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The Teletronix LA-2A Black Friday deal covers the Teletronix LA-2A Leveler Collection, a compressor plugin set from Universal Audio that runs at $49, 67% off, until Nov 30, 2026.
The collection holds three plugins: the LA-2A Silver, the LA-2A Gray and the original LA-2. Universal Audio says these are the most authentic emulations of this optical compressor it has made.
UA first released an LA-2A plugin in 2001 for UAD hardware. Its engineers have since redesigned it in finer detail, and the maker says the collection now works with any soundcard on Mac and PC.
It is a set of optical compressor plugins, the kind of compression the maker calls gentle and program dependent. The tube amplifier stage is modeled too.
Teletronix founder Jim Lawrence began using photocells to control audio gain in the early 1960s. UA founder Bill Putnam later bought the patented design and kept building the LA-2A for years.
Each plugin follows its hardware original, so time constants, compression knee, headroom, distortion and frequency dependence all differ between them.
Two versions come with the purchase, so you can pick the one that matches your setup.
With an Apollo interface you can also record through an LA-2A or LA-2 in real time. On any other audio interface, the native version handles tracking and mixing.
The collection ships with presets from LA-2A users Ross Hogarth, Darrell Thorp and Vance Powell. Use them as a starting point, then dial in the optical compression texture for vocals, bass, drums and more.
Yes. The Teletronix LA-2A Leveler Collection is 67% off at $49, and the deal ends Nov 30, 2026. The purchase covers all three plugins: the LA-2A Silver, the LA-2A Gray and the LA-2.
No. The UAD Native version runs on a Mac or PC without any UA hardware, and works with any soundcard. Apollo interfaces and UAD-2 hardware get the accelerated Realtime version, also included in the purchase.
Three plugins: the LA-2A Silver, the LA-2A Gray and the original LA-2. Both the UAD Native and Apollo Realtime/UAD-2 versions come with the purchase, along with presets from Ross Hogarth, Darrell Thorp and Vance Powell.
They differ mainly in speed. The Silver has a fast time constant that suits drums and percussion. The Gray sits at a medium-speed average. The LA-2 is the slowest, with a mellowed sound the maker recommends for vocals.
Prices and end dates are checked at publishing time and can change, so confirm them at the store before you buy.