Kush Plug-Ins for Windows

Kush UBK-1 v1.2.4 [PC Only] [Windows x86/x64]

This disk includes:

• Kush UBK-1 v1.2.4
• Kush Pusher v.1.0.9
• Kush Electra DSP v1.0.2
• Kush Clariphonic DSP MKII v1.0.0

"Apart from the herd, outside the norm, intuitive, useful and (of course) killer-sounding." - Recording Magazin

Transformers

If I've got tracks that need more vibe, more color, and less of the fast, sharp transients digital is famous for, Omega Transformer plugins are my weapon of choice. Transformer plugins are extremely cool on their own, giving my VI's, loops, and found sounds the character of carefully chosen, boutique analog circuits. When a Transformer is used on tracks recorded with the Omega Preamp, the effect is quite stunning: a dead-on replication of the original hardware's sonic signature. This is not "sounds kinda like..." this is "sounds exactly like".

Transformer plugins are very simple to use — just turn the Intensity knob and a lovely, distinct flavor unfolds. The resulting Transformed tracks mix easier, sound sweeter, give EQ's more mojo to extract, and feed compressors a rounder, punchier transient to play with. The result is, to my ears, a truly magical Transformation.

Clariphonic DSP mkII

After 3 years of using the original Clariphonic DSP, I'd compiled quite a list of improvements I wanted to make.  So I made them all, and the result is the Clariphonic DSP mkII, modeled from the ground up by me using all new algorithms and filters. To my ears, the mkII sounds markedly smoother than the original, and it's considerably more powerful in use.  It has 3 modes: classic Stereo, Dual Mono so I can eq each side differently, or Mid-Side for advanced sweetening.

I overhauled the GUI as well, it's a little easier on the eye and a lot easier to use.  Between the smoother sound, the 3 operational modes, and the enhanced interface, I'm more proud of this design than any I've done to date, and that's coming from the guy who recently dropped the Tweaker.

Electra DSP

Not everyone knows this, but the hardware Electra is Kush's best-selling product.  I admit, I wasn't expecting that. This plugin is the first one modeled by me; the biggest challenge was the midrange filters, they're proportional-Q (like the old API's, but tighter) so the bandwidth changes with gain.  They're so articulate, I can make drums sound like they were tuned and even mic'd differently.

I know people love brightening things up, and this EQ does that with a buttery smooth precision, but I often use it to reduce highs and make things sound softer, less digital.  This is hands-down my favorite bass eq as well, I turn up 40Hz and get a cinematic weight, clear and tightly defined. Heads up: Electra DSP uses more CPU than a regular EQ.  When you hear it, I believe you'll understand why that is.

UBK-1

I did a master class with Michael Brauer, easily one of the most creative mixers ever to lay hands on a console.  He told me he wanted me to stop thinking of compression as dynamics control and start thinking of it as a form of movement. UBK-1 is most definitely the result of taking that advice.  I have way too much fun with its squishy mojo, the way it aggressively smacks sounds back into place, making them pump and move like living things.

Not every sound needs to be blown up, so I use the multiple parallel paths for subtle warming and sweetening effects.  The headroom knob lets me adjust every stage's intensity at once, making it enjoyable to experiment with all the colors it has to offer... and the UBK-1 has a lot of colors to offer.

Pusher

'It's my modern crunch love bucket, every knob gets turned to find something new.' – Tchad Blake.

I didn't design Pusher to handle any specific task or fix any specific problem.  I just wanted a plugin that let me texturize sounds by adding unexpected energies and overtones, in a GUI that pretty much forces me to improvise and explore. I've gotten Pusher to make drums sound like crushing gravel, a direct guitar to sound like a vintage fuzzbox, and a human voice to sound like an alien spectre.  From classic to bizarre, I keep finding new ways to distort sounds with Pusher.

That said, as often as not I instantiate this plugin just to access the diode limiter and use its distinct snap to get things popping more to the front of the mix while taking less space.  It has the distinctive 'thump' of my favorite hardware diode limiters, and like the UBK-1 it injects a ton of vibe into ordinary sounds.