Having scored a home run with its UAFX amp modeller pedals, Universal Audio has taken the exact same algorithms from three of its vintage tube amp-inspired stompboxes and released them in as guitar plugins.
That means you have classic Fender, Marshall and Vox guitar amp tones at the click of a mouse button, with the Dream ’65 emulating a golden era Deluxe Reverb, the Lion ’68 doing that high-volume Plexi Super Lead thing, and Ruby ’63 on-hand for electric guitar tones ranging from Rory Gallagher blues through Beatles chime and Brian May-style harmonic crunch.
Now these are all available individually as UAD Native plugins. Simply add them to your DAW and you’re off, no need Apollo needed. And they arrive with their custom onboard boost options, plus a bewildering array of speaker emulations.
If you’re already down with the digitalisation of guitar hardware then you might even make the case that owning these is preferable to the originals. For a start, there is no maintenance required. Also, these can effectively be modded on the fly.
For those with the UAD Dream ’65, you can toggle Stevie Ray Vaughan and Steve Lukather mods on the amp, adding the an emulation of the original amp’s tube-driven spring reverb and vibrato to taste. A clean boost will give you the push you need when taking a solo.
The Plexi ’68 presents three classic Marshall amp sounds. There’s the the 100-watt Super Lead (model 1959), the Super Bass, and one named Brown, named after Eddie Van Halen’s “Brown sound” and emulating his use of the Variac to adjust the voltage going into the Marshall in search of sweet spots with more more warmth and saturation to them.
Furthermore, you have an emulation of the Boss GE-10 10-band EQ and the tone-sweetening powers of a ‘70s Echoplex EP-3 tape echo preamp at your disposal.
As for the Ruby ’63, it has onboard boosts modelled on the the ‘60s Dallas Rangemaster germanium treble booster and an EP-3 tape echo – which is where you’ll find that Gallagher/Queen mojo.
And as with the UAFX amp modelling pedals, all of these amp sounds can be paired with a formidable array of mic and speaker pairings. As ever, in the world of digital, it has never been easier – or cheaper – to browse vintage gear and put it to work.
The UAD Guitar Amp Emulation Plugins are available now, each priced $299. For a limited time only (well, until the end of the year) they are available at an introductory price of $149. Head on over to Universal Audio for more details.
