Slate Digital FG-X - Electronic Delivery Reviews

John F Strat
from Pittsburgh
April 23, 2013Music Background:
Seasoned musician and recording engineer

Very cool!

Does just what it claimed to do. Very transparent lift. Preserves low end punch with lots of headroom. Actually pulls the drums up instead of burying them. Keeps the mix intact without introducing harshness or mud. Very impressive!

Joshua Campbell
from New Orleans, LA USA
April 20, 2013Music Background:
Military Musician, Arranger, Conductor

Outstanding Product

Sounds Amazing... Easy to use. FG-X has found a permanent home on my master channel. I highly recommend this to anyone that is serious about recording music.

Omar B
from Tx,USA
March 19, 2013Music Background:
Recording Musician

Awesome

I mix Rock, and Im able to increase my mixes overall volume to have people saying my mixes sound very professional (the loudness pill), and it does not requires an Ilok 2, because I have an Ilok 1 makes no sense to me to have to pay whole cost for an Ilok 2 now

Paul
from Hawaii
October 23, 2012Music Background:
musician, producer, engineer, label owner

Great buy!

I love this mastering tool. If you are a DIY type of person, this is the tool for you. It gives your tracks the sheen that they need to sound professional and broadcast quality. Add it to a good mix on the master bus and it sounds like you paid a mastering house $200. The thing is, you didn't!

from
September 17, 2012

Not just for mastering

So this guy (like all Slate plugs) is kinda CPU intensive, so be sure you've got enough juice to run this. On my MBP Retina I can run about 8 instances of it no problem, but on my aging iMac i3, I can only get 2 max. But if you do have the power, use this as your main compressor for EVERY group you have. Stem it out if you have to, its worth it. Especially for vocals. A little goes a long way with this unit. The controls are extremely clean and even though its actually kind of hard to over-do it with this, you really feel the difference in small changes. Also turn off the metering when you don't need it, it helps a lot with CPU load. I've heard that Slate is working on bringing just the compressor section out as its own plugin... can't wait for that day to come! Its like the digital equivalent to a Grace.

Ringo Martinez Sonux Studios
from levittown Puerto Rico
July 27, 2012Music Background:
professional music, composer, movie director, writer

Very, very, very good

This plugins have a lot of presets for all king of music.
it really work, i strongly recommend.

Phil Brewster
from Canyon Country Ca
July 16, 2012Music Background:
Recording Engineer

Amazing!!!!

How did I get along without this plugin all these years. Priced just right so you don't have to get a crack.LOL Definitely a must have.

JJ
from CANADA
June 1, 2012Music Background:
PRODUCER

Very Helpful If you don't have a expensive studio

Yes
Its Very Helpful If you don't have a big expensive studio to work in but you still want to sound loud. This will do it....

Ollen Hopkins
from Washington,DC
May 7, 2012Music Background:
Producer, Songwriter & Engineer

Slate Digital Is Awesome

The Mastering Software is "OFF THE CHAIN". My cousin purchased the Mastering software and told me how great it was. I was hesitant at first and did not purchase it for 2 months later. I wasted 2 months of time in my life with regard to my music by not purchasing it right away.
The software is AWESOME!!!
This is the best software for Mastering on the planet right now and believe me i have tried at least a half dozen of the industries considered "best". If you are hesitating to purchase this software for your mastering needs, then you'll be making the same stupid mistake i did in the beginning.

flavio ramos
from florida
April 28, 2012Music Background:
pro musician, producer, recording.

wow...wow...wow

the cleanest mastering plug-in ever, sheer volume at its best without those nasty distortion,this is a must if you want to get your master hot, worth every penny, what a clean compressor,love everything about this plug-in sweetwater rocks thanks Stuart niven once again.

J. Lippi
from Brooklyn, NY
March 23, 2012Music Background:
Recording Engineer, Pro Musician, and Music Producer

Great For Professional Demos!

