Solid State Logic (SSL) was recognized for Outstanding Technical Achievement during the 35th Annual NAMM TEC Awards, held on January 18th at the Anaheim Hilton in California. During the ceremony, the SSL Fusion all-analogue 2U stereo processor captured the top spot in the Signal Processing Hardware category. Separately, SSL was selected as a ‘Best in Show Winner’ in the category of ‘Companies to Watch’ by The 2020 NAMM Show.
Presented by The NAMM Foundation, The NAMM TEC Awards are bestowed annually in celebration of the pro audio community by recognizing the individuals, companies, and technical innovations behind today's sound recordings, live performances, films, television, video games and other media. Meantime, The NAMM Show honours companies and products with its ‘Best in Show’ awards, which are carefully curated by industry experts and presented on the final morning of the exhibition. These awards are moderated by Frank Alkyer, publisher of Music Inc. and UpBeat Daily magazines.
Phil Wagner, North American Senior Vice President of SSL, comments: “Fusion is able to fill a fundamentally important role in just about any modern recording set up, and we are pleased that the NAMM Foundation has recognized SSL’s milestone innovation. Whether it is used while recording individual tracks, stereo stems or on the mix bus, Fusion delivers that unmistakable SSL sound to a new generation of creative professionals — without sonic compromise and at an affordable price.”
Unmistakable SSL sound in a 2U form factor
Created for the modern hybrid studio, Fusion combines five completely new analogue colouration tools — each designed to bring the perfect combination of added tonal character, weight and space to a mix bus or stereo stems. The result is a new level of detail, warmth and finesse that only real analogue circuits can provide. Each analogue processor can be used discretely or combined.
5 processors, unlimited flavors
Vintage Drive, is a unique non-linear harmonic enhancement circuit that brings cohesion and strength to a mix. Violet EQ is an all-new minimum phase-shift, two-band shelving EQ. Fusion also includes a new High Frequency Compressor, which delivers the distinctive sound of high frequency rounding in the analogue domain, optimized for smooth and transparent harshness reduction and a tape-like high-frequency roll off. A new Stereo Image enhancer provides a true analogue Mid-Side circuit that manipulates the Side signal, allowing for widening and spatial manipulation of the stereo field. And finally, a switched, custom-designed SSL Transformer circuit introduces subtle low-frequency saturation, alongside a high-frequency phase-shift. The result is a simultaneous thickening of the low-end and an added sparkle to the high-end.
A new era
The SSL sonic legacy is built upon a much-emulated collection of analogue audio processing tools that have featured in generations of studio consoles; pristine mic pre’s, classic Channel EQ & Dynamics, the legendary Stereo Bus Compressor, the Listen Mic Compressor, and the unique SSL summing bus. Fusion harkens a new era of this legacy with the introduction of new analogue processing tools that offer exceptional tonal character and versatility, expands the processing palette for hybrid studio owners and is a superb partner for the SSL Stereo Bus Compressor.
