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The VLA Bundle Black Friday deal is 67% off at $49 until Nov 22, 2026, and it groups four Black Rooster Audio leveling amplifier plugins: the VLA-2A, VLA-2A Mark II, VLA-3A and VLA-FET.
Three of the four are opto-style compressors. The fourth, the VLA-FET, is a FET-style leveling amplifier.
The bundle is a set of Vintage Leveling Amplifier plugins:
All four run as native plugins in your DAW, so nothing in the signal chain needs outboard hardware.
The maker calls the VLA-2A Mark II the most authentic native emulation of the late-1960s opto-electronic compressor it models, built after many hours of matching and calculation.
Black Rooster Audio says it likes the Mark II on drums, and that it also works on bass and vocals. Careful compression settings help signals sit in the mix.
The VLA-2A is described as an emulation of the same late-1960s opto unit, meant to carry the dynamics of your signal in a lively, musical way.
The VLA-3A is modelled on a 1970s analog unit. It keeps the T4-based opto-compressor sound but adds discrete solid-state circuitry. The maker says that makes the response quicker, brighter and more modern.
Black Rooster Audio calls it their go-to compressor for vocals. It is also said to bring out ambience on percussive material and add glue to mixes.
The VLA-FET draws on a well-known leveling amplifier from recording history and is based on the classic LN Rev F design. Its signal path pairs transformers made by Lundahl with an input stage built around an operational amplifier, in the manner of the LA-4A.
Its attack and release times are very fast, which suits forceful drums, bass and vocals. The maker also added modern functions on top of the classic parameters.
Black Rooster Audio uses real-time, SPICE-type, component-based circuit simulation. The maker says transformers, tube stages and passive filter networks are all modelled.
Oversampling adjusts automatically to your session's sample rate, which saves CPU. Aliasing is attenuated with a low-latency, linear-phase Dolph-Chebyshev poly-phase design.
The DSP code is optimized with SSE2 instructions. The plugins also support HighDPI and Retina displays on Mac and Windows.
On Mac, you need:
On Windows, you need:
Yes. The VLA Bundle Black Friday deal is 67% off at $49 and ends Nov 22, 2026. It covers four Black Rooster Audio compressor plugins: the VLA-2A, VLA-2A Mark II, VLA-3A and VLA-FET.
Four Vintage Leveling Amplifier plugins from Black Rooster Audio: the VLA-2A, the VLA-2A Mark II, the VLA-3A and the VLA-FET. Three are opto-style designs, and the VLA-FET is based on a FET leveling amplifier.
On Mac the plugins run as VST, VST3, AU or AAX in a 64-bit host. On Windows they run as VST, VST3 or AAX. Apple Silicon M1 and M2 Macs are supported.
The maker says the VLA-3A keeps the classic T4-based opto-compressor sound but adds discrete solid-state circuitry. That gives a quicker, brighter and more modern response than its predecessor.
Prices and end dates are checked at publishing time and can change, so confirm them at the store before you buy.