Helios® Type 69 Preamp and EQ Collection
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The hallowed Helios Type 69, totally re-modeled with Unison™ technology.
Whether it was housed at Olympic in London, Musicland in Munich, or in the famed Rolling Stones’ mobile studio, the Helios Type 69 console was at the center of hundreds of iconic albums from rock’s “Golden Age.” From must-own albums by Led Zeppelin, The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, and Pink Floyd, to Bob Marley and the Wailers, David Bowie, Black Sabbath, and AC/DC, the Type 69 delivered fat, unmistakable attitude, with a punchy midrange and an assertive growl.
The all-new Helios Type 69 Preamp and EQ plug-in for UAD-2 hardware and UA Audio Interfaces is a masterful, end-to-end circuit emulation of the rare hardware, going well beyond UA’s original Helios Type 69 plug-in.Track and mix through a stunning emulation of the Helios Type 69 vintage analog channel
Get the full character of the original hardware’s Lustraphone transformer-based mic preamp with Unison™ technology
Sculpt your sources with a colorful inductor-based three-band EQ
Shape guitars, vocals, and more with legendary Type 69 midrange aggression
Tweak low-end character with uniquely voiced low-frequency boost and cut filters
Mix with artist presets from J.J. Blair (Johnny Cash, George Benson), Chris Coady (Yeah Yeah Yeahs, TV on the Radio), Jacquire King (Kings of Leon, Tom Waits), and more
Take a Listen
5-Min UAD Tip
In this video, learn how to shape drums using Helios’ colorful inductor-based three-band EQ and uniquely voiced low-frequency boost and cut filters.
Turn Your DAW into a Classic Helios Type 69 Console
In crafting the new Helios Type 69 plug-in, UA’s team of engineers dug deep into two original Type 69 Olympic-era “golden units,” faithfully modeling their custom-made, feedback-style, 70 dB input section — along with a complete emulation of the coveted Lustraphone mic input transformer. This end-to-end circuit capture is the only "triple amp" preamp on the UAD platform, giving you complex, colorful flavors that will make any source come to life.
Unison Technology for UA Audio Interfaces
Harnessing UA’s groundbreaking Unison technology, the new Helios Type 69 plug-in gives you the hardware’s line/mic preamp impedance, gain stage “sweet spots,” and exact circuit behaviors. Just insert the plug-in into the Console app’s Unison preamp slot to track in real time through a spot-on Helios Type 69 modeled preamp.
Passive, Aggressive EQ
The new Helios Type 69 also offers a ground-up redesign of the original hardware’s famously bold passive three-band EQ. For the first time, the Helios Type 69 plug-in perfectly emulates the rich sounding inductor saturation behaviors that keep radical EQ moves sounding ultra musical, even at extreme settings.
The Low End Theory
With four uniquely voiced low frequency bell-shape boost filters, the Helios Type 69 Preamp and EQ Collection imparts the same solid and wide bass foundation found on seminal rock, pop, and reggae recordings. You can also clean up sources like overheads and room mics by switching the Bass band into a fixed 50 Hz low cut mode, with stepped gain control.
Add Tough Type 69 Attitude with any UAD Hardware
Of course, the Helios Type 69 Preamp and EQ Collection isn’t just for UA Audio Interface owners. UAD hardware owners can use the Collection on any mix, for bold, intense colors, without going outside the box. With the Helios Type 69 complete console channel emulation, plus the included DSP-lite Helios Type 69 Legacy plug-in, you can craft your projects with the same bold flavor found on the biggest records ever made.
“Helios is responsible for many of the best sounding albums of the 70s. Its mic preamp and EQ are bright, open, and aggressive sounding without being harsh. I love using it on snare drums and acoustic guitars.”
– Joe Chiccarelli (Jason Mraz, Beck, The Strokes, Morrissey)
“The new Helios Type 69 plug-in is killer. It captures the colorfully unique and musical EQ, and Unison technology emulates all the crunchy cool of the mic pre.”
– Jacquire King (James Bay, Kings of Leon, Tom Waits)
“The UAD Helios Type 69 brings new and exciting texture to any source. I love using the Mic mode to crunch guitars. Just fabulous! ”
– Vance Powell Jack White, The Dead Weather, The RaconteursWatch The Reviews
Customer Reviews
b. cheung
September 27, 2023
Expect the greatness out of the Helios!
Saw a Helious console on the internet and i loved the way it looked and thought it sounded good over the net so i decided ima give this preamp a try and it sounds amazing!...
