Track and mix through a stunning emulation of API’s flagship analog console channel
Sculpt with expanded 10-band graphic EQ module and beloved 550L parametric EQs
Punch up signals through the 212L preamp with API’s famed 2520 op-amp and custom transformers
Reshape ambience and create dynamic effects with the 235L Gate/Expander
Tame transients and craft bold textures with API’s legendary 225L compression circuit
Mix with artist presets from Joe Chiccarelli (The Strokes, Morrissey), Ann Mincieli (Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey), David Isaac (Marcus Miller, Eric Clapton) & more
Runs natively on your macOS or Windows computer, or accelerated on Apollo audio interfaces or UAD Accelerators. View full system requirements.
Hear It In Action
Plug-In:
Hear It In Action
Hear It In Action
Plug-In:
Hear It In Action
Plug-In:
Explore the Iconic Color of API’s Flagship Console
From Stevie Wonder's Innervisions to Radiohead's In Rainbows, API desks have shaped hit albums for over 50 years. UA's API Vision Channel Strip plug-in artfully captures API's flagship analog console, giving you classic API tone with switchable EQ modules, expertly modeled output section, plus API’s iconic compression, gating, and filter modules.
Sculpt with Parametric and Graphic EQs
The API Vision Channel Strip Collection lets you choose between the revered 550L 4-band parametric EQ and API's famous 560L series 10-band graphic EQ, so you can quickly shape guitars, add aggression to drums, and push vocals forward with analog punch.
Shape Dynamics with the 225L Compressor
From single tracks to your entire mix, the 225L thrives on any instrument in any genre. And with selectable “New” and “Old” functions, you can get two delicious brands of compression from mild to severe.
Get Creative with API Gate/Expander and Filters
The ultra-fast 235L Noise Gate/Expander lets you easily shape ambience and attack on individual sources like kick drums or bass synth, or clamp down on noisy drum kit rattles and gnarly guitar amp noise. Plus, you can expertly craft your source material while preserving its original tone with Hi and Lo pass filters.
Add Instant Magic with the 212L Preamp with Unison
The API Vision Channel Strip Collection gets even better when you use an Apollo interface. With Unison mic preamp technology, you get all the crucial impedance characteristics and gain stage “sweet spots” of API's iconic 212L preamp. Plus, you get the same features found in API's flagship Vision Console with a Mic/Line switch, dedicated cut filter, and ‑6 dB line pad.
What They Say
I’m using the API Vision Console Emulation across all my channels in LUNA and it sounds phenomenal. The dynamics section is amazing, and the ability to toggle between the 550 and 560 EQs is so good!
Butch Walker
Green Day, Weezer, Taylor Swift
The API Vision is a great hybrid of that vintage API sound, plus all the air and quick transient response you want in a modern console. It captures that unique API flavor and tone, plus dynamics, in a single plug‑in.
Joe Chiccarelli
Jason Mraz, Beck, The Strokes, Morrissey
The API Summing Extension for LUNA really brings your mix forward, giving you that tight and punchy bottom end that we’re all looking for.
I have spent the last 6 months or so building a template in Logic Pro that emulates an SSL console, and an API console. After using both over that period of time, the API version is the one I’ve found I’ve used the most. Both are great and the SSL seems to work best for cleaner type music, but I love both the sound and the workflow of the API stuff.
There’s a good chance my ears aren’t good enough but I don’t really hear much sonic differences between channel strips personally, but they can feel different. I mainly make quite heavy alt rock/ indie music and the API vision feels perfect for that kind of music - it’s kind of got this thickness to it somehow that makes guitars, drums and bass larger than life but fit together nicely - none of that kind of clean digital separation you can get in the box.
But the main reason I love using it is just how fast the workflow makes me, especially the EQ module. Dynamics are really easy to dial in, but I find that’s pretty common across channel strip plugins. Although you can switch to the graphic eq module, I generally try to stick to the earlier version with the set bandwidths - then when it comes to mixing stuff together it is forcing you to make decisions quickly and move on. And it pretty much always sounds good - and for the rare occasions where you absolutely need to get rid of something specific you can either just switch to the graphic eq or use another plugin in the chain, but that’s been very rare in my experience.…
RV
ROCCO V.
Verified Buyer
I recommend this product
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
6 days ago
Great product!
I’m enjoying this great product! It’s easy to use and it brings to my tracks a powerful and nice sound!!! Thumb up!
EA
Eddy A.
Verified Buyer
I recommend this product
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
1 week ago
mind blowing
One of the best plug-in I’ve ever used
RF
Robert F.
Verified Buyer
I recommend this product
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
2 weeks ago
API Channel Strip
A lot of control from Channel Strips - along with that great warm sound making the track sound like the records before digital - gptta love it!!
