output adjustment sounds better. you can use compressors before and after the Saturation. Depending on the attack/Ratio/feedback/forward compression pre and post , the result will be totaly different. So doing any fixed compression before and after the Saturation will limit you.

[@effsixteenblock50]

I did a test a few weeks ago to test the accuracy of the auto output gain compensation feature in several popular plugins. I'm not going to name names but I will tell you that ALL of them (seriously all that I tested) ended up with about a +2 dB bump. We all know why this is. So now, I will use the "feature" to quickly get close to what I want, then I'll switch to manual and trim the output a bit (unless I want the added gain).

[@JoeyFTL]

Yep, such bs. The only exception is TDR stuff, works great. Even stock vst autogain blows which I just don't understand for the life of me

[@dimitrispanagiotopoulos4951]

Maybe a stupid question, but couldn't a couple of pots on a midi controller be assigned to the effect and volume knobs (among others) to achieve this simultaneous pot turning/compensation with two hands easily?

[@timspencer1]

Personally I love the Blackbox - which I got for ZERO Euros from NI. It is seriously useful on the masterbus - where you can use it to dial in a little bit more "vibe" and attitude. Doesn't have to be a dance track - it can warm up anything quite nicely. I would never crank any of the dials to maximum and then claim "what the hell is this - why's is it so loud?" Just a little is enough and I don't need to mess with the output control - I already have headroom! I think it is a very useful saturation tool and use it often.

[@tonedowne]

I dunno, I found this easy to use right from the off. Everything did what I thought it would and the fact that it is for subtle saturation rather than full on overdrive meant that the gain staging has never really been a big deal. And sometimes it is a vibey way of just making something louder if the file is a bit low.

[@ekyo_stuff]

The way u said "TWO HUNDRED SND AND FIFTY DOLLARS" at 2:22 made my day

[@EnricoDiLauro]

fortunately decapitator has automatic output adjustment, i agree with you , it should be implemented in every plug in

[@jansenbrown3435]

Have you had a chance to check out the upgraded version of the HG2 --> HG2MS (includes mid side now)

[@Soundophiliac]

TrackComp2 by DMG sounds like the thing after which you might not bother with analog gear anymore. Great UI, great sounds, great value, 9 excellent algorithms in there. Heartily reccommended!

[@Soundophiliac]

+ Dave Gamble is an all-around great guy dmgaudio.com/trackcomp

[@juliusebola9389]

I love this thing and I use it on almost everything.

[@greenenoiseaudio]

Only seen one person mention this but the key to this plugin is the density. I personally never really have it past -80% to -75%, otherwise it just ruins the transients too much for my taste. Apparently this isn't as true with the actual hardware unit. I have a preset I made for drum bus that I know I like and mix that in. It is a bitch to get a hang of with the pentode and triode in series

[@ozzy3ml]

If you need to turn density down you are probably hitting the plugin too hard and/or turning the triode/pentode/sat too high? Just a thought. Many plugins work best at around -18 dB RMS (unfortunately there is no industry wide standard for this, but -18 is probably the closest to it). If I remember correctly, what Density does is control triode/pentode/sat simultaneously, with automatic gain compensation. So if you turn up all three by the same amount only to turn density down, you're back to where you started except for a level increase :-)

[@troeteimarsch]

triode = mainly K2 is added, even order, sounds harmonic, makes things warmer pentode = mainly K3 and K5 are added, odd order, sounds disharmonic, makes things colder/ harsh. triode is often referenced to as 'the tube sound', maybe because of the double triode tubes like 12AX7s in almost every tube guitar preamp, while the poweramp section often is powered by pentodes like the KT88, EL34, 6L6. this type of distortion is also referenced to transformers and tape and occurs in every amplification circuit that inverts polarity between in- and ouput - also in FET driven circuits. when biased accordingling low to get that anode to break down voltage the result will be tube style tone and compression. every tube guitar amp that uses pentodes in the poweramp can easily be modded to utilize the pentodes as triodes so having a guitar amp around as an effect module comes in very handy and makes this plugin some sort of obsolete - even two instances of fabfilter saturn in hq will do it.

[@Alchemedia]

On the nose! Sounds great, PITA to use. Density is key.

