Quad Eight MM-310

Name: Quad Eight MM-310
Price: 129 USD
Author: MixWave

by MixWave · Channel Strip · Preamp and EQ

Not rated yet

A model of the Quad Eight MM-310, a discrete, transformer-balanced preamp with three fixed EQ bands, used on film stages and hit records.

It has mic and line modes, filters and a dry/wet blend, for $129.

Best for: Vocals, Drums, Bass, Guitars, Acoustic Instruments, Mix Bus. Genres: all genres.

Keywords: transformer, built-in mix knob, film & game audio, bass, drums, gentle, musical, vocals, electric guitar, warm, bus processing, full mix, mix bus, mixing, parallel processing, wide.

What it does

Quad Eight MM-310 is MixWave's model of the Quad Eight preamp and EQ module used on film stages and records, with its discrete, transformer-balanced circuit. MixWave says it "defined the Quad Eight sound", which it describes as warm, wide and musical.

Preamp: transformer-balanced, with continuous gain and a Mic/Line switch; Mic mode gives more drive and transformer saturation, Line mode more headroom and cleanliness.
High band: 3, 5, 7.5 or 10 kHz, with a toggle between a broad shelf for presence and a focused peak.
Mid band: a peak at 400 Hz, 700 Hz, 1.5 kHz or 3 kHz.
Low band: a shelf at 50 or 140 Hz, or a peak at 250 or 400 Hz.
Proportional Q: bands get narrower as you boost harder, so small moves stay broad and gentle.
Filters and mix: a high-pass before the circuit, a low-pass after it, dry/wet blend, output gain, EQ bypass and mono or stereo use.

The current version is 1.1.0. A 14-day fully working trial is available.

Source: MixWave product page

When to use it

Quad Eight MM-310 suits engineers who want a vintage American preamp colour and a quick, fixed-frequency EQ rather than a full channel strip. Compared with SSL 4K G and the API Vision Channel Strip Collection, it has no compressor, gate or expander, but it has a warmer transformer colour and fewer choices to make. It is narrower than bx_console AMEK 9099 or Scheps Omni Channel, which add dynamics and more EQ options, and it is best used track by track for tone rather than as a full console. The dry/wet control lets you blend its colour in parallel, which most console strips lack.

Best for: adding colour and broad EQ to drums, vocals, guitars and bass.
Genres: rock, soul, pop, indie and film work.
Look elsewhere if: you want dynamics in the same strip (SSL 4K G, API Vision Channel Strip Collection) or precise surgical EQ (Pro-Q 4).
Tip: use the high-pass to stop extreme lows over-driving the preamp, and try small HF shelf boosts of +0.5 to +1 dB across several tracks to tie them together.

What producers say

The first review is very positive; there are no KVR user reviews yet.

MIDI Audio Expert concluded "We love it!", praising the gentle transformer saturation, the musical proportional-Q EQ and the good presets from known engineers.
Workflow: the same review liked its "well-placed choices instead of a thousand parameters" and suggested the dry/wet control for parallel texture without extra buses.

MIDI Audio Expert review

Where to buy

MixWave: $129

Tutorials and reviews

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