Rupert Neve Designs are entering the software market in style, with not one, but three of their sought-after hardware processors now officially available in plug-in form. The units in question are the Portico II Master Buss Processor, 542 Tape Emulator and 551 Inductor EQ, all three of which have been faithfully recreated thanks to a collaboration with McDSP. 

Launched in 2011, the Portico II Master Buss Processor remains one of RND’s flagship products, with its precise dynamic range and stereo field control making it hugely popular among mixing, mastering and live engineers alike. The 551 Inductor EQ then stands as the only 500-Series equaliser to have been designed by Mr. Neve, employing circuitry originally developed for the well-known Shelford Channel. Finally, the 542 Tape Emulator incorporates RND’s unique tape saturation circuit, a soft-clipper designed to tame harsh sources and the much-praised Silk Red & Blue harmonic saturation.

We’ve already put the new arrivals to the test, and you can check out our full review here.

“These plug-ins are faithful recreations of the beloved hardware that powers thousands of studios and stages worldwide — plus a few added features, because software gives us the freedom to do so. We are confident these plug-ins provide the legendary sound we all know and love, and we are proud to make our products accessible to more engineers, producers and artists than ever before.” — Rupert Neve Designs

“We have been pretty selective when it comes to collaborative projects — we want to work with a team that knows what they’re doing, and the product needs to be great. I am familiar with the sound of many coveted pieces of audio gear, and of course many of them were designed by Rupert Neve: a person with a genuine interest in making quality products for the pro-audio market. And Mr. Neve was mighty good at it... quality never goes out of style. When the opportunity to develop some software plug-ins for Rupert Neve Designs came about, we just could not pass it up.” — Colin McDowell, McDSP

The new plug-ins are supported on PCs running Windows 10 or later, and Macs running macOS 10.13 and above. VST3, AU and AAX versions are available. An iLok account is required, with USB dongle, machine-based and iLok Cloud licensing options supported. 

All three plug-ins are available now, priced as follows:

• Portico II Master Buss Processor: $199
• 542 Tape Emulator: $129
• 551 Inductor EQ: $129

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