Recording - September 2016 - 22

Softube Console 1

boxes, creating a sound that can compete
in the big leagues. I was really impressed
with this setup, and would be willing to
praise it for the top-quality channel strip that
it is. But there is a killer addition to this software that sets it completely apart from any
other system: the included hardware interface.
The hardware
The only thing you actually get in the
Console 1 box is a piece of hardware-but
what an impressive piece of hardware!
With a black faceplate surrounded by a
gunmetal gray casing, the interface is gorgeously designed. The panel is split into
sections to access the input area, Shape
processor, EQ, Compressor and final
Drive/mixing controls. Across the top are
track selectors and a few setup buttons that
provide access to the software display and
the ordering of the processors within the
plug-in.
Each processor section has a set of endless encoders that provide direct access to
the parameters of that subsystem. So, for
example, the Equalizer section provides
shape, frequency, and gain controls for
each EQ band. The Input and Output sections provide metering that give eyes-on-thehardware control of your mix, and interacts
with the rest of the system perfectly.
If you think of the Console 1 hardware
as a console channel on steroids, you are
thinking in the right direction. It provides
amazing control over the plug-in, and helps
you shape a channel with a remarkable
amount of flexibility. It also happens to fit
perfectly between the keyboard and monitor of a typical desktop system, and turns
your desk into Softube's concept of the ultimate mixing station.
System integration
The first thing to understand about
Console 1 is that it is not a controller for
your DAW. In fact, it doesn't interact with
your DAW at all; it exists solely to talk to
the Softube plug-ins that are inserted into
each channel. So don't expect to adjust
your DAW channels or other plug-in parameters with this system. The hardware is
about controlling the processing on each
channel; for overall DAW-driven balancing,
you'll still need to resort to the mouse (or a
different control surface).
That said, the integration of the system
within your DAW is as simple as you can
imagine: you install it as a plug-in, insert it
onto an audio track, and it becomes tied to
that channel. But how does the Softube system know what channel you are working
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RECORDING SEPTEMBER 2016

on? In some cases, I think it's magic... in
other cases, not quite magic.
The plug-in interrogates the DAW to see
if it can figure out which channel holds the
plug-in; if it can, it will properly name and
number the channel. If it can't, you are
responsible for setting up the channel
yourself, with naming that will be meaningful to you. In this way, the channel
selection buttons at the top of the physical
interface will be useful in your DAW sessions, but manual setup is enough of a
pain that you will probably want to set up
a Console 1-specific template for whatever

software you are using on a day-to-day
basis.
It is also important to note that, when you
are working with the Console 1 system,
you will generally interact with a large
(nearly fullscreen) image of the processing
system that closely mirrors the hardware
interface. You can manually open and
close this window, or allow the system to
auto-open it whenever it thinks you need to
see what it has to offer. This window is a
fantastic insight into the activity of the channel strip, with super-reactive feedback for all
the processors, and clear metering on both
input and output-and for all the Console
1-enabled channels at once.
One thing to remember is that the plug-in
and the display window are actually separate entities. The hardware interface will
call up the display window, which then
communicates with the plug-in on whichever channel you've selected. The actual plugin also provides an interface, but it is
almost uselessly small. You will come to
depend on the large-format display, along
with hardware-based channel switching, to
move around within your session.

As a system, this may all seem complicated, but it is almost the opposite: once you
get used to how things work, it is second
nature to bring the window up or down,
and to fly between channel selections. In
fact, once you embrace the Softube workflow, you'll seldom return to the stock channel interface of your DAW-the sound of
the Softube plug-in, combined with the natural use of the hardware interface, can
make standard EQs, compressors, and
level controls obsolete.
In the mixing process
Because the Console 1 is not a DAW
controller, I really didn't find myself using it
much during tracking; that is a case where
you will generally prefer a DAW controller,
because you are constantly balancing and

tweaking on the fly. But when you get to the
mixing stage of your project, you will find
yourself in The Console 1 Comfort Zone.
Using the Console 1 for mixing is a fantastic experience. The flexibility of the system really comes into play when you are
mixing, and the ability to tweak tracks with
the twist of a knob or two seems a luxury.
Using the Shape Designer is a great way to
tighten up drum tracks, while the EQ and
the compressor feel natural for beefing up
pads and vocals as necessary.
That transient shaper is worthy of more
discussion, because the use of a shaper
isn't yet considered a standard part of the
mixer's world. But it proves to be fantastically useful, because you can adjust the punch
(useful occasionally) and decay (useful most
of the time) of the sounds on a track. If you
have a decent split of drum tracks into individual channels, using the transient shaper
allows you to soften or harden the front
end, tighten up the decay, or gate out
unwanted noise. This is a pleasant way to
work with improving any track, and helps it
to either jump into the foreground or blend
into the background.

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recording - September 2016