Nod to The Legend · The gear · Late 1970s
The SSL 4000 Console
Solid State Logic, founded by Colin Sanders
SSL's 4000 series put a computer in the console and a compressor on every channel and on the mix bus. Total Recall let a studio save every knob position and bring a mix back weeks later.
Still heard: The SSL bus compressor is the sound of thousands of pop and hip-hop mixes, and every DAW's "channel strip" owes it something.
Related legends
- Rupert Neve: Console and preamp designer
- The 1176 Limiter: FET limiter by Bill Putnam
- Roger Linn: Drum machine and MPC designer
- The Roland TR-808: Drum machine, a commercial flop that took over
- The Fairlight CMI: Sampler by Peter Vogel and Kim Ryrie
- The Yamaha DX7: FM synthesizer