Softube Console 1 Mk 2 Reviews

pro studio gear

this adds a lot of fun to the mixing process. The sound is amazing and working with it is a pleasure.

I mix and master music at CNXL STUDIO, and this definitely has increased the speed and the quality of my work.

Great with little software issues

Installation on mac is a bit strange. You get offered drivers and software which seem not properly developed yet. on contact with support you get help. Which is : install the manual drivers. .. even after weeks this has not been fixed. a pity for the generally good product

100% satisfied with purchase.

Device quality was above my expectations - rigid metal case, encoders feels good. Store works well. Fast and free delivery. Everything is great.

GOOD

I use that with my uad, and I spend more money on uad plugin again...

If you only use mouse to adjust plugin, maybe only adjust 1,2,3,4

after use console 1 , you can adjust more like 1,1.1,1.2,1.3....

It has more subtle adjustments, you should try this console 1

This is amazing

This is an amazing unit that makes mixing much more natural than using only a mouse you get full control of the mixing channels strip with knobs and buttons. That is very important to me and has made mixing much easier and more fun then ever

Not for every DAW

The product is wel thought out and the plugin sounds really good. It gives you tons of instant and tactile processing abilities. Only major downside is that for some DAWs including Ableton Live, there is no support for track name, number and follow. Meaning that you manually have to name every track in Live AND in Console 1. You also have to add the plugin in order of channel 1, 2, 3, 4, ... and if you later want to add tracks in between you have to repeat this process from scratch. No follow support means that you can select different tracks in Ableton and in Console 1 which can be very confusing. This is all very clumsy and frustrating. I have been submitting feature requests to Softube and Ableton support for more than a year now, but still no progress. A real disappointment.

Why would you want to live without it?

Got my console last week and it is a life changer. No more looking at the screen, no more fiddling with a mouse. Finally I can focus on listening and let my fingers play with the knobs to find the sweet spot.

Superb

Awesome controller. Mixing ITB becomes more and more interesting. Very clever usability. Really good quality knobs and encoders. Stock SSL 4k sound pretty nice, interesting drive character but for classical music, for acoustic instruments, for those sources, when you need clarity but want to make sound sculpting with EQ - I prefer SSL9K, which plugin I also bought for my Console 1.

If you really want it - just buy it.

Absolutely AMAZING!!!!

Imagine been handed technology like this 50 years ago!?!?!

We are all so lucky to have access to production gear like The Console One Mkii . Absolute Game-Changer for anyone outside a pro studio!

Logic X needs time to setup

I nearly sent this back, but after some help over at Gearslutz i got the unit working with Logic X. Yes Logic X supports track numbers & names with Console 1, which is important for workflow reasons. The key is to get all your tracks and Aux's in the right order (a multi output plugin needs to have all the aux's on the arrange page and in the correct order, as an example). If not tracks and Console 1 get out of sync. It would be so much easier if Softube detailed these setup steps for each DAW. Presets are missing (depite the SSL having them), and they are refusing to comment on the full Apple integration. Maybe they have given up on it ? Anyway once working its a great sounding product, with quality hardware. Shame Softube support is so layed back.

Excellent product!- Nice look nice sound

Excellent product!- Nice look nice sound

Awesome

Awesome piece of gear... Really good simulations of best consoles in the world, simple to use...

Best thing I ever bought for my studio after preamps and interface... Sounds awesome, nice looking.. Great built...

Amazing thing!

I write TV game show music & Jingles. Always needed some mojo for my sound since I mix alone with deadlines. I am a lousy self taught engineer fed up with the mouse approach and visual aids.

So I decided for a tactile approach and to start trusting my ears. This miracle gadget gave me this option. In conjunction with the British plugin I work and see things in a different manner and psychology now. Great sound and great built quality! There is some strange voodoo going on with the ssl and nevish plugin. WOW I BELIEVE

Modern solutions for modern problems.

Mixing inside the box is the best that could happen to us in the audio industry. It allowed to bring quality recordings to the masses. While emulations of the sound of the vintage gear we love have become better and better, we have lost the real touch and response of them to the material that its being put through it, sometimes basing our decisions in how they look more than how they hear and feel. Enter Console 1. It has all the basic tools a mixing engineer could need in a small footprint. The construction quality is sturdy, the pots have a nice touch and response to them with a light ring around that indicates their position in the current channel we have selected. The software included with it works like a charm and does not suck on computer power even when being used in large sessions. The software expansions make this piece of hardware worth even more, when combined with other plug-ins (from softube or UAD) makes it indispensable for person that wants to mix ITB. It is very easy to register and set up and in no time start using it in your mixes. An awesome piece of gear and software along with it that allows more expansion possibilities. For anyone that wants to start using their ears and leave the mouse aside, this is the ONE.

Fantastic

I have grown to hate the mouse and all of it's spiteful children. this product has indeed save me from the hoards of mouse fatigue!

Very nice mixing controller. Very close snapshot of the real SSL 4000E.

IMHO the best parts are the "shape" and the "Saturation" .. Thanks Softube.

My Console came with the "paint" substrate of the faceplate probably not well applied, with the result that it has small marks from below the grey colour. I already informed Softube for this anomalie.

Solid piece of gear

work as expected ! No issues with USB, solid & firm. you get what you paid for.

best plug in ever

softube with console 1 changes the way you thinking and the way you hearing music... in a good way. Sounds great and feel great. The best plug in I have and is mouse free

Needs to fix the automation problems

I have been using this almost a year now, and happy that I have it, but still cannot use it as I planned cause either software team couldn't fix the issue yet.

So here are the cons first, It is very well built, the knobs are amazing and fun to use. Softube plug-ins sound really really good. I feel like I am using analog gear and don't have a single project without using it.

But the problem is that you cannot automate it with Pro Tools. You need to set it at fixed settings and thats it. (like a real analog gear) I was planning to use it as a master channel strip plug in on every channel and do the eq, comp on this little fella without even looking at the screen, and write all of the eq and comp automation with these nice knobs, but no chance, Pro Tools doesn't like it at all and gave 9105 error when it tries to read any changing parameter.

A Smart Tool For Mixing

Console 1 really helps with the mixing process and it basically does it in two ways.

First, you stop moving the mouse while looking at eq curves and plugins' GUIs; it means that you can use your ears and your hands to make changes and suddenly you realise that you're focusing on the most important thing: the sound.

Second, having a Gate, an Eq and a Comp (with a final Saturation stage) at your fingertips for every track, gives you all the tools you need to sculpt your mix. You don't feel the need of stuffing your insert slots with a half dozen of plugins. Sometimes less is really better.

A small Con: every now and then the USB cable seems to loose its connection and I have to re-connect it, but it probably happens one time a week and it's a matter of seconds.