MB Howies179
Pure Unobtainium
“Music today doesn’t need more loud. It needs more glue, more weight, more smooth.”
Masterdisk. Bob Ludwig. Howie Weinberg.
A common thread through thousands of
of masters and hundreds of Grammy Nominations and wins is the sonic imprint of the NTP 179-120.
This compressor/limiter has a mythical reputation, and is basically unobtainable in modern times. Until now.
Introducing Howie’s 179
We worked with legendary mastering engineer Howie Weinberg to capture the essence and nuance of his personal 179-120s.
From the details of the dynamics processing to the boxtone and distortion characteristics of his specific units, Howie’s 179 is a loving recreation of Howie's pair of NTP 179-120 compressor/limiters.
Based on his 40+ year mastering career working on the biggest albums across all genres, Howie has zeroed in on the range of settings that are the key to getting the most out of this legendary processor.
The Howie’s 179 plugin provides a streamlined UI that takes that experience into account, while also adding the required controls to make it easy to utilize the compressor/limiter in the box rather than in an analog loop; add in recallability and not being limited to a stereo pair, and Howie’s 179 opens a new world of possibilities for you!
“The 179-120 was built in 1975 for the very first Neumann mastering consoles, the SP 75 and the SP 77.
When I started at Masterdisk in ’77, it was just there, bolted into