ProAudio Review - December 2008 - (Page 30)

www.proaudioreview.com latest version 5 software (5.1.0), which required a full reauthorization. It’s only a few minutes of work. Note that aside from the Mix Essentials authorizations, there are also 14-day, fully functional demos of all of the plug-ins. So if you want to check out that Neve 1081, Helios 69, LA3A, or Fairchild, just hit the “Start Demo” button. If you have both a UAD-1 and a UAD-2 card installed, you can also choose which card the plug-ins will run on. Booting up Logic Pro 8, it quickly ran through the “new” UAD plug-ins, and I was ready to go. Found under the Audio Units > Universal Audio menu, the full list of plug-ins appeared. Simply insert the plugs into a session like any other plug-in and dial up your settings. Once opened, you can view an indicator on the plug-in toolbar that shows which type of card it’s running on, as well as a dropdown menu with .FXP Preset Management settings such as Load, Save, Copy, and Paste. This would allow you, for example, to save the settings of your 1176 LN and paste them directly into a “lighter” 1176 SE version. I tried this a few times, and it worked perfectly. On the plug-in GUI is also a cool “Help” button, which can access info from either the UAD manual or info for that software from the company’s website. Of course, there’s also a “Buy” button, which lets you immediately purchase that plugin online — a smart inclusion on Universal’s part. Available only on the UAD-2, there is a “Low Latency” button that lowers latency to the point where you can use it live on an instrument while recording. In Use After using this card on a single session, I realized there was no going back. To be fair, I’ve been using UA plug-ins (especially the 1176) on my Pro Tools rigs since they first started developing them years ago. I still use them quite a bit on my HD setup, but now with this card, I have access to them for my Logic and Bias Peak work. To be able to put 1176s, Neve 1073s, Pultecs, Helios 69s, and DreamVerb on my tracks was a huge kick in the butt and far better than the standard Logic effects fare. There is literally no comparison to the before and after, especially with a Neve 33609 and UAD Precision Limiter on the Master fader. This also applied to my Bias Peak Pro 6 work. I typically use Peak as a 2-track editor and master “assembler,” but to be able to call up this bevy of plug-ins was sheer power at my fingertips. For RTAS users, UA expects to port all the plug-ins (except Nigel) to the Pro Tools platform before the end of the year. LE users with 003s and such will be able to have a huge power increase with the installation of just a single card. Summary The UAD-2 Solo is a compact and powerful system for those who need some additional plugin help on their computers. Aside from the software sounding great, it’s expandable; not only can you purchase additional plug-ins as needed, but up to four UAD-2 cards can also be used in one setup (along with four UAD-1 cards). Also, the UA family of Duo and Quad cards joins the Solo, each with additional processing power. If you’re a DAW owner who’s running on the edge and wants to make your mixes sound better, I highly recommend a UAD-2 Solo. 30 ProAudioReview | December 2008 http://www.proaudioreview.com http://www.prismsound.com http://www.prismsound.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of ProAudio Review - December 2008

ProAudio Review - December 2008 Contents Technically Speaking New Studio Products Opinion: Mastering Matters Review: BIAS Peak Pro XT 6 Review: Zaxcom Fusion ENG Mixer and Multitrack Recorder Review: Sound Devices 788T 8-Track Digital Audio Recorder Review: Universal Audio UAD-2 Solo DSP Accelerator Review: Chandler Limited Germanium Compressor Review: RME ADI-8 QS A/D-D/A Converter Feature: Converters and Clocks: Engineers on Their Choices New Live Products Opinion: From the Road Review: Yamaha IM8 Series Mixing Consoles Review: NTI Digirator DR2 Digital Audio Signal Generator Review: Sencore SoundPro SP495 Audio Consultant Test Set Single Slice

ProAudio Review - December 2008

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