Ocean Way Studios
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Welcome to Ocean Way Studios — the world’s first dynamic room modeling plug‑in.
Developed by Universal Audio and Allen Sides, the Ocean Way Studios plug-in for UAD-2 hardware and Apollo interfaces rewrites the book on what’s possible with acoustic space emulation.
By combining elements of room, microphone, and source modeling, Ocean Way Studios moves far beyond standard impulse response players and reverbs — giving you an authentic replication of one of the world’s most famous recording studios.Record live or mix through Ocean Way Recording’s legendary Studio A and Studio B
Use “best of the best” vintage microphones from Allen Sides’ world-renowned collection
Choose among Allen Sides’ favorite room positions with 8 source types, for stunningly accurate sound dispersion behaviors
Position, blend, and process three mic pairs (Near / Mid / Far) in real time
Retain mic bleed, proximity, and other naturally occurring behaviors for realism far beyond other reverb/ambience plug-ins
Re-mic loops and soft synths to bring them to life
Take a Listen
Learn how to Add Ambience to Close-Miked Drums
Grammy-winning engineer Vance Powell (Jack White, The Dead Weather) and the Ocean Way Studios and the Neve 33609 Compressor plug‑ins.
The Legendary Rooms of Ocean Way
From the opening of Bill Putnam’s United Recording in 1957, to the annexing of neighboring Western Studio in 1961, to their reinvention as Ocean Way Recording under Allen Sides — the famed “Studio A” and “Studio B” at Ocean Way Studios have shaped the sound of countless classic records. From Ray Charles and the Beach Boys, to the Rolling Stones, and Radiohead, music creators have sought out the sound of these beautifully balanced rooms for more than five decades.
Dynamic Room Modeling
Ocean Way Studios reinvents ambience processing with UA’s proprietary Dynamic Room Modeling technology, an exclusive combination of signal processing and advanced measurement techniques. Whereas standard convolution reverbs only provide a sonic snapshot, Dynamic Room Modeling offers the full spectrum of a studio’s ambience possibilities. Specifically, Dynamic Room Modeling provides the unique dispersion properties of various sources, as recorded through various vintage microphones that can be positioned in each room — in real time — via a simple click-and-drag interface. This technology gives the Ocean Way Studios plug-in a shocking level of sonic realism.
An Unrivaled Microphone Collection Under Your Control
With virtual access to $250,000 of hand-picked, vintage microphones, Ocean Way’s microphone setups and Distance controls are the centerpiece of the plug-in. The setups capture the ideal microphone selections and placements for each room and source type.
Up to three vintage microphones pairs (Near, Mid, Far) are available in each setup, allowing for creative sonic blending. Click-and-drag the microphones to position them in the room, then EQ and filter their sound as desired — complete with mic bleed and proximity effects.
Transform Tones With Reverb and Re-Mic Modes
Ocean Way Studios offers two modes of operation: Reverb mode, using send/return paths to mix wet and dry signals; or Re-Mic mode, to fully immerse the original source audio within Ocean Way’s rooms. Re-Mic mode is by nature “fully wet,” and can be used to entirely replace your original room and microphone sounds with the fabled sound of Ocean Way.
“Ocean Way Studios instantly adds incredible depth, size, width, and vibe to your music. It's like owning a re-amp box for one of the best sounding studios in the world.”
– Jeff Juliano (John Mayer, Shinedown, Train)
“The Ocean Way Studios plug-in sounds so good and has the right amount of flexibility. The workflow mimics the actual choices at the studio very nicely…it sounds authentic and rich — like those rooms with those mics.”
– Joey Waronker (Atoms for Peace, Beck, Other Lives)
“The Ocean Way Studios plug-in lets me mix with a new sense of space, adding a whole new level of depth to my mixes.”
– Andrew Dawson (Jay-Z, Fun.)
“Every session I've done at Ocean Way has been an unparalleled experience with amazing results. The plug-in offers an incredible opportunity to realistically add those sonics to any musical project with stunning realism.”
– Richard Chycki (Rush, Aerosmith, Dream Theater)
“It’s great to finally be able to add a real room vibe to sounds that otherwise didn't have one. The Ocean Way plug-in helps bring a mix together with depth and space.”
– Ryan Hewitt (Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Avett Brothers)
“I assumed the UAD Ocean Way Studios was a reverb, but it's way more than that. I've been down the rabbit hole since I installed it and I'm not ready to come out yet.”
– Andrew Scheps (Adele, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Duke Spirit)
“Hearing drums through Ocean Way Studios plug-in is like being transported to Ocean Way! The true sound of Studio A or Studio B applied to anything I want.”
– Chris Dugan (Green Day, Iggy Pop, U2)
“The Ocean Way Studios plug-in allows me to get the tone of two great Bill Putnam rooms, with the ability to customize the mic choices and distance options. It’s the next best thing to actually being there.”
– John Paterno (Robbie Williams, Badly Drawn Boy, Bonnie Raitt)Watch The Reviews
5-Minute UAD Tips
Ocean Way Studios plug-in
Customer Reviews
A. Whitehouse
October 4, 2020
Excellent
Transformed an acoustic guitar recording on first use. Really looking forward to making use of this plugin...
Read MoreA. Brown
September 29, 2020
Ocean Way Studios
This Plugin is probably 1 of my Top Plugins ! Enjoying every Moments , The things I can do with it is Mind Blowing . Plz Get this one and you will be Amazed.
Read Morel. Liau-Hing
September 28, 2020
A recording studio in the palm of your hand
I had hoped that someone would take the risk in doing something like this ... it really is a study in the palm of your literal hand....
