FATSO^™ Jr. / Sr. Tape Sim. & Compressor

After 1 minute of demoing this on the master bus I was sold....it's as close to real magic as you can get.
Andrew Oye
www.directcomposer.com
www.andrewoye.com

Ok so I admit, ive only tried the demo since I just picked up my first UAD card. But I could tell within 10 min of using this plugin that it really is that good. I slapped this baby on the output bus of a test track I put together a while back and everything really just came together. I compared the mxidown using this plug to some mixdowns using other saturation plugins and the mix with this was by far the best. Took a break and compared again..yep...still easily the best. I know what my next plugin purchase is!

My go-to Plug-In for the snare drum. I just can't resist to make use of the warm and close to analogue sounding fatness on guitar and bass tracks also. Get this little fat maker!

This thing really blows away! I tryed it on different sources(it works great on drums, vocals, even guitars), but using it on master bus. Fatso is probably first high end plufin that could fool me on blind test. I would never guess such warm andn sound can be pulled out of DSP card!
As a producer of dance music I find Fatso greatest new weapon in my arsenal, and missing link from digital production to analog sound.

An absolutely FANTASTIC sounding compressor with THE most pleasing warmth algorithm I have ever heard in a plugin. It adds a very airy, pleasing distortion to the source material, which seems to reside above the original material by adding new harmonics instead of distorting the source frequencies. The result is that you can warm/distort tracks WITHOUT making the bass all muddy. This is one of few solutions to give you clean distortion without making the bass lose definition. An absolutely vital tool, and I use it in combination with my actual EL7 FATSO. It is that good!

Oustanding. Tracks after FATSO are warm, fat and glue with other better in the mix.

fatso jr is great. Often use it on kick drum and bass and also on the master if dosed properly. Everything sounds more analog.

Studer A80 and the SONY APR5003 are two analogue recorders I've used for mastering since the mid 1990's. My beloved APR is now in the garage - couldn't quite bring myself to sell it - ever since the FATSO arrived!

As an integral stage of mastering prior to final limiting or as the final stage of my recording chain the FATSO has given me the same sonic results as I was achieving on tape - without all the alignment, cleaning and tape cost. Add to that immediate recall of favoured settings and it's difficult to imagine returning to tape.

The "Senior" parameters remind me of the Distressors from EL and I must admit it was the added control offered by the model of Dave Derr's own modifications that eventually sold me. I was intending to purchase the UBK FATSO modified by Gregory Scott in NY until my research brought me to the digital arm of Universal Audio.

Cost was also an issue and although I still use analogue hardware in my studio the ability to have 4 simultaneous instances of the UAD FATSO Snr as opposed to a single stereo unit was a significant factor.

The LPF elements of the "Warmth" circuit are wonderful, allowing dynamic roll off of overt top end frequencies that can often be "brittle" and "cold," whilst the ability to independently control the Low Frequency Saturation is an aspect I never had with tape. The FATSO is the first reason I invested in the UAD system - now I have expanded my selection of modelled devices it is clear it shall not to be the last.

Thank you Universal Audio for a beautiful tool in shaping my precious audio.

I just love it!
I do mostly rock/metal productions and the Fatso is the best tool to get a heavy/punchy guitar sound!
Amazing!

I love this thing. It will add presence to your sound and bring a sound buried into mix up front and in your face. Sounds Brilliant. Legacy - http://soundcloud.com/the-legacy-1

Color, saturation, fatness, more color... This is what my drums had missed until I put FATSO on my bus channel. There is no other such quick and quality possibilities in the digital world today to get this warm analog sound.

I've lived with this plugin for about 2 years now, and I well remember the buzz it generated before its release. Since I was unfamiliar with the hardware, my expectations were not quite as high as some others. The name says "tape simulator", but to my ears it sounds much more like a high-quality analog channel, and when I tried it out I flashed back to when I first went all-digital... "Yay! More control! Less noise! But why is it so darned hard to make tracks sit right??" With the Fatso (and this will sound like marketing hype) it is simply easier to MIX. There I said it. Tracks blend better, yet retain their own space. The 1176-style compressor is awesome. The Tranny rocks, and the Warmth control has saved many harsh tracks. With the release of the Studer, some of the things I use the Fatso for have been superceded, but using them together makes for interesting effects. It's a bit heavy on DSP, that's my only quibble.

I don't have an actual Fatso to compare to the plugin version, but if I had a piece of
hardware that sounded as good as this I'd be happy. You can squash with it
or just add a touch for a reel to reel vibe. Very nice indeed.

I use a drum group is not always difficult tak.Nemnogo plugin;). If it were possible, I would have changed this plugin. For example Studer ili Moog Filter .

I use a drum group. A little complicated plugin;).

Just like the real one, and you'll never have to send it to maintenance!

It´s a very strong tool with lots of possibilities to shape your sound. My favourite choice for fatten things up and make them sound aggresive.

This is a great processor for almost anything. Its results often seem very subtle until they are heard "in the mix." After using it on my tracks I can't imagine how lifeless my music used to sound. Tranny and warmth controls give a real essence to guitars, bass, drum overheads and vocals that are difficult to come by unless you are tracking with tape.

This is a tricky little monster! The first time I demoed this I didn't know what I was looking for, didn't read the manual and just glossed over the plug, because I was demoing a bunch of plugs at once. It didn't impress me. But as I got towards the end of my production I realized that a couple of tracks (one a hip hop thing, and the other kind of new age) could really use some warmth since they were produced entirely in the digital realm. So I came back to the Fatso, and this time read the manual.
I also watched a video and saw how many different functions are available here. The compression it gives is very musical to my ears. (Don't know how they manage to compress so well without it sounding warped and squashed, but I know its a Very complicated piece of circuitry.) The LEDs that let you know how far your going with processing are extremely helpful.
Its also very versatile on the master buss. It wasn't a very dense mix, so I was able to saturate just the instruments that needed it and it completely removed the digital harshness.
I put it on the master of a ballad and the whole track came to life. It has a very subtle and enriching quality. If you know what you want and what to listen for this might be the most versatile tool you can use.
Makes me want to go out and buy the hardware too!

Every now and then this plug is my "hero of the day". Especially the warmth function helps out with piercing guitars , cymbals and voices. Compressing and warming up at the same time. Love it!