Read MoreM. cortelazzo
July 22, 2023
Perfect for my voice
I was about to buy an hardware preamp but I decided to test some of the unison pre. When I came to Helios I've had no doubt that this was what I was searching . The eq section is...
Read MoreG. Merino
July 12, 2023
Sweeeet!!
This plugin sounds amazing . It became one of my favorites quickly. Easy to use, very friendly GUI, simple and effective. The preamp has a nice warm character, and the eq section is round...
Read MoreJ. Mateo
June 28, 2023
Close to the hardware and so sweet on guitars
I love this thing on guitars and bass!
Read MoreF. Trentini
June 17, 2023
Very close to the hardware
I'm the owner of a Helios_1R (a 19" dual rack version of the "Type 69") and I must say that this plug-in sounds...
Read More -
Key Features
Complete end-to-end circuit emulation of the original Helios "Olympic"-era Type 69 channel design
Coveted Lustraphone mic input transformer and famously colorful passive inductor based EQ
Feedback-style 70 dB preamp and Unison technology with mic, line, and Hi-Z inputs
High Shelf, Mid Bell, and Bass Bell/Shelf EQ with bypass for DSP savings
Includes Helios Type 69 Legacy EQ plug-in for DSP savings
Requires a UAD DSP Accelerator Card or UA Audio Interface available from authorized dealers worldwide
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Customer Reviews
Helios Type 69 Preamp and EQ Collection
J. SANMARTI
Great!!
Fantastic preamp!! It really sounds awesome!!
b. cheung
Expect the greatness out of the Helios!
Saw a Helious console on the internet and i loved the way it looked and thought it sounded good over the net so i decided ima give this preamp a try and it sounds amazing!
M. cortelazzo
Perfect for my voice
I was about to buy an hardware preamp but I decided to test some of the unison pre. When I came to Helios I've had no doubt that this was what I was searching . The eq section is fantastic, I use it with my sm7b and Iove it
G. Merino
Sweeeet!!
This plugin sounds amazing . It became one of my favorites quickly.
Easy to use, very friendly GUI, simple and effective.
The preamp has a nice warm character, and the eq section is round and sweet, with very “musical” curves.
J. Mateo
Close to the hardware and so sweet on guitars
I love this thing on guitars and bass!
T. Kaminski
No VST3 - No Cubase on M1 Mac
VST3 is actually standard these days. Not with these plugins. Unfortunately, Universal Audio has no interest in bringing UA-Powered VST 3 plug-ins to the market. Marketing is apparently doing everything to hide this thing. And that's how I fell into the trap. The forum shows: I'm not the only one. For Cubase on a recent Mac: Expensive and useless. Thank you Universal Audio!
F. Trentini
Very close to the hardware
I'm the owner of a Helios_1R (a 19" dual rack version of the "Type 69") and I must say that this plug-in sounds pretty darn close to the real thing. Well done.
T. MADDEN
Clean eq
Very tight bands!!! Lovely and warm
C. Samayoa
Big sound
Big sound !..
S. Blecher
Super Vorverstärker
Eigentlich ist jeder Vorverstärker (unision) von UA einfach nur richtig gut. Ob es der V76 oder Neve oder der Helios ist. Jeder ist für sein Zweck richtig gut.
J. Srilaam
Every good
I love Uad
m. kim
it's awesome
good quality i like it
A. Lee
Lovely
Very lovely sound to this, will use with vocals and acoustic guitar tracking
M. Alexandru-George
Very good pre
Very good unison preamp <3
T. Chianti
Helios 69 Pre
Just placing it in the signal chain helps to clear up vocals.
V. Ruzicic
Nice!
so much fun experimenting and comparing with other Unisons...
J. Mono
Cool
Cool stuff
.
My go to Unison Pre for Tlm 103
Ive come to own every unison pre over the years and this on my unison slot followed by slight eq from MDW5 and a distressor give the most robust and silky tone to my tlm103 that I've heard up until this point out of my twin x. I liked the voxbox but that pre makes my tlm sound more squeezed by comparison. Check it out, definitely unique in what it offers amongst the other available channel strips
Z. Abresch
Not entirely useful without a lot of gain
A subdued plugin to put it mildly. Works as a pre-amp but breaks up way too early, and doesn't have much output without trim. It doesn't sound good when breaking up either. The saving grace is the EQ is actually pretty useful with some really nice top-end shine.
J. Dollard
Helios vintage
Incredible sound… Never working with the original. I’m sure this is quite similar excellent buy.
