Yes this is not fair…

 

Dude. I don't like you calling me or anybody else a a fool Or insecure? Geez... I'm 48 and 25+ years in professional production behind me.

You asked a lot of questions you obviously don't have a clue about and when you get the answer you call it bullshit.

This forum is not a warm place for people like you.

It's your prerogative to have your opinion but you are rude and ignorant.

 

Honestly, your position is utterly spurious. The kids with laptops probably can't afford the UA setup. Most people who CAN bother to take the time to learn how to get the best out of the UA environment. Personally, it's been a total game-changer for me and the sonic quality speaks for itself.

Perhaps you should look inward for this "insecurity"?

 

Hmm. Not sure if it's "greedy". Lazy, more like it. Why invest time and money into supporting superseded software? The "Kaizen" from these companies only extends so far.

Anyway, try not to be a fanboy of anything with a logo attached to it. Its essentially mindless pandering.

 

It sounds as if you yourself don't understand how it works? It's quite simple: this "Unison" is basically helping with gain-staging, by defaulting the gain to the appropriate range expected by the analog emulations in order to hit their sweet spot. No rocket science or magic involved. Tracking with a quality audio interface and gain-staging manually is no different. So there is really no need for "Unison"

 

Mate I personally understand you,
But put yourself in UA shoes, isn't there any differences between your costumers who didn't pay for the plugins and who paid?
Don't you provide more for those people who paid and supported more?

Edited:
Also those people who paid for plugins have expectations from UA too!

 

So does this mean they get to just wash their hands of all the people who purchased plugins to run on their hardware?
This means all the legacy versions will get no updates to them. Maybe bug fixes and that sort of maintenance stuff, but those versions of the software are just done. Just pay for the new subscription...

That would be, almost exactly what you might expect from them. This is still Audio, right? That is some DigiDesign playbook stuff. if so.

 

Last edited: Apr 5, 2022

Let me ask you first: Do YOU use any Apollo interface with Unison preamps? I do, since they first came out in 2014.

The fact I didn't bother writing too much is due I have better things to do - and also there's a ton of articles and videos all around the web explaining the technology side for anyone who wants to dig deeper.

No, there's no magic involved but there are many factors working with this tech. Now I'm not saying it's the best possible way to record... I still have my outboard hardware and use it when needed.

But you are wrong one one thing: Tracking with a quality audio interface and gain-staging is no different. Well it IS different.
First off, Apollo is a high quality interface. And there's UA's proprietary Unison preamp technology built on the way in which enables capturing incoming signal and emulating hardware on several levels in order to achieve the sound as close as possible as hardware counterparts.

All that with near-zero latency through UA Console which is another vital part of whole Unison story.

So let's recap:

Unison Basics
Unison™ technology is an audio processing breakthrough that starts right at the source — the input stage — allowing UA audio interface mic preamps to sound and behave like the world’s most sought-after tube and solid-state designs. By capturing the all-important impedance, gain stage “sweet spots,” and component-level circuit behaviors, Unison gives UA interfaces the tone and feel of legendary mic preamps from UA, API,® Neve,® SSL,® Manley,® and more.

When plugging into the front panel instrument input, Unison technology can also emulate the input impedance of guitar and bass amps from Fender,® Marshall,® Ampeg,® Eden,® ENGL,® and Fuchs® — and even famed guitar effects like the KORG SDD-3000 Digital Delay. This is crucial to capturing these unique devices’ signature tones.

Activating Unison Preamps
Unison is activated by inserting any Unison-enabled UAD plug-in into the special Unison insert available in UA’s Console software or LUNA Recording System. Simply click the “UNISON” insert (labeled “UNISON+” in Console) on any MIC/LINE/HIZ track input and select a Unison‑enabled plug‑in from the popover window.

Unison can be used on more than one input simultaneously, so you can effectively create a vintage Neve console tracking experience, for example, with incredibly authentic results.

Unison inserts are available on all Apollo audio interfaces with mic preamps. You’ll know Unison technology is enabled when the ring surrounding the Gain knob on your interface software and hardware illuminates in orange.

Under the Hood
As noted, Unison‑enabled UAD plug-ins reconfigure Apollo mic preamps’ physical input impedance, gain staging response, and other parameters to match the emulated preamp’s characteristics. So when you place a Unison-enabled preamp plug-in like the Manley VOXBOX in the Unison insert slot, you get a spot-on emulation of the original hardware.

The secret is the bi-directional communication between the Unison plug-in and the digitally controlled audio interface mic preamps — a feature found only on UA audio interfaces. Because the UA interface hardware and UAD software are tightly integrated, Unison provides continuous, realtime, two-way control and interplay between physical mic preamp controls and the software settings.

The easiest way to learn more about Unison mic preamp emulation is to pull up a few Unison-enabled plug-ins and record your favorite sources. You’ll quickly hear the difference it can make.

Unison is just one of the many ways UA audio interfaces give you authentic analog sound, every time you record.

