Opinions on Slate Digital FG-X?

ForefrontStudio

ForefrontStudio

Micah Amstutz
Jan 1, 2009
264
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NE Ohio
I'm about to master a large project (14 songs), and don't have a whole lot of higher end plugins for mastering. was thinking of picking FG-X up. I rocked the demo for a while and I thought it seemed pretty nice, but I just don't know how it stacks up against some other mastering suites around the same price. any thoughts would be appreciated. maybe some suggestions for the free rout? I was thinking of doing something like...

EQ - GClip 2db - GClip 2db - Nasty VCS - limiter (with dither)

or,

EQ - Endorphin Comp - GClip 2db - Nasty VCS - limiter (with dither)

...I should probably add that this is NOT a metal recording. I would probably classify it as a somewhat upbeat rock recording with a lot of parts that are very "chill".
 
Depends on what you're looking for. If you're looking for some enhanced loudness and a bit of "vibe," nothing beats FG-X. I use it on every project now. I especially think FG-X shines at bringing loudness to mellow material without crushing it or distorting it (although it does take some careful adjustment, like any loudness plugin.)

However, if you need more tools than just loudness, then it may be more cost effective to go elsewhere.
 
I find myself using both ozone and FG-X
using FG-X for pushing just a tad in volume and Ozone to finish it off
FG-X is awesome for metering RMS for me in PT
 
I'm quite enjoying Ozone right now. I only picked it up a couple days ago but having fun with it so far.
 
I finally got the FG-X plug-in (demo) to show up for me after contacting Slate support and getting a renewed demo license. To be honest, I wasn't impressed at all. First issue I had was that the entire plug-in will absolutely kill my cpu. I have to disable two of the 3 sections of the plug-in to use it, so I would just use the limiting part of it. Now, my other issue with it is that I can't get it any louder than my normal "mastering" chain without more and more saturation which sounds like ballz to me. I've gone through the old threads where Steven was making suggestions on how to use ITP, etc. and tons of users here discussing the use of the plug, but none of that helped me get any more volume than I could already get without too much saturation going on. I can get the same exact results using Vintage Warmer.
 
well i have kinda mixed feelings about this. comparing loud fgx masters to loud pro masters, the fgx tends to sound thin and harsh to my ears.
it also messes with the lowend somehow. also there are a lot of knows that i dont really know what they do, as there is no technical explanation to it,
only some sentences like : makes your master seem more dynamic than it actually is (tallking bout the dynamic thing on the right side)...

i dont know, neither ozone nor fgx can give you masters as clear and loud as ted jensen would give you ;-)
so id rather invest in a really good engineer than in any of there plugins to be honest....
 
If anyone has any problems with the FG-X, please send me your mix (PM me with a link or post a link here) and I promise to help you. Check out the review of FG-X in this month's SOS too :)

The FG-X has a lot of power behind it but it takes getting used to. Once you figure it out, I hope you'll find that nothing can make mixes as loud while retaining the original balance, punch, and energy of the mix.

Seriously though, take me up on the mix posting.. I'll be gone for a week at AES but I'll get right to it when I'm back.

Check out the FG-X on Ill Nino's latest release.. it was all mastered with it! And by the way, Ted Jensen uses the FG-X along with some other loudness tools. I agree he's one of the best and is worth every penny.

Cheers,
Steven
 
i have some trouble using the different knobs because they are not very well explained. I never use the comp because its not really "see what you get". Knobs only show faster and slower. I need ms to know what i'm actually doing. Same for the transients knobs and the itp slider. The manual reads like fg-x is doing some magic but i never actually know what i'm doing.
 
I have both Ozone and FG-X. Both are good, but I find Ozone has a lot to offer that FG-X doesn't. (multiband comps, eqs, etc.)

Andy Sneap has recently said he used Ozone (and only Ozone) to master the new album by Dimmur Borgir. I'm not a fan of the band, but it's a great sounding album, and the mastering doesn't seem to suffer in any way.

With pros like Sturgis and Sneap both using Ozone and producing GREAT results, there should be no reason for anybody to continue talking shit about Ozone. It should be obvious to everyone by now that it is very possible to use it to achieve professional results. Izotope just doesn't have the hype/marketing power of Slate. They don't spend all of their time on forums hyping up their products a year before they are released.

Don't get me wrong, FG-X is definitely good... but it does have a sound of it's own, it does cause distortion artifacts on guitars in certain kinds of mixes, and it doesn't have a lot of the features of Ozone. I suggest using both programs before buying (if possible) and coming to your own conclusions. Test for yourself and do not let hype/marketing decide for you.

If you use Ozone and are mixing entirely ITB, check out the SSL Master bus comp. FG-X has it's own comp, but its a lot more subtle and clean, whereas the the SSL is more forward and punchy.

EDIT: I may have FG-X up for sale soon for cheap. I haven't decided whether or not I want to sell it yet.
 
Slate said:
If anyone has any problems with the FG-X, please send me your mix (PM me with a link or post a link here) and I promise to help you. Check out the review of FG-X in this month's SOS too :)

The FG-X has a lot of power behind it but it takes getting used to. Once you figure it out, I hope you'll find that nothing can make mixes as loud while retaining the original balance, punch, and energy of the mix.

