Chandler Limited Zener-Bender

A powerful and musical modern plug-in channel strip with the unique vintage sound of Chandler Limited, the Zener-Bender combines the crisp and colorful character of the Curve Bender Mastering Equalizer with the big, punchy Zener Limiter to bring class, history, and most crucially of all, a phenomenal sonic impact. Component-modeled with Softube's customary care and experience, these units together can take charge of any mix.

In hardware terms, the Zener Limiter and Curve Bender represent our flagship pieces, a formidable duo for those fortunate enough to have experienced their historic character and tone in the same chain... for years, both have been widely accepted by the industry and used on countless award-winning productions; Softube's combination of both into a single plug-in, with expanded features is nothing short of spectacular.

Wade Goeke - Founder and Chief Designer, Chandler Limited

The Curve Bender and Zener Limiter are my go to drum parallel devices for drums in all my mixes. They are both here in one plug-in. The perfect combo for piano sounds. From lo-fi to hi-fi and open, it's easy to achieve in this all in one plug-in. A great combination for backing vocals as well.

Joe Chiccarelli - Producer/Mixer/Engineer (Elton John, Beck, Morrissey, The Strokes, U2, Jason Mraz)

A powerful channel strip

Two vintage-sounding units, full of heritage and trusted by some of the world's top engineers, combined into a focused channel strip workflow.

The big and punchy Zener Limiter

A versatile and powerful compressor/limiter with punch and power to match its tasteful distortion.

The crisp and colorful Curve Bender

An extremely musical and characterful mastering equalizer. Can be subtle or drastic, but always makes things sound better.

All this iconic sound also in Console 1

This collection also includes a version specially tailored to Console 1. More than the sum of its parts, the Zener-Bender expansion in Console 1 is a uniquely vintage-sounding powerhouse with modern flexibility and workflow.

I finally can marry these two plugins into one instance on my master bus. Just going through the Zener adds a nice warmth and the smoothness of the Curve Bender helps get me that fat low end and sparkly top end.

Clint Gibbs - Mixer/Engineer (Dr. Luke, Prescription Songs, Kim Petras, Doja Cat, Allie X, Azealia Banks)

An imperial family tree

Tracing the heritage of the Chandler Limited Zener-Bender is like discovering an imperial family tree. Its roots are in EMI consoles, used at Abbey Road from the 60s onwards to record some of the most seminal albums of all time, by the likes of Pink Floyd and The Beatles. And right up to the present day Curve Bender and Zener Limiter are being used in both hardware and plug-in form by top producers and engineers across records by world-leading artists such as Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, The White Stripes, Foo Fighters, Taylor Swift, and more. The influence of the Chandler sound cannot be overstated. It shapes the world it rules.

I think this is the ultimate channel strip. I can make a track sound beautiful and sweet or mangle it up and blend it with the original to create something different.

Smiley Sean - Mixer/Engineer (Tommy Lee, A Perfect Circle, Street Drum Corps, Phil X and the Drills, Papa Roach, The Smashing Pumpkins, Mötley Crüe, Courtney Love)

Zener-Bender

The native plug-in version of the Zener-Bender, apart from combining the heritage, color, and character of the Zener Limiter and the Curve Bender in one impactful channel strip, is special for its plug-in-only features.

Digital audio and software flexibility allow us to offer External Sidechain input, Mid/Side Processing, and Channel Linking. Clean up your low end in the center of your soundstage while gently calming your cymbals out wide. Bring a vocal to the front, even at the mastering stage, without damaging the tracks supporting it. You're in charge of just about everything.

Zener Limiter

The TG12413 Zener Limiter was conceived by Chandler Limited designer Wade Goeke, to continue the tradition of EMI Limiters started in 1954 with the RS114 tube limiter and the 1968 RS168 Zener Limiter. The Zener Limiters were also part of the 1969 TG12345 console channel and the 1974 TG12413.

It's a powerful, punchy-sounding dynamics workhorse, which brings character without being difficult. It's a favorite of top mix engineers like Tony Maserati and Joe Chiccarelli, as much for its versatility as for the mojo it brings.

Curve Bender Mastering Equalizer.

The Chandler Limited Curve Bender mastering equalizer is based on desk circuits from the world-famous Abbey Road Studios in London, used to create albums of genuinely legendary status, such as Dark Side Of The Moon by Pink Floyd, and Abbey Road by The Beatles.

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