Having fun with vintage Neve plugin emulations


Which one is the best Neve emulation plugin out there? I have no idea and I want you all to figure out on your own. Click on the post's title or on Read More to get the files.
 


Writing this post from my wife's computer (because coffee and Apple keyboards don't mix really well) I'm thinking how far the digital emulations have come.
The contenders that I have access too are listed below, and I only have a clean winner for the non-EQ version of the files.
- Acustica Audio Gold: a MONSTER of a plugin. Several different EQ emulations, two compressors, many different pre-amp sections (for saturation). Of course, compressor was not inserted in the chain.
- UAD Neve 1073: this was my all-time favourite. Those drums you hear (me, playing terribly after 9 months away from the drum kit) were tracked through Universal Audio's Unison pre-amps with this exact emulation.
- Sonimus Burnley 73: the less expensive tool in this test. 
- Slate Digital FG-N: I didn't even remembered I had this plugin. I got the year special from Slate Digital just for their new reverb and I completely forgot I had access to this baby.
This is not a scientific test by any means. I tried to set the gains as close as possible by ear (after a long day in the studio...)
The EQ'd files are a completely different story though: it's really hard to match frequencies since some of the EQs feel like are not at the same root frequency as the others (even though they "say" it's the same) AND the way they interact with phase plays a big role on how you "feel" the EQ.
Anyways... Take a listen and enjoy
Click HERE to download files and click HERE to post your comments on which one you prefer, I'll post my feelings after a few people jump in.

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