The Sound on Sound awards are a series of prestigious honors bestowed on the best audio gear. The winners are selected by the editorial staff of Sound on Sound Magazine and their readers. What had started as a small idea in 2011 has bloomed into a respectable title that manufacturers, designers and engineers alike aspire to win. The SOS Hall of Fame lists products like Avid's Pro Tools and the SSL Duality so you can understand the legitimacy and weight of winning this award.
This Year's Winners:
| Category | Winner |
|---|---|
| Best Computer Audio Interface | Universal Audio Apollo 16 |
| Best DAW Software | AppleLogic X |
| Best Effects & Processing Hardware | Universal Audio 1176 |
| Best Software Plug-In (Effects) | SoundToys Native Effects |
| Best Software Plug-In (Processing) | iZotope RX2 |
| Best Hardware Controller | Apple iPad |
| Best Keyboard/Synthesizer | Yamaha Motif XF |
| Best Microphone | AKG C414 XLS |
| Best Audio Mixer | Rupert Neve Designs 5088 |
| Best Studio Monitors | Adam F7 |
| Best Hardware Audio Recorder | Zoom H6 |
| Best Microphone Preamp | AMS Neve 1073 |
| Best Software Instrument | Spectrasonics Omnisphere |
| Best Sound Library | EastWest Symphonic Orchestra |
| Best Studio Headphones | Beyerdynamic DT880 |
| Best Live Sound Product | Behringer X32 |
| Sound On Sound Editor's Choice | SonyCreative Software SpectraLayers Pro 2 |
Now I could type and type about every single product on this list. Some I am not super familiar with but I will discuss the ones I know more about.
Universal Audio
 |
| Apollo 16 |
 |
| 1176 |
Universal Audio accepted two SOS awards this year: Best Audio Interface (Apollo 16) and Best Hardware processor (1176 Compressor). Universal Audio is synonymous with quality and excellence. I have not gotten the chance to work with either of these two pieces of hardware for an extended period of time however, from what I have experienced, "Top of the Line" just doesn't do them justice.
The Apollo 16 is a rack-mountable audio interface with 16x16 I/O. It bolsters built in UAD-2 Quad DSP/FX hardware, a 24-bit/192kHz A/D converter and FireWire/Thunderbolt connectivity. On the rear of the unit you will find 2 AES/EBU I/O's. 2 DB25 I/O's and dedicated monitor outputs.
UA's award-winning 1176 FET compressor/limiter has proven to be a timeless piece of studio equipment, with a historic background since its inception in 1968. The 1176LN is a FET compressor with input and output trim knobs, a multi-selection peak meter and variable ratio (4/8/12/20)that includes the "all-in" stage.
iZotope RX2
**DISCLAIMER: I'm gonna have another iZotope fanboy moment**
iZotope's RX2 is a revolutionary spectral processing plug-in used to "heal" audio files by cleaning out recorded noise, electrical interference, digital distortion and other disruptive sounds. Users can perform these tasks through tools that alter and display changes in real time on a spectrogram display.
I suggest checking out this overview video from iZotope to better understand the full extent of this awesome software plug-in:
I suggest checking out this overview video from iZotope to better understand the full extent of this awesome software plug-in:
AKG C414 XLS
The C414 is a studio workhorse that works well on vocals, instruments (mono and stereo pairs), overheads for drums or ambient mics... pretty much everything you could possibly record. The XLS has an astonishing dynamic range of 152 dB with an S/N ratio of 88 dB, a frequency range spanning the entire human spectrum, a sensitivity rating of 20mV/Pa. The microphone has LED lighting that signals thw 0dB/-6dB/-12dB/-18dB attenuation pads as well as the 12dB shelf at 40Hz/80Hz and the 6dB shelf at 160 Hz.
The C414 XLS also has multiple selectable polar patterns:
Adam F7
 |
| Adam F7 |
The Adam F7 is the more affordable version of the two-time SOS Award winning A7X near-field monitors. I recently had the chance to listen to both sets of monitors. Although there are differences in specifications, from a production studio standpoint, you could save yourself some cash and purchase the F7 and still get a high quality pair of monitors. However, since the market for used audio gear is rather small at this quality level, you could have trouble selling these down the road when you eventually want to upgrade so you might be better off saving up for the A7X. Either way, Adam has a history of quality manufacturing and popularity so we can expect superior products from them in the future.
