User Manual
Summit Audio Grand Channel
Intro
The Tone Sculpter
EQF-100 Full Range Equalizer
TLA-100A Tube Leveling Amplifier
Different Kinds of Distortion
Shape
Input Filters
In order to expand the sonic options of Console 1, Softube offers other console emulations to be purchased separately, in addition to the included SL 4000 E model. The Summit Audio Grand Channel can be purchased in Softube’s web store (www. softube.com/buy) or at any authorized Softube dealer. The Summit Audio Grand Channel works both as a regular plug-in and as a dedicated Console 1 channel strip.
For more in detail information regarding the Summit Audio Grand Channel, please see the Summit Audio TLA-100A and EQF-100 chapters in the Softube Plug-ins Manual.
WE KNEW FROM THE OUTSET of our development of the TLA-100A compressor that we wanted to create a beautiful looking, extremely versatile and gorgeous sounding channel strip plug-in which would combine the TLA and the EQ beast known as the EQF-100. But the EQF-100 proved to be a more difficult creature than we had first imagined.
After having modeled plenty of equalizers we felt confident that absolutely nothing could surprise us and that we would keep all deadlines. We couldn’t have been more wrong. The passive design of the EQF-100 was intricate, well-designed and just as beautiful as we thought it would be. We just didn’t realize how complicated it was.
But after plenty of work developing a new technique for modeling of big passive circuits we feel confident that you will enjoy this monster.
Four full bands of equalization and a warm output distortion makes this equalizer extremely versatile. It can be used on any type of source, and once you get to know it, it will become your best friend.
TLA-100A Tube Leveling Amplifier
It doesn’t have many knobs, but can create a vast amount of different sounds. With an opto-like compression circuit, you’ll get a smooth compression with a very soft knee. But due to its modern and intricate design you can set it to be faster than any other opto-compressor, which makes it more versatile than its competitors.
The TLA-100A plug-in has a separate saturation control which lets you adjust the headroom of the unit, so that you can go from a clean sound with almost no audible distortion at all, to a fully saturated leave-notransients- intact sound. The distortion in the TLA is therefore well-suited for taming transients in drums, but maybe not the first choice when you need to warm up a vocal track.
The distortion of the EQF-100 has a totally different character, warm and fat, due to its strong 2nd order harmonic. It is very well suited for vocals, bass or brass.
As a Console 1 channel strip, we’ve made it even easier to dial in that perfect saturation. The Drive section consists of both types of distortion, and you can easily blend between these by adjusting the Drive Character knob. It goes from full TLA glory, to 100% EQF warmth.
Since the Grand Channel doesn’t have a shape or gate section, we decided to put the versatile and beautifully sounding Dynamic Shape from the Solid State Logic SL4000E as the default Shape unit.
The input filters are modeled from the filters in the EQF-100, but modified to be continuous instead of stepped.