UAD-2 REVIEW

If you don’t know what UAD-2 is, then I will give you a little warning. You need to think long and hard… if you take the blue pill (and you don’t read this review), then you will wake up in your bed tomorrow and will be able to go naively and happily about your day in your usual way. If you take the red pill (and read on), then you WILL want this product, and it will tear you up inside day in, day out until you get your hands on one! So choose wisely… as they say, ignorance is bliss…

UNIVERSAL AUDIO UAD-2 – LET’S SEE HOW DEEP THE RABBIT HOLE GOES…

You’ve made your choice! There’s no turning back now! So you seek the mystery of the Universal Audio UAD-2 do you? Well, the secret is a simple one… and here it is… UAD-2 PRODUCTS ARE FREAKIN’ AWESOME, MAN! The UAD-2 Powered platform gives you access to a whole range of classic hardware plug-ins and effects, all of which are modeled in software form in unrivaled, exquisite detail. UAD-2 Powered Plug-Ins represent the height of software emulation technology, and can be used to turn your mixes from rigid digital productions into massive, warm analogue sounding monsters. Yes, you’ve probably used analogue modeling software and plug-ins before, and they work ok, but ultimately you can still hear that it’s not a true analogue bit of hardware. This isn’t the case with Universal Audio’s technology, as programmers carefully studied original electronic designs when constructing the software emulations. When we say that their plug-ins sound analogue, we mean that they REALLY sound analogue! Well, apart from maybe one difference, which was summed up perfectly in what one audio engineer once told me… I fail to remember which compressor emulation he was referring to, but his words were, ‘it sounds exactly like the real thing, just without the hiss!’ Want one yet? I do :(

That’s not all though… Universal Audio don’t just provide you with a library of the most sought after software plug-ins in the world… they also give you a hardware processor to take the strain of all that additional CPU power needed for the plug-in’s complex processing! The hardware processors essentially allow the plug-ins to deliver rich, analogue sound quality and warmth, that would be virtually impossible to produce on a native computer without overloading the system. So whether you are tracking, mixing or mastering with UAD-2 plug-ins in Logic, Cubase, Nuendo, Pro Tools, Digital Performer or Sonar, you can always be sure that your computer’s performance is never affected.

Traditionally, UAD-2 processors have been available in a PCIe format, meaning that to use the products, you needed to: a) own a desktop computer, and b) physically install the card within your computer. Hence, people out there who mainly work from a laptop were forced to miss out on the sheer awesomeness of UAD-2 products, and those people who were daunted by having to install a PCIe card also missed out. But luckily, at NAMM this year a new version of the UAD-2 was unleashed, named the UAD-2 Satellite! This handy device houses multiple powerful SHARC processor’s within a sleek metal box, and allows the user to simply plug it into their system using a Firewire 800 of 400 cable! This is brilliant news for laptop producers, but is also good news for those that work by swapping between systems (e.g. a laptop and a desktop), as it allows you to quickly and simply unplug and plug the device to any computer, as and when required! The bad news? It is solely a Firewire device, and so if you are running a Windows laptop, you are still out of luck with the Satellite. However, there is a little ray of hope, as Universal Audio have also released the UAD-2 SOLO Laptop DSP Accelerator package, which simply slots into any Windows or Mac based laptop with an ExpressCard 34 or 54 slot! Housing one SHARC processor, this device is not the most powerful of all the UAD-2 products, but is still perfect for modestly sized portable projects!

The full list of Universal Audio hardware processors is as follows: the UAD-2 SOLO, DUO, and QUAD DSP Accelerator Cards (PCIe format); the UAD-2 SOLO/Laptop (ExpressCard format); and the new UAD-2 Satellite DUO and QUAD (Firewire 400/800 format). It’s the quality, access to free software updates, and flexible VST, AU and RTAS support that make UAD-2 powered plug-ins the tools of choice for many of the world’s top musicians, producers and engineers, and in this blog entry, I will briefly explain to you what each package includes so that hopefully you gain a better idea of which would be best suited for your projects.

UNIVERSAL AUDIO UAD-2 – UAD-2 SOLO

The UAD-2 SOLO represents the entry point into the world of UAD-Powered Plug-In hardware, and is available in 3 packages (each of which are both PC and Mac compatible). The UAD-2 SOLO DSP Accelerator Package comes with the ‘Analogue Classics’ software bundle, which includes a number of Universal Audio’s most popular classic analogue plug-ins. The package includes the LA-2A and 1176 Compressors/Limiters, and the Pultec EQP-1A and Realverb Pro, which will ensure your mixes gain that rich, vintage analogue quality straight away! This package also contains a PCIe card to give your computer a processing boost when running large mixes, and it gives you access to the UAD Powered Plug-Ins library, with a \$50 voucher to put towards making a purchase.

The UAD-2 SOLO Flexi DSP Accelerator package is similar to the previous option, but comes with a fantastic \$500 voucher to spend on UAD-powered plug-ins of your choice. This means that you can build yourself a collection of high-quality analogue emulation plug-ins to suit your specific studio needs!

Finally, the UAD-2 SOLO package also comes in a convenient laptop bundle. This is perfect if you tend to perform most of your mixing away from a studio, and on your laptop. Here, the hardware comes in the form of a convenient ExpressCard that slots into your laptop, and again, comes with the Analogue Classics plug-ins bundle plus a \$50 voucher.

UNIVERSAL AUDIO UAD-2 – UAD-2 DUO

The UAD-2 DUO represents the step up from the SOLO, giving you higher performance Dual Processing Power for Firewire 400 and 800 enabled Macs, and again it is available in a number of different packages. Due to the presence of a second SHARC processor, UAD-2 Satellite Duo packages can be used to run even more complex mixes without burdening your computer's CPU.

