Waves Jack Joseph Puig Pack

Reviews | Waves Jack Joseph Puig Pack
96
T
here are various items of
vintage gear which are on
most recording engineers wish
lists and the subjects of this
review must be very high on very nearly
all of them. Jack Joseph Puig is an
engineer who’s worked with everyone
from U2 to the Klaxons so successfully
bagging his signature sound is really
like fi nding gold at the end of a rainbow.
As with all Waves plugs, the JJP
collection works with iLok licenses and
installation is very straightforward.
These plugs are processor-heavy and
require pretty much current versions of
any host software and OS.
Starting with the Puigchild 670, the
user interface is as you would expect, a
close likeness of the front panel with
the useful addition of output gains for
both channels. There is also a 60Hz
and 50Hz power switch for when you
need to nip across the Atlantic while
bypassing immigration!
Fair enough
Fairchilds are very straightforward in
use, balancing input gain against
threshold to get the desired amount of
gain reduction and moving the time
constant to get the attack and release
characteristics right. The time constant
affects both the attack and release,
positions 1-4, giving faster to slower
and 5 and 6 having auto release (6
faster than 5). The Puigchild has a very
useful fast release on position 1,
something that not all originals or
emulations have. I am a big fan of the
UAD 670 but the Puigchild is defi nitely
quicker and as a stereo drum limiter,
really does grab hold of the kit in a very
positive way.
The auto release positions are also
very useful, but it’s when you start to
push the inputs that things really hot
up. A good original 670 is capable of
adding incredible energy into drums.
When you wind up the input gains and
crank the thresholds, the whole sound
gives the impression that it will jump
out of the speakers and smack you
between the eyes, and this baby does it
too! Whether you use it straight across
the drum buss or mix it in via an aux, it
will add a lot of power to a kit.
But the Fairchild is wonderful for
pretty much any instrument, and with
this plug you can really put some life
and energy into even the dullest sound.
When pushing it hard, it still doesn’t
lose any of the high end, even on vocals
– in fact, if anything it gives presence
and adds real warmth. On electric
guitars, pushing the input and having a
low threshold setting adds bite without
overcompressing, and playing with the
Waves Jack Joseph
Puig Pack | £470
Waves go for the Holy Grail of vintage emulations.
Stuart Bruce wonders if there’s room for more...
WHAT IS IT?
A set of rare vintage
compressor and EQ
emulation plug-ins with a
fi ne pedigree.
CONTACT
Who: Sonic Distribution
Tel: [phone]
Web: sonic-distribution.
com/uk/
HIGHLIGHTS
1 Fabulous fat drum
compression, from subtle
to pumping.
2 Very musical EQ, broad
and solid.
3 All four of these plugs
really do sound like the
real thing.
ON THE DVD
FMU206.rev_jjp 96 12/9/08 2:34:59 pm