I've used a lot of different plug-ins over the years and one of the things that I learned is that I love the sound of older, analog gear. There is a warmth to the Fairchild Compressor, Pultec EQ, and Neve consoles that just grabs me. Naturally, it was that warmth that I searched for when looking for a great set of plug-ins.

While I heard good things about Universal Audio over the years, I resisted buying them because I needed to pick up the DSP card. It just seemed like a hassle that I didn't need--I now wish now that I did it long ago.

I bought the US$1,899 , installed it in my Mac Pro and installed the software. I now have a card that takes care of the plug-in processing and a collection of plug-ins that have changed the way I approach mixing music.

Universal Audio specializes in reproducing some of the most sought-after gear in the industry. Imagine being able to use the Neve 1081, Neve 1073, Fairchild Compressor, or the . That's what I'm using now.

You may be thinking that you can get some of these plug-ins elsewhere and that may be true, but I haven't heard any that sound better than the UA versions. In fact, there are very few companies in the industry that have the of the analog gear that UA does.