SSL 4000 or Renaissance?

[moguelator]

Hi,

 

I've been using pro tools and cubase mostly for recording my self for the last 5 years. However, now there are some bands that want me to record them. I'm planing to buy a plug in bundle for mixing, and my two alternatives now are waves renaissance and waves ssl 4000.

 

Honestly I don't hear alot (if any) difference between both, but when I started to record my self I didn't heard any difference between a sm58 mic and a AT4040, and now I think I was young and stupid, hahaha.

 

So what do you recomend me, which do you think is the best alternative on the long term. I am going to mix Rock mostly (kind of jimmy eat world music).

 

I've downloaded the URS plug in but haven't been able to make them run (it has really been a pain in the ass). What do you think of them?

 

Thanks to all.

[Phil O'Keefe]

I have not heard the Waves SSL plug ins, but I do have the Renaissance plugs, and I use them a lot. I'm not sure if the SSL bundle includes any reverb plug ins, but I don't think so - and to me, that, and the inclusion of other useful plug ins would probably make the Ren Bundle a better choice for all around use - especially if it is going to be your first, or only plug in bundle for a while.

[Lee Knight]

I use the RenVerb all the time. I know there are better verbs coming out everyday (IK's new one I liked) but the RenVerb works well. But... I honestly like the DigiIII EQ better than the RenEQ. The Digi along with the Massey 3 band for vibe. And I like the Massey Compressor more than the RenComp.

 

So, if it were me, and of course it isn't, I wouldn't spring for the Ren stuff again. I'd sink my money into a some Massey goodness and a great verb while using the DigiIII freebies.

 

Of course that's all Pro Tools.

 

The Waves SSL stuff have been getting good reviews from the pros but I have not heard them. Personally, I'm trying to move away from Waves as their pricing is killing me...

[I was The Funk]

I use the renn stuff fairly often, but not as much as I used too. Those plugs are kind of old and very cpu intensive. I hardly ever use R-Verb anymore. I do use R-comp and R-bass fairly often though, as I find that compressor works better on bass then my other choices.

 

Maybe they've upgraded the plugs since, but they're so expensive that I'm not going to purchase again to find out.

[alphajerk]

i dont like the waves SSL stuff much... the EQ is OKAY, the comp on the channel strip SUCKS, the buss comp is okay. the URS stuff KILLS, both EQ's and Comps. so does sonalksis for comps, PSP for comps and EQ's, although i dont like their move to iLok so i havent bought into any of their new stuff [sorry PSP, bad choice for CP so you lost my bizness on the new stuff]. the waves rennpack is about the only thing i would buy from waves... and their S1 imager [i have a fetish for stereo wideners... i probably have a dozen or more plugs from various places to choose from].

[diy guy]

the ssl buss comp and ren comp are nearly identical, and are very hard to tell apart. i like it better than sonalksis and psp on the master out. the channel strip also sounds ok, but nothing to get excited about.

 

i would go renaissance for sure, price considered.

[alphajerk]

i wouldnt put a sonalksis on the 2buss, but the pspvw lightly [linked ior unlinked] with ozone3 tweaked out seems to work really well... at least for me. sometimes i use the waves ssl comp on the 2buss, but it doesnt have that "sound" of the hardware by any stretch. i have used the ssl>psp>masterQ>ozone3 before as well. i have also done ssl>urs 560>ozone3. come to think of it, i have done a {censored}load of combinations on the 2buss. its really what do i have and what works.

[birdyyellow]

URS plugins are really powerful.

[Dean Roddey]

I'd argue for getting the Ren package and then buying the URS Neve/SSL EQs. That's what I did. Well, I got the Platinum bundle which includes the Ren stuff. I use the EQ and compressor quite a lot, with the URS EQs for those places where their characteristics would be appropriate. For reverb I much prefer the Waves convolution reverb over True/RenVerb.

[alphajerk]

i like altiverb over waves IR

[Keithrt99]

i like the renn bundle more than the ssl. Then again I kinda find the SSL sound to be abit overrated. It's too easy to over-compress using the SSL compressors.

[UstadKhanAli]

I use an old bundle of Waves Renaissance that's designed for OS 9 and 10 (it works in both Pro Tools LE 5.1 and 6.4). I don't remember the name of the bundle, but it has REQ, R-Verb, that rBass MaxxBass or whatever the early thing was called, a Voc Channel, and the RCompressor. I can't compare it to anything, i don't have anything comparable. But it's really super usable and sonically strong. I got it for $300 using an educator's discount.

[Bang]

don't forget about URS, their new channelstrip SMOKES.

[Zooey]

 

don't forget about URS, their new channelstrip SMOKES.

 

 

I have that. It's so incredibly deep, I'm almost paralyzed by the choices. There are multiple models to select at each stage of the signal chain, and all of them sound good. It's kind of touchy the way good analog gear is touchy. I'd recommend it for someone who has more mixing chops under their belt.

 

The Waves Ren Collection was awesome in the nineties when I first saw it, and it took a very long time in software years for other developers to catch up. I'd still recommend it for someone starting out with digital mixing. Particularly the Ren Comp, because of the excellent GUI and limiter on the output. It's hard to screw that one up.

[alphajerk]

biggest problem with waves has always been their output clipping... you REALLY have to watch that or it splats out. most other plugin companies dont have this problem.