The product that started it all for Empirical Labs. Born of founder Dave Derr’s love of classic compressors like the 1176, LA-2A and Gain Brain (among others), the Distressor incorporates his favorite sonic characteristics of these, along with other unique and interesting features that have made it a staple for audio engineers all over the world. With over 28,000 units in the field, it’s safe to say that the Distressor is one of the best selling high end compressors of all time… if not THE best selling. A prominent recording engineer recently wagered that there probably was not a top 40 record made in the last five years that didn’t have at least one Distressor on it.

The product that started it all for Empirical Labs. Born of founder Dave Derr’s love of classic compressors like the 1176, LA-2A and Gain Brain (among others), the Distressor incorporates his favorite sonic characteristics of these, along with other unique and interesting features that have made it a staple for audio engineers all over the world. With over 28,000 units in the field, it’s safe to say that the Distressor is one of the best selling high end compressors of all time… if not THE best selling. A prominent recording engineer recently wagered that there probably was not a top 40 record made in the last five years that didn’t have at least one Distressor on it.

Arguably the coolest and most unique device in the Empirical Labs arsenal, the FATSO (Full Analog Tape Simulator and Optimizer) is a digitally controlled analog device that gives musicians and engineers easy access to many of the desirable characteristics exhibited by older tube and Class A electronics and magnetic tape mediums. This two channel audio processor musically integrates frequencies and transients, increasing the apparent volume while keeping tight control over peak levels.

In today’s modern age of digital recorders, DAWs and software plug-ins, Mike-E is the ultimate solution for getting a clean and strong, yet warm and musical signal into the box…and it couldn’t be easier to work – its front panel layout is so straight ahead that even inexperienced engineers will have no problem moving around on it right away.

As with ELI’s other signal processors, the Lil FrEQ Equalizer takes a somewhat unique approach to its job. Instead of daisy chaining several equalizers and frequency processors, we combined most of the sound sculpting tools an engineer needs into a compact single rack space box, while still offering the highest performance of any design in its class.

The Prophet Rev2 is Dave Smith’s reimagining of his Prophet ’08 poly synth — a modern classic that has appeared on countless recordings and stages since its debut in 2007. As Dave puts it, “The Prophet Rev2 is the realization of our effort to enhance and improve everything we could about the original design — all at a more accessible price.”

The Prophet Rev2 is Dave Smith’s reimagining of his Prophet ’08 poly synth — a modern classic that has appeared on countless recordings and stages since its debut in 2007. As Dave puts it, “The Prophet Rev2 is the realization of our effort to enhance and improve everything we could about the original design — all at a more accessible price.”

Introducing the BigSky MX from Strymon, the next-generation reverb workstation that changes the game for dedicated reverb pedals. It can be daunting to dramatically improve a product like the original BigSky, as it’s been a staple on pro pedalboards for a long time for a host of very good reasons, but we’ve spent the last four years making sure that we achieved that goal. It sounds bigger, wider and more expressive than anything else on the planet, with a host of new features and capabilities that make it the new Greatest Of All Time reverb.

The pedal that revolutionized compact reverb pedals has evolved. Plug into blueSky for the most lush, majestic reverbs imaginable. Transform a single note or chord into vast sonic atmospheres with impossibly gorgeous, incredibly long reverb tails.

Sometimes a single pedal can be transformative. It can make your tone bloom in a way that draws the music out of you effortlessly and keeps you engaged for hours. Cloudburst simply produces some of the most gorgeous ambient reverb sounds you’ve ever heard. There is no other pedal like it.

DIG unearths the true soul of digital delay and doubles it — two simultaneous, integrated delays with captivating rack delay voicings from the 1980s and today, for incredible expressive potential.

Plug in, play a note or chord, and you feel it: All the warm, saturated, distinctive qualities and subtle nuances of vintage tape echo combine to instantly create an unmistakable atmosphere.