Solid State Logic LMC+ Listen Mic Compressor Plug-in

SSL’s Vaunted Listen Mic Compressor — in a Plug-in

The Solid State Logic LMC+ replicates the sound of an SSL 4000E console’s reverse talkback function, a.k.a. the Listen Mic, which included an integrated compressor to safeguard against overloads and make quiet speech intelligible. It was the Listen Mic Compressor, combined with the SSL 4000E’s built-in noise gate, that was the genesis to the gated-reverb drum sound that dominated the ’80s. The LMC+ plug-in eclipses the original hardware, providing you with advanced functionality that wasn’t present in the original console, such as external sidechain capabilities, highpass filters and lowpass filters, and Scoop and Split functions. And thanks to its intuitive controls, the LMC+ is a breeze to use. If you want to smash everything back to the 1980s, the LMC+ is the plug-in to do it with.

Combines classic sound with modern features

The LMC+ plug-in takes the vaunted SSL Listen Mic Compressor from the center section of a Solid State Logic 4000E console and enhances it with modern features derived from SSL’s LMC+ 500 Series module. An external sidechain enables you to trigger gain reduction with an external source or signal, while variable highpass and lowpass filters allow you to tailor which frequencies trigger the compression. You also get Scoop and Split functions. Scoop phase-inverts your wet signal, while Split engages a bandpass-subtraction mode. There is also a Mix control, which makes parallel processing a piece of cake. The engineers here at City Music have found the LMC+ to be one of the easiest ways to achieve an authentic “In the Air Tonight” drum sound, and it makes an excellent all-around signal squasher as well. If you enjoy slamming audio into oblivion, you’ll find a zillion uses for the LMC+.