New Music Gear Monday: SSL G3 MultiBusComp Plugin

The sound of so much of modern music can be contributed to one processor – the famous SSL Buss Compressor. Starting first as a standard feature on the company’s consoles to emulate the sound of the radio compression, the In/Out button of the processor soon became known as the “Good Button” because it did indeed make everything sound better thanks to the incredible glue (I hate that word, but not much else applies) it imparted to the mix. The various versions of the G Buss Compression plugin came close enough that it became a staple on most mixer’s mix buss. If you thought that nothing could top it, maybe SSL just did with their mulitband version – the G3 MultiBusComp plugin.

As its name implies G3 MultiBusComp is a 3 band G series buss compressor, but with some very cool new features. If you’ve used a standard SSL buss compressor plugin before, this will seem familiar since it’s laid out the same with large Threshold and Make-Up controls, and smaller Ratio, Attack and Release controls for each band.

It’s Familiar, But More

Each band has input and output meters, bypass and audition switches, but you also have the ability to insert and adjust a Drive harmonic control circuit modeled after the company’s 4K console for adding warmth and character. Finally, there’s an External Sidechain button (which we’ll get to in a second) and a Mix control.

Below the Drive and Mix controls is a display which will show you the how each band is responding, or it can show the Sidechain frequency response when the External Sidechain is inserted. This provides a series of Equalizers to use so you can zero in on the exact frequencies that you want to trigger each band from an external source.

You also have the ability to change the crossover frequencies of the bands, and the bands are linkable if you want more control over a certain frequency range.

One of the cooler features of the plugin is the reciprocal adjustments that can be made. For instance, if you hold down the shift key while decreasing the Threshold control of a band, the Make-Up gain will correspondingly increase to make up for the level loss.

The SSL G3 MultiBusComp plugin retails for $199 for a perpetual license, although you can also subscribe to the company’s Complete plugin package for $14.99 per month. There’s also a free 30 trial where you can try the other SSL plugins as well. Yes, it’s available for all plugin platforms.

You can find out more info here, or watch the tutorial video below.

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