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PLUG-IN OUTLET
SoundToys Devil-Loc Deluxe (and Devil-Loc)
by Paul Vnuk Jr.

SoundToys is a software company based in
Burlington, Vermont; the core of the firm's design
team were the creators of two of the world's best
known and most respected hardware multi-effects
processors, the Eventide H3000 and DSP4000.
While most modern plug-in companies focus
much of their time on detailed accurate models of
famous vintage hardware (right down to looks,
feel and sound) SoundToys' focus has always
trended toward the weird and wonderful "effecty" side of things...
which isn't surprising, given their background. But the SoundToys
philosophy isn't "anything goes," either; every plug-in is built upon
the framework of modeled circuits, analog tape, tubes, and other
components found in vintage hardware.
Two great examples of the SoundToys design philosophy are
the EchoBoy (reviewed in February of 2007 as part of the company's Native Effects Bundle) and the Decapitator (reviewed
February 2011). EchoBoy is a delay plug-in that can emulate a
host of well-known delays, from the BOSS DM-2 to 15 IPS tape
delays to the EH Memory Man, but can also offer new creations
"in between" with a choice of modeled output stages. The
Decapitator is a saturation plug-in which models a collection of
5 well-known analog input stages, both tube and solid state; it
loves to be pushed and abused to bring analog distortion and
grit to your digital recordings.
I mention these two plug-ins to highlight the SoundToys paradigm of modeling real hardware designs, but then blending models together in plug-ins that move well beyond the originals rather
than being spec-for-spec recreations. With its latest releases, the
focus has been more on a single circuit model than a collection of
them, but SoundToys is still doing things its own way... the first
example of this new philosophy is the pair of plug-ins under
review today, the Devil-Loc and Devil-Loc Deluxe.

The new plug-in version is dressed in a dirty hellfire red and
offers five levels of control. Starting on the left is a Crush knob.
On a normal vintage-style compressor Crush would be the
input/threshold control; the more input you send into the gain
reduction circuit, the more it is compressed, or in this case
crushed. As with many vintage compressors, driving the DevilLoc Deluxe harder changes its release time.
Next up is the Crunch knob, which in "normal" compression
terms would be your makeup gain. While Crunch does apply
a bit of volume, it really does not make up the gain so much as
it pushes the signal into the output stage-which, as you raise
it, induces tons and I do mean tons of some of the most extreme
"Hey my gear is broken and my speakers are shredded" full-on
distortion you've ever heard.
Fast or Slow into the Darkness
In the middle of the unit is a 2-position switch marked Slow
and Fast. This is the release control; according to the Devil-Loc
Deluxe PDF manual, the Fast setting cuts the release time by a
factor of 2.
The Devil-Loc's attack time is a fixed 1.3 milliseconds. On the
Slow setting the release time is 1.7 seconds at normal settings,
and 22 seconds when the Crush is pushed into saturation. On
the Fast setting those release times are 0.85 seconds and 11
seconds respectively.
The second to last control is the Darkness knob, which is a
post-distortion or post-Crunch highcut filter. It allows you to
tame the sizzle and brightness of the distortion and warm up
the overall effect. The last control is an overall Mix knob which
allows you to blend the plug-in's distorted compressed goodness with the dry signal for a blend that fits your music.

The devil you say?
Billed as an "audio level destroyer," the Devil-Loc Deluxe is
based upon the old 1960s Shure Bros. Level-Loc audio level controller. This original device was designed by Shure as a brickwall
signal limiter for use with public address systems. It originally had
one single control: a 3-position Distance switch marked: 6" OR
LESS, 12", and 18" OR MORE. As you could guess, each setThis compression sucks... literally
ting corresponded to how far away a speaker or subject would
be from a microphone, and it would help level out the signal.
When I first tried this plug-in, my first thought was, "Wow,
(Later models added an input level knob.)
that's extreme-where the hell (sorry, couldn't resist) am I going
Since it was never designed as a studio
piece, its sound was gritty and its compresDelivery: Web download only
sion extreme... so it then makes perfect sense
Formats: Mac OS X 10.6 or later, Windows XP/Vista/7/8; VST, Audio Units
that modern-day engineers like Tchad Blake
(Mac), RTAS/AAX/AudioSuite (depending on Pro Tools version),
and others would want one in the studio as a
32-bit and 64-bit
first-class signal cruncher!
Copy Protection: iLok USB license key
License: multiple installs allowed; one computer in use at a time via iLok
From level to the devil
Documentation: PDF Manual available on SoundToys website
The Devil-Loc Deluxe is the first SoundToys
Price: $129
plug-in to wear its lineage on its sleeve, so to
More from: SoundToys, www.soundtoys.com
speak, but its layout bears absolutely zero
resemblance to the original.
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RECORDING June 2014

http://www.soundtoys.com

Recording - June 2014

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