As well as access to the quality video content PureMix is known for PureMix Pro membership also includes access to free plugins including Sugar and Decibel from PROCESS.audio, Melodyne 5 Essential and the Mixup.Audio collaboration tools. This bundle has been joined by the 1178 FET compressor from Pulsar.
What Is The Pulsar 1178 Compressor?
“A compressor that eats transients for breakfast, the 1178 is a rare and expensive legend of the recording studio, cleaner and more versatile than its older brother, the 1176. The 1178 has been used by great producers including Chris Lord-Alge (My Chemical Romance), Bob Clearmountain (Rolling Stones, Christina Aguilera), Yvan Bing (Phil Collins) and Nigel Godrich (Radiohead)”.
The 1178 software recreates the original 1178 hardware in its tonal colour and compression character. The plugin version adds all the features you would expect from a modern, versatile plug-in, including a sidechain EQ for added control, an optional saturation stage for warmth and character, and precise metering.
What Does The Pulsar 1178 Sound Like?
Pulsar 1178 has a fast and bright character, making it great for dealing with unruly transients in tracking and mixing. While these qualities make it the ideal choice to smash the transients of a drum room to get a nasty rocky bounce, the extended attack range also allows gentle dynamic contouring, and can provide unique mid-band definition and intelligibility on a vocal.
When it comes to compression, having more control over the sidechain signal can bring a mix to the next level. The dynamics of a drum groove hinge on how compression is triggered by both the kick drum and the snare. With Pulsar 1178’s full-featured sidechain EQ section, you can make each one hit just the right amount of gain reduction.
Keeping an eye on dynamics is key to a well balanced mix. Pulsar 1178’s accurate and modern metering section helps in this important task. Peak meters allow insight into overall dynamics; RMS meters let you monitor loudness and match levels; and a scrolling view helps visualize how the attack and release settings are affecting the gain reduction.
Add grit and drive to the usually-transparent 1178 with four flavours of saturation: Tape, Triode, Warm and Clip modes open up new ways of managing dynamics and spectral envelope.
More transparent than an 1176, the 1178 allows incredibly fast control over transients when compared to other compressor models. Add the all-buttons-in mode and Pulsar’s added saturation models, and you can access characterful, colourful tones as well.
Anything Else?
Mid-side processing
look ahead and look behind compression offset
Available in VST/VST3/AU/AAX
Usually valued at €149. Free to PureMix Pro members
PureMix Pro membership is availble for as little as $24.99 a month.
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