Hi,

What are your thoughts about analog emulation (or vintage inspired) multiband compressor plugins ? Do you use them ? How would you describe a situation where you think an analog emulation would do better than the clean digital multiband compressor ? I mean we all agree that a G Bus Compressor or 33609 type plugin can easily outperform any other clean compressor out there on the Stereo Bus because they have their own sounds and stuff. So, what about the multiband compressors ? If coloration and some dynamic control on the certain area of the frequency band, multiband Saturation plugin like a Fabfilter Saturn 2 should be a smarter choice IMO. So I would like to hear your opinions about it.

I normally use the Pro-MB, Multiplicity or just dynamic mode in Pro-Q3 or Kircchoff because first, they do the job, sufficient and I really need the precision from them with minimal phase rotation as possible or sometimes the linear phase mode when it is needed for the crossover. Let's just say, transparency is what I crave from that specific processing, no artifact, coloration or any other bs needed. Pretty straight forward.

There are direct emulation but sometimes the plugins version is 3 of hardware units stacked together to create a multiband version, some are just inspired by hardware. What I'm saying is, they are made and expected to behave like an analog multiband hardware compressor with all the coloration, artifact, noise and such. Here's some of the plugins I could think of :

1. Softube Drawmer 1973


2. Lindell 354E - 3 Neve 2254 units


3. Lindell MBC - 3 API 2500 units


4. PSP oldtimerMB - not sure if it is modeled after a hardware, but it feels like that


5. Presonus Tricomp - looks like inspired by a Drawmer


6. Audiority PolyComp - IGS Audio Multicore


Thanks & Happy New Year!

 

I've never actually used an analogue multiband compressor so have nothing to compare any plugin with. If this counts, I've always relied on TDR NOVA GE for clean multiband compression mostly for vocals and occasional use teasing space in an uncluttered mix for acoustic guitars. It sounds awesome to me and is cheap for it's quality.

 

I may have used Drawmer 1973 just to experiment once or twice, but that's it, I never feel like I need to use it plus worrying if it could mess up with the mix too much.

NOVA GE is awesome. Yeah it counts, dynamic EQ basically a multiband compressor in a way. Nova has all the controls like a compressor does.

Come to think of it, normal usage (90% of the time) for mb compressor is to tame stuff rather than expand or boost, so not much it can add, pretty useless I'd say unless it is a hardware which can be treated as color box for its gain stage, and transformer. Maybe that can be count as useful in Analog domain, but in digital domain there's like hundred of saturation plugins for that.

 

Never used a hardware mb. For the most part the analog emulations i've tried either suck or i just don't like what they do, mostly because they add too much colour and i use mb's almost exclusively in contexts where i need a transparent one so...yeah.

 

Well, I do not.

As mk_96 already said, they do add way to much saturation due to their stages.
I really can advise to rather use a super clean multiband limiter like MLimiterMB instead. In my experience they are way more efficient in achieving the multiband compression effect.

(There really are not many transparent ones out there. The DMG Limitless for example is not. Acon Digital mb is also absolutely transparent but it's not an mb limiter.)

 

Many years ago i had the chance to work with a Drawmer S3, it's a 3 band tube compressor which "splits" the signal at 6 dB/oct which is pretty useless. It was very expensive and recalling settings was nearly impossible due to the ranges of the pots. Almost never used it in any mixing or mastering job. UAD Precision Multiband was my favorite multiband compressor at that time. Now it's FabFilter Pro-MB or Pro-Q 3 dynamics.

 

When the mix calls for analog-style subgroup compression and I'm too lazy, I use Drawmer 1973. Didn't have issues so far.

 

I went through a Drawmer phase but I came out of it again. I use Pro-Q dynamic a LOT. Haven't tried Kirchhoff yet.

 

Kinda noticed that you don't really use all these fancy analog emulation plugins. Just out of curiosity, what is your go-to for Instrument Buses and Stereo Bus (if you mix that way of course) ?

I think this should explain the precision part clearly, maybe 10-20Hz different doesn't really matter for EQ but for multiband compressor crossover it does change the result a lot. Thankfully, we won't have that kind of problem in the digital domain, exact recall is a wonderful thing.

lol, but I gotta admit, I kinda like the "Big" and "Air" thingy. It's not like it isn't achievable with other plugin, but it is kinda cool, in a way. These days I still use a lot of its little sibling, the S73 for parallel compression, the Spatial options could come out with a good surprise sometimes.

 

It's not that I do not like/use them. I just do not like how people relate to them and state everytime, that there is happening anything special.
I just made this statement, to not let the illusion come up, that there is anything hidden in those compressors that is unachievable otherwise.

At the moment I only use Acon digital comp as a full range comp and I do not think that this will change anytime in the future anymore.
I have to say, that I rather use reverb instead of compression (Mostly I turn off their stupid room mics and create my own room ). Compression shapes dynamics, reverb does not really.
There are, besides mostly on vocals, only very creative situations where I use compression - sometimes on bass. (I usually do not use compression on bass)

I do not use compression on percussion material at all anymore. The only channel I always use compression on is the mixbus and there only as mb limiting. Full range compression I really mostly only use on vocals.

 

Last edited: Jan 7, 2023