Capitol Chambers
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A startling recreation of the world's finest echo chambers.
Located below the iconic Capitol Tower in Los Angeles, Capitol Studios is arguably the most recognized studio in the world — and much of its legend can be traced to its hallowed, subterranean echo chambers. From Ray Charles to Frank Sinatra, Beck to Muse, these underground spaces continue to provide gorgeous hi-fi ambience that is simply unmatched.
Now, after years of R&D and close collaboration with Capitol Studios — including unprecedented access to four legendary echo chambers 30-feet beneath the studio — Universal Audio proudly presents the Capitol Chambers plug-in, a startling end-to-end recreation of the most popular echo chambers ever created, exclusively for UAD hardware and UA Audio Interfaces.Now You Can:
Record and mix with the world's only authentic plug-in emulation of Capitol Studios' prized underground echo chambers
Add the unmistakably dense, natural reverberation to vocals or drums — far beyond plate, digital, or simple convolution reverb
Create new sounds by repositioning Capitol Chambers' microphones using UA's Dynamic Room Modeling
Audition current and historical chamber configurations, plus new setups curated by Capitol's Steve Genewick
Harness the chamber's entire signal chain including amplifiers, speakers, custom preamps, and mics
Quickly pull up presets from legendary Grammy-winning engineers Al Schmitt (Ray Charles, Steely Dan), Darrell Thorp (Beck, Radiohead), Frank Filipetti (Madonna, Paul McCartney) and more
Take a Listen
Classic Echo Chambers Designed by Les Paul
Prized for their natural sound and dense ambience, acoustic echo chambers became a creative tool for pioneering, forward-thinking engineers by the mid 1940s — most notably UA founder Bill Putnam Sr. and the great Les Paul, the genius behind the Capitol chambers designs. Built from reinforced concrete and tuned using sloped ceilings and a trapezoidal shape, Paul's designs deliver a smooth, balanced decay and a completely natural room tone that can't be achieved in any other way.
Capturing Iconic Echo
In creating this amazing plug-in, UA sourced historic technical diagrams from the early '60s to precisely recreate microphone/speaker setups inside of Capitol's most coveted chambers, including the vintage omnidirectional Altec 21D mics and custom speaker/horn configurations, in their original hit-making positions. Current "modern" configurations dating from the late '80s were also captured, using the omnidirectional Shure SM80s, while new and creative mic/speaker combos were devised by Capitol's resident chamber expert, Steve Genewick.
Unprecedented Ambience Control
Capitol Chambers' Position slider gives you next-level control over spatial and time response, allowing you to reposition the chamber mics — no assistant engineer required. From the maximum distance stock positions, to direct speaker-to-microphone effects and proximity characteristics, the Capitol Chambers plug-in can subtly thicken vocals or drums, or soak strings with the most natural, complex sounding reverb ever recorded.
Powered by UA's Dynamic Room Modeling
Harnessing the same technology as the award-winning Ocean Way Studios plug-in, Capitol Chambers uses UA’s proprietary Dynamic Room Modeling technology, an exclusive combination of physical modeling and advanced measurement techniques. Whereas standard convolution reverbs only provide a sonic snapshot, Dynamic Room Modeling gives the Capitol Chambers plug-in nearly infinite ambient possibilities.
Deeper Still
Beyond a vintage recreation, the Capitol Chambers plug-in offers creative features for modern DAW workflows like Pre Delay, Dry/Wet mix, and Decay controls. A sweepable 80 to 750 Hz filter lets you minimize muddy bass going into the chamber, while Bass, Treble, and proportional Q Mid band lets you perfectly season the chamber's lush ambience. In addition, the Width control allows you to narrow the chamber's stereo field, for easily pinpointing a vocal or instrument in the mix. Finally, Decay lets you quickly shorten Capitol Chambers' natural reverb time, offering more scenarios to harness the most famous echo chambers ever made.
