Airwindows ConsoleLA: Free Mac/Windows/Linux/Pi AU/VST/Rack
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- čas přidán 21. 08. 2024
- www.airwindows... / airwindows
APIs and Neves and MCI, oh my… well, ConsoleLA emulates the most incredible console you've never heard of. This thing was the sound of LA in the seventies. It's on the back cover of Steely Dan records, it's been seen in Tom Scholz's basement, and it's heard even on classic 70s LA and Hollywood and San Francisco records it didn't make… because it's the production model of a whole lineage of West Coast custom recording consoles with similar designs and circuitry. And you can still get them, apparently, the company lives… but I don't know where, or for how much, or how, as there's no sign of prices or any way to get them. There's none on Reverb, Vintage King doesn't have any, good luck even finding channel strips…
Meet the Quad Eight.
This sound echoes through the Seventies. Tons of Steely Dan, tons of Zappa, Grateful Dead, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell… that's not even counting the wilder sightings, like when people figured this console mixed The Wall, or hearing it on Yes's Relayer album. The thing is, this was THE big production console before the days of Neve and API and SSL. Quad Eight were the first to go into production and come up with a recording console that you could just buy, set up, and use. Before them, you had to build your own.
Quad Eight were (are, since the website says they can still make you gear) supplying the film industry, and it shows. These desks are amazing at making movies for your ears. (in the Zappa phrase, on the Hot Rats album, which was done at the Whitney studios in Glendale the year before they got a Neve, so that album was likely also Quad Eight or a kindred West Coast console)
ConsoleLA, like ConsoleMC before it, is a bit of a different approach to emulating these great old dinosaurs, some still things you could conceivably find and have, some forever lost. The thing is, this is the nearest thing to custom point-to-point wiring of discrete transistors. On top of that, the Quad Eight ran a higher supply voltage than anybody: negative 28 to positive 28 volts, for enormous energy and headroom. The way to get these sounds is not layer upon layer of 'digital emulation' but trying to get the behaviors right with minimal, atypical algorithms. Only then can you get the energy and sonority of the real Quad Eight.
The filtering is a whole other thing from the MCI. No mid peak here. The slopes are more gradual, but you can cut the hell out of the mids, and the deeper into the Seventies we got, the deeper the midrange cuts became. What I've done with ConsoleLA is try to make the simplest, most approachable Console system that can get the widest range of sounds as heard on these records, and reward you when you pursue music-recording in the old school, human way.
This doubtless won't be the last, but it might just end up being my favorite. I hope you like ConsoleLA :)
Chris, you are the best.
What a present under the tree ! 😳
Thanks so much for a wonderful year full of plugins and awesome videos, happy holidays ! 🥳
Hi Mr. Johnson!
I am actually just a drummer, a hobby musician and I am not here because I think I will need this plugin for my next 70s vintage production... 🙂
but more for your music console gear and "history" stories. It's really cool. I absoluteley like that.
That's why all these Toontrack SDX drum libraries like "The Hitmaker" or "Stories" drained my wallet ...
When Hugh Padgham talks about the ball&biscuit mic, or Frank Fillipetti about his early drum recordings.
I (43) am a kid of the 80's and my musical history started with Fleetwood Mac, Paul Simon, Genesis, Marillion...
BTW: Your vocals remind me to Marillion ...
Awesome!
Have a nice Christmas and all the best wishes for 2024!
this going to be my favorite of the year, super cool !
Merry XMAS Chris and familiy!
You guys are my family
@@airwindowsaaawww 🙃
Chris! You are nothing short of Amazing! I’m so glad you’re making this world a better sounding place and thankful you found your passion! Wishing you a wonderful 2024! Hopefully filled with good times and happiness!
I spent a little time trying this out on a song that just wouldn't sit right. It's already having a mellowing effect I was after. Many thanks Chris and have a great Christmas!
Merry Christmas! And thanks for another incredible console plugin
I'm a very long time Airwindows console user - through various versions. This one sounds very interesting, will definitely be trying it soon.
The GD Europe recordings are something very special, not just Europe '72 - the whole series are all spectacular.
Thanks so much for all the incredible hard work, Chris.
THANKS CHRIS! I am sure this is gonna be awesome as well like the Console MC.
Merry Christmas Chris and all the Airwindows fans!!! 🎉❤
Cool! Stebbings recording studio in Auckland has three Quad 8 consoles. The Coronado 36 channel, Venture II and Virtuoso 28 channel.
GO! Kiwi
Merry Christmas Chris!!
Merry Christmas , plugin Santa 🎄🎉🎈❤
Absolute legend. Your work is so inspiring! Thanks for all you do, Chris!
Awesome! Always cool to have another console to work with!
Merry Christmas, Chris. I'm gonna get a lot of use out of this. You've captured the sound in my head...thanks.
Can't wait to try this out. Merry Christmas Chris. Really grateful for all the work you've done this year. Tysm & I look forward to hearing what you come out with next!
wow, so much work went into this. genius! thx Chris
Thank you so much Chris enjoy the holidays☀
Happy Christmas Chris!!. Thanks for all the plugins. Going to try this one today.
