In the March 2019 edition of German Professional Audio magazine, you’ll find a review about the brand-new SPL IRON plugin.
First things first! The hardware:
“IRON is a harware mastering compressor, which was released in 2015.
SPL’s goal was to develop a dynamic tool, which provides the classic characteristics of a vitage tube compressor, but which is also versatile enough to adapt perfectly to the needs of modern productions. What is special about the device is the high-dynamic 120V operating voltage.”
“With the 120V Techology inside the IRON there is more headroom, a bigger dynamic range, less noise and distortion and, simply put, the clearest detailed sound.”
“SPL IRON is a tube compressor, which combines vintage and modernity, now released into the virtual world as a plugin by Brainworx.”
About the software:
“The GUI comes in a high-resolution 3D look, therefore, looks very classy.”
“Anyone who is familiar with the function of a compressor, will have no problem to handle this plugin. For beginners, the plugin provides several presets as a starting point, which originate from renowned IRON hardware users.”
“The implemented parameters, added to the hardware are a real plus.”
Sound:
“We tested the IRON on different masterings, from acoustic material to electronic dance music. It always sounds awesome and handles every signal with flying colors.”
“At the end, we dared to compare IRON to the Fairchild 670 plugin.
Both devices share a similar concept, so we thought we should give it a try. The sound of both plugins is pretty similar, but the Fairchild isn’t that useful on every mastering, especially when it is supposed to be really loud. It starts to distort quite fast. The IRON, however, is much more flexible and therefore really handles everything that comes its way.”
Conclusion:
“The IRON Mastering Compressor, with its innovative concept, its musical sound and flexible application, is unrivaled on the plugin market at the moment. When mastering, on any kind of subgroup or individual signals. It always sounds awesome, and it is pretty complicated to create a bad sounding signal with this plugin.”
“The SPL IRON by Brainworx is a worthy software version of the beloved harware model.”
You can find the complete review (in German) in the magazine.
The IRON plugin is now available at Plugin Alliance.
You also have the possibility to start a 14-day fully functional trial of the plugin for free.
