Having recently taken a tour of five amazing modular channel strip plugins, we now turn our attention to emulations of classic and vintage console channels. These present a very different proposition to their more versatile modular counterparts, focusing solely on recreating the authentic experience of an otherwise unattainable hardware strip in software, be it for purposeful vintage styling or just to bring a touch of analogue mojo to your ITB productions.

Universal Audio UAD API Vision Collection

Available in UAD Native and DSP-powered Apollo/UAD-2 formats, with tight integration into their LUNA DAW, Universal Audio’s plugin simulacrum of API’s fabulous console immediately adds colour with its exacting model of the API 212L Mic Preamp, incorporating the revered 2520 op-amp – just loading it up on a drum, guitar or vocal track and raising the input level ups the presence and warmth. After that, the strip comprises the 215L high- and low-pass filters, 235L gate/expander, 225L compressor/limiter and switchable 550L/560L EQ – the 550L being a 4-band parametric, the 560L a 10-band graphic, and both featuring proportional Q for a satisfyingly musical response and great ease of use. In fact, quick and simple operation is a highlight here, as it is with the real thing: while we can take or leave the dual concentric parametric EQ controls, the pared-back compressor panel is a joy to work with, and the ability to place the EQ before or after the dynamics section is, of course, welcome. The 212L preamp is Unison-compatible, too, giving Apollo owners a genuinely ‘hardware’ experience in terms of response and tactile control. One of the brightest jewels in the UAD crown.

Lindell Audio 80 Series

The source material for Lindell’s stunning channel strip emulation is Neve’s 8028 console – or, more specifically, the 1272 line amp, 1073 and 1084 preamp/EQs, and 2254 compressor/limiter that define its sound and workflow. The 1073 should need no introduction, as it’s one of the most acclaimed mic preamp/EQ circuits ever made, but being able to switch to the more flexible 1084 when you need more filtering range and Q control is a significant boon. Meanwhile, the compressor is friendly and intuitive, covering five fixed ratios from 1.5:1 to 6:1, and featuring ‘Smash’ and ‘Niveau’ modes for super hard and nicely transparent compression, respectively. 80 Series also makes use of Plugin Alliance teammate Brainworx’s Tolerance Modelling Technology (TMT), which offers a choice of 32 subtly differing channel modelling algorithms, lending your large-scale console emulations the same inevitable analogue channel-to-channel variance that you’d get with a real desk.

With its powerful, punchy sound and delicious sonic colouration, 80 Series is a must-try for any producer working primarily with amplified and/or acoustic instrumentation.

Solid State Logic SSL 4K E

Given the number of excellent third-party 4000E emulation plugins out there, quite why it’s taken SSL so long to enter the market themselves is a mystery, but November ’23 saw them at last play their hand in characteristically definitive style. 4K E models every component of the legendary console, beefing up those signals with the beautiful saturation of the Jensen JT-115K-E mic pre and DBX 202 Gold Can VCA fader circuit, and providing all three E series EQ variants: Brown, Black and the rare ‘passive’ Orange version. On the dynamics front, the Channel Compressor models the apex Revision 4 design, and again keeps things functionally straightforward with Fast/Slow Attack switching and smooth soft-knee response; while the Gate/Expander is as useful as you’d imagine. The ‘intelligent’ HQ mode maintains the minimum amount of oversampling required to pull off convincing analogue-ness, and the whole thing integrates seamlessly with SSL’s 360º Plug-in Mixer ecosystem, for hands-on twiddling via the UC1, UF1 and UF8 controllers.

If that big, poptastic 4K sound is what you crave, SSL’s flawless imitation of their own timeless flagship might well be the best way to get it. Get the verdict of the PE team in our Expert Review.

Softube Summit Audio Grand Channel

Softube’s three-plugin bundle comprises emulations of Summit Audio’s valve-driven TLA-100 compressor and EQF-100 EQ, plus a combination of the two in a single plugin – the titular Grand Channel. This last imagines a ‘channel strip’ that doesn’t really exist in integrated format, but that we’re allowing into this particular list because it works so well and sounds so good. With the musically curvaceous EQF-100 serving as a decidedly non-surgical 4-band passive equaliser, and the LA-2A-inspired TLA-100 embellishing the transparency and speedy workflow of the hardware with the addition of a Saturation knob and parallel dry/wet mixing, Grand Channel is a strip you could run just about any track or bus through and find the sweet spot for in seconds. It might be over a decade old, but Softube’s characterful plugin hasn’t lost any of its appeal since Russ’s 2012 review.

Waves Abbey Road EMI TG12345 Channel

Among the tastiest fruits of Waves’ ongoing collaboration with Abbey Road Studios, EMI TG12345 Channel virtualises the first solid-state console to grace the eponymous studio, as deployed for the recording and mixing of Abbey Road and Dark Side of the Moon, amongst many other greats. On the left of the GUI, the Dynamics section provides 2:1 compression or 7:1 limiting, with a fixed 1ms attack time, variable Hold, six Recovery time settings (100ms-5s), sidechain filtering and parallel mixing. To the right of that, in the EQ section, Bass and Treble shelving bands flank a peaking Presence (0.5-10kHz) band, but are actually routed as two separate blocks – EQ (Bass and Treble) and Presence – around the Dynamics section in three possible configurations. And the right-most section houses controls for mid-side widening/narrowing, selecting either of two slightly different-sounding channel models, and dialling in Drive and Noise.

Back in the ’60s, the TG12345 represented a radical technological and stylistic departure from EMI’s valve-based mixer design, and its bright, hard-hitting, expansive sound still impresses today. Once again, Russ gives up the critical goods.

What plugins do you favour when it comes to turning your DAW into a vintage console? Let us know in the comments.