Waves SSL 4000 Collection (Native) Reviews

Ben
from Orange County, CA
February 21, 2013Music Background:
Professional Sound Engineer

This is a must have pluggin bundle

I use this SSL bundle on pretty much every mix I've ever done. I especially use the EQ on almost every channel in my mix. It's a great sounding set of pluggins. I highly recommend them to anyone.

Mike
from Missouri
January 14, 2013Music Background:
40+ years in the music business

SSL4000 is just like the real thing

Having this plug-in is like having an SSL console in my home, it sounds awesome!

Stephen Pierce
from Tacoma Wa.
December 21, 2012Music Background:
Engineer, Musician, Fan

Top Of the Line

I worked with the real thing. These plug ins are fantastic. I even go striaght to the presets. It adds that special Punch to my Kik and OH I was lookin for. Makes the snare sit up an Bit you on the part that counts. And Pushs vox right where they need to be. I Highly recommend this to anyone lookin to get pro sounds...

Ed Moon
from Kalkaska, Mi.
November 12, 2012Music Background:
Recording engineer

Great EQ etc.

This is the BEST set up for EQing guitars that I have. It really makes them stand out in a mix without being overly loud. I'm talking definition here, not volume. This set (SSL4000) is everything I ever needed in a plug-in. I'm now going through all of my earlier mixes and "fixing" them.

Alberto Ringo Martinez/ Sonux Studios, Levittown PR
from Levittown P.R.
October 22, 2012Music Background:
Pianist, Scoring, Composition, sound Engineering

Buy It

Just buy it, the sound are incredible

from STL MO
February 10, 2012Music Background:
Recording Engineer

A Tool You Need

Best channel strip plugin I've used.

AJ
from Easton, CT
November 23, 2011Music Background:
Recording and Mixing Engineer

Great Plugin Bundle!

Its not as good as a physical SSL4000 E or G but it is a quality plugin that can use achieve great sounds. The E channel strip includes settings from CLA which are usually a good starting point, These are about as process intensive as the BF1176 so you can run them on many channels, excellent job Waves!

Jeff
from San Francisco, CA
October 13, 2011Music Background:
Recording Artist/Producer

Waves Bundle

I have to say, I really am blown away by this plug in. Flexible, powerful, and extremely easy to use. It just works.

Robert
from United States
October 8, 2011Music Background:
Pro Musician,Recording guy in the Band.

Nice sound

I jumped in with both feet and bought the waves SSL 4000.
What it does to a well recorded instrument or voice is incredible.
i will get plenty of use out of this very useful tool,
I Love it.

Spawn aka Sp at, Green Goblin Productions
from Fort Worth, TX USA
July 27, 2011Music Background:
Recording and Mixing Engineer, Producer, Rapper,

A Must Have Plug-in Bundle For Hip Hop/Rap

I mix hip hop music and these are definitely the best plug-in's I have ever heard. Using the eq you can add a great top end to a vocal, really any instrument at that, and really brighten up the mix. As well the channel strips offer a great compressor so you can compress the tail end of a bass drum and really make it carry, or make use of the compressor and gate to give your kicks that much needed punch.

Joe Wahl
from ohio
March 22, 2011Music Background:
recording engineer, studio owner

What?...You Dont Have This Yet?

look, it doesnt matter what level engineer you are. if you have a daw this is a neccesary upgrade to improve your mixes. this may seem expensive to some, but please realize that the e channel alone is not just a high end preamp and eq, but an industry standard quality gate and compressor in one plugin!! if you record live drums you will never look back with this in your arsenal...and thats just the e channel!!

the master buss compressor is worth the price of this package alone, and if you want tight, punchy mixes, then this is the tool. oh, and did i mention that there are some of the best, useful, presets i have ever heard in a plugin. 9 times out of 10 i will start with a great sounding preset and then tweak from there. i have the focusrite forte suite as well and this waves plugin stomps it ten fold.

dont think that just because your daw comes with some eq's and compressors that your good to go. the quality of these plugs will blow your included plugins out of the water!!

Josh Hayward
from Temple, TX
February 28, 2011Music Background:
Recording/Mixing engineer

My Go-to EQ for everything!

I absolutely love the SSL4000 Collection, I have not found a better EQ to properly model such a great console. The version 8 update offers some enhanced graphical properties

I have tried many EQs and nothing has satisfied me like this collection. I find it to be very accurate and it really helps you to work with your ears and really improve them. Sound-wise it's got that analogue warmth and tone via the harmonic content it offers, nothing overbearing but you'll notice it most on the low end.

Don't pass this bundle up, you'll regret it!

