It’s interesting how we guitarists spend so much money to get our hands on gear that emulates fifty-year-old technology. We dedicate our playing time to achieving the tones and techniques of players long gone or past their prime, while manufacturers use every modern tech trick in the book to recreate the sounds and vibe of whichever vintage yesteryear. I can’t think of many other categories of technology where this is the case, and I’ve yet to see anyone harking for the day floppy disks return so they can store their data the way they used to.
The Universal Audio Apollo Twin X is one such piece of gear. On the one hand, it’s a thoroughbred modern audio interface with duo/quad SHARC DSP processors, advanced AD/DA conversion, and some incredible dynamic range and total harmonic distortion figures. On the other, the actual workflow is decidedly nostalgic, aiming to recreate the process of recording via an analog studio desk, using plugins modeled on vintage rackmount units from the '60s onwards.
