P42 Climax Line Amp
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Overview
Pulsar Modular P42 Climax is an innovative multifaceted powerstrip for tone shaping/coloration, saturation and conjures more of the idea of working with hardware. P42 Climax begins with the heartbeat of a hardware line amp, and ends on every single track because it has the cpu coverage to do so (more than 300 instances in a single session). Scalp your perfect sound whether processing a single instrument, grouped tracks, the 2-bus or even when mastering. The sound is simply… unbelievable!
Don’t underestimate the few parameters in P42 Climax. It is chameleon like, able to assimilate many different coloring hardware devices, but never intended to copy any single one! P42 Climax works magic on drum bus, snare, and of course the bass guitar. Inserting P42 on the 2-bus track, immediately opens up your mix and exposes hidden gems in your mix. With its Mid/Side processing and detailed metering (peak, RMS and LUFS) and Auto. Gain Compensation workflow, P42 fits nicely into your mastering signal chain.
Don’t get scared by the price tag- a comparable hardware unit for a single channel costs around $1,700. Check the Audio examples below as we compare P42 Climax plugin tone shaping against the Neve 1080, Studer A812 Tape recorder, WolfBox DI and other hardware devices.
Features
- Organic hardware-like feel & behavior.
- Pulsar Modular signature Shelving EQ (Low & High).
- Signature LPF and HPF
- Tube-like odd harmonics saturation slider.
- Super low cpu tax and zero sample latency!
- Works with Mono, Dual Mono or Stereo signal.
- All parameters are exposed to your DAW for automation.
- macOS: AU, AAX and VST3 formats.
- Windows: VST3 and AAX formats.
- Linux LV2 format coming soon!
Videos
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Audio Examples
Artist Reviews
Scott Weiser (AKA Jackal & Hyde)
Lunar Lander is INCREDIBLE! Realistic BBD Delay behavior.
Scott is responsible for some of the most head strong electrocore bass-bangers such as Dark Star, Go Bang, Beyond, This is the Sound of Underground and Bad Robot.
Marc Codsi
Extremely lush melodic plate reverb emulation. I use it when I want to add character to a sound.
Marc Codsi is a composer, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and film composer.
Jérémie Regnier
I am stuck on Lunar Lander plate reverb 3- so much cream – Wow!
Composer, producer and performer.
Specification
Supported Plugin Formats
AU, VST3, AAX.
Supported Operating Systems
macOS 10.10+
Windows 8+
Mac
Apple Silicon M1 Native and Intel CPU (Universal 2 Binary)
PC
x64-compatible CPU
System Requirements
Display resolution: 1440 × 900px or 1280 × 960px or higher
Memory: 2 GB RAM
Copy Protection
A one-time challenge & response over the internet. License works on up two separate machines.
Downloads
Latest User Guide
For previously authorized computers
- GCC is now a parameter ready for automation.
It will be available tomorrow.
- Real-Time Gain Compensation Calculation (GCC).
- Extensive set of metering: Peak Hold, RMS, RMS Peak and LUFS values.
- Additional M/S signal routing.
- Updated GUI.
- Disengage HP and/or LP Filters.
- Updated preset management indexing.
- HPF up to 500 HZ
- AIR freq point variable from 5 to 12 KHz
- Up to +12 dB DRIVE knob
- Saturation is @ Input or @ output (currently at output)
- Oversampling
- Main out knob now goes to -24 dB
- P42 works at any audio sampling rate.
- Mix Dry/Wet now smooth transparent blending.
- Smooth knob and slider movement.
- Trial period- remaining days left.
- Optimized GUI refresh rate, helps with DAW GUI metering redraw.
- Improved movement of the dials and sliders with your mouse.
- Hovering the mouse over a dial exposes its value.
- AAX plugin for macOS is now working.
- Extended the saturation slider to 150%
- AAX on Windows still not ready. Next update.
- This version has a non working AAX for macOS.
- Fix phasing issues when inserting P42 on mono track for DAWs that support Mono tracks (Logic Pro, Pro Tools, Cubase)
- Zero sample latency implementation
- A Mix knob to blend in the Dry signal
- A polarity flip switch.
- Release Version with Mid/Side bug fix
- Added Air switch.
