Hi-hat:

Lime 2 (Acustica Audio)

– TLDR Notes:

Versatile EQ. ‘B’ has a sweet sound perfect for top end on a hi-hat. Presumably a Neve 88RS.

– Review:

You can’t complain about the amount of options Acustica Audio offers with this legendary British workhorse package;
A full channelstrip, stand-alone EQ and compressors,  standalone preamp module with 35 preamps and the routing paths of your choice.

The full channelstrip is impressive, but honestly for me it’s either the individual preamp section or the EQ module I use as my go-to tools from Lime 2.

The one exception is lead vocal, where the channelstrip basically provides a complete solution, with “Mic F” doing the 1073 thing.

The full channelstrip is kind of heavy though, and for something like a hi-hat I bet you’ll find that it’s way overkill, which is why I really appreciate the stand-alone EQ module.

What you get with Lime 2 is that legendary British sound sampled from newer consoles, whereas their Gold collection consists of very old, vintage versions.

With Lime 2 you get 3 different EQ flavors in the EQ module, and I tend to go for either ‘A’ or ‘B’ depending on the situation.

‘A’ sounds more cosy and feels good in the mid-range while ‘B’ has a sweeter more polished sound is how I think of it.

For hi-hats EQ ‘B’ is my favorite.

What I love about Lime is that doesn’t sound flat, thin, slightly smeared or plastic as many digital EQ plugins can especially when compared to hardware.

So when shaping that important high end of a mix, dealing with things like hi-hat, shakers, acoustic guitars etc., it’s important to listen with a critical ear and this one can withstand the tough scrutiny.

Room for improvement in the workflow would be a single-step choice; eliminating the need to turn on the band and then select the EQ ‘A’, ‘B’ or ‘C’ as well.

So just remember to turn the relevant EQ band on first (“On” just above the EQ letters), then select the EQ version of your choice.

Silk EQ 259b (TimP)

– TLDR Notes:

Siemens Sitral W295b EQ. Musical high shelf for hi-hat. Can brighten without harshness.

For complete emulation use MID > H L > PRE in that order.

– Review:

This library from Tim Petherick is all about the quality suggested in the name itself: Silk.

You can say that it’s the polar opposite of a surgical EQ. Instead, you get beautifully musical silky curves with this one, making it a favorite on hi-hats and other elements that might benefit from a high shelf boost.

The library runs on the  Nebula platform, so N4 (or later) from Acustica is needed.

N4 is highly recommended as it opens up a world of authentic sounding hardware emulation options.