BIG BOSS
from PHILADELPHIA,PA
September 22, 2010

Ive been mixing with waves plug ins for 5 years

All i can say is its worth every penny, trying for along time trying to make this sound with other wave plug ins just couldn't quit get it, but did get a great mix with the platinum bundle. Adding this collection makes the puzzle makes more since. Everyone talk about this plug and that plug, I'm a tell you this one here you will NOT BE DISAPPOINTED ! REALLY~!!!! BUT FOR REAL IM A COLLECTOR I THINK WE NEED EVERY PLUG IN IN SWEETWATER IF YOU ASK ME , JUST BUY A LITTLE AT A TIME, YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT SOUND OR MIX YOU CAN CREATE.THX

Wes
from Bremerton, WA
September 21, 2010Music Background:
Semipro Musician & Recording Engineer

I'm cheap!!!

So, I'm the world's biggest cheap skate! I got my Pro Tools rig up and running when ver 8 first hit. I thought at the time with everything that came with it, it would be a long time before I needed to buy any plugins. After all, an eq is an eq right? A compressor is a compressor...well maybe not so much in that case, but I just couldn't understand why anyone would spend money on plugins that were already in Pro Tools...I WAS WRONG!!! The SSL bundle isn't just another channel strip plugin that duplicates tools you already have wrapped in a fancy GUI to make you think you're mixing on a $60K console. I've been inspired everytime I load one of these plugs. Yeah...that's right...INPIRED!!! by an EQ??? If I had to pick a "desert island" bundle...this is it.

from
May 17, 2010

Amazing

I modified my main Template in Pro Tools putting the SSL Channel in every single track. I use an Intel Core 2 Duo 2.26 Mac mini with 2GB of Ram, running 28 Waves SSL Channels and 28 Waves Comp-Gates, 48% CPU...

Nero F. RoxXx
from Long Island, NY
November 11, 2008Music Background:
Pro Musician, Recording Engineer, Live Sound Engineer

wow!

so yeah... i got a call from Mike at sweetwater let me know about a few specials, we ended up talking about some plug ins i was interested in, he told me "you should check out the ssl 4000 from waves" i was worried about waves plug ins because they seem a bit TOO good and like they would take way too much processing power from my mac, he said they wouldn't and they would change the sound of my mixes, so i did check out the SSL demo from the waves website.... WOW!! what a huge difference! the presets are amazing, i had to tweak them a little bit and i ran about 15 of them plus t-racks plug ins and it used about 40% of the power!! using t-racks i was at about 75% or so... i'm buying them for christmas!!!!! try the demo at waves and you will see how good your mixes will be!!! soooo crisp!!!

rf
from new orleans, la
November 1, 2008Music Background:
engineer, pro musician, compressor fanatic

WOW! Every DAW user needs this plugin! Get that BIG studio sound.

I have made music with computers and in small studios for over 15 years. I have never been satisfied with the compression and overall sound I got. I could never understand why my records didn't have 'that' sound like the big studios. THIS IS THE ANSWER! Seriously! You will be amazed as soon as you put the G-series compressor on the vocal. Set it to 'ratio' 10 and turn the threshold down. Simply amazing! This is worth every penny. I use this on EVERY SINGLE song I do. I cannot speak enough about this plugin. This is the sound of music that you have been hearing for years. SSL is the one!

Go to waves.com and download the trial for 30 days. You will want this after you use it. Trust me.

phagood
from Nashville, TN USA
September 13, 2008Music Background:
Live Sound, Recording Engineer, Music Business Student

Awesome Sound, Awesome Price.

BEST purchase I have ever made. I didn't think that Waves could do this well with an SSL sound but they did. There are small differences between the plugs and the consoles but the main things are there. Finally you can have that SSL sound from so many records at an awesome price. Worth every penny. I use the Channel Strip on almost every track in the studio.

Tone
from North Hollywood, CA USA
June 6, 2008Music Background:
Producer, Recording Engineer

Amzing Plug Ins!

The E Channel is the best channel strip plug in out there. It sounds just like the original SSL hardware. I have worked on SSL consoles for close to 8 years now and know their sound very well. Waves absolutely nailed the sound! You can't go wrong with these plug ins.

brianbfw
from Alexandria, VA
April 30, 2008Music Background:
classical guitarist, composer, recording engineer

An SSL on my desktop! Great sound!

This is my second installment of the waves Studio classics collection (read my review on the v-series, which is also excellent). I have mainly used this on rock mixes. With the Echannel, you can shape the tone to anything you need, from slight small corrections to drastic tone changes. Compressor is very smooth and very convincing real. Everything I’ve ran though it sounds good, bass, EZ drummer, and electric guitar. I record my guitar now with a lot of guitar sims (Logic Amp Pro and Ampitude) and the Echannel real makes these amps sims sound convincing.

G-Buss compressor is also very good. Really adds a “punch” to the overall mix, although
It’s pumps and breathes if you not careful. This compressor can ever provide a nice glue or totally squash a mix. I like it best on very mild settings, never more the 2:1 ratios.

