Slate Digital releases FG-X Virtual Mastering Processor

The past decade has been flooded with debate about what to do about the Loudness Wars. We've all been at the mercy of this epidemic, and the fatiguing, squashed, lifeless music that is its result. Even the general public is becoming aware of the problem.

Lets first agree on one thing: There is a general standard of loudness in modern music that is not going away. So at some point, if you are a working pro who produces music, you have to make it louder for the final medium.

The standard tool to make things louder has been the digital peak limiter. It seems that almost every year, dsp companies release another one of these beasts.. which to my ears have been the leading cause of the degrading sound of music. The reason is not because they have not been designed well, or have poor code. No, its my opinion that the process is not fit for the amount of level that engineers now add to mixes.

Fabrice Gabriel and I sat down in 2008 and realized that there had to be a solution.

After months of trying out ideas, and years of improving them, we came up with a very complex process called ITP, or "Intelligent Transient Preservation". This process analyzes each transient in the mix and optimizes an specific algorithm to "absorb" it in the most transparent fashion. So a snare drum peak gets treated differently then a kick drum peak. The result is a means of loudness enhancement that is extremely transparent, and that does not affect the balances of the mix.

The FG-X dynamics rack also consists of a world class mixbuss compressor/leveler that is based on both VCA and Optical topologies. It can add the ultimate final glue and punch to your mix, without making it sound altered or colored.

The FG-Level also includes functions to control the low end and upper midrange punch, as well as offering a unique control called "Dynamic Perception", which allows you to simulate more dynamics and movement in the final master.

A detailed set of metering tools completes this package, allowing you to have control over the final levels via your own customized preferences.

The feedback from our beta users has been nothing short of phenomenal, with power users like Sterling Sound's Dave McNair quoting "The FG-X is amazing in its clarity and openness, even at today's modern levels it preserves the sound of the mix”.

You can try the FG-X right now by visiting the SLATE DIGITAL WEBSITE and going to the FG-X product page under "demo". You can purchase the FG-X in the Slate Digital webshop and very soon at retailers worldwide.

Steven Slate