[@SeedtoStage]

I find automatic gain compensation really annoying and never accurate. You repeatedly state that there should be automatic output gain adjustments. But distortion is a nonlinear effect. Each signal is going to be vastly different and need a different kind of gain reduction in order to sound right. For example I love soundtoys Decapitator, its my favorite saturator but it NEVER has guessed the right amount of gain reduction to match my rms literally ever.

[@MrMatamatic]

Love this on rock tracks as well . It glues my mixes well !

[@DaddaPsy]

You could create a Group with it in Ableton and map input and output to macro-knob. So everytime you increase Pentode for example, it will decrease the volume with the same amount. However that may be a little too anal about it..

[@MrSnowmobilefreak]

i really agree with the auto gain, i remember using the stock ableton compressor when trying out a new daw and being blown away because i could "hear" the compression happening as i was increasing compression (it was because it auto gained). I still mix in fl and im sad none of my other compressors have autogain. but yes, autogain autogain autogain

[@Gomez3nt]

What about using midicontroller for the doublehanded grip?

[@mangotango5988]

This plug in is sick! Got it on sale last night for $18!

[@Drfresh1402]

Nice to see Brainworx plugins getting more attention from you. Those guys have amazing stuff. Phil’s Cascade. Please review that. Elysia built something only for the purpose of emulating it in plugin form.

[@plokitheplok]

Phil's cascade is amazing. Dev working on it left however, now working for Black Rooster Audio and for it's own outlet Fuse Audio Labs. If you like Phil's cascade, you might like VPRE-2C from Fuse Audio Labs. It has less fiddles but plain tube sound seems even sweeter

[@abemillettmusic]

Sometimes I put it on my drum bus. I accidentally came across it as part of the plug in alliance bundle. Phenomenal company imo.

[@InsaneCarville]

Next time, try turning down the saturation next to the pentode as that's what's feeding the signal, will save you running back and fourth to that "output" knob. Obviously different results but that's how the signal is designed.

[@igorfabris9196]

Ok my man. At the first place sorry for my English and THX 4 all of your great videos Snake Oli or not ;-) You helped me a lot with many decisiond to try it or not but here you screwed totally. As a former owner of hardware and plugin i can only tell you one thing RTFM before powering on :-) Regarding the triode'pentode: Pentode mode: Not very linear, high output impedance, lots of gain, highest power/efficiency, easy to drive Triode mode: Very linear, only about 1/3rd the power of pentode mode lowest output impedance, not much gain, harder / hard to drive due to high input capacitance and low gain. Triode strapped pentodes somewhat easier to drive than pure triodes. Just to explain people what is it about. Same principle for any tube device on the world. Just a different components and circuits around tubes ok? This is one of thousands explanation what triode and pentode can do. You can try to use at least one explanation to people who's watching you Autogain is great feature but on more plugins its not needed. It's not matter of time to spend for a little gain compensation ;-) Bob Horn for example uses Black Box on many different ways and after him you can only want to buy plugin or hardware :-) of course depending on budget. And yea i have also a lot of analogue gear pretty specific, old, tweaked non tweaked etc yadda yadda yadda but every time when i find some good emulation in plugin it's mine. Just because i can use it on more instances. To make long story short, keep up a good work, prepare yourself when it comes to complex plugins like these, try it before you make a movie and at least give to people relevant info about tested plugin or hardware. It's not always in Snake Oiling or not. Many plugins are great sounding emulations. As a owner of analog/digital studio wish you a good work and keep going and making a great videos as you know. Sometimes you helped me a lot believe me or not. And i DON'T work for those guys but i use a lot of their plugins :-)) Yours Truly Igor

[@John_Stone_]

Why did you sell the hardware version?

[@nikku1166]

yeah man, i can see having to set it up in a rack with macros in Ableton just to use the thing without throwing my computer out the window. Like a rack that turns the pentode\triode up while turning the output volume down at the same time. I wish plug-in companies that did these "analog" looking gear type plugs would make two GUI's, one that looked like hardware and another that was more computer functional. like make a 2nd GUI choice built int that looks like FabFilter stuff.

[@nickskywalker2568]

The thing is that turning up something and don't volume at the same time doesn't necessary compensate gain. If you are using ableton I definitely recommend this max for live devices that compensate volume before/after a plugin chain. This is a huge game changer and I would love to see this elsewhere than in ableton volume compensator m4l devices: gumroad.com/l/volcomp3.