I must say that the tracks I mastered with the Slate FG-X, simply using their presets as a quick test, blew me away. Sorry Ozone, but the slate plug sounds way closer to real, much closer to full, and more closer to warm. I put up a song that I had mastered with the FG-X against the same song mastered by a very popular mastering lab, using outboard analog and tube gear, and it holds it's ground nicely. It might even sound better. Plus, this is a crazy funk- rock, acid-jazz, warmly recorded tune with a lot going on, not just a simple pop tune. I can't believe my ears, but it's true. My Focal monitors don't lie. If you have the money you still might want to get your record done by a professional with awesome analog gear, but if that's not in the cards this is the next best thing. It's def great for professional demos!

J
from Nashville
March 22, 2012Music Background:
Songwriter, Producer

So user friendly, a small studio's must

Most of us aren't actually mastering engineers. We don't have the room for it, the monitoring, the gear. Heck, many people who have completely legit studios and mixing setups don't have all the tricks of the trade for the best mastering.

That being said, having a high quality, professional sounding plug-in for ITB mastering is absolutely essential these days. I've used T-Racks (both old and new) and the usual Waves suspects (l2,L3, etc.). I've also used some of the MCDSP stuff, too. Personally, i find the Slate FG-X the easiest to use out of the group. MCDSP is awesome, and the Waves stuff is emblematic of digital mastering. That being said, you can get just as good of a sound (if not better) out of the slate stuff and it's so user friendly that I find it preferable. The metering is super useful. The "Constant Gain Monitoring" option is also awesome so you can master your track without a volume increase that makes it incredibly hard to hear the subtle differences between the master and mix. Finally, the shaping capabilities afforded by the FG-X equals the same power found in a variety of different MCDSP and Waves plugins . . . except you get it all in one plug.

The ITP lets you morph between nice soft clipping saturation or extremely hard and punchy limiting. Vintage and modern combined. The Low Punch and Details transient controls allow you to tweak the EQ ever so slightly if you think a certain frequency is being crushed or overwhelmed too much. It's works like subtle multiband compression, but is much more user friendly for the small studio. However, best of all, this thing sounds great even if you never tweak that stuff. Simply increase the gain until the meters reach the desired RMS level. The manual has nice suggestions about RMS levels and the "Loudness Wars," too. The meters are also completely customizable.

Oh, I almost forgot to mention the mixbuss compressor. I actually like it more than Waves emulation of the famous SSL compressor. The controls are more delicate on the Slate comp, in my opinion, allowing more fine-tuning.

So, if you have a small studio and want to be able to give your clients who don't want more expensive mastering competitive sounding masters, this is the one-stop plugin. If you're a songwriter who wants to produce his/her own music, this is perfect. Finally, even if you often send your stuff to a mastering engineer for the highest possible quality master, this is useful to give clients mixes that sound closer to what they'll sound like when the songs are mastered so you don't get clients who are turned off by a mix simply because it's not as loud as his/her favorite album.

Alex VanOver
from Stearns, Ky USA
March 15, 2012Music Background:
Musician, Producer, Recording Engineer, Live Sound Engineer,

This is better then over $10,000 worth of plug-ins I have used!

If you are reading this there is a reason! You want to make recordings.
I can tell you this plug-in hands down blows everything else away. I have used it on everything, to just find something that it sounds bad on, and I can't. Let me just say on DRUMS this thing is awesome!!!!! I know everyone that reads this is thinking, I don't know on my budget I can buy something more useful....DON'T. This will change the way you work forever. I promise!!!

Joshua Manlunas
from New Zealand
December 26, 2011Music Background:
Audio Engineer

FG-X is Amazing

everything you heard about it is true...try it and be prepared to pick up your jaw from the floor

David Kawczynski
from Milwaukee, WI USA
November 30, 2011Music Background:
Musician, Home Recording Hobbyist

Transparent mastering without getting into the volume wars.

Fantastic transparent mastering without coloring you mix or crushing it with compression of limiting. Will get you the volume and punch you are looking for. Now this will not fix a bad mix but will make a good mix sparkle.

Also putting this above other mastering plug-ins is the instructions tutorial. Simple, straight forward, and to the point of how things work and why.

Mezz42
from Dayton, OH
October 24, 2011Music Background:
Live engineer, studio engineer, keyboard player, producer

A great tool!

It sounds great- the metering is just what I needed and I like the dynamic perception, low punch and high detail adjustments. I mostly do live recordings as I am a live mix engineer and this plug-in makes putting a polishing touch on my recordings quick and easy.

Mikey Howard
from Mount Vernon, KY USA
January 28, 2011Music Background:
Artist, songwriter, producer, mixer

Digital mastering at it's best!

The most transparent mix bus compressor in plugin format that I have used. The amount of sheer volume you can get out of this bad boy is incredible. It gives my clients a great idea of what the mastered record will sound like. And a lot of clients are just havingme master their project now! The metering is an amazing tool, and the constant gain monitoring is super handy. If you are on the fence give this bad boy a try. You won't be sorry. Digital delivery is hassle free too! Enjoy.

Moose
from Richmond, VA USA
September 23, 2010Music Background:
Musician/Composer/Recording & Mastering Engineer

This is the shape of things to come - here now!

Coming from an analog background as early as the '70s, the digital age has presented both great joy in creativity unbound and an extreme struggle to get warm, smooth sound without ugly digital artifacts.

The loudness wars only increased that struggle... more so with plugins than hardware - but an issue either way (thank goodness people are starting to get back to dynamic masters). The FG-X is the FIRST plugin I have ever used that transcends the gap between analog & digital; producing compression, limiting and transient design that is pure pleasure to my ears.

Whether mastering a mix or detailing a track (you should hear this thing on drums!), you'd have to go a long way to prove it's equal in OR out of the box. I could not imagine mastering without it.

If I might add - the support I received from my Sales Engineer here at Sweetwater (Trent) getting this delivered and registered was top notch... like having a local music shop online. Thanks!

Paul Ayuso
from United States
December 28, 2012Music Background:
recording engineer

Great Mastering TOOL

Sounds so transparent! It works so good and easy to use. So happy to have this in the arsenal.

Sci-Fi Lou
from New York
July 20, 2012Music Background:
Solo Artist and project studio owner

Perfect for the Job

I was looking for a mastering plug in that was easy to use, concise and virtually transparent except for LOUDNESS! Slate FG-X does the job! Perfect if your looking to make a professional sounding CD demo to shop around.

Ryan C. Mowdy
from Planet Earth
June 28, 2012Music Background:
20+ years recording, musician, beatnik

After a second thought

At first I did not like this plugin at all and then it dawned upon me I didn't know what it is used for and HOW to use it. Folks before getting knee deep in poop, learn about all this stuff. I am slowly understanding this plugin for mastering and it's quite something else. Bottom line - educate yourself first. I highly recommend getting the instructional DVD's for PT users (go to accessories at the top then books and DVD's). I recently received my instructional DVD and the lesson I have learned is that you do NOT need a lot of money and high end gear of course that is nice but you can make great recordings with all the tools that you have granted you need some tools. So I will have to revise my rating of this plugin and give it a 4.5. I think it is freakin' awesome.

That Guy
from Mid West
June 3, 2012Music Background:
Producer, Songwriter, Recording Engineer

What You Really Need

This Plug-In does what most home recording engineers need, transparent compression/limiting at its finest, it wont fix a bad frequency mix, but it will make good mix sound EXCELLENT, Ive used Ozone for years, it definitely creates an overall fullness to the mix better than Ozone, but it lacks a great mastering EQ that Ozone offers, as far as price goes, this gives you excellent bang for your buck, plus it offers excellent level metering, which is crucial in the mastering stage,

Mark Abrams
from United States
December 9, 2011Music Background:
Mixing Engineer

Essential tool!

The FG-X has replaced at least three plug ins that have been in my mix buss chain for years. It's an amazing, must have tool. 5 Stars if they make it a little less CPU intensive!

Levy
from
November 13, 2012

Unique processing at the cost of CPU power

I think this plugin is unique on how it approaches its intended job. Also the meters are great. Only downside is its demand on processing power.

from Los Angeles
November 30, 2011Music Background:
Private Studio

I detest Plug-Ins................but.

My first plug in. I use hardware interfaces; tubes and such and I leave Mastering to a mastering engineer. However, I needed to master a project for a friend (not a big deal) so I downloaded the FG-X. After 10 days I still thought this was a great product. The sound is quite good and it has some nice tweaking elements I've not seen in hardware compressors. It doesn't "sound" like a digital toy.