Introducing

The Virtual Microphone System

The “VMS” is a hybrid system that utilizes an extremely transparent condenser microphone, a sonically-neutral preamp, and state-of-the-art digital processing suite that recreates the tone of classic microphones and preamps. The Virtual Microphone System collapses the wall standing between audio engineers and expensive world-class audio tools, allowing them access to the virtual microphone locker of their dreams for under a thousand dollars.

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Meet The Mics

FG-47

The FG-47 recreates the sound of one of the most famous vintage tube microphones in the history of audio. It has a thick and full-bodied low end, rich and present mid-range, and smooth top end. This microphone sounds great on thick lead vocals, but also sounds incredible as a kick drum mic, room mic, guitar mic, and on horns and strings.

FG-M7

The FG-M7 takes one of the most famous dynamic vocal mics used in the studio by artists like Michael Jackson and adds the tube stage of the classic 47, making it extremely punchy and crisp, with incredible mids that cut through the mix. Definitely gonna be a favorite!

FG-800

The FG-800 recreates the sound of one of the most popular modern tube mics, known for being the go-to choice for pop and hip hop vocalists. It’s extremely bright and airy, but with a warm bottom end. Using this mic on vocals will give you an instant polished ‘pop’ sound. However, this mic also sounds great on overheads and acoustic guitar.

FG-251

The FG-251 recreates the sound of one of the most sought-after vintage tube mics in the industry. It’s one of the most in-demand lead vocal mics on the planet, known for being crisp, warm and flattering on a variety of voices. The FG-251 also sounds great on drums, guitars, acoustics, and just about anything else you put it on!

FG-800M

The FG-800M emulates an older Japanese tube mic, and is slightly fatter and darker than the stock FG-800. If you love the FG-800 but wish it was a tad less sibilant and bright, you’re gonna love this.

FG-269

The FG-269 emulates an extremely rare German classic that shares much of the same circuit as the 67, but with a different tube that makes it more open and clear. This is one of the best-sounding vocal mics we’ve ever heard.

FG-12

The FG-12 emulates an Austrian classic known for being incredibly smooth and rich-sounding. We chose an absolutely incredible version of this mic to model – it’s the perfect representation of this famous tone.

FG-67

The FG-67 emulates a vintage German classic known for being slightly dark, bold and thick. This mic is amazing on vocals, rooms, horns and piano, and it’s one of Steven’s favorite on toms.

Introducing

Blackbird Mics Expansion Pack

Nashville’s Blackbird Studios wields a staggering 1,400+ vintage and modern microphones. Last year, Blackbird owner John McBride personally hand-picked the five best vintage tube mics for the Blackbird VMS expansion pack. With the Blackbird VMS Expansion pack, VMS users will gain instant access to the exact tone of five of the very best vintage tube mics in the world!

*Requires the ML-1 microphone.

Buy Blackbird Expansion for $199

Bundle with Classic Tubes 3 for $349

DEMO

Introducing

Classic Tubes 3 Expansion Pack

The Classic Tubes 3 Expansion Pack adds five new lush, vintage, and warm tube mics to the Virtual Microphone System mic locker. From German classics to custom hybrid Tube/Ribbon mics, these mics will help give your recordings a classic tone and feel.

*Requires the ML-1 microphone.

Buy Classic Tubes 3 Expansion for $299

Bundle with Blackbird Mics for $349

DEMO

FG-49

A model of one of the most famous old German tube mics, the FG-49 has an incredibly dominant and rich midrange along with a slightly airy and smooth top end. It makes a fantastic vocal mic on the right singer, but really shines as a drum room mic, piano mic, horn mic, or kick drum mic.

FG-67 MKII

The stock 67 in the VMS collection has the low pass filter mod which makes it brighter than a typical 67, so we decided to add a gorgeous sounding stock 67 to Classic Tubes 3. The stock 67 is somewhat dark on the top end with beautiful lush lows. It can be great on vocals, drum rooms, piano, horns, and just about anything that needs a vintage tone!

FG-37A

A recreation of a famous vintage Japanese tube microphone. This mic is one of the most flattering sounding microphones in the entire collection. The midrange is sculpted in a way that makes almost any voice pleasing. It also sounds great on acoustics, drum overheads, and piano.

FG-44

This is the first VMS model of a classic ribbon mic, but in cardioid form. But since this is classic TUBES 3, we added a custom tube stage to give the mic model some more tube harmonics and subtle saturation. This mic is great on anything that needs ultra smooth vintage vibes!

FG-47 MKII

This is the second model of a famous old German Tube mic. It is similar in nature to the stock 47, but has a slightly smoother upper midrange and top, along with a fatter low mid. This mic will be perfect for vintage vocal sounds, and will sound great on a kick drum or bass cabinet.

GET BLACKBIRD AND CLASSIC TUBES 3 BOTH FOR $349

Click Here to Buy Both

Meet The Preamps

FG-73

The FG-73 preamp module is modeled after one of the most famous discrete solid state preamps in the industry, made in Britain and used on countless recordings. It has a bold, present and warm sound that works great on any audio source – even full mixes.

FG-76

The FG-76 preamp module is modeled after a vintage German tube preamp that has been used on many classic recordings. It has a thick and colorful tone that can make tracks and mixes sound more ‘alive’. The bottom-end saturates in a very unique and musical way, making it a great module for bass guitar and kick drum tracks.

Meet The Hardware

ML-1

Now Available A La Carte for $799

The ML-1 microphone is the centerpiece of the Virtual Microphone System. This large diaphragm mic has a shock-mounted, gold sputtered, 6-micron capsule and a state of the art FET circuit path that ensures the most linear, flat, and clean ‘blank canvas’ response. Combined with the Slate Digital tube microphone modeling software, it can sound like some of the most classic microphones in recording history.

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Latency Free Processing

The Virtual Microphone System software consists of the Classic Tubes microphone module, which contains eight classic tube microphone models, the FG-73 British discrete preamp module, and the FG-76 German tube preamp module. None of these processing blocks add any latency to the audio signal, so if you use a low latency interface with VMS you can track through the VMS software without any audible monitoring delay.

To accomplish this, we recommend a Thunderbolt or fast USB interface, recording at 96khz with the lowest buffer size possible. The combination of the 96khz sampling rate and low buffer size ensures the lowest possible latency.

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The VRS EXPERIENCE

Now you can experience the Slate Virtual Recording Studio including our VMS ML-1 mic models. Click below to go to the VRS Experience page where you can download all the Slate plugins including demos of our VMS microphone plugins, as well as a multitrack session recorded with VMS mics through our VRS8 interface. When you download the plugins and the session, you can load up a track, and experiment with different world-class virtual microphones from the mic locker. You can hear the vocals through the vintage tube 67s, 251s, 47s and more.

VRS EXPERIENCE