Waves

088 | COMPUTER MUSIC October 2007
reviews
W
hen Waves introduced their
SSL Collection some 18
months ago, it marked a
turning point for plug-in packages.
There were plenty of analogue
emulations around, but nothing
quite like this one, and certainly
nothing badged with the SSL logo
(apart from SSL’s own LMC-1 freebie).
Since then they’ve launched their
V-Series, which emulates vintage
Neve gear (although it wasn’t officially
endorsed), and they now return with
the fully-backed API Collection.
Clearly, plug-in endorsement has
become big business.
Automated Processes Inc may not
have quite the same ring to their
name as SSL or Neve, but they do
have a 40-year history of making
high-end audio consoles and
outboard gear. Their desks are
probably more popular in the US than
the UK, although a few UK music
studios (RAK in London, for example)
have championed their use.
Smile – its API
However, far more commonplace are
their outboard racks. Typically found
in portable boxes, the so-called ‘API
lunchbox’ is an excellent nugget of
EQ, compression and mic
amplification that will bring a smile to
the face of even the most hardened
audiophile engineer.
In keeping with the original
hardware’s modular style, the Waves
API collection features three of the
most respected modules: the 550A
3-Band EQ, 550B 4-Band EQ and 560
10-Band Graphic. Completing the
package is their modern-day rack
format 2500 Stereo Compressor. All
four plug-ins come in mono and
stereo forms (yes, even the “Stereo
Compressor”!), and in typical Waves
style, they cover most formats and
platforms: TDM, RTAS, Audiosuite, VST
and AU are all here, though there are
no DirectX or MAS versions.
Like other Waves modelled
plug-ins, they have the ‘Analog’ option.
For completeness, this replicates the
noise of the original unit and defaults
to the On position. With previous
releases, we’ve found the difference
PRICE: £735
What is it? Modelled API EQ and compressor plug-ins
CONTACT: Sonic Distribution, 0845 500 2500
WWW.waves.com
3 SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
PC: Intel P4 2.8GHz/AMD Athlon 64, 512MB RAM,
Windows XP SP2 (No Vista support yet)
Mac: G5 Dual 2GHz/Intel Core Duo 1.83GHz,
512MB RAM, OS X 10.4.8
3 TEST SYSTEM
Mac: Apple Mac Pro Dual 3GHz, 3GB RAM, OS X
10.4.9, Logic Pro 7.2
Theres no stopping Waves, as they continue to mine a rich seam of tasty analogue
emulations, this time digging up the sound of classic API EQ and compression modules…
API Collection
WAVES
On the DVD
AUDIO DEMOS
On the disc you’ll find a demo
WAV and a text file explaining
what you’re hearing
SLIDERS
The 560’s sliders offer
accurate gain adjustments
and proportional Q
characteristics
AUTO TRIM
This changes the output level
based on the prevailing signal
POLARITY
A polarity switch, to
invert the phase
SIGNAL FILTER
Like the original, the 550A has a
band-pass filter option to reject
everything outside 50Hz-15kHz
EQ TYPE
Although the 550A is the
simplest of the EQs, you
can still choose between
shelf and bell types for
the lower/upper bands
AUTO GAIN
Like many other compressors, the 2500
features an auto-gain make-up circuit, but
you can also select manual operation
INFO: TDM version, £1463
ANALOG
Waves’ Analog
feature models the
noise characteristics
of the original
analogue units
SCALES
The 550 EQs have a
highlighted scale, so
you can easily see
which frequency is
selected and how
much gain is applied
TONE
The 2500’s real hidden weapon is the Tone
section, offering many behavioural tweaks
LINK
Unusually, the 2500 allows you to
fine-tune the ‘strength’ of the stereo link
PERFORMANCE
CMU118.rev_api 088 5/9/07 4:26:39 pm