Essential Information About Blue Cat MB-5 Dynamix Software
- All-in-one multiband dynamics processor: compressor, limiter, gate, expander, and waveshaper, usable separately or combined.
- Up to 5 bands with adjustable crossover filters from 12 to 120 dB/Oct for precise spectrum separation.
- Unique envelope routing: one band can trigger the dynamics of another (internal sidechain) for advanced effects.
- Full stereo control: stereo or mid/side processing, channel linking options, and post-processing brickwall limiter to secure the output.
What Blue Cat MB-5 Dynamix Is For
Blue Cat MB-5 Dynamix is a multiband dynamics plug-in designed to sculpt a mix with surgical precision, both in mixing and mastering. It allows independent control of bass, low-mids, mids, high-mids, and highs to correct imbalances, stabilize a signal, enhance impact, or conversely smooth out an overly aggressive source.
Thanks to its compressor, gate, expander, limiter, and waveshaper modes, it adapts to many contexts: tightening a drum bus, taming sibilance on a voice in a specific frequency range, cleaning a synth, controlling an overpowering bass, or creating more musical multiband pumping and ducking effects than a wideband sidechain.
Main Features
Multiband dynamics "revisited": one tool, multiple processes
MB-5 Dynamix combines several processing stages in a single coherent interface: you can operate like a multiband compressor to thicken, a multiband gate to reduce noise or resonances, an expander to restore breathing space, a limiter to contain peaks, and a waveshaper to add character. All can be applied on any spectral area, band by band, to achieve more controlled dynamics without crushing the entire signal.
Up to 5 bands and steep crossovers
Splitting into up to five bands allows fine tuning between correction and musicality. The crossover filters, adjustable from 12 to 120 dB/Oct, facilitate either smoother separation (to preserve cohesion) or very sharp separation (to isolate a problematic area). This flexibility is especially useful in mastering but also on buses (drums, guitars, synths) when you want to "hold" a frequency range without affecting the rest.
Internal sidechain and envelope routing between bands
The hallmark of MB-5 Dynamix lies in its envelope detection and internal routing capabilities: one band can trigger the dynamic response of another. Practically, you can make the low-mids react when the bass exceeds a certain threshold, calm the highs only when the mids become aggressive, or create complex dynamic interactions without multiplying plug-in instances.
Stereo, mid/side processing and channel control
To refine the image, the plug-in offers stereo or mid/side processing and channel activation/linking options. This allows, for example, compressing the center (vocals, bass, kick) differently from the sides (ambiences, reverbs, synths), or maintaining a solid center foundation while controlling the energy of high frequencies on the sides.
Output protection and production-oriented workflow
A post-processing brickwall limiter/clipper protects the output and helps keep a controlled level even during aggressive settings. The workflow is enhanced by inter-band functions (copy/paste, linking) to quickly build complex processing, and by detailed visual feedback: spectrum, in/out levels, response curves, ratio and levels per band, to instantly understand the impact of your settings.
Finally, MB-5 Dynamix includes advanced MIDI and automation features, including the ability to use automation/MIDI outputs to control other plug-ins and create signal-dependent sidechain effects, whether in electronic production, post-production, or sound design.
Technical Specifications
Features
- Complete multiband dynamics processor: compressor, gate, limiter, expander, waveshaper
- Up to 5 bands
- Crossover filters from 12 to 120 dB/Oct
- Envelope routing between bands (cross-band dynamics): one band can trigger another (internal sidechain)
- Dry/Wet control for parallel processing ("New York Compression")
- Stereo or mid/side processing
- Multiple channel linking options
- Post-processing brickwall limiter or waveshaper (output protection)
- Full visual feedback: real-time response curves and level meters
- Copy/paste settings between bands
- Easy sidechain: multiband compression, ducking, gating, and more
- Plug-in window transparency management
- Zero latency
- Compatibility with any sample rate
- Processing stops during silence (no CPU load when idle / CPU optimization)
- Smooth Bypass: noise-free activation/deactivation
- Undo/Redo
- Integrated preset manager
- Copy/paste plug-in state between instances
- Full MIDI and automation support
- MIDI Learn
- Automation and MIDI outputs: record output parameters as automation curves or send MIDI CC messages to other plug-ins
- Customizable interface with transparency and zoom
Supported Formats (Plug-ins)
System Requirements - Mac
- OS: Mac OS 10.9 or later
- CPU: Intel or Apple Silicon processor
- Formats: VST-2, VST-3, AU, AAX
System Requirements - Windows
- OS: Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, or Windows 10
- CPU: SSE2-compatible processor (Pentium 4 or newer)
- Formats: VST-2, VST-3, AAX
Version Information (Vendor)
- Version: 2.22
- Added: Apple Silicon support for AAX format
- Fix: VST3 version did not always load correctly in Ableton Live 11
- Improvement: display of VST parameter values in some DAWs
- Added: option to send MIDI events when MIDI-compatible parameters are changed (control surface updates)
- Improvement: undo and automation handling when using mouse wheel
- Fix: VST and VST3 automation sometimes not recorded correctly for output parameters (notably Cubase 11, Ableton Live)
- AAX: fixed erratic mouse behavior in Pro Tools on Mac
- Mac: notarized installers and plug-ins to avoid security warnings on macOS Catalina and later
- Windows: multi-monitor and High DPI support for high-resolution displays (4K screens, high-res laptops) on Windows 10 version 1607 and later
- Mac: improved Retina display rendering, sharper graphics at all resolutions and zoom levels
- Mac: fixed random interface refresh issues in Reaper on Retina screens
- Fix: mono version displayed integer values for ratio, threshold, and gain instead of decimal values
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