Chris your vocal is so good, has a lovely tone and color. (I presume it is your vocal?) I'm getting 'Jon Anderson' overtones, lovely.
i said that i hoped you’d try an api console in the comments of the last console video but this one is even better thank you 🙏😭
Thank you Santa 🙏
That's really nice! Is that broad treble-mid-bass EQ a new one or is it accessible isolated somewhere, like in Baxandall-style EQ's you have previously released?
Well, I could give you something like it. How about, the treble/mid band, a similar mid/low, and without any of the console-style saturation effects? I see no reason you couldn't have the EQ parts isolated in Baxandall style.
@@airwindows haha well it could be good. I like the mid and treble band in consoleLA a lot, but as a console sound right now I gravitate more towards MD and MCRedux. Getting both would do good.
@@airwindows It would be great!
Which one of your consoles would be good for mixing HIPHOP?
I can’t say for sure but I just used the consoleLA channel and bus to mix a Reggaetontrack and it sounded better than my SSL 4KE native plugs. I recommended to get AirWindows Consolidated CLAP or VST version and filter by recommended when you open the plug-in. For the compression after the consoleLA channel, I used Pop2 to emulate that VCA snap.
Hi Chris just found you out from internet wow what a unique sounding plugins you have build , just a request would be great if you can add eye catchy GUI ,, good luck love from Sri Lanka
Wait for ConsoleX (and following), and only some of the plugins will have that. But there will be some cool GUI, eventually, just not always for all the things: there will always be a place for purely audio DSP plugins too.
@@airwindows sound great was playing with you plugins Supt cool
@@airwindows Thank you, Chris, that is what we are here for! Extra GUI stuff is cool but if it takes away from the audio stuff, keep doing the audio stuff!!
Hi! I wanted to ask which console is best suited for the genre I deal with, EDM. I've tried them all and each one sounds amazing. But for EDM, it's important to keep the transient and the low end of the spectrum. I was wondering which console is best suited for this genre. I hope you'll read my comment! Thank you for everything you do and for the person you are, I admire you a lot!
You might try one of the numbered Consoles. If you normally run submixes, Console8 uses submixes. Console7 ended up with dedicated channel encodes, Console7Cascade and Console7Crunch, specifically for overdriving sounds. Or, wait for ConsoleX?
James Holdens article in Music Radar sent me here! Peace from Ireland!!
I love that he gets what I'm doing: that's the kind of thing that keeps me going. He's doing exactly what I think you should do, use good stuff and be creative and try to make sounds happen :)
@@airwindows you've given me some inspiration too! Good on you man!
♥🔥🎉
Chris, could you please provide us with a list of albums mixed on these consoles?
Both MCI and Quad Eight, and maybe others that you are planning to make.
I very likely can't be truly accurate. I wasn't there and they usually weren't documented. MCI is a little easier as that's Criteria and Compass Point among other locations. Quad Eight is on the back cover of Countdown to Ecstacy and it sounds like it's basically ALL the Steely Dan, ALL the early-seventies Zappa, but he's documented as having recorded all over the place. I do the research and then it's just trying to recognize the vibe. Bakersfield Grateful Dead and Europe '72 sound like ConsoleLA: all these, I used as reference to get the sound.
@@airwindowsChris.... Have you updated your toVinyl plugin? In particular I like the way the high de-harsher worked.... I'm really curious to hear how this console will sound with something like that... a little bit of fake vinyl.... And a good tape algorithm!
Looking forward to console X!
Hi Chris, thank you for your work and merry xmas! I wanted to ask - are you going to update Airwindows starter pack?
I am more likely to make 'console starter kits', such as ConsoleLA with instructions and the outboard FX you'd also have at a given period in recording history. For instance, I have a send to TapeDelay2 on what you heard, and can voice it to sound 60s or 70s, and there are plugins I could throw in like ResEQ2 to make it as if you ran a track through a wah pedal or something. Or particular reverbs (probably not kCathedral)
@@airwindows thanks for the answer and good luck
Is that a time machine in the background?
guys...is there a manual on how to use this..?
Hi guys, can anyone help me download the plugins on my Mac? I've tried installing the VSTs in the source folder, and either it says they're corrupted, or it installs and then doesn't actually show up in Logic, even after I restart. Have googled and am not able to find anything. Am I missing something important? Thanks so much in advance xx
If you are on a modern Mac, are you using the ones from the .dmg file? Those are the signed ones. 'Retro' means for computers older than yours :)
@@airwindows yep! I’ve tried both and neither seem to work.
@@airwindows Just got it! Was copying the VST files but it's the component files that worked in the end. Thanks for your help :)
🎶🐈⬛
When you started pushing the mids on that distorted guitar track, it seriously gave me China Grove vibes. Absolutely fantastic work as always, Chris.
BRILLIANT WHAT YOU ARE ACHEIVING. QUAD8 info amazing, thankyou very much from uk. Quad is a hifi amp manufacterer, but not the same company as you are referring too.