API 500V Combo

API 500V 10 slot rack containing:

2x API 550b EQ: Classic API sounding eq. Not versatile at all, first step is 2 dB, second is 4! Other than that though, the sound is bold, and very “in your face” with just the right amount of harshness. Keep in mind that the input is unbalanced. A nice trick to get some more API vibe is to connect them after 512c preamps with pads. After all, that is how it was usually operated inside a console (hence the unbalanced input).

1x Little Labs VOG: Great unit, great name. Voice of god! how can you not love it? Initially developed to bring out chest resonance in singers that sing far away from the mic and do not take advantage of the proximity effect, the VOG has since found lots of uses in various instruments such as bass drum, bass, snare, etc. Essentially, it is a high pass filter with boost at the cut off frequency, but a great sounding one. Fully differential, which means that it is balanced from input to output.

1x Pete’s Place BAC500: Amazing 1176 type compressor. Punchy and big. Has a distortion mode that is sometimes just the ticket for bass guitar.

1x Dramastic Audio obsidian: Our go to 2buss compressor. Can make everything gel together instantly, while retaining the stereo image and giving an extra sense of 3d as well. Try not using the side chain filter, for a more SSL type sound.

2x little devil comps: Discrete compressors by the hands of Wade Geoke. The most important thing is that every control goes up to 6. Get it? Zener and Germanium modes offer distinct curves. Mix control maximizes flexibility for parallel processing. They sound creamy and expensive. Great for guitars, vocals, actually everything.

1x Shadow Hills Dual Vandergraph: “This is Shadow Hills. There are no ICs”. Shadow hills is cool as fuck. Peter Reardon is cool as fuck. I don’t care how they sound. Everything looks as if it was taken from a spy/sci fi movie. The manual states ways on how to destroy it as to avoid enemy capture. Need I say more? Oh, it sounds vintage and modern at the same time. The inclusion of the side chain filter enables you to get away with some serious compression. Has a certain “glue” to it, but with very rich and detailed midrange.

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