New · Version 3
TF-72a
The German broadcast tube preamp that fed the consoles behind the biggest records of the sixties, rebuilt. Five neural models at their native rates, a new HQ engine, Bass Cut, an LED meter and AUTO gain, behind a brand-new faceplate.
Free update for TF-72a owners · Full-version trial for 15 days · Online activation
German broadcast iron
A plug-in tube amplifier built to a 1950s German broadcast standard: two pentode stages, transformer in and out, 34 dB of gain and nothing to adjust.
Radio engineers specified it, several German factories built it by the tens of thousands, and racks of these putty-grey cassettes ended up feeding the mixing desks of the London studio where the most famous band of the sixties cut its records. Push one and it does not clip; it leans, thickens and sings.
TF-72a captures a V72a, a later studio variant of that module, with neural models trained on the original hardware at five drive levels. MODEL 1 is the preamp at its cleanest; MODEL 5 is the input transformer and tubes pushed hard. DRIVE sets how much of your signal reaches them.
What's new in V3
Rebuilt from the tubes up.
The same five captures of the V72a. Everything around them is new.
Five models, five rates
Five captures of the same preamp, driven progressively harder: a touch of tube sheen at MODEL 1, dense saturation at MODEL 5. Each exists at 44.1, 48, 88.2, 96 and 192 kHz, so your session always plays the model trained at its own rate. No resampled approximations.
HQ engine, or half the CPU
HQ runs the model trained at twice your session rate, at twice the rate: at 44.1 and 48 k the 88.2 and 96 k captures do the work, so hard drive stays clean up top. Switch HQ off and the host-rate model runs straight through for about half the CPU, level-matched, with a click-free crossfade. The engine picks its maths for your processor: NEON on Apple Silicon, AVX2 on modern Intel and AMD.
Bass Cut
Keep the lows clean while the tubes work on everything else. A 120 Hz crossover sends only the mids and highs through the model; the low end rejoins at the model's own level, so the balance holds as you drive it.
A meter, AUTO and 50 presets
A stereo LED peak meter with natural fall-back, AUTO gain matching so you judge the colour without the loudness, HP and LP filters, Mix for parallel drive, A/B, undo/redo and 50 presets in five banks: mix bus, drums, bass and keys, vocals and guitars, character and FX.
In the room
Made to sit on the desk.
In session
Warmth, first in the chain
MODEL 1 or 2 on vocals and acoustics for the sheen; MODEL 4 or 5 on drums and bass for the weight. Turn on Bass Cut to keep the kick tight while the tubes warm the rest, and leave AUTO on to hear the colour, not a level change. With HQ off it costs so little you can put one on every channel.
Specifications
The fine print
| Type | V72a tube preamp — neural (LSTM) models of the original hardware |
| Models | MODEL 1-5, each captured at 44.1 / 48 / 88.2 / 96 / 192 kHz (25 models) |
| Engine | HQ: the 2×-rate model at 2× · HQ off: host rate, about half the CPU |
| Latency | 5 samples at 44.1 / 48 kHz (HQ), none at 88.2 / 96 kHz |
| Formats | VST3, AU, AAX — 64-bit |
| Systems | macOS 10.13+ (Apple Silicon & Intel) · Windows 10+ |
| Controls | Model, Drive, Input, Output, Mix, HP, LP, Bass Cut, HQ, AUTO |
| Meter | Stereo LED peak meter |
| Presets | 50 factory presets in 5 banks · A/B · Undo/Redo |
| GUI | Resizable, 51 % to 200 % |
| License | Online activation · free update for TF-72a owners |
| Trial | 15-day full version, no feature limits |
Try before you buy
The demo is the full plugin for 15 days — decide with your ears.
Bundle value
Also in the Tube Preamp Bundle.
Instant delivery
License and installers arrive by email the moment checkout completes.
Complete your chain
