Rigging the DAW
Although the picture above does not suggest this I will talk about my digital setup today. Because I recently purchased some of my favourites I also streamlined my plug-in folder quite a bit. And these remained in the mix: If equalisation is necessary I put up the DMG Audio EQuilibrium – one of the most versatile EQs to date. Don’t let the complex settings fool you, just choose a preset to start with and go on from there, you can easily strip down the feature-heavy UI into a straight forward display. While mastering I use a linear phase FIR mode with M/S ability. On solo tracks I choose a more light weight design, often cutting with precise “digital” curves and boosting with broader “analogue” filter models. Marvelous sound really.
For clean compression I use Klanghelm’s DC8C almost exclusively as well as for trackwise limiting (for which I also recommend Voxengo Elephant) and mixbus duties. To give it full credit I have to add that its potential in the colouring range is also huge but I barely started to understand all of its power. So meanwhile I insert SKnote’s GTS-39 for fattening purposes, mostly on groups or – even better – on parallel busses. Right behind (or upfront) frequency and dynamic controls I sometimes add saturation helping (thinner) sounds to shine. Therefore I choose another Klanghelm called SDRR. It also works as a broad EQ or even as a stereo widener. For modulation effects especially on send busses I have TAL’s chorus, flanger and delay at hand, also vacuumsound’s ADT (essential but difficult to handle) and Camel Audio’s CamelCrusher. My main reverbs (if available) would be the algorithm-based Aether and Breeze by 2CAudio which in my opinion exceed the impulse response approach soundwise. But Steinberg’s REVerence does the job if an “authentic” room is needed. I almost forgot de-essing which is done by SPL’s classic bundle and normally the first insert on sizzling voals. But the one I wont forget is my last insert on the mixbus – the PSP Xenon – still one of the cleanest brickwall limiter on the market and a transparent maximizer as well. And it can dither too. And that’s it for mixing in the box at the blockstudio.