The UAD-2 Satellite Duo Firewire DSP Accelerator comes with the Analogue Classics software bundle, and a \$50 voucher to go towards purchasing new plug-ins, or a \$500 voucher if you purchase the UAD-2 Satellite Duo Flexi Firewire DSP Accelerator package. Both these packages are also available in PCIe card formats (UAD-2 DUO and Flexi DSP Accelerator packages), which are perfectly suited for desktop computers as they can be installed without taking up additional desk or Firewire space, but because of this they are obviously a lot less flexible than their Firewire Satellite brothers.

UNIVERSAL AUDIO UAD-2 – UAD-2 QUAD

UAD-2 QUAD packages represent the ultimate in UAD-Powered Plug-In hardware. With (you guessed it) 4 SHARC floating-point processors, these babies can be used to take the strain off your computer, even when working on extremely complex mixes.

The UAD-2 Satellite QUAD Firewire DSP Accelerator package comes with the Analogue Classics plug-in bundle plus a \$50 voucher (or \$500 voucher with the Flexi package) to spend in Universal Audio’s online plug-in store. Plus, there is also a third Satellite package… the UAD-2 Satellite QUAD Omni Firewire DSP Accelerator package. This is the ‘Macdaddy’ of all the UAD packages, providing a collection of 50 of the world’s finest analogue emulation plug-ins, so it should really give you everything you will ever need! However, if you still feel that your studio isn’t complete, you also receive a \$100 voucher to spend in the online store! Brilliant!

Again, all these products are also available in PCIe versions, although an extra package also exists in this format, the UAD-2 QUAD Neve DSP Accelerator bundle. This was designed to give your work the sound of classic Neve analogue equipment, and comes with the Neve 88RS Channel Strip, 1073, 1081, and 31102 EQs, and the 33609 Compressor plug-ins, AND it comes with LA-2A Classic Audio Leveler, 1176LN / 1176SE Classic Limiting Amplifiers, Pultec EQP-1A and Realverb Pro plug-ins just like all the other packages! Plus you get a \$100 plug-in voucher for Universal Audio’s online store! And, after a little bit of research I have just discovered that the Neve bundles are also available in SOLO and DUO PCIe packages, which is excellent news if you want the Neve plug-ins, but don't want/need the extra processing power of a QUAD package!

UNIVERSAL AUDIO UAD-2 – SUMMARY

As I said at the beginning of my blog post, once you know about UAD-2 technology, it's really hard to get out of your head, and even harder to get out of your head if you have heard them in action! Yes, it’s nice to own a real piece of classic analogue hardware, and play with it whilst it’s mounted in your studio rack, but to purchase a hardware equivalent of everything that Universal Audio are offering in their packages would mean that even Richard Branson would have to consider remortgaging his house/island to afford it all! Bit of an exaggeration maybe, but you get the point! Also, referring to the quote that I used in my introduction, UAD-2 packages arguably give you a better sound than analogue hardware units – you still get all that warmth and character, just without the unwanted noise. To me, they seem like the perfect tool for the modern studio, and with constant updates, they can only keep improving.

The introduction of the UAD-2 Satellite only adds to the appeal of these products, and makes using these exceptional plug-ins more practical and accessible than ever before. Although I don’t have a problem with installing a PCIe card into my desktop computer, even I would prefer to just plug in a little box to get up and running. Yes, it uses up an additional Firewire socket, but it’s quicker, and means you can un-plug it and hook it up to a laptop if you are going to be working away from your main studio.

A Universal Audio UAD-2 Satellite QUAD Firewire DSP Accelerator is certainly on my shopping list for the near future, and I would be surprised a UAD-2 package wasn’t on yours now you have been exposed to this awesome secret…

UNIVERSAL AUDIO UAD-2 – SOLO PACKAGES

[Purchase the UAD-2 SOLO DSP Accelerator Package](https://www.absolutemusic.co.uk/store/computer-music-46/hardware-4612/dsp-46125/universal-audio-uad-2-solo-pcie-4348)
Purchase the UAD-2 SOLO Flexi DSP Accelerator Package
Purchase the UAD-2 SOLO Neve DSP Accelerator Package
Purchase the UAD-2 SOLO/Laptop DSP Accelerator Package
Purchase the Universal Audio 710 Twin-Finity Single Channel Mic Preamp/DI with UAD2 SOLO Card

UNIVERSAL AUDIO UAD-2 – DUO PACKAGES

[Purchase the UAD-2 Satellite DUO Firewire DSP Accelerator Package](https://www.absolutemusic.co.uk/store/computer-music-46/hardware-4612/dsp-46125/universal-audio-uad-2-satellite-duo-firewire-dsp-accelerator-44287)
Purchase the UAD-2 Satellite DUO Flexi Firewire DSP Accelerator Package
Purchase the UAD-2 DUO DSP Accelerator Package
Purchase the UAD-2 DUO Flexi DSP Accelerator Package
Purchase the UAD-2 DUO Neve DSP Accelerator Package

UNIVERSAL AUDIO UAD-2 – QUAD PACKAGES

[Purchase the UAD-2 Satellite QUAD Firewire DSP Accelerator Package](https://www.absolutemusic.co.uk/store/computer-music-46/hardware-4612/dsp-46125/universal-audio-uad-2-satellite-quad-firewire-dsp-accelerator-44378)
Purchase the UAD-2 Satellite QUAD Flexi Firewire DSP Accelerator Package
Purchase the UAD-2 Satellite QUAD Omni Firewire DSP Accelerator Package
Purchase the UAD-2 QUAD DSP Accelerator Package
Purchase the UAD-2 QUAD Flexi DSP Accelerator Package
Purchase the UAD-2 QUAD Omni DSP Accelerator Package
Purchase the UAD-2 QUAD Neve DSP Accelerator Package