New vintage compression and EQ plug-in suite by Acustica Audio: Water
Water channel strip · Source: Acustica Audio
Water EQ & compression · Source: Acustica Audio
Acustica Audio is back with a new suite of three analogue-inspired plug-ins called Water. Modelled after a bunch of 60’s hardware, the plug-ins include a channel strip, an equalizer, and a compressor/limiter.
The channel strip is a compact fusion of the EQ and comp with an added preamp emulation. It includes the equalizer section’s low and high-shelf filters along with a mid-range bell EQ and high-pass filter, two preamp models with input trim and output gain, and a paired-down version of the compressor.
The equalizer module recreates a 1961 unit with a passive stereo Germanium transistor topology and a set of hand-built hardware circuits. The EQ is capable of operating in mid-side and dual-mono modes, and the original design has been expanded upon with a 9 dB cut for the mid-band alongside extra frequency choices for the LF/HF bands and high-pass filter. Neato!
Likewise, the compressor resurrects a 1968 diode-bridge unit with a discrete build. Its character is described as having “smooth coloration” not unlike that of vintage tube comps. To revitalise the unit, Acustica added an attack shape modulation control, a high-range high-pass filter, faster release curves, a toggle for the original unit’s pass-through tone, and a dry/wet control for the purposes of parallel compression.
Price & availability
Priced EUR 129 with a special pre-sale price of EUR 103.20 during the first four weeks of release, Water looks like a capable suite of rare vintage effects emulations that’s going to impart a certain character to your productions. Acustica’s plug-ins generally sound great and there’s a four-week trial available, so definitely give Water a try if you are after vintage sounds.
More information
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