Apollo
Native
sale
API Vision Channel Strip Collection
Explore the iconic color of API’s flagship analog console.
- 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
Explore the Iconic Color of API’s Flagship Console
What They Say
Butch Walker
Green Day, Weezer, Taylor Swift
Joe Chiccarelli
Jason Mraz, Beck, The Strokes, Morrissey
Jeff Balding
Taylor Swift, The Eagles, Florida Georgia Line
Reviews
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 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.
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.