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SuperRack LiveBox Chosen for Archive World Tour

Aug 11, 2024

Discover why FOH engineer Philippe Dubich (Massive Attack, The Streets, Asian Dub Foundation) has chosen SuperRack LiveBox, Waves’ native plugin processing platform that runs both Waves and non-Waves VST3 plugins, for the world tour of UK trip hop / electronica / progressive rock band Archive.

SuperRack LiveBox Chosen for Archive World Tour

With the arrival of Waves’ new SuperRack LiveBox, live sound engineers can now mix with their favorite studio-grade VST3 plugins, from Waves and other manufacturers, all running natively in a simple and robust turn-key solution. Philippe Dubich has been one of the first adopters of the LiveBox, as soon as the first batch of Dante-ready LiveBox units started shipping earlier in 2024. (Since then, MADI-ready units have also become available.)

“I’m a big fan of Waves plugins,” he says, “but I was waiting to be able to use some of my favorite non-Waves plugins as well, like the Eventide H3000—which the LiveBox now allows me. Plus, I was especially waiting to finally get rid of external hardware! The fact that the LiveBox is 100% autonomous, meaning I don’t need any external computer to run software, is an incredible step forward from my point of view. It’s exceeded my expectations, as I could finally get rid of my switch as well and plug the LiveBox directly into the internal Dante card of my console. Now that I only have the LiveBox and the desk, this is a major improvement, and it will remain this way from now on.”

“I'm touring with an SSL L350 Plus,” he says, “and just added a couple of personnal hardware pieces like my PSA Tech 21 SansAmp and Roland RE-20. My objective was to minimize external effects and solely utilize the Waves LiveBox. As a result, I made the decision to part ways with my three M7 Bricasti and TC M6000 units.”

“It’s hard to choose just a few favorites,” Dubich says about his go-to Waves plugins, “as there are so many. I will say that I love my vocal channel strip chain: PSE (Primary Source Expander) + CLA-2A + Scheps 73 + F6 Dynamic EQ + CLA-76.”

“I also like using the CLA Effects plugin for vocal distortion and for special effects. I use Waves’ Kaleidoscope on what I call a ‘spatial bus’, as I like the fact that you can add a flanger plus a tremolo for example, in a simple instance. This helps me a lot to get close to the original sound of Archive’s records vocal production. Smack Attack is a classic in my setups as is Torque, which is a fantastic tool when you need to tune toms or snares, as they tend to lose their tuning during the show.”

“And then of course, Waves LiveBox finally allows me to access third-party VST3s, such as the Eventide H3000 when I proccess the classic ‘vox dual,’ or some crazy reverse effects, or when I am using it as a harmonizer. Waves LiveBox is the piece of gear I’ve been waiting for a very long time!”

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