An All-Star Collection of Artist Presets
The Capitol Chamber's plug-in features carefully crafted presets from a stunning roster of Grammy-winning engineers and producers. From recording industry icon Al Schmitt (Ray Charles, Steely Dan) to Mark Linett (The Beach Boys, Los Lobos) and Frank Filipetti (Madonna, Paul McCartney), Darrell Thorp (Beck, Radiohead), and more, you can experiment using the same settings that professionals who know every nook and cranny of Capitol's famous chambers use every day.
Capitol and the Capitol logos are trademarks of Capitol Records, LLC, registered in the United States, European Union, and other jurisdictions, and are used under license.
"A Rose" by Jamie Lidell
Written and recorded exclusively to showcase the UAD Capitol Chambers Reverb plug‑in.
“I’ve been using the chambers at Capitol Studios for nearly 25 years, now I finally get to take them with me when I work outside of Capitol.”
– Steve Genewick (Ray Charles, Queen, Frank Sinatra Jr.)
“While tracking at Capitol Studios, I always capture the chambers. Now I can have same sound at my fingertips anytime. This is my new use‑on‑everything reverb. ”
– Darrell Thorp (Beck, Radiohead, Charlotte Gainsbourg)
“Some of the best echo chambers in the world are now just a click away. The interface is simple and self explanatory — the sounds are extraordinary.”
– Mark Needham (The Killers, Neon Trees, P!nk)
“With the Capitol Chambers plug-in, UA has created a truly flexible, physical space. Let that sink in for a second…”
– John Paterno (Robbie Williams, Badly Drawn Boy, Bonnie Raitt)
“The UAD Capitol Chambers plug-in is amazing. It has so much depth, character, and authenticity. It sounds just like you're there.”
– Chris Dugan (Green Day, Iggy Pop, U2)
“The UAD Capitol Chambers plug-in is meticulously crafted, complete with various mics and mic placements. It’s a remarkable piece of the past — accurate and powerfully versatile.”
– Richard Chycki (Rush, Aerosmith, Dream Theater)Customer Reviews
w. valentine
November 12, 2019
Must have
Excellent reverb plug in ! Vintage extravaganza!!!
Read MoreC. Chafin
November 11, 2019
The echo chamber that changed my life
When I was a kid, my Dad brought home an album that changed my life. It was a jazz guitar record by the legendary session player Howard Roberts. I was mesmerized by not only by Howard's...
Read MoreM. Reeves
November 11, 2019
Love it !
One of the best reverbs-if not the best. Great for everything.
Read More.
November 8, 2019
20 stars
Yes, this is my 4th review. Reading through the comments I saw some people giving this plugin one star. One guy said it’s like a stock reverb in his daw. I just want to make it clear that...
Read More -
Key Features
Exclusive echo chamber emulation licensed and endorsed by Capitol Studios
The world's best-sounding and most in-demand echo chambers, designed by Les Paul
Gorgeously natural, uniquely dense chamber ambience, for reverb buses or individual sources
Choose from Capitol’s most popular chambers (2,4,6,7) with varying mic/speaker configurations representing modern to historical setups
Captures amplifier, speaker, custom preamp, and microphone chain for unprecedented realism
Fine tune ideal placement with continuously adjustable microphone positioning using UA's Dynamic Room Modeling
Other features include adjustable Decay, Pre Delay, sweepable cut filter, three-band EQ, Dry/Wet mix, and Width
Artist presets from Grammy-winning engineers Al Schmitt (Ray Charles, Steely Dan), Darrell Thorp (Beck, Radiohead), Frank Filipetti (Madonna, Paul McCartney), and more
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Customer Reviews
Capitol Chambers
n. tajima
すばらしい
とても気に入った
w. valentine
Must have
Excellent reverb plug in ! Vintage extravaganza!!!