Seriously though, take me up on the mix posting.. I'll be gone for a week at AES but I'll get right to it when I'm back.

Check out the FG-X on Ill Nino's latest release.. it was all mastered with it! And by the way, Ted Jensen uses the FG-X along with some other loudness tools. I agree he's one of the best and is worth every penny.

Cheers,
Steven
Click to expand...

Steve, I've uploaded a quick mix of a song someone posted here.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/14373373/deadweight.wav
I'm hoping that you'll be able to point out where my mix is falling apart that is stopping me from using FG-X to its full potential and get the loudness I'm after.
I just can't get it loud without clipping the 2-buss.
 
006 said:
I finally got the FG-X plug-in (demo) to show up for me after contacting Slate support and getting a renewed demo license. To be honest, I wasn't impressed at all. First issue I had was that the entire plug-in will absolutely kill my cpu. I have to disable two of the 3 sections of the plug-in to use it, so I would just use the limiting part of it. Now, my other issue with it is that I can't get it any louder than my normal "mastering" chain without more and more saturation which sounds like ballz to me. I've gone through the old threads where Steven was making suggestions on how to use ITP, etc. and tons of users here discussing the use of the plug, but none of that helped me get any more volume than I could already get without too much saturation going on. I can get the same exact results using Vintage Warmer.
Click to expand...

The cpu is another thing I forgot to mention. Ozone is much more friendly when it comes to cpu usage. I can leave it on while mixing through it without problems. This is very convenient, because you are basically listening to your final master WHILE you mix. FG-X uses a lot more CPU and I have to leave it off while mixing...
 
yep...FGX does make loud and it IS transparent..somehow I'm still not a fan though.
tome to it sounds kinda thin/harsh...or to put it better: it's so transparent that I'm missing some vibe/glue that other limiters/clippers add.
I know FGX is not intended to do that, so it's not a flaw, it's just that is doesn't fit my taste for a mastering limiter sonically (actually pretty much what Sneap said)
I'm loving my finalizer, gonna try ozone soon...sold fgx (but NOT because it's not good, just because it's not for me).
 
What mixes have you actually tried this on???? i constantly see you post your opinion but you never post any full mixes of what you do? You always say "well this guy said that this is awesome and it must be great" but how about your opinion and a few mixes to back it up....i have checked ur posts and u never post a full mix...just a random drum mix or some tone test using somebody else's DI is all i see.....i dunno you just get under my skin

JoshuaLogan said:
I have both Ozone and FG-X. Both are good, but I find Ozone has a lot to offer that FG-X doesn't. (multiband comps, eqs, etc.)

Andy Sneap has recently said he used Ozone (and only Ozone) to master the new album by Dimmur Borgir. I'm not a fan of the band, but it's a great sounding album, and the mastering doesn't seem to suffer in any way.

With pros like Sturgis and Sneap both using Ozone and producing GREAT results, there should be no reason for anybody to continue talking shit about Ozone. It should be obvious to everyone by now that it is very possible to use it to achieve professional results. Izotope just doesn't have the hype/marketing power of Slate. They don't spend all of their time on forums hyping up their products a year before they are released.

Don't get me wrong, FG-X is definitely good... but it does have a sound of it's own, it does cause distortion artifacts on guitars in certain kinds of mixes, and it doesn't have a lot of the features of Ozone. I suggest using both programs before buying (if possible) and coming to your own conclusions. Test for yourself and do not let hype/marketing decide for you.

If you use Ozone and are mixing entirely ITB, check out the SSL Master bus comp. FG-X has it's own comp, but its a lot more subtle and clean, whereas the the SSL is more forward and punchy.

EDIT: I may have FG-X up for sale soon for cheap. I haven't decided whether or not I want to sell it yet.
Click to expand...
 
Zombietakeover said:
What mixes have you actually tried this on???? i constantly see you post your opinion but you never post any full mixes of what you do? You always say "well this guy said that this is awesome and it must be great" but how about your opinion and a few mixes to back it up....i have checked ur posts and u never post a full mix...just a random drum mix or some tone test using somebody else's DI is all i see.....i dunno you just get under my skin
Click to expand...


:popcorn:
 
One tip I'll give is to automate the ITP throughout the song.. Doing this, you can really make the FG-X shine because you can lower it when needed (like during huge guitar sustains that can overload the saturation at higher ITP). To my ears the FG-X puts much less of a sonic footprint then other loudness processors. However, the FG-X 2.0 is in the works and will have further improvements.. and the compressor will also have an additional transformer analog modeled option to give him some goooorgeous weight and thickness.

We're also working on further improving the ITP so that it is even more adaptive!

So if you dig what the FG-X does now, its only gonna continue to get better. We're very dedicated to constantly improving things, and absorbing the user comments and suggestions to maximize success.

I'm in San Fran right now for AES, but when I'm back I'll definitely check out your mix digitaldeath. Zombie as usual your stuff sounds killer!

Steven
 
Hey Steven, what is the range of the attack and release on the FG Comp? If I would want the standard 30 attack, 100 release - where would I set the knobs?
In what order would you recommend using the FG Level? When and how should I use the dynamic perception and ITP?
 
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