ITB bus compression with UAD 1176 and or LA2A emulations?

[groover]

I am experimenting with using the UAD2 1176 and LA2A emulations on the stereo bus. Is this crazy talk?

I am tending toward the LA2A for the folky ballads and the 1176 for the punchy up tempo tunes. Max GR less than 2dB usually.

I know the rule of thumb "if it sounds good it is good" and it is sounding good to me but I know these are not revered bus compressors. What problems should I listen for?

[permanent hearing damage]

yeah, i don't know of the 1176 being used on 2 bus that often, but i definitely remember a well known mastering engineer using a pair of LA2As in his signal chain.

i have tried LA2A plugs on my 2 bus and it never quite worked for the aggressive stuff i tend to do.

[Nick Sevilla]

The only issue, is that for the LA2a, it will not ever be fast enough for some material.
But, it all depends on what you are going for.

As to the 1176, as long as you don't push it too hard, it should be fine. They do tend to distort if pushed too hard, and this may not be good.
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The Song. Nothing else really matters.

[lefthanddoes]

Stillwell Audio Bombardier regularly butters up my two buss. It's meant for that.

http://www.stillwellaudio.com/?page_id=342
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http://lefthanddoes.bandcamp.com

[SafeandSoundMastering]

If you are getting an appealing colouration from that device then why the hell not. the fact it can deal with stereo in UAD plug in form is a bonus. Go for it !

Been tempted by the new Summit Audio Softube bundle, similar design as at least one of those classic compressors.

cheers

SafeandSound Mastering
online mastering studio

[T-rex]

Try sending a mult/send of your main mix into the 1176 in parallel. You can hit it hard and mix it in with your main mix and its pretty sweet.