The Akai S950, one of the most famous samplers from the 80s, is largely praised for its legendary sound. Many consider the 12-bit grit and crunch still unmatched today.

original akai s950 - Review: Inphonik RX950

But the 12-bit resolution is not all. For over a year, Inphonik studied every bit of this studio gear masterpiece to bring back its unique character to your modern DAW with the RX950.

Meet the RX950 Classic AD/DA Converter, Inphonik’s first effect plug-in, designed to perfectly mimic the whole AD/DA conversion process of the Akai S950 in order to give your music this vintage, warm and crunchy sound with the ease & flexibility of a VST.

Key Features

  • Legendary 12-bit resolution
  • Perfect modeling of the S950’s audio signal path
  • Adjustable audio bandwidth (and thus sampling frequency)
  • Original steep 6th-order low-pass Butterworth filter
  • Stereo or mono operation
  • Low CPU consumption
  • Adjustable brilliance setting (high-frequency response)
  • Graphical interface scaling options (from 1x to 2.5x)
  • Parameter value keyboard typing on double-click
  • NKS Support
  • Dead Simple Controls for a Killer Sound

Input Gain: Makes your sound loud ’n proud with the S950’s unique grit and warm distortion. It is powerful and will help anything stand out in your mix.
Audio Bandwidth: Controls the target sample rate and analog-to-digital conversion circuitry with an exquisite, yet remarkably subtle, aliasing effect.
Filter: Controls the S950’s infamous steep low-pass filter. Use it on separate elements, or on any output bus or master section.
Brilliance: Adjust the Audio Bandwidth’s high-frequency response with the Brilliance knob (in Settings/Back panel).

My Thoughts?

What I enjoy the most about this plugin is its simplicity and also the fact that you can obtain incredible results in no time. Even when you drive the input fairly a lot, you get attractive sounding distortion. When you feel the need to add a legendary Akai S950 grit in your tracks, RX950 is an excellent choice in terms of emulation. At its price point, it’s a must-have for any producers’ effects toolkit. I 100% recommend the RX950 for your plugin collection!

More information: Plugin Boutique