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Frequently Asked Questions
The API Vision Channel Strip Collection is worth it if you want the sound of API's flagship analog console inside your recording software. It brings together the console's parametric and graphic EQs, the 225L compressor, the 235L Gate/Expander, and the 212L preamp in a single plug-in, so you get a full API channel on every track. Artists have tracked and mixed on API desks for more than 50 years, and this collection puts that same tonal character within reach whether you work through an Apollo interface or entirely on your computer.
The API Vision Channel Strip Collection stands apart because it models the complete signal path of API's flagship Vision console, not just one module. You get switchable EQ modules, the 225L compressor with selectable New and Old modes, a fast 235L Gate/Expander, and the 212L preamp built around API's 2520 op-amp and custom transformers. That combination gives you API's punchy, forward character across EQ, dynamics, and gain staging in one plug-in.
The API Vision Channel Strip Collection is available both ways. You can buy a perpetual license and own it outright, or get it through the UAD Spark Studio subscription, which includes the full library of UAD native plug-ins. Both paths give you the same plug-in, so the choice comes down to whether you prefer to own it or reach the wider catalog through Spark Studio.
Yes, you can try the API Vision Channel Strip Collection with a free 14-day demo. The demo runs the full plug-in with no feature limits, so you can test it in your own sessions before deciding. You need an iLok account to manage the trial license, but an iLok USB key is not required.
The API Vision Channel Strip Collection captures the sound of API's flagship analog console through detailed circuit modeling. It recreates the behavior of API's 2520 op-amp and custom transformers, the components that give API gear its tight low end and open, punchy top. The result carries the same forward, aggressive character engineers have relied on for tracking and mixing across decades of records.
The 225L compressor in the API Vision Channel Strip Collection shapes dynamics on anything from a single track to a full mix. It offers selectable New and Old modes, giving you two flavors of compression that range from gentle leveling to bold, aggressive squeeze. Because it is built on API's compression circuit, it adds density and punch while keeping transients lively.
The API Vision Channel Strip Collection works on both macOS and Windows as a native plug-in. It supports Apple Silicon Macs as well as Intel Macs, so it fits current and older systems. Check UA's system requirements page for the specific operating system versions supported.
The API Vision Channel Strip Collection works in LUNA and other major recording software on Mac and Windows. It loads as a standard plug-in on your tracks and buses, so it fits the workflow you already use. On an Apollo interface, the 212L preamp also integrates with Unison for tracking.
If you have an Apollo or UAD-2 Satellite, no iLok or dongle is needed. For the native version, you need an iLok account to use the API Vision Channel Strip Collection, but you do not need an iLok USB key. Your license can live on your computer, or on an iLok USB key if you want portability between machines. Each license includes three activations.
The API Vision Channel Strip Collection lets you switch between the 550L 4-band parametric EQ and the 560L 10-band graphic EQ, and each suits a different job. Reach for the 550L when you want musical, focused control over specific frequencies on vocals, guitars, or drums. Choose the 560L when you want fast, broad tonal shaping across the whole spectrum, which works well for quick mix moves and adding aggression.
The API Vision Channel Strip Collection works on nearly any source in a mix, from drums and bass to vocals and guitars. Use its EQs to carve tone, the 225L to control dynamics and add punch, and the 235L Gate/Expander to tighten ambience or clean up noisy tracks. Many engineers place it across every channel to give an entire mix a consistent API character.
Unison is UA's preamp technology that lets an Apollo interface physically match the impedance and gain behavior of classic analog hardware. With the API Vision Channel Strip Collection, loading the 212L preamp on a Unison-enabled input shapes Apollo's front end to respond like API's 212L, including its Mic/Line switch, dedicated cut filter, and line pad. This goes deeper than a standard emulation, because the interface input itself takes on the character of the modeled preamp.
Analog console channel strip plug-ins are still worth it because they capture the tonal glue and character that shaped decades of hit records. The API Vision Channel Strip Collection brings that flagship console sound to any modern session without the cost, maintenance, or space of a physical desk. As a native plug-in, it gives you authentic analog character on every track while keeping your workflow entirely in software.
The API Vision Channel Strip Collection comes in a native version that runs on your computer's processor and an Apollo/UAD-2 version that runs on UA hardware DSP. The native version needs no UA hardware, while the Apollo/UAD-2 version offloads processing to an Apollo interface or UAD Accelerator and enables realtime tracking through Unison. When you buy a UAD plug-in that supports both, your purchase includes a license for each version.
Yes, Universal Audio makes an API channel strip plug-in called the API Vision Channel Strip Collection. It models the full channel of API's flagship Vision console, including switchable parametric and graphic EQs, the 225L compressor, the 235L Gate/Expander, and the 212L preamp. It runs natively on Mac and Windows, and adds Unison preamp behavior when used with an Apollo interface.
The 212L preamp in the API Vision Channel Strip Collection adds API's signature punch and forward midrange to any source. It models API's famed 2520 op-amp and custom transformers, the circuit responsible for the tight low end and lively transients API preamps are known for. On an Apollo interface, the 212L works with Unison so you can track through that preamp character in realtime.
