#44

glad to see so much praise for the Cranborne system here… it was mostly an impulse buy to go for something so high end, but on paper it just looked so ergonomic. I can run ADAT from my existing MOTU interface and with the cascase and mix features I can easily switch between tracking mode, mixdown and “hardware plugin” mode… seems good :smiley:

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#45

i have a pair of the EQP-500a and i like them quite a bit. they don’t get used as much as my rupert 551 or 1073s… because pultecs, in general, are more specific… like, for me, i tend to use them on my Moogs to shape the low end.

i use the UAD plug a lot… and i’ve never heard a REAL pultec (rack)… there must be differences between the rack and the 500 units… simply given their huge price gap…

but i’m quite happy with the 500 units

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#46

lloyd brings up a super tip… DO NOT underestimate the usefulness of the API 560 graphic EQ… in fact, if i had to keep only one of my 500 EQ modules it would probably be the 560s… graphic EQs are incredible for tracking… for shaping and carving your sound as it goes in. in fact, i always run my hardware reverbs returning through a pair of 560s to cut and shape the low and high end (as i’m not a fan of reverb with excessive strength in either area)

560s are total workhorses.

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#47

There is a lot of great advice in here, but this line above really spoke to me. With 500 series, if I do not like a unit, I can swap it out, but with a large mixing console, there is more of a commitment. I would have to find one I really love, and without the ability to try several out, I do not see that happening any time soon.

I think the Cranborne ADAT has me sold on 500-series. I already have a Audient iD44 that will pair with it quite well. Best of all, I can keep working the same way I do now, but replace a few plug-in’s with 500 series modules.

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#48

Good points. I’m usually at home but luggability can be key (eg mixing in Berlin).
I bought the TK to have a stereo option for patching within the Cranbourne, and also for something to tame the Modular synth dynamics which are sometimes tough for me to control within the synth. I’d love to get the matching program EQ, but I don’t have space, or money, right now.

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#49

This EQ [Lindell Pultec clone] with that boost/cut trick is literally the secret sauce.

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#50

The Fredenstein cases are nice as well for the price.

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#51

I have one! After looking at my needs (room to grow but not massive, fits in 19”) I went with Fredenstein. It’s an appropriately heavy duty case.

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#52

How do you like the Lindell compressor?

#53

Anyone with experience working on a Black Lion Audio Patchbay Rack?

#54

I’ve been very tempted by the 560 EQs, especially as mentioned above for tracking… I’ve also heard that the Purple TAV is a nice alternative in the graphic dept.

I got a lunchbox to add some more character pres to my setup, and got pairs of API 512v and BAE 1073MPL. It’s as far as I’ve allowed myself to go with 500 stuff, seeing how pricy a habit collecting studio gear can be, but so far I can say that having those two flavors for both tracking and running stuff back through later has been way worth it.

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#55

ohhh yeah. I have/had a stereo pair of:

  1. 15ips tape saturator mk1
  2. lotl pentode
  3. tm79
  4. ctx transformer mk2

I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with each of them in separately. i got rid of he tm79 because it was more of a distortion unit than color. the pentode is very subtle but has some top end sheen thats very nice. the ctx transformer is tricky, its sweetspot is just before it breaks up but its breakup sounds bad so its better on material with less dynamic range that could stand some warmth. tape saturator is the least subtle with a noticeable low end bump. like @taylor12k said its not “Markus Fischer” tape saturation, much more subtle.

At first i was using only one module at a time. the results were VERY subtle and i considered selling all of them. However lately ive been using all 3 slots at once and bringing in a more noticeable amount of color into the material, this has breathed some new life into the modules.

currently im considering trying out the lotl royal blue as a possible replacement for the ctx. the modules i think helped me uncover very that i dont prefer the “api sound”. maybe ill like the “Neve sound” better?

The lotl modules do seem better designed and higher quality than the diyre ones.

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DIYRE Colour Format Thread
#56

My current rack is: DIYRE Color Palette, SSL LMC+, TK Audio TKilizer. All stereo.

My 2 cents: The SSL Six has ruined my 500 series rack for me. If i could do it again with hindesight i’d run a SSL Six and either a lotl silver bullet or SSL Fusion on the main insert.

That being said that suites my own needs which are different than most. 500 series was a great intro into hardware. i especially like it because its harder to get ground loops since all the modules share a power supply. in terms of audio quality the power supply isnt where any quality is gained, but can certainly be lost. when running 19” racks you can have vastly different power supply qualities and can make for some annoying problems to run down.

I think it does extremely well and am mostly happy with my workflow. Its taken quite a bit of time to learn each module and when and how to use them. The LMC+ has a pretty high learning curve but is incredible at what it does. Nothing else is like it. Im not a huge fan of the frequency centerpoints of the TKilizer but it has a very broad Q so it really doesnt matter that much. I just like nice round numbers.

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#57

Could you elaborate a bit on this? I am kind of halfway into building up a single channel 500 rack, but I am intrigued by the flexibility a good small mixer could provide instead.

So far I have a Great River MP-500NV preamp, IGS One LA optocompressor. Currently building a Hairball FET compressor and browsing around for a suitable EQ to finish it off. Six slots in total. Very happy with how it sounds so far, although I think I could probably do with a better sound interface (Focusrite Scarlett 18i20 at the moment).

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#58

I like it but find it rather sensitive to input, so it tends to go from no compression to lots with a slight increase of input, but it sounds good and having the wet/dry is a big plus, for me.

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#59

I have the CTX mk I, it’s a little harder to push the mk I to breakup and I like it. I used it as part of finding which transformers do what and then proceeded to get modules with gigantic cinemags in them so I’ll probably let the CTXs go because I can get them all over my system now haha. I had the JFET and sold them but now kinda miss them.

I like the TM79s as brutal drum smashing but I need to explore them more.

We could probably have a whole topic on colour mods.

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#60

Completely agree. Done! DIYRE Colour Format Thread

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#61

I have read this elsewhere. Maybe the trimpots on the stereo version (which is the one I would be interested in) help with this issue. The type of music I make is rarely heavily compressed so all or nothing would not work too well for me and I would have to make ample use of the mix knob otherwise.

#62

Could you elaborate a bit on this?

Of course! Remember though this is just given my personal workflow and the material on I work with normally. I was building stereo channel strips with my 500 series and the Six just has great channels on it. It just made the 500 series redundant so it was relegated to 2 bus duty. 1 or 2 19" stereo racks units combined with the Six would probably have been a better route to go but what I have works well enough and it was better money wise to be able to build it incrementally.

With that said I work with a ton of stereo material. I rarely work with drums/percussion which is where I think that having a use case specific mono 500 module makes a ton of sense. I spend more time in M/S mode than L/R, most people have mono tracks and can control their stereo image with the pan knob. Specifically with drums that need aggressive compression is where my gear(Six) tends to fall short. All my gear is super gentle and specifically picked for it’s ability to fix problems rather than shape sounds. I’d much rather shape sounds closer to the instrument with a guitar pedal or synth setting.

I think if I worked with mono acoustic sounds(single mic) more my 500 series would prove invaluable. The ability to mix and match mono modules into the ideal channel strip for a given source would be a massive advantage. If you are building channel strips with your 500 series then I think the Six can be something worth exploring. If you need a silver bullet piece of equipment for specific material, then 500 series can’t be beat when it comes to cost effective high quality hardware.

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#63

I have the EQP-500s and I like it a lot - one of the “secret weapons”.