C. Chafin
The echo chamber that changed my life
When I was a kid, my Dad brought home an album that changed my life. It was a jazz guitar record by the legendary session player Howard Roberts. I was mesmerized by not only by Howard's fantastic guitar technique, but the amazing sound of the record. The liner notes acknowledged it was recorded in 1964 in Capital Records studio A and whenever I here those chambers, I know that sound and they totally capture my imagination. I went on to became a full-time session player myself, a producer, studio owner (in Your Ear Studios in Richmond,VA.) and composer. Being a composer, I've always longed to record a string section at Capital and use those chambers. So when UAD sent me the promo email on this plugin, there was zero delay on placing the order. All I can say is WOW, how amazing it is to hear that iconic reverb in my control room! It just makes my day every time I hear this verb. Thanks so very much for making this available. My life is changed once again.
M. Reeves
Love it !
One of the best reverbs-if not the best. Great for everything.
N. Carver
Amazing
Simply amazing on a drum room mic or vocal
UAD User
20 stars
Yes, this is my 4th review. Reading through the comments I saw some people giving this plugin one star. One guy said it’s like a stock reverb in his daw. I just want to make it clear that these reviews are the furthest thing from true. People this is thing does not sound like an emulation. It sounds like a real space. It is the best modeled reverb in the history of reverb plugins.
S. Vazquez
Fantastic
Really fantastic sounding reverb. Brings that vintage color instantly. I am so glad I bought it.
F. Wise
Overpriced and very similar to lots of other reverbs
If you already have lots of reverb plugs, this probably would just be another one you use sparingly as it's fine but not really noticeably a game-changer. It sounds a lot like the built-in reverb in Cakewalk "Rematrix" which is free. I would buy this for maybe $50 as a cool looking plug that makes you feel like maybe there is a famous crooner in the next room, maybe...
UAD User
A new favorite for tail and glow applications
This reverb is by far the most satisfying plugin reverb I've used for "tail" and "glow" applications. It's so easy to get a satisfying result that sits well in the track and speaks when you want it to. Just a gorgeous sound from the very first instantiation...
E. VANDENBERGE
;o(
;o( very expensive for only that.....
R. Campo
Amazing!!!!!
Beutifully realistic and lush. I highly recommend it!!!
L. Iacono
The Absolute Finest Reverb available
The moment you begin using this reverb, you'll realize how all of the other reverbs sound like digital algorithms. Capitol Chambers is a revelation. It takes a talented and experienced team of engineers to first realize how valuable "the sound" is and then turn it into reality for all of us to use. Thank you to all who made this happen and to Capitol Studios for inventing it and allowing it to be used publicly. This is much more than an emulation.
T. Lockett
It's a natural
These chambers sound so good, I just had to get them, I now use them quite a lot especially acoustic instruments, they sound so natural, I have worked at Capitol enough times to know that these sound very close to the real rooms, great job, UA.
R. Mohammed
Superb for vocals
Very thick (even dense) reverb which sounds great on vocals and lead guitar. The quality difference over other reverb plugins is serious.
s. hunter
The BEST!
A simple review...this Capitol Chambers reverb is the most beautiful, lush, sweet reverb I've ever heard. It's my go-to reverb from now on. ---steve
f. trias valls
Umami Chambers !!
El plugin de UAD que mes m’agrada ,l’he provat de maneres molt diferents i m’encanta en totes elles,no hem deixa de sorprendre.La millor reverb que he provat fins al moment.
Felicitats Universal Audio.P. Cheeseman
Capitol Chambers
Love this collection of chambers. The ability to tune the room and different microphone choices is just brilliant
J. Leitch
Absolutely Beautiful!!!
Other producers I talk to sometimes say that Universal Audio plug-ins tend to be a bit "pricey". Well....you get what you pay for! Well done and then some!
C. Turbin
Dare I say better than the real thing?
I recently was at Capitol Studios and printed some elements to various different chambers. Later I had to re-comp some of the elements that I’d printed and so the chamber no longer reflected the new comp. I got this chambers plugin to try and emulate the original and was blown away with how great they sounded to the modeled chambers they represent. In fact, the plugin seemed more hi-fi/cleaner in most cases, and had a lower noise floor which, worked better in the songs I’d been working on. Bravo.
A. Finale
My new favorite reverb, simply awesome!
Hard to not use this on everything, it's that good!