[@nikku1166]

​@@nickskywalker2568 Definitely. My rack mention wasn't an accurate sciences or anything, just a work around that Ableton and other DAWs could conceivable do to lower the torture of this plugin. I've actually been testing out "Volume Buddy 2" by Noir Labs. It's a LUFS automatic gain compensation tool for Ableton in a single unit. It acts as the send and receiver in one device. Also sold on Gumroad. I've been getting mixed result from it so far, but need to test more. I'll definitely check out the Volume Compensator from Alex you linked, I might have better results. @ojgom17 seems to recommend as well. I saw a video posted on reddit about it a bit ago, but grabbed the Nori Labs one instead for some reason. Have you tried the either versions of the "Volume Buddy" by any chance?

[@dayman9432]

This plugin has always been amazing and is even MORE amazing now that it ahs M/S processing :)

[@AutPen38]

It's even more amazing now that Native Instruments and Plugin Alliance have joined forces and are giving it away for free.

[@Piotre]

I am happy you finally got it ;) And you start to understand why it is good to follow exact look of hardware for plugins emulating it ;) Yep, It is about workflow for transition for people who are used to use hardware... What is significant is you usually cannot afford few hardware instances to apply in the same time to tracks so you need to go track by track and print it out. It takes a lot of time... But saying all of that I completely agree with you plugins creators have power to extend their functionality ways beyond of hardware. So why just not to add some additional button even in kind of additional 'advanced' panel to let turn on/off some workflow improving behavior for users who want more than just 'exact' emulation of hardware in anything like number of knobes and colors... There are some great examples companies who are trying to do this (but still lack of courage to go even further about possibilities).

[@bbuteo]

you are right the tubes wont turn off in any device when you bypass it , they will just stand by and keep ON otherwise every time the tubes would be turned off they would need time to warm up and be able to work again...at least on my guitar amps its the way it works, but this is a great piece of gear (VST) i bought it and i almost use it in everything it is one of those plugins that actually it is good like decapitator or echoboy by soundtoys...its a plugin for life and a great emulation, saw a video comparing it with the real hardware and was stunning, cheers from Portugal and congratz for the channel

[@tonosgraves]

glad I looked at the comments and got more informed on the plug in cuz damn

[@tonosgraves]

just got this plug in for free with a code on their website so very very worth it

[@roberthunt1540]

I want one, if for no other purpose, as a night light!

[@marcusherbold993]

Expensive night light 😂😂😂

[@jeffking4604]

It's a very lovely plugin - lives on my subgroups and two bus.........

[@KnzoVortex]

@@marcusherbold993 PA plugins always go on sale for ridiculous prices, you can often find it for the price of a desk light.

[@jorgefrias7889]

I use these type of plugins with Hornet CLMS. It keeps your gain constant.

[@realmusic4you]

Can you do a video on the CLMS?

[@jorgefrias7889]

@@realmusic4you I will.

[@markhalidaycs3166]

It IS annoying to set, but nonetheless, one of the best distorsion boxes round, once you master the thing. It works best in "barely audible" mode. Have a acoustic guitar solo sound a little thin, a track on mastering that sound a bit "dry" you can beef up the spectrum but within acceptabe limits even for a classical ear. I usually push the pentode and the triode more or less together and rarely above 1:30/14:00 on the dials, a little saturation maybe, some "air" but of course with output level compensation

[@campar1043]

u have a saturation knob a pentode knob and a triode knob...which one would the volume output be linked to? for volume compensation?

[@farjedi]

Everyone should know you can Airwindows-ify every plugin in Reaper by clicking the UI button in the FX popup. Not only saves valuable CPU cycles but actually gets you to evaluate through sound and not by pretty graphics. Also this plugin is a LOT less annoying to balance levels in this view!

[@farjedi]

And also, Dude, you got all that gear but not a midi keyboard with some sliders on to midi LEARN to the controls, so you can use it just like hardware? ;) you are in Reaper, this is all possible!

[@oledahl.]

I have really been waiting for this plugin to be reviewed 👏👍 I love it enormously!