Watch the Unison Shoot Out (hardware vs. software) video

Apollo Twin and Unison - Sound on Sound Magazine 2014

Wrapping Up (Sound on Sound Magazine)
Unison is clearly a big deal for the Apollo range, and UA’s commitment to it suggests that more plug–ins, such as preamps and guitar amps, may be in the pipeline. This latest batch of plug–ins is nothing if not eclectic, ranging from the elegant simplicity of the Tilt EQ to the extremes of the Culture Vulture and the unrivalled heritage of the Neve 1073. They all do a great job at aping the originals, and while detractors may claim that plug–ins will never replace hardware, these Universal Audio emulations are so close that any perceived shortcomings are more than made up for by the usual benefits of plug–ins — specifically the ability to use multiple instances and to recall their settings as part of a project.

 

Again you are quoting marketing babble. That's not helping. You must be able to explain what it actually does, not some fancy, non-descript marketing talk. What does it actually do to the signal that is different from manually gain staging using a quality audio interface with typical impedance level and tracking into the sweet spot of an analog emulation plugin?

There is no difference in sound quality, if you use standardized impedance levels and a decent quality audio interface (good ad/da) and proper gain staging. I will stick to that hypothesis unless you have a reasonable explanation why I'm wrong!

In fact, I will make a further claim: if you are a Windows user I would challenge you to use Variety Of Sounds freeware Tessla SE mkII as your preamp plugin vs any of your Unison preamps. Of course you will have to track into Tessla SE mkII using appropriate levels. It expects the material to peak around -18dbFS.

 

You obviously have a lot of free time. I do not.

Read. Do your own research. Ask the engineers who make it. Whatever.

 

These are the arguments that happen when you take the engineering out of audio engineer...
(Sprinkle in a little laziness with not wanting to research.)
Impedance matching is not the same thing as gain staging.
There is a difference in the resulting sound.
Of course it's up to you to decide if the result is something you need/want.
If a tool isn't of use to you, keep your money.
Just make some music.

 

Audio interfaces typically have the required impedance, which is different for microphone signals vs hi-z instrument inputs. So gain-staging is the only variable left, nothing more, nothing less.

Owning UAD "Unison" doesn't make someone an engineer btw. I just realized that claims were made, but not substantiated. If I claim that solution X is superior to solution Y, then I have to be able to substantiate in simple and practical terms my claim. Quoting marketing babble and paid reviews is not a substitute to that. No disrespect.

 

Strawman.

No such claim has been made.

 

Audio interfaces typically have a fixed mic impedance, microphones come in a variety of impedances.
Hi-Z indicates variable impedance, this is to accommodate a variety of instrument inputs.
If we take a guitar as an example, the cable straight in has a different impedance than if you run into a pedal fist.
Different pedals have different impedances. Different amps have different impedances. Etc...
Setting resistance and reactance on the signal creates a response specific to that device.

Not knowing the technicalities of the trade is what disqualifies someone as an engineer.
You are looking for people to explain things that you can easily find on your own if you really wanted to learn.
You have the entirety of the history of human knowledge at your fingertips.
If you can ask the questions, you can find the answers.
You just don't want to do the work and figure it out for yourself.

I don't recall anyone saying Unison was superior to anything.
It is doing something unique though.
If you don't find value in it... don't use it.

 

Last edited: Apr 6, 2022

So we agree that audio interfaces have the right impedance levels, depending on the source of input? Then why would I need "Unison"? The only thing that Unison does is correlate the various impedance levels with the correct gain range needed to drive into their virtual preamps / analog emulations hitting the sweetspot (aka gain staging). So, no need for Unison if your audio interface supports the common impedance needed for microphones, direct in instruments, pedals / amps and so on and you are capable enough to handle manual gain-staging like many generations of renown audio engineers before.

There is not such a huge variety of impedance levels (as you falsely suggest) in modern audio gear, 90% of mics for example are within the same impedance range supported by basically all common audio interfaces. Same for guitars and guitar hardware. You make it look as if a total entropy of impedance levels exists, which makes me actually doubt your claimed audio engineering credentials.

 

Radial DI-boxed here!

 

Good stuff!

 

This only on one of my hardware preamps has 4 impendance levels.

 

They're not power hungry at all. They're using ADSP-21469KBCZ-4 which is a DSP chip from 2011 running at 450MHz, worth $40. From UAD themselves you have the DSP load for one such chip. 4K Bus Compressor uses 3% of that 2011 chip. API Vision sits at like 35%. Massive Passive is at 60%. A single current CPU should easily run at least as much DSP as a Quad or Octo card, if not a multiple of that.

 

This makes me wonder what's actually inside, because it's quite impossible to reconfigure "gain staging response" (whatever that is... making the gain knob not be at the dB level you set it to, emulating "vintage mojo" that way?), and other parameters... sounds like a bunch of marketing words for "we run software emulation in the interface directly, and show you a fancy light around the gain knob to let you know". If they really had something technically superior to show off, we'd see patents and research papers from them years ago.