Beyerdynamic DT880
 |
| DT 880 |
I have owned a pair of DT 880's for almost 3 years and I can hands-down call them one of the best headphones I have ever used/worn/looked at. Beyerdynamic is the epitome of comfort, stability and quality when it comes to on-ear headphones. The DT 880's have a semi flexible metal frame, cushioned head band and godly velour pads on the drivers. No, seriously, its velour. Wearing them feels like you're putting clouds on your ears. They also has a HUGE frequency range of 5 Hz to 35 kHz. The only negative aspects of the 880's is their semi-open nature. Strictly from a listening standpoint, these headphones reproduce music to a qualityI cannot explain in words. You can hear any and all imperfections in your music. But from a studio production/mixing standpoint, their lack of isolation can be detrimental... Which is why I went and bought a pair of 770s which are more or less the same headphones but offer better isolation with closed drivers. If you get a chance, put a pairof these on and try them out. I guarantee you'll be hooked.
Spectrasonics Omnisphere
Omnisphere has been a staple of Spectrasonics' software and an extremely popular booth at NAMM shows for the past few years. I have not had the chance to play around with either Omnisphere orits bass counterpart Trilian but from what I have seen/heard, I am quite impressed by Spectrasonic's ability to make a quality crowd-pleaser. Omnisphere is pretty pricey, but with an incredible range of synthesis features, effects processing, pad layering, live performance modes and a +40 GB sound library, you can expect to get your money's worth. Check out Jordan Rudess (Dream Theater, Liquid Tension Experiment) playing around with Omnisphere and Trilian at the 2010 NAMM show:
or Eric Persing demoing Omnisphere at NAMM 2011:
Thanks again for reading and I look forward to seeing you again soon!
or Eric Persing demoing Omnisphere at NAMM 2011:
I was really intrigued about the Apollo 16 interface. It looks like a great piece of hardware. I would love the opportunity to work with one and hear how it sounds. Have you worked with one? At $3,000 it is a bit out of my price range. But it looks like it would be an amazing interface to have. I have always been impressed with anything Universal Audio puts out. A preamp that I think is definitely worth checking out is the Universal Audio 710 Twin-Finity. It is an amazing preamp that utilizes both tube and solid state circuitry. There is a blend knob that allows you to dial in how much of the signal goes through tube and how much goes through solid state. It is quite an amazing piece of hardware. I have used it on several sources and have been amazed by the results. You just dial in that blend knob and all of the sudden the blend is perfect and all of the right frequencies are present. You should really check that out if you're a fan of Universal Audio gear. I highly recommend.
ReplyDeleteI have only heard recordings (from a Apollo 16) reproduced through the system. They absolutely sounded great but its possible that it sounded great because it was recorded at 192k. If i had $3000 lying around I would absolutely purchase the Apollo 16. But such as it is, UA is generally out of my price range by a lot (hence my 24bit-48k recordings on a Scarlet 2i2). I also don't have a system routed via AES connectors so thats a whole other can of worms
ReplyDeleteThe UA 710 sounds like an interesting pre-amp. I like the idea of blending the unique characteristics of tube and solid state circuitry and would love the opportunity to get a chance recording with one. But as I mentioned before, UA tends to be out of my price range so I will have to wait. I will definitely add this to my "One day I WISH I can afford this" list on SweetWater as a prospective piece of hardware.
There are a couple of surprises to me in this list. That would be the iPad and Logic X. I may be biased with Logic and just a little bitter. I'm not a huge fan of the interface. I guess Bitwig wouldn't be at NAMM, but I am much more excited to see what that can do over Logic. Also, am I missing something with the iPad? I know it is useful for plenty of situations, but what in the world is it offering now that makes it so astonishing for the controller market? So many incredible controllers have been coming out, I feel weird having the iPad be named the "Best."
ReplyDeleteI was just as surprised by the iPad winning. I mean seriously, there are literally dozens of control surfaces that are just as capable. I guess it won because of its versatility (as a touch surface) and the availability of applications that can integrate with numerous DAWs, plug-ins (check out the Omnisphere video) and other control surfaces. I have seen the iPad used as an X/Y controller, additional channel controls, spectrograms and for live-sound applications. Maybe the iPad deserved the award, maybe it didn't. I would like to know what other controllers were in contention for the prize.
ReplyDeleteAs for Logic... I have to agree with the bitter sentiment. I was never overly thrilled with it. The user interface, adopting the .aiff filesand AU plug-in formats. It just always felt like Apple was trying to force its way into a new niche that it was unprepared for. But then again I know plenty of people who use Logic as their primary DAW and it certainly has had time to adjust to consumer demands so I am open to give it a shot. I just don't really want to pay for it...