Grab Universal Audio’s dbx 160 VCA Compressor Plugin For $39

Universal Audio offers the dbx 160 Compressor / Limiter ($299 value) compressor plugin for only $39 until September 18th. That’s a massive 86% discount, and it’s available for a limited time.

I’ll admit I’m not a huge fan of VCA compressors. I’ve heard a lot of praise for using them on drums, but I typically run Presswerk or Pro-C for most material.

However, I know Universal Audio has some top-quality products, so the opportunity to look at one of their dynamics processors piqued my interest.

The dbx 160 Compressor / Limiter likely needs no introduction.

It is a set-it-and-forget VCA compressor/limiter. You’ve got three major controls at hand, which leaves you with very little room for user error.

The threshold functions slightly differently than your typical compressor, with a below and above indicator for the audio signal. You use this in conjunction with the compression knob to actually set the amount of dynamics processing you want to apply to a signal.

You can think of the compression knob as the ratio selector, which easily goes from mild and gentle ratios to hard limiting.

The attack and release stages of the compression envelope are set to be program-dependent. I found it particularly grabby, which suited me just fine for snares and toms.

It also fared well with keys and guitar lines, provided there was ample pick attack. I tried it on vocals and pads and promptly went back to Presswerk.

This is a spiky and fast compressor, at least to my ears. I can see why it has such praise when used with percussive instruments.

I’ll admit I have a little more intrigue directed toward the API 2500 or 1176 by UAD. However, if you’re after a simple compressor that sounds great on certain materials, then the dbx 160 might be the one for you.

From now until the 18th of September, you can grab it on sale at Plugin Boutique for $39.99. If you prefer to go through official channels, you can use code DBX50 at checkout to get it directly to your Universal Audio account.

dbx 160 runs on Windows and Mac computers. Supported plugin formats are VST3, AU, and AAX. It is Apple Silicon native. However, I don’t know if this also applies to the AAX plugin format.

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Get the deal: dbx 160 Compressor / Limiter ($39 until September 18th)

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