An imperial family tree

Tracing the heritage of the Chandler Limited® Zener-Bender is like discovering an imperial family tree. Its roots are in EMI consoles, used at Abbey Road from the 60s onwards to record some of the most seminal albums of all time, by the likes of Pink Floyd and The Beatles. And right up to the present day Curve Bender and Zener Limiter are being used in both hardware and plug-in form by top producers and engineers across records by world-leading artists such as Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, The White Stripes, Foo Fighters, Taylor Swift, and more. The influence of the Chandler sound cannot be overstated. It shapes the world it rules. 

Learn more about our partnership with Chandler Limited®.

The native plug-in version of the Zener-Bender, apart from combining the heritage, color, and character of the Zener Limiter and the Curve Bender in one impactful channel strip, is special for its plug-in-only features.

Digital audio and software flexibility allow us to offer External Sidechain input, Mid/Side Processing, and Channel Linking. Clean up your low end in the center of your soundstage while gently calming your cymbals out wide. Bring a vocal to the front, even at the mastering stage, without damaging the tracks supporting it. You’re in charge of just about everything.

The TG12413 Zener Limiter was conceived by Chandler Limited® designer Wade Goeke, to continue the tradition of EMI Limiters started in 1954 with the RS114 tube limiter and the 1968 RS168 Zener Limiter. The Zener Limiters were also part of the 1969 TG12345 console channel and the 1974 TG12413.

It's a powerful, punchy-sounding dynamics workhorse, which brings character without being difficult. It's a favorite of top mix engineers like Tony Maserati and Joe Chiccarelli, as much for its versatility as for the mojo it brings.

The Chandler Limited® Curve Bender mastering equalizer is based on desk circuits from the world-famous Abbey Road Studios in London, used to create albums of genuinely legendary status, such as Dark Side Of The Moon by Pink Floyd, and Abbey Road by The Beatles.

The Curve Bender has more bands (four, compared to the original console’s two), more fixed filter points (a huge fifty-one, up from just nine, chosen and designed in the image of the original circuits by Chandler Limited® founder, Wade Goeke), more Q and gain options, and added low and high pass filters, making the unit a mastering powerhouse without sacrificing the exquisite analog sound-flavor which made it a leader.

Our hybrid hardware/software mixing system, Console 1, also benefits from the wonderfully unique vintage sound of the Zener-Bender, with its own bespoke version of the channel strip included with the native version, or available on its own.

Console 1 is a highly intuitive hardware control system for our fantastic-sounding software mixing tools – especially complete channel strips – and with every new strip we release, the flexibility and freedom grow. The Zener-Bender in particular opens up new sonic ground to Console 1 users, with its classic yet wonderfully modern tonal quality.