In this article Robbie Dwyer shares his product of 2021, the UBK-1 compressor from Kush Audio. It’s not new but it’s new to him and it’s made quite an impression.
Sometimes there are pieces of software or equipment that words just can’t describe what it does to the sound, and in my case this is exactly what has happened.
My choice piece of software that I have picked this year is by Kush Audio. Kush Audio is one of those companies that has been around for quite a while and the owner Gregory Scott has certainly been around for a long time. You may find him lurking on some of well known forums as UBK.
Kush Audio specialises in making equipment that adds mojo and vibe to the audio whether it’s hardware and software. If you have ever seen any of Greg’s video on YouTube, you’ll know what an engaging individual he is and provides an excellent insight to mixing concepts. For me, he is one of those who are great at communicating and making sense of things that you’re not quite sure of, and he does it in his own style.
From watching his YouTube videos I discovered the plugins that they have on offer. You can either buy these outright or sign up to the subscription service. Now because I didn't know too much about the plugins and what they do. I decided to sign up for a year to see what they are all about, and boy they certainly don’t disappoint.
Kush offers a range of Preamps, EQs, Compressor, Plate Reverb and a variety of Saturation tools. The one I have focused in particular is the UBK-1, which Kush Audio describes as
“The UBK-1 not just a dynamics controller but ‘the ultimate tool to create and shape the movement and groove of a sound”
When it came to sitting down and explaining in words what this plugin does, it really was difficult because you have to hear this plugin to understand what is going on. I think the big clue to this is that there is no manual! You just have ‘feel’ and listen to what it is doing to the audio.
But at its most basic level (if there is such a thing), the UBK-1 is a mixture of saturation, compression and parallel processing, with a touch of sidechain high pass filtering thrown in for good measure.
One thing I certainly have discovered and loved about using this, is the experience of what it does to the sound without worrying about numbers and levels. It forces you to really explore the different tones, characteristics and movement that can be created in a creative way.
So to help you understand why I love this plugin, I have created a video that tries to break down what the UBK-1 does using a few simple parts made up of Drums (Superior Drummer 3), Bass and Guitars. The Bass was DI’d straight into my Apollo Quad with no effects and the Guitars were recorded straight through the Stack output of my Kemper, using a Fender Twin profile, with a Squire Tele.
Have a listen and see what you think and drop a comment