- Soft release.
40-Day Free Trial
To start your 40-day fully functional trial for 2 computers, Press the "add to cart" Trial button and complete the checkout. Follow the instructions you will get by email. No dongle required.
How do you get the Motown sound? You will need the Wolfbox DI made in the late 60s and used by the recording studios at that time for the signature bass guitar sound and the soft electric guitar sound. The Wolfbox was driven by a Triad A-11J or A-12J, which are not produced any longer. This is what drove the legendary Motown sound. It’s the sound of James Jamerson, Dennis Coffey, Robert White, Joe Messina, and the Funk Brothers- Motown’s legendary in-house rhythm section.
P42 Climax extended functionality is able to nail the sound of a Neve 1080. The 1084 is one of the most revered hardware units ever designed. It sounds like a 1073, and it gives you that beautiful Neve sound thats so sought after.
Customer reviews
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Showing 29 of 33 reviews (5 star). See all 33 reviews
Sean Garford (verified owner) –
I was hoping to pull this product to bits, on price, and so I didn’t spend more money on “another saturation/colouration tool”, well, I can’t. This thing is the mutts nuts, I’ve just taken off all the saturation plugins I was using on my current project, replaced them with the P42 Climax, and I nearly climaxed listening to the sound.
I’m not sure what wizardry the developer is using, but it’s truly amazing, in fact, I pressed play and the actual words I used were f**k me. Yes, it’s really that good. I took a punt, but this in now my go-to plug.
If you’re put off by the price, don’t be, it’s worth every penny.
Thumbs up here.
Ed Pettersen (verified owner) –
Okay, let’s get the dirt out of the way:
I have worked with one of the two remaining, living engineers from the original Motown, Bob Olhsson, for over 20 years and have worked with many of the Funk Brothers during that time. The DI/transformers used back then were not the Wolfbox or the Triad’s. That is a myth that was perpetuated by Wolfy who made the Wolfbox possibly because he did ac tually one Wolfbox DI to an engineer at Motown, Ron Malo, who was only there for a few short months and took the box with him when he left. But hey, we can all appreciate Wolfy’s salesmanship, right? The transformers used at Motown were actually UTC’s on all the classic recordings. I’m pretty sure Mike McLean who built all the gear at Motown is still alive too so this can be affirmed. Anyway…
Getting to the Pulsar P42, it’s somewhat irrelevant what magic transformer was modeled because it’s simply fabulous. Yeah, it’s expensive but once you start using it on your recordings you won’t want to stop. For instance I had an unruly sax on a recording I was mixing and I tried every saturation/transformer tool I have (which is many) but they were all too rigid, too dirty or not edgy enough and round at the same time for this particular part. Enter P42. BANG! It had just the right heft, didn’t mess with the dynamics and was big, bold and round without losing focus. That’s what the P42 does. It works great on keyboards, on drums, guitars and yet doesn’t lose the transient character of those instruments.
We need to be less focused on chasing “magic” from the past and realize when someone has created something truly new and wonderful even if the past was their template. Trying to sound or play like someone else is not going to make music better but the P42 can. As a side note no-one was ever signed to Motown who sounded like someone else. Ever. And they were the most successful label in music history. Let that sink in.
Try the P42. The designer has created a very, very useful tool for your production toolbox. It doesn’t matter what it is based on. You won’t be sorry.
Andi Vax (verified owner) –
The first plugin which gives me THAT REAL TRANSFORMER MOJO.
At last!
Carlos Palmen –
I never write comments, but now I have to do and I gonna tell you why.
This thing is on another level.
I tried to recreate certain sounds of the P42 with other plugins just for my own justification, not to buy this plugin, cause it ain’t cheap.
It didn’t work out. Now I have to get it.
Coming from the analog world I always missed this kind of sound in the box.
P42 works on any and I mean any source from drums to orchestral legato instruments.
It gives the source what it needs and lets you determine the exact flavour.
Even on the master bus it does wonders.
How did you guys manage this ?!
Of course, there are little improvements to do but the sounds the P42 produces are stellar.
It’s a gamechanger indeed.
sebastiangarciaferro (verified owner) –
Superb sound and flexibility. Now it is on almost all my buses!
I’m delighted with P42.