The latest arrival to the Plugin Alliance range has been created in another collaboration with Brainworx, and delivers a new compressor plug-in based on the much-loved Shadow Hills Mastering Compressor.
The companies say that Shadow Hills OptoMax builds on the partnership that produced their Shadow Hills Mastering Compressor and Class A plug-ins, and uses the optical section of the renowned hardware as a starting point, reworking it into “a whole new and exciting beast”. The Brainworx team have used their expertise in analogue modelling to capture every nuance of the original unit’s optical circuitry, with the resulting plug-in promising to take the design beyond what’s possible in the analogue domain.
The result is said to be a musical, characterful compressor that offers a choice of multiple transformer colourations, and boasts some powerful new modes that make it adaptable for everything from transparent levelling to aggressive, saturated compression.
Key Features
Here’s a quick overview of what’s on offer in the new plug-in:
- Expanded Control: Creatively limited Ratio and Speed controls (Slow, Med, Fast) unlock new sonic possibilities, but still retain the essential ‘bloom’ and ‘smoothness’ of optical compression.
- Push Mode: Limiter-style, ultra-fast timing mode for aggressive, modern sounds.
- Signature Transformer Colour: Instantly switch between Shadow Hills’ Nickel, Iron and Steel transformer circuits from the original Mastering Compressor for three distinct flavours of harmonic character.
- Tone Sculpting: A dedicated Tone control an Air mode for “silky brilliance”, and a Smooth setting to gently tame edgy high-frequency content.
- Modern Workflow: Advanced side-chain (high-pass and bell options, SC Listen, external SC, and stereo link), parallel Mix, and a resizable GUI keep the creative flow fast and flexible.
Compatibility
Shadow Hills OptoMax is supported on PCs running Windows 10 or above, and Macs running macOS 12 and higher. VST2, VST3, AU and AAX plug-in versions are available.
Pricing & Availability
Shadow Hills OptoMax is available now, and is being offered at an introductory price of $69 until 24 December 2025, when it will increase to its full cost of $150. It has also been added to the Plugin Alliance MEGA Bundle, where it is available now to current users at no additional cost.
www.plugin-alliance.com/en/products/shadow_hills_optomax.html
