Pendulum Audio

The Pendulum Audio ES-8 is a stereo, tube based limiter. It is made up of analog parts and will take up two spaces in a traditional rack casing. I don't know what types of connections it has since the one that I used was already racked up in the studio that I was using it in. UTILIZATION Each of the two identical channels on the Pendulum Audio ES-8 are generally easy to follow and to use. It has parameters in the form of knobs for input, threshold, output, mode for the attack/release, and depending on which way you set the mode, you've got both a knob for preset attack/release and for manual of each. It also has switches for linking and bypassing the channels. If you've used Pendulum Audio gear in the past, this is a fairly standard configuration. I haven't seen a manual for the ES-8, so I can't say how helpful it would be or not. SOUND QUALITY The Pendulum Audio ES-8 is simply an outstanding sounding limiter through and through. Not only do you have complete control over your sound, but all of the sounds have a very pristine quality to them. It's versatility allows it to be useful for limiting any type of signal from drums to vocals. It also works very well as a mastering stereo limiter if you want to hit your overall levels with it. The ES-8 is definitely one of the cleanest sounding limiters I've had the chance to use. OVERALL OPINION With great quality just about always comes with a great price in terms of the amount of dollars spent, and the Pendulum Audio ES-8 is no exception. It will certainly cost you a pretty penny to get your hands on one of these, so unless you're a professional with some dough to spend on a new stereo limiter, this will probably be outside of your price range. If you can afford one of these, you know you have a lot to choose from up in this price range, but I'd highly encourage you to at least do some research on the ES-8, as it is definitely up there with the best of them.

The Pendulum Audio 6386 is a stereo tube limiter. It's somewhat based on the classic Fairchild 660 and 670 compressors, but to what extent I'm not sure. It's an all analog piece of gear with both 1/4" and XLR inputs and outputs and 1/4" side chaining connections too. It will take up two spaces in a traditional rack casing. UTILIZATION It's not hard to use the Pendulum Audio 6386 if you're familiar with the general make up of dynamic processors. There are definitely a lot of options here but it shouldn't be overwhelming if you understand the basics. Each of the two channels have parameters for input, threshold, output, mode, preset, and attack and release. The mode parameter is a three way switch that allows you to choose between a fast attack and release, manual attack and release with the given knobs, or the option to choose between the preset attack/release times. The 6386 also has two VU meters with a choice to monitor between gain reduction, input, or output. I haven't seen the manual for this. SOUND QUALITY The sound of the Pendulum Audio 6386 definitely puts it up there with the best compressor/limiters available. It's tube so it definitely has a particular sound and certainly isn't transparent, but for many situations the 6386 is a great choice - especially for vocals. With this amount of control and the fact that it's tube limiter, it's going to be hard to go wrong with this... OVERALL OPINION The Pendulum Audio 6386 I think is now going under the name ES-8 and I'm not sure if there are any differences between those marked ES-8 and 6386. Either way, I know that the 6386 is everything it's cracked up to be. It's a seriously awesome tube limiter that is perfect for recording vocals. It's expensive, but for two channels of tube compression modeled after a Fairchild, it's not so bad!