[@MixHTX]

Wow! .. The real piece of gear is made by Blackbox Analog Designs which is my buddy Robert's company! We used to hang out in Phoenix Arizona, we both ended up moving away. I moved to Houston Texas, and Robert moved to California. He started using his amazing electrotonic skills to make analog gear, and power supplies for old studio gear. Things that were great gear like channel strips from classic consoles. The was now way to use them without being plugged into the desk . . until Robert made the power supplies and housing for the channel strips, plus the i/o that converted into XLR or digital interfaces. Robert is a really smart guy, and a great guitar player, but best of all he's a good friend of over 20 years!

[@alexfont]

Considering the harware costs around x 13 times more.. I wouldn’t complain if this plugin version doesn’t have volume compensation. Also, you can use as many instances as you want,, which is hardware (although you are Bill Gates) you can’t do it.

[@sundancerhythm]

I have a question, not related to this plugin. What is you video blog set up? What i want to know is that obviously you are hearing the music from your monitors andyou also have a mic somewhere in front of you. How is the mic not pickingup the music coming from the monitors. We hear the direct signal source from you computer nothing from the mic, just your voice which is really clear. Thanks really interested how you do this as i sometimes live stream from my studio. I have direct source through obs bt if i want to speak i have to stop the playback because the mic will pick up the music from the monitors. Thanks very much

[@richardsomerville5725]

I like this plugin and use it a lot.One solution is to use MIDI cc's to control the knobs not a mouse. In Live and I'm sure in Reaper you can map one knob to 2 or more controls and scale the amount of control so when the pentode or triode go up the output comes down by the amount set by the value of the scaling .Auto gain comp would be better but its a workaround.Regards Richard :-)

[@RideTheFuture]

I own this plugin since almost 6 months now and it does downright miraculous things to piano, strings, whole percussion groups, busses, etc. -- but you have to handle it precisely like it's hardware model. Watching you drive these controls up and down so fast and superficial with extremely limited music choices, you are certainly not showcasing what this emulation can do. If you did this to the hardware, you would write it off as well as you never find the sweet spot of where the tube does it's work best. I have been a fan of many of your reviews, but this one is deeply questionable. Would you test drive a new car by getting into it and flooring the accelerator right away?

[@robertwainscott9437]

All of your issues were addressed with the HG2 M/S that was just released.

[@krobo]

I use on almost every master but with the wet/dry mix down low, rarely over 25%

[@MacReviewzOnline]

so basically inaudible, lol, but audible to you.

[@bozzalvarez5922]

Check out the Density function. It might surprise you and solve the volume compensation issue

[@shmups_hobby]

Ok I have just spent some time learning about this unit today, and I think you have missed an important function (although it is a bit hidden)... In the top bar of the plugin you have a 'Density' control. In the manual they explain that density drives the input and makes a compensating cut at the output. It's not exactly the same as compensating for the individual Pentode and Triode drive knobs, but they are connected in series [ Input > Pentode > Triode > Output ] so you wouldn't necessarily want to compensate for each one separately. Hope this helps someone, thanks for all the great vids !

[@simmermusic3894]

How does it compare against Soundtoys decapitator?

[@rome8180]

The benefit of using a plugin vs. the hardware is that it's 1/20th the price. I'm surprised that I have to spell that out. And honestly, 1/20th might be understating it. This plugin has been on sale a ton of times since I first demoed it. You can get it with a Plugin Alliance subscription. But I paid $50, I believe. The hardware is $3500.

[@salesedlar]

What does the snake oil mean???

[@ITech2005]

I wonder if anyone else got the 'redtubes' reference xD

[@johnnyray5865]

i caught that immediately lmao.

[@DebF124]

Lol I’m not in the loop. What’s the reference?

[@huckwalton2307]

@@DebF124 I’ll tell you when you’re older 😘

[@DebF124]

@@huckwalton2307 thanks dad

[@BattleAngelSound]

The quality of saturation in this plugin compensate 100 times the lack of auto gain compensation ;)

[@dermatze2309]

@David cedeno really? What a misleading name then. Still nice if it's true though...

[@recordednowhere]

@David cedeno from the manual:" New, continuously variable Density control boosts gain equally for virtual pentode and triode tubes while making a compensatory adjustment to output gain" ... so I guess yes and no

[@recordednowhere]

@@dermatze2309Manual says " New, continuously variable Density control boosts gain equally for virtual pentode and triode tubes while making a compensatory adjustment to output gain."..so yes and no :)

[@Alchemedia]

@David cedeno It's a tiny manual dial, not auto.

