Analog Obsession has released ATONE, a channel strip with an A-Type EQ, filters, and a 436-style compressor.
Channel strips are a guilty pleasure of mine. I purchase them with the express intent of having a singular processor to handle all my mixing needs, but I inevitably end up slinging single-purpose processors back on things.
Still, they’re a great way to capture a classic workflow or sound. The latest from Analog Obsession, ATONE, is aimed entirely at the vintage sounds of yesteryear.
ATONE is based in part on some vintage Altec hardware. So, you’re getting modeled tubes across the preamp and compressor. I wouldn’t use this for every element in a mix, but I did find some great places for it.
The compressor has a bit of sponginess, which I ended up loving on the drum bus and acoustic guitars. The added grit from the preamp certainly benefits my shoddy bass guitar playing.
Color is the name of the game with ATONE, so if you’re after something a bit cleaner, look elsewhere.
There aren’t really many quality channel strips available at this price bracket, so it is always a welcome sight. Sound-wise, it heavily reminds me of the Century Tube Channel Strip from UAD, without the need for a constant iLok connection or costly pricing when sales aren’t on.
The EQ is relatively simple, with three bands targeting lows, mids, and highs. There’s not much to talk about in terms of the equalizer module except that it’s useful for basic tone shaping.
The compressor has a bit more going on, with an attack and release knob present. You won’t find yourself selecting the ratio, but the compression amount in the dead center of the interface can let you get as heavy-handed as you’d like.
I also enjoy that ATONE is fully resizable. Having used a 4K monitor for a little while now, you really do appreciate the effort devs put into making things work for your scaling options.
As with all Analog Obsession releases, you’ve got the option of using ATONE on Windows or Mac computers.
Supported plugin formats are VST3, AU, and AAX. If you’ve got a few bucks to kick AO’s way, it helps to pay for the development of ATONE and other releases. If money’s a bit tight, you can download it for free.
Download: ATONE (FREE / Name-your-price)
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3 Comments
Michael in South Korea
onHad this one for about a week now…. liking it.
You’re right, William, I’m digging it on drums too. Good to note that there rreally isn’t a pre-amp component, it just adds some “colour”
AO always works well for me…. easy to download and install, and good results for my “tunes” 🙃
Master Complainer
onI wish Analog Obsession or someone else would build a central installer/ product manager for the products. Right now it’s all so convoluted and you have no idea of new updates being released etc. I would really appreciate a central installer where I can pick and chose and get notified of updates.
mash
onwow, to each their own I guess. I personally despise master installer programs and go out of my way to track down individual ones, to the point that I’ll sometimes question if I want the one freebee they are giving away bad enough to justify signing up to their ecosystem.