Tone Empire has released EDYNpre, a tube saturation plugin based on the classic Electrodyne 1204 console, and it’s completely free to download until May 20th.
EDYNpre brings the character of a vintage mixing console to your DAW, offering a bold, punchy sound with plenty of analog vibe. Based on the image on Tone Empire’s website, I believe the plugin is modeled after the Electrodyne 1204 console, which was custom-built for Frank Sinatra.
However, EDYNpre doesn’t attempt to recreate the entire channel strip. It’s a harmonic saturation tool that adds weight, presence, and midrange clarity—ideal for vocals, drums, guitars, or anything that needs more punch.
The main control is the Drive knob, which increases harmonic content and adds analog-style coloration. There’s a Mix knob for parallel processing, plus Input and Output level controls to fine-tune your signal chain.
You also get onboard high-pass and low-pass filters, and a few handy extras like phase inversion and switchable input impedance (50 or 200 ohms) to tailor the response. Tone Empire recommends mixing the phase-inverted signal with the dry signal for some weird effects. I still haven’t tried this, but it’s a neat idea.
For more aggressive distortion, the OVD switch engages a heavier overdrive mode—perfect for gritty guitars or saturated drum busses. The AG (Auto Gain) switch compensates output levels when driving the input harder, making gain staging a lot easier.
I tested EDYNpre briefly in Studio One, and my first impressions are positive. The saturation sounds smooth, and I like the auto-gain feature. It helps keep the volume in check while fine-tuning the saturation amount.
Unfortunately, the CPU hit is relatively high on my M1 MacBook Air, around 10% per plugin instance. Those percentages would get quite high if multiple instances are used across the mix.
Getting EDYNpre is pretty straightforward. To receive your license, you’ll need to complete the checkout process on the Tone Empire website. No email verification is required, and newsletter signup is optional.
The site is a bit sluggish right now—probably due to a traffic surge—but I managed to complete the process in a few minutes. Once the checkout is done, the license key and download links for both Windows and macOS show up in your browser and get added to your user account.
Installation is quick, and the plugin is ready to go after logging in with the credentials you used at checkout. Note that an internet connection is required for activation.
EDYNpre is available in VST3, AU, and AAX formats, compatible with 64-bit hosts on Windows 10 and later, or macOS Mojave and later (Intel and Apple Silicon supported). It’s a 197 MB download and takes up around 235 MB of space when installed.
This one’s well worth grabbing while it’s free if you’re looking for a good-sounding saturation plugin with auto-gain and don’t mind a somewhat higher CPU hit.
Download: EDYNpre (FREE until May 20th)
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Last Updated on May 13, 2025 by Tomislav Zlatic.
