Acustica Audio collaborate with Markbass to recreate rare EQ unit in software form
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09.05.2022

Acustica Audio collaborate with Markbass to recreate rare EQ unit in software form

Words by Mixdown Staff

Only two hardware units were ever made!

Acustica Audio has collaborated with Markbass to release a plugin version of the extremely rare PP10 parametric EQ named Maize.

What you need to know:

  • Acustica Audio has collaborated with Markbass to release Maize.
  • Maize is a plugin version of the extremely rare PP10 parametric EQ.
  • Only two hardware units were ever made.

Read all the latest product news here.

Only two of the Markbass PP10 EQ units ever saw the light of day due to commercial and corporate considerations from the company at the time, but the final result was excellent, and this faithful software recreation shares those same features.

It boasts 10 bands, each of which includes 19 selectable frequencies, a gain pot that controls cuts and boosts (-16 to +16dB), and a rotary control that adjusts the bell width (Q) from 0.3 to 6.

The latter is an unusually high Q value for an equaliser, in fact, the machine has been designed to allow the use of very narrow bells, allowing truly surgical corrections in the frequency spectrum.

Maize is a VST/VST3/AAX/AU Acqua plugin that comes in a standard version and an alternative ‘ZL’ (zero latency) version which is suitable for use when tracking, at the cost of extra processing resources.

Acustica Audio said that in use, you “immediately notice how each intervention can be calibrated with precision in terms of decibels, especially in the subtractive phase.

“Its sound signature is really distinctive, it adapts well to mastering contexts but we believe it gives its best in the mixing phase when correcting or sculpting the sound of your instruments. 

“From its discovery, (we were) impressed by the extraordinary qualities of this unit and sought to create a digital version, as well as introducing some additional features compared to the original unit.”

In Maize you will find controls that offer further versatility, including: Control-link, M-S, switchable preamps (solid-state/vacuum tube), IN-OUT metres, band activations buttons and oversampling options for the preamp section.

Head to Acustica for more information. For local enquiries on Markbass products, head to CMC Music.