This is a state-of-the-art digital mastering processor that provides you with a mastering class 11-band equalizer, M/S De-Esser, Mono-Maker and intelligent Bass- and Presence-Shifters, plus extra M/S features, such as Pan for M&S, and Stereo Width Control.
New in v1.09:
3 Modes (M/S mastering, M/S recording, L/R stereo) New and unique “SixPack” Master Section 11-band EQ (TDM, RTAS, VST, AU) incl. Shifter EQs up to 22 kHz
Built-in M/S De-Esser / dynamic EQ (20 Hz - 22 kHz) Precise Correlation- and Balance-Metering Individual Bypass and Link for every feature 4 Presets, Copy/Paste, Undo/Redo for all functions New Auto Solo and Auto Listen modes for TDM & Native Individual PAN for Mid and Side Signals Phase-corrected SOLO-Buttons for L/R/M/S signals Intelligent EQs: Bass-Shift & Presence-Shift Mono-Maker: makes bass frequencies mono only! Extensive metering, individual L/R and M/S LEDs Touch-sensitive Auto Solo: interactive with ICON for solo modes 7-band EQ perfectly matches the center section ICON-EQ Mousewheel control supported for MAC & PC
First Impressions
My first impression of BX Digital is that is a big plug-in in terms of the screen real-estate it takes up. I have two 19-inch LCD screens set at their native resolution of 1280 x 1024 pixels, and the BX Digital plug-in nearly fills one of them. It certainly wouldn't fit on any screen smaller than 1152 x 870 pixels.Although the M&S support is a big selling point of BX Digital, all the versions other than the Scope implementation can also operate as conventional stereo processors thanks to the Modus switch, which determines whether you are in normal LR or M&S modes. A third setting puts BX Digital into M&S mode but disables the input M&S matrix, and is for signals that are already in M&S format.
After the M&S matrix, your signal encounters the BX1 EQ section. This is a five-band parametric EQ, with low and high bands that also offer shelving options. There are separate Input Gain controls for left and right channels, to help you balance out mixes that are not 100 percent centred, while individual 'M' and 'S' Output Gain controls allow you to control output balance and the stereo width of your mix. There are individual Link buttons all over the plug-in that you can choose to use where appropriate. The TDM version also features low- and high-cut filters.
After the EQ comes the BX2 section, which features Bass and Presence Shift controls. These are 'single knob' controls that boost preset frequencies whilst cutting an adjacent band. There is also an M&S de-esser with adjustable EQ and individual Solo button to monitor the side-chain, so you can hear what is being taken out. A Mono Maker control allows you to take low-frequency content out of the 'S' channel, turn it into mono and put it into the 'M' channel, to maintain the overall bass level while narrowing the stereo field in this region of the spectrum only. This feature is designed to assist in vinyl mastering, where large amounts of stereo low-frequency content are very difficult to cut.
Beneath the BX2 section is a graphical display that shows the effects of the frequency adjustments made in both the BX1 and BX2 sections. Unlike other EQ plug-ins, it's not possible to click and drag in the graphical display to change your EQ settings. Brainworx say that "mastering music is all about making cautious changes to your mix and when we tested BX Digital, working in the EQ panel often led us to making pretty big changes very fast. In the end we also wanted to give you the 'feel' of the hardware as authentically as possible, so we decided to make the EQ panel only a visual guide tool for what you do with the knobs of BX Digital." Personally, I feel this is a mistake. I find adjusting knobs with a mouse from the screen to be a counter-intuitive process. In addition, I would have liked the display to show different coloured lines for the BX1 and BX2 sections, so I could see what each section is doing individually, as well as the overall EQ shape.
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