[@Hassan_Omer]

that auto volume adjustment feature in the Hornet Plugins is very help ful, plugin alliance should also add this feature to their emulations. Good point.

[@cary3428]

I use it daily. It’s an essential tool. I have zero complaints about the interface.

[@BigMuff75]

My initial thoughts were similar. I actually bought it on a sale, because of the praise, lest to say hype and sold it soon after. But I subscribed at PA and took the time to check out many Plugins and this this is very good - for some uses. In my case, I use it for parallel distortion of my guitar stem / bus. The left knob will add some nice low mids and the right one some clarity, esp. in connection with the Air Option. It is a great plugin that I use in every session and in all my templates.

[@MacReviewzOnline]

doesn't sound very convincing what you just said.

[@BigMuff75]

@@MacReviewzOnline then dont use it.

[@MacReviewzOnline]

@@BigMuff75 well ya, I'm following your lead bud.

[@danzo9528]

Totally agree. Hope they will Update this plugin cuz it Sounds very Good

[@Ozfish75]

funny you mentioned the drive knobs should turn down the output. I was playing with Soundtoys Decapitator today and noticed when I turned up the drive knob the output was lowing also.

[@Zumovaari]

Maybe you could use a midi controller to turn two knobs with your hands? Just an idea.

[@mitchg3055]

thought the same

[@josejuanllopisdura2757]

Well, it seems to me an incredible plugin. Simply, instead of flicking the mouse back and forth rapidly, I adjust it with my simple and cheap Easycontrol9 midi controller. Also, if you open it up in Reaper you can see the presets it contains and learn a bit about how it actually works. Your review seems made to disparage a product that is excellent. I have seen other videos of yours that I liked and put LIKE. On this occasion, and taking into account the things you do well, I will not put UNLIKE so as not to annoy you with the statistics, but I certainly did not like it

[@nickhyder9141]

I love your videos. I just bought this and discovered you can use the mouse scroll and/ or midi controller to twist the adjustments. Problem solved

[@RyanHarris77]

I have trouble hearing the impact of this plugin until it’s pushed too far so I end up not using it. What am I doing wrong?

[@histakes12]

Have you tried using a controller like Novation’s NOCTURN to Automap your VSTs? Like that you can use 2 hands

[@Erliortmejurur]

I have this set up with macros and it has replaced the rubber band trick well!

[@DanielGutierrezMix]

Hi, what software do you use for your videos, testing de plugin a the same time, and only show the plugin itself and not the DAW.

[@jcalla28]

You can reset a parameter by holding either alt or cmd while clicking (it depends on your DAW).

[@DoctorJezz]

I thought the same thing at first - I couldn't tell the difference between effect and volume change. Then I saw it on sale for around £/$40 ... tried it again and I'm convinced, but agree totally about gain compensation being key to working out if this is doing good things or not.

[@Ricksterpt]

All I have to say is P-42 Climax. Please do a review b rother. Love your channel brother.

[@duncanmcneill7088]

What sold me on it was the lack of aliasing. They’ve employed really good oversampling.

[@vmi4172]

How does this compare to magnetic2?

[@AH20XX]

I swear by this plug in!! It stays on my master bus as well as my drum bus!!

[@JetMuzikBeats]

🤔 gonna try that. Just got it today and normally do SSL Comp on my drum bus ans PSPWarmer on master

[@AH20XX]

@@JetMuzikBeats you won't be disappointed!!

[@talenwaver]

I save all my main plugins as a device with everything premapped to a control surface. HUGE difference.

[@user-es7jj7pt9w]

because you can assign midi to a controller with knobs, who works with only mouse?

[@holonmundi5320]

I've been looking at this one and channel strips from BX. I've been trying the demos and to my ears the SSL emulations from PA don't compare to the Acustica Audio Sand 3 at all (or Navy 2 which is Neve). Any chance of hearing you try them out?

[@AlexeyFayzulin]

As for me PA SSL can be compared to the original one. G channel especially.

[@holonmundi5320]

@@AlexeyFayzulin cool. I didn't manage to get much out of it so I take the blame. I got the HG2 after all and now I'll try and use the modulators in Bitwig to make autamtic gain compensation.