Affiliate disclosure: the "Get this deal" button is an affiliate link to the store. If you buy through it we earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Full policy
The tube tech SMC 2B Black Friday deal takes 56% off Softube's three-band opto compressor plugin, bringing it to $129 until Nov 15, 2026.
The SMC 2B is a multiband compressor that splits the signal into Low, Mid and High bands, each with its own optical stereo compressor. Softube built it as a model of the Tube-Tech SMC 2B hardware and added modern features on top.
Multiband compression lets you compress specific frequency ranges instead of the whole signal. That means you can tame bass on a vocal, bass, guitar or drum bus, or rein in the snap and crack of a snare.
The maker also points to transient control on acoustic guitar picking and to rebalancing a full stereo mix.
Softube says it modeled every component and stage of the original, and that the result matches the hi-fi hardware in its own tests.
Softube's Kim Larsson and Thomas Andersson did the modeling. The photosensitive parts behind the optical compression react to ambient light, so the measurements were taken in a darkened lab.
The plugin carries over the 6 dB/octave crossover filters that set the band split points.
Softube says these extras give you more control than the original unit.
The plugin runs in AU, VST, VST3 and AAX hosts. On Mac that means macOS Big Sur 11, Monterey 12 or Ventura 13. On Windows it means Windows 10 (64-bit) or Windows 11.
You need a Softube account and an iLok account, plus internet access to download installers and manage licenses.
The SMC 2B comes from the company behind the Tube-Tech CL 1B, PE 1C and ME 1B plugins. Softube says it has worked with Tube-Tech, Weiss Engineering, Solid State Logic and Chandler Limited for two decades.
Yes. The Tube-Tech SMC 2B Black Friday deal takes 56% off Softube's multiband compressor plugin, bringing it to $129. The offer runs until Nov 15, 2026.
You get three independent optical stereo compressors for the Low, Mid and High bands. Each has Threshold, Ratio, Attack, Release and Gain. Dual Mono, Mid/Side, a Dry/Wet knob, a sidechain input and per-band mute switches round it out.
It runs in AU, VST, VST3 and AAX compatible DAW hosts. It supports macOS Big Sur 11, Monterey 12 and Ventura 13, plus Windows 10 (64-bit) and Windows 11. A Softube account and an iLok account are required.
Yes. It has Mid/Side processing, so the mid and sides can be shaped independently. Parallel compression comes from the Dry/Wet knob. You can also run it in linked stereo or unlinked Dual Mono, and feed it through a sidechain input.
Prices and end dates are checked at publishing time and can change, so confirm them at the store before you buy.