UA Blog
Replacing Tubes in Your UA Analog Hardware
For those of you lucky enough to own one of Universal Audio's tube-based hardware preamps, channel strips, or compressors, you will at some point need to deal with replacing the tubes in these units. How is this done? What tubes do you need? Read on my friends, and the answers to your questions will be revealed!
Tips & Tricks — 1176 Classic Limiter Collection
Whether Bluestripe, Blackface, or AE, each 1176 plug-in in the Classic Limiter Collection has its own unique characteristics for gain, threshold, compression knee, distortion onset, and “sweet spots.” Here are some helpful hints for getting started with these unique tools.
Andrew Scheps on Engineering Red Hot Chili Peppers, Mixing Adele, and Letting Songs 'Mix Themselves'
Andrew Scheps mixed numerous tracks on Adele’s Grammy-winning album, 21, as well as the latest Red Hot Chili Peppers album, I’m with You. As a producer, Scheps’ credits include Favez, The Duke Spirit, and Audrye Sessions. “Universal Audio’s stuff is definitely a big part of everything I do,” he says.
Producer of the Year Paul Epworth on Adele, Cee Lo, Foster the People
When Paul Epworth co-wrote and produced “Rolling In The Deep” off Adele’s album, 21, little did he know he would accept the Producer, Song, Record, and Album of the Year awards. Learn about the all-UA signal chain behind Adele's vocals, and the unique production aesthetic he brings to his other hit projects.
Apollo Artist Sessions Vol. I: Fab Dupont & Liza Colby
In this Apollo Artist Session, watch and hear producer/engineer Fab Dupont (Jennifer Lopez, Mark Ronson) as he records Liza Colby's "Open Eyed" exclusively through the first generation Apollo FireWire audio interface with Realtime UAD Processing and a UA 4-710d Four-Channel Tone-Blending Mic Preamp.
Mix Prep and the Top 8 Mistakes You Should Avoid
Learn eight common mistakes made in preparing mixes for mastering with insight from esteemed engineer Pete Doell.
Rik Simpson on Producing Coldplay's Mylo Xyloto
Jay Z, PJ Harvey, Natalie Imbruglia, and Portishead are just some of the acts that Rik Simpson has engineered, produced, or mixed during his career. But the biggest name on Simpson’s résumé is undoubtedly Coldplay. Simpson (with two Grammys as a producer to his name) has worked on three of their albums, including their latest, Mylo Xyloto, which he co-produced, engineered, and helped mix.
Analog Tape Recording Basics
These days, owning an analog tape machine is somewhat akin to driving a classic car, with ongoing maintenance, scarcity of parts, and exotic fuel (analog tape) that's expensive and hard to find. So while a handful of top studios still offer those classic spinning reels (and the engineers to maintain them), the good news for the rest of us is that there are now more convenient ways to achieve that classic magnetic sound.