Tolerance Modeling Technology (TMT) is a clever technology to give modelling plug-ins differences caused by component tolerances as you would get in real hardware audio equipment. Brainworx have already released their first TMT based plug-in which was based on Dirk's own Neve VXS and that is the current Brainworx bx_console plug-in

Recently Dirk Ulrich was at Fantasy Recording Studios where he showed the new, yet to be released, BrainWorx bx_console E and G plug-ins, which also feature TMT, and he was comparing it live and against the real thing at Fantasy.

The Tolerance Modeling Technology in these plug-ins is designed to give you 72 slightly different channels, just like a real console, including different left and right channels in stereo setups. It is expected that  bx_console should be out in July and will be available in all Native formats, as well as AAX DSP and there will be upgrade deals for existing owners of the VXS console.

There was a question asking if Tolerance Modeling Technology is similar to the Waves NLS plug-in because it seems to be based on a similar concept. Dirk's response was...

Nooooooooooooo.... ;-) Our TMT is part of the algorithm of the filters, the dynamics, the noise. You can't achieve this by adding a plugin after your processing.

More About Tolerance Modeling Technology (TMT)

All analogue components have manufacturing tolerances that state an acceptable range of differences between them. These tolerances vary from 1% on some parts up to 20% in many standard electronic components. These changes make an audible difference in how one console channel sounds compared to another. 

This variation, when taken across many channels in a mix, is part of what makes an analogue console sound the way it does. Especially the tolerances between each of two channels in multiple stereo setups (stereo signals, busses and sub-groups) of a bigger mix session introduce small phase differences, unbalanced centre frequencies and center-offsets. 

Nowhere is this unit-to-unit variation in an analogue audio system more obvious than in a large format mixing console.  The specific nonlinearities and distortions of that particular channel are what create its unique character. However, when you multiply that exact character from one to several dozen channels, what used to sound a lot like the original starts not to work so well.

Using TMT, engineers at Brainworx catalogued the manufacturer’s stated tolerances for over 150 components in Dirk’s own Neve VXS 72 console. Finding the correct tolerance range to use requires an assessment of not only the tolerance range stated by the component manufacturer but also the tolerance requirements set by the original analogue equipment designer. The resulting variability creates a stunning new realism for in-the-box mixing. 

Check Out Our Review When The Original VXS bx_console Was About To Be Released

Russ took the Brainworx bx_console Plugin for a spin in this extended video asking does the world need another console emulation plugin? Find out what he thinks and listen to some audio examples, but it gave it Editors Chocie back in 2015 and now Plugin Alliance and Brainworx are about to release SSL bx-console plug-ins using their Tolerance Modeling Technolo.