Lindell 354E Compressor

Overview

The Lindell 354E is a multiband model of the most famous vintage diode bridge compressor, the Neve 2254E, precisely replicating its distinctive behavior and rich sonic character in each of its three bands. But in practical use, the 354E really is two compressors in one: Turn on its Nuke mode to radically shape individual tracks, and turn it off for lighter, more nuanced compression when mastering or for surgical mixing. Both modes yield the same lush coloration and smooth presence that made the 2254E one of the most revered and highly sought after compressors in the world.

The 354E is one of the very best plugins you can use to compress drums, electric guitars, and rock vocals. Unlike its single-banded cousin, the 254E, three independent compression bands (Low, Mid and High), powerful Nuke mode, and Niveau and highpass sidechain filters let you dramatically reshape tracks for maximum size, punch and bottom-end weight. And with an adjustable attack time as fast as 2µsec (two millionths of a second), the 354E is one of the fastest compressors available, capable of shaping sounds in extreme ways most other compressors can only dream of.

Fatten Up Individual Tracks

The 354E’s Nuke mode is the poster child for rock ‘n’ roll excess. It’s like throwing TNT on drum room mics. Use Nuke mode to explode the room ambience and make the drums pump like a jackhammer. Use the built-in filters to shield bass frequencies from compression, inflating the kick drum in the room mics to monster size. Then adjust the three bands’ ratio and gain controls to balance the level of hi hat and cymbals with that of the trap drums for the perfect blend.

The 354’s Niveau filter and Nuke mode are also your tickets to making thin-sounding floor and rack toms thunder with deep, long sustain and rock vocals hyperventilate with urgency. The 354E will also quickly become your go-to guitar-track shaper: on electric guitar vamps, the multiband controls and filters let you compress the bottom and top strings’ output to different degrees to boost chunky, palm-muted bass notes or blazing, high chords to the front of the mix. Compress heavily to add intensely colorful character, and then use the Mix control to dial some pristine dry signal back into the 354E’s output for the perfect blend of mayhem and detail.

Mix and Master with Kid Gloves

When you turn off Nuke mode, the 354E takes on the highly nuanced behavior needed for master-bus compression and mastering. Use the 354E’s mild 1.5:1 ratio to add solidifying glue to mixes. Kick in the Niveau filter to add punch, fullness and weight to the bottom end of thin mixes. Use the 354E’s M/S (mid-side) mode to compress hard-panned guitars without affecting the kick drum, bass and lead vocals. Calibrate the 354E’s internal operating levels to adapt to any mastering situation and handle the hottest or weakest mix with equal ease and grace. A and B workspaces let you compare alternate control setups for perfect, nuanced results.

Whether using it to pump up individual tracks to ginormous size, add density to full mixes, or apply subtle surgical compression to correct imbalanced masters, the versatile Lindell 354E is your paint brush for colorful vintage sound.

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Legal Disclaimer: Neve and 2254E are registered trademarks of AMS/Neve Inc.  The Lindell 354E was developed by Lindell Audio based on its own modeling techniques. AMS/Neve has not endorsed nor sponsored the 354E in any manner, nor licensed any intellectual property for use in this product.

Features

• Faithfully models the most famous vintage diode bridge compressor, the Neve 2254E, in each of its three independent frequency bands
• Adjustable crossover frequencies between bands allow you to home in on where compression is needed most
• Ratios range, in five steps, from 1.5:1 for mastering and master-bus compression to as high as 6:1 for shaping individual tracks
• Switchable Nuke mode over-compresses tracks to dramatic effect
• Mid/Side mode focuses compression on mid or side channel—or in stereo—for surgical precision
• Highpass filter in sidechain lends greater punch to compressed drums, bass guitar and other bass-heavy instruments
• Switchable Niveau filter tilts sidechain’s frequency response to preserve bass energy—great for creating the killer API “thrust” compression effect
• Mix control provides instant parallel processing, especially useful for blending radically compressed signal with pristine dry input when compressing drums, adding density to rock guitars and more
• Bands can be linked and soloed
• Adjustable, wide-ranging attack and release controls include blazing-fast 2µsec attack time for radical compression and Auto release for artifact-free processing
• Optional auto-makeup gain for each band
• Three-way meter displays I/O and gain-reduction levels in turn
• Internal operating levels can be calibrated in nine 1dB steps for precise mastering applications
• Resizable user interface and up to 16x oversampling for digital precision in any environment