Read MoreC. Culbreth
September 16, 2020
Loving this on DI'd acoustic tracks
DIs are a necessary 'evil' in the world but I really can't stand how they sound recorded. I've been known resort to all kinds of madness to get them to sound more natural; especially in a...
Read MoreS. Shama
September 15, 2020
Best thing to happen to drum samples!
Love that I get to use these spaces for my personal recordings. Amazingly useful and beautiful sounding on everything I've tried so far.
Read MoreC. Velandia
September 14, 2020
great plugin!
it really is a great plugin. Can add a tad of magic to a full mix
Read More -
Key Features
Breakthrough acoustic emulations of Ocean Way Recording’s legendary Studio A and Studio B
Dynamic Room Modeling combines room, microphone, and source models for unprecedented realism
Incorporates sonic profiles of vintage microphones from Allen Side’s world-renowned collection
Includes mic bleed and mic proximity effects for stunning accuracy
Choose from eight instrument / vocal source types with unique dispersion patterns
Position and blend between three vintage mic pairs (Near / Mid / Far) in real time
Use in “Reverb” mode, mixing wet and dry signal; or “Re-Mic” mode, replacing your original room and mic sounds altogether
Preset mic selections, placements and creative direction by Ocean Way’s Allen Sides
Requires UAD-2 DSP Accelerator Card or Apollo Interface, available from authorized dealers worldwide
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Customer Reviews
Ocean Way Studios
A. Whitehouse
Excellent
Transformed an acoustic guitar recording on first use. Really looking forward to making use of this plugin...
A. Brown
Ocean Way Studios
This Plugin is probably 1 of my Top Plugins ! Enjoying every Moments , The things I can do with it is Mind Blowing . Plz Get this one and you will be Amazed.
l. Liau-Hing
A recording studio in the palm of your hand
I had hoped that someone would take the risk in doing something like this ... it really is a study in the palm of your literal hand.
C. Culbreth
Loving this on DI'd acoustic tracks
DIs are a necessary 'evil' in the world but I really can't stand how they sound recorded. I've been known resort to all kinds of madness to get them to sound more natural; especially in a really sparse arrangement. Ocean Way Studios has made it MUCH easier to get more natural sounding and organic acoustic sounds from a DI'd track. Brilliant.
S. Shama
Best thing to happen to drum samples!
Love that I get to use these spaces for my personal recordings. Amazingly useful and beautiful sounding on everything I've tried so far.
C. Velandia
great plugin!
it really is a great plugin. Can add a tad of magic to a full mix
K. Houghton
A great new waY to augment your workflow !
I really enjoy learning how to use this app
It’s adding new variations to my sonic pallet!A. URITESCU
stuning
absolutely best room plugin ever !!
M. Malinski
This plugin changed my mixes
I think the best game changer in digital world of mixing.
It can completely change the sound of production if you need it.
Good to have it in arsenal.
Thank youG. Jennings
great but a few issues
This is a great sounding plugin especially for DI guitars or elements that sound too in the box and need some life. But it doesn't work on everything and it is a bit of a one trick pony. My main issue is that the presets suck. Can we get some artist presets? thank you!
E. Maccoppi
It helps a lot...
don't have a drum room? it has the best.
C. Pantozzi
its ok
nothing special
C. Pantozzi
its ok
nothing special
A. Vasiliev
Ocean Way Studios - Plush plugin...
Plush plugin, living space,
musical instruments breathed and found their place in the mix, in some variants they didn't even have to use EQ and compression,
very satisfied, thank you ...A. Vasiliev
Ocean Way Studios - Plush plugin...
Plush plugin, living space,
musical instruments breathed and found their place in the mix, in some variants they didn't even have to use EQ and compression,
very satisfied, thank you ...J. Roesli
Amazing plug-in!
Take any dry track and run it through this plug-in to get a very close acoustic environment like being in one of this studio's famous tracking rooms. Lots of options for rooms, instruments, microphones and microphone placement.
F. Juan
The Best Room Emulation Ever!
It is simply the best. It is awesome the way you can change a DI guitar track with this plugin. Definitely a must have. I am sure I will use it in every mix.
t. phelan
My first week using oceanway UAD plug in.
I run a small full service studio, but have a marginally passable live room for tracking drums. I actually leave a door open to a larger room where I run a pair of room mics. With enough processing and wizardry, I get passable room sounds to add to the dry drum kit sound. This plug in replaced that process in a snap. It does give a definite sense of dimension and of YOUR drum sound in THAT space. Almost like you can close your eyes and get a sense you're in that room. The mic choices and three choices of mic positions are nice touches. Definitly a useful and quality plug.
T. Ruiz
Amazing big natural room modeling
It took a while for me to pull the trigger on this nice plugin, I didn't think it was going to make that much of a difference than a regular Reverb etc, but I was totally wrong, it does sound like if my drums where recorded in such a big nice room as the Ocean Way Studios, I didn't put 5 stars on it just because it is quite DSP hungry, but I love it all the way.
B. Bonner
Bloom Life Into Your Room
A great sounding reverb. I don't have access to naturally nice sounding rooms so I try to record as dry as possible and use ocean way to give life to my recordings with great results. Dialing in Ocean Way blooms natural sounding reverb that makes it seem like I recorded in a much nice space.
Mic positioning is not movable so you can only get predefined sweet spots. They're probably the tried and true best placements of Ocean Way but having the flexibility to move the mic placement for artistic aesthetics would make it a 5 star plugin.