The G EQ is also very nice, has a different tone quality to it. I do use it, but find myself
Reaching for the Echannel more.

I had not ever worked on a real SSL console, so I can give any feedback as to how “close” it actually sounds to the real thing, but it’s as close to an SSL as I’ll ever get in my lifetime.

Bottom Line: although expensive for a plugin, you’re getting a great sound. I debated it for awhile. After working with the demo is what sold me. Huge improvement in the sound of my mixes. Waves has done a good job on this. Personally, I’ll be using this most on rock or pop mixes.

Cons: hate the waves registration process. I'm dreading going through it tonight. It must be some kind of mojo for me. Everytime I go authorization process some snag happens and I end up having to call tech support, even though I follow the directions very carefully. I probably know half those guys by name.

Papz
from CA
January 29, 2008Music Background:
Student, Recording Engineer

Sweet Plugins

Just slap the E-Channel across all of you channels and you'll have a SSL mixer in the box! The ability to drive these plugins past clipping gives a nice saturation that only these plugins can create. The controls are simple and it's a guarantee that you will get a better sound than any other plugin in it's price range and even higher. The compressor on the E-channel sounds amazing! You can compress very hard and it wouldn't sound compressed at all. very smooth!

Don Bono
from San Diego, CA
February 20, 2007Music Background:
Artist, Producer, Mix and Mastering Engineer.

This is a Keeper

These Plugins are a keeper. I simply love them and Actually i'm going back over my mixes and remixing with these plugins. I love the G Buss Compressor the most. The Glue it adds to making my mixes Gel and Loudness I get without the feeling of sacaficing the depth is wonderful. Waves has done an excellent Job on these. Although It still can't be the hardware. But if you are like Many of us who can't swing millions of dollars nor Thousands at a moments notice. This is just for you.

Russell Muller
from Tempe, AZ
June 7, 2006Music Background:
Recording/Live Sound/Mastering engineer

UNBELIEVABLE!!!!!

I was somewhat skeptical at first about these plugins. Claiming to match the SSL 4000 is a TALL order. I've worked on a few 4000 and 6000 consoles; I wouldn't claim to be a pro but I know how the SSL sounds and boy did they nail it. Of course there are a few subtle differences between the software and hardware, but the sonic quality and flexibility of these plugins is nothing short of amazing.

I downloaded the demo from Waves' website. It was such a joy to work with I ended up throwing the E-channel on every audio track. In fact I lost track of time and when the demo expired a week later I went out THAT DAY and bought the bundle. Make no mistake, these plugins are the real deal and well worth every penny.

Cyril
from China, Shanghai
May 21, 2012Music Background:
guitarist, drummer, home studio recording/mixing/mastering

makes the difference

I was really impressed by the master buss compressor, makes such a huge difference! The e-channel is now my go-to plugin for all guitar tracks, just perfect to make the guitars find their place in the mix. Also use it on overheads and room for the drums. Honestly you don't need a lot more plugins to get the right sound. Very CPU friendly

RJ
from Hampton, VA
September 28, 2006Music Background:
Producer, Engineer, Pro Musician

My Ears Are Convinced

These plugins are really good! I compared a mix finished on a Neve console with a mix finished with these plugins and the end results were fanatastic with both versions, but these plugins only cost $750 versus how much for a Neve 9098i $? The eq and compression have an analog sound and will make you question if you're really working in a digital domain. And the presets are a good starting point for those who may not have worked on an SSL before. I wasn't too sure at first to pay $750 for only 3 plugins, but now I'm convinced this purchase was well worth it.

Justin Justice
from North Carolina
July 26, 2006Music Background:
Student in music software development

An Outstanding Collection!

This collection of plug-ins has taken its place among my very favorites for mixing. My favorite of the three is the amazingly complete channel strip, which combines an awesome sounding EQ and dynamics section. Using just the channel strip you can get most all of your audio shaping tasks done easily. The interface is very user-friendly and it really looks and "feels" like an analog device. The Master Buss Compressor is very nice too; I like to use mild settings and just add that final "polish" to my mixes. I would heartily recommend this product to anyone who wants flexibile and great sounding tools.

Gat
from Nyc
April 20, 2008Music Background:
mixing engineer

???????? Ask ur self

waves nailed the sound, for the price however URS out did them. I own both packages and a&b on different material URS had the same sound quality demo for ur self????

Brett
from
May 6, 2013Music Background:
Professional Singer, Recording Studio Producer and Engineer

Not what you think!

For these plugins, I give them 1 star compared to SSL's duende. For me the channel strips sound harsh and brittle and make things sound smaller and tinier. The bus compressor sounds better on the duende too which seems to preserve the stereo image and the dynamics alot better than the waves. The Duende comes directly from the c200 console which is used at underdog productions (mixed the movie Dreamgirls, Chris Brown, as well as many others!.