Recreate the Unique Sound of the SSL 9000J Console!

If you could recreate any console in a plugin, which one would it be?

I just bought this plug-in. Interesting story…. In 2003 I had aspirations to become a mixing engineer/producer. I called around to studios in Chicago and talked with their engineers. At the time they all seemed a bit jaded about the home studio craze that was just starting up. “Don’t get into studio work because so many people are trying to build home studios. But they all sound like garbage.” Is exactly what I was told by all the studios. That honestly lead me to reconsider and I ended up in the corporate world.

I wonder if the same people in 2003 think the plug-in’s of today are good. Plug-ins have come very far from the early 2000’s and there are more and more engineers using plug-in’s over hardware.

You can now get a $300 Focusrite AI, and a Neumann TLM 103 and produce radio ready vocals with plug-ins. Wasn’t that way back then. Plus drum samples from Superior Drummer or other.??… everything has really been taken up a tenfold of notches.

Thank u for smashing the console and comp so i can hear how that sounds! nobody does that in tutorials.

Question for the Pros

Why do you work with the vst channel strips if you have the real consoles?

If you introduce this as the ultimate rnb/pop/hiphop console, why not mix a rnb or hiphop song on it? As a hiphop producer, i bought this particular channel strip precisely for that reason

Holy shit, I got the SSL 4000E and wasn’t sure about buying another SSL channel strip but this was totally worth it (especially on sale rn), what a gorgeous sound. I was just playing with it on drums and it blew me away how different this channel strip is compared to the 4000, but I’m very pleased. There’s def some magic in there. I think I might even like the 9000 more than the 4000 and that was probably one of my favorite plugins.

This thing loads default on any track I add on Ableton. Since I've moved to mostly eqing with this instead of graphic eqs my music sounds simply better. I flipping love this thing and clicking "all" to switch up the channels across the mix is always a delight.

Hey W, I have been mixing all my new songs on a 8 bus group system with the 9000, like drums, bass, guitars, keys and vocals, i grew up on analog desks, and this plugin gives me the vibes, sounds so good, but the compressor is interesting, I haven't found my way with it completly (it has its own thing) theres those other modes, is P like automatic ratio and F (those led light buttons) Fast release? other than that, I really love it, i don't have to do much, just shine and balance and shaping, all the work is done on the channels before it hits the 8 bus groups mostly, but essentially a 8x SSL mixer kinda approach, lets me tune into a great mix i feel so far...I really musically connect to the sound of it, the virtual circuits are neat. cool cool

Very nice work here.
Thank you.
Subscribed & belled.

Love it!!! I see many people put these types of plugins as the first plug-in in the chain… if I heard you correctly I think you have last in the chain? Care to breakdown the difference between doing one over the other? Or is this just a rare thing?

What is this plugin for?

This is my favorite SSL plug in. I own the Waves and UAD versions but BX just captures the warmth/grit/character more than the others. I use it on everything.

A few weeks ago I mixed multitracks from the academy, 72 channels, and on each instance the 9000J, it sounded so good in a fraction of time, btw if you use this many tracks, and you press the random button you get a full console. The only thing that costed more time was adding the plugins on each track. So the experiment went very well. And at the end the Townhouse Buss compressor. Since you did this review I use this plugin on some tracks, where I need a combination from gate, compression and EQ, my first choice is always this plugin. Even I have all the SSL plugins and other channel strips in my toolbox. Plugin Alliance nailed this one for sure. And thanks again to provide multitracks, so I and many others who can exercise mixing skills.

Amazing video. The track is cool, it reminds me of the main song of the girls' band from the movie 'Freaky Friday' haha. SSL-9000J is insane. I crank the THD and turn the E-setting on every single time I use it. Cheers!

❤️ SSL :)

I love your videos! Informative, fun, inspiring… You make music feel accessible!!

Horrible music, why not just use done dance track, why a horrible garage band? I got a headache half way through

The @$$ Kicken Vox makes that first tune

Great demo Warren, thanks for sharing!

I know this is kinda an old video at this point, but I recently got into the SSL-plugins after sticking with API for a long time. The Brainworks seem to have created a great version. To me it sounds a lot cleaner and clearer than what the Waves and the UAD SSL-types I've tried. Great demo, Warren.

Also, that girl in the first song can really sing. It's so refreshing hearing a powerful female vocal that's not just a little girl whisper washed in a ton of reverb. This woman had power and freaking attitude, LOVE IT!

I like your videos so much! Anything you explain within music examples is a great lesson. One of my favorite video from your channel is the SSL BUS compressor comparison across the different plugins out there. I truly appreciate your work. Thanks!

Those drums have been recorded to perfection, lovely sound.

the problem with bx plugins like this is they use so much CPU. you can't really use them to the extent where they are truly dynamic and give you a real console sound. I use them for color only, not for bells and whistles. their amps are like this too. I tried putting rockrack in a large project last night. Sounded great, and also gave me a huge CPU use spike so when I saw that I replaced it with something else.

That was a joy to watch. And hear.

Hi, this might be a stupid question, but you don´t have to care about ovl-light? Then, what is the function of that. I just have learned (really a beginner) that red light in digital envirement are evil;)
Great vid thank you! it really made me to concider to jump in to SSL-world.

Picked this up today, had to come and get some schooling on it. Nice one Warren.

I'm one of the 10 lucky winners from last year's giveaway. I've been recording acoustic guitar and vocal projects primarily and I use the plugin almost every time. Reviewing this video after a year is quite helpful, especially concerning its use on other instruments. Thanks again

Great video - thanks, very informative, though it cost me! Mind if I ask what reverb you used on the kit on the 1st song (if your memory can reach back there!), I liked it very much..!

the neptunes have used this

Hi, I just bought plugin alliance. Just wandering if you can do a video on how to mix vocals with these plugins.

9000 J plugin just went on sale. Thinking I'm getting it. A chance to create some DAW templates again for me too.

What`s your opinion about the SSL AWS900 and would you buy one if you did not have the 4000 ?

$99 on P.A. right now till Oct 5

Thanx for the vid Sir I really enjoyed the fact that you were having so much fun letting your soul do the work whereas others may say I'm pushing this too far

this is the best emulation plugin ever made

Warren thanks for your videos. Love them.

I tried this plugin thinking I would love it but it turned out I can get the same results from stock plugins. It works great but I don't think you really need it.

What are your thought on that? Hope you answer! thanks :)

Hi Warren why dont you try Kush Audio plugins for your great tutorials, thanks for all great job!

the song is pretty nice! the drum centered vibe especialy

Great to see all the Masters hard at work. But is it just me or is the SSL interface just that much boring and uninspiring say compared to PA's Focusrite Console and Bx Console N which are both incredibly beautiful and sexy to work with. they are both always there on my Mastering Chains and I guess the Waves Plugins never convinced me on the SSL atleast. Abbey Roads is fine from Waves and the F6. But yes, Dirk the Red Baron has got me sold on his stuff. But I wonder in a blind test, if the Focusrite can beat the SSL 9000J. I am new to the Mastering Game and thus always trying to train my ears to the nuances of sound. Subtle. My only hope is never to be polishing turds for the rest of my life with SSLs!

Great stuff Warren, gonna have to look into this one. Got the 4000 G but might have to trial this one. Thanks

Seriously dude you look like elivis

The canonization of SSL desks by young people always cracks me up. I guess I'm old enough to remember the pro's of the '70s complaining about that "horrid sounding thing with a computer in it". Millennials point to all the hits that were mixed on them. But that was not because of the sound. The engineers would prefer a Neve, Trident or Harrison, anything but an SSL. But time being money, and the automation saving much time, studio owners raced to put SSLs in to get more efficient production. Now 40 years later, the warm fuzzy glow of history means that whatever was used pre-digital must have been superior, including the dreck of those times. I see people on forums talking about old Akai reel to reels and even running mixes though cassette decks to get the "tape magic". None of these folks have obviously ever been around a real professional tape machine. And the amount of fastidious maintenance and calibration that was done to them to get as high a fidelity as possible out of them. Remember, this same gear was used to record symphonic, jazz and other music where fidelity was paramount. True that some rock engineers and producers abused the headroom on the gear but even a Neve preamp pushed into actual clipping sounds awful and that wasn't done except for extreme effects.
Those who fail to study history are doomed to repeat it. Although these days, if someone doesn't know how to set up a tape machine properly and needs decent fidelity, they can just go to a computer. And then use some digital model of a horrible sounding desk to mess it up again. :-D

Is-it to late for the plugin giveaway ?

The proper(perhaps best) way to use the TMT channel emulations is to insert the effect on EVERY channel across your mix, then for each channel select a different tolerance modeling number(TMT) up to 72 channels. There should be an option to automatically assign the channels when doing this.
The 72 emulations are to give you the subtle differences in each physical channel strip like a real mixer does. In a physical console, while every channel is built identically, they are still physical parts and thus can have tiny differences in circuitry/response.
The channel emulations will produce a cumulative effect. The effect won't be realized using it on fewer channels.

the bus comp is where its at on the 9000 . plenty of emulations . some good some not so

really has that brit colour . blitz not US glitz

I've never heard anyone say smashing a 9000 sounds musical haha. Completely different console than the 4K
I'm excited they did this, although I've been using the SSL 9000 K on my console-1 which is just beyond words for me personally.

remember to turn on the hpf ;)

The HPF and LPF filters are off... 😂. By the way, great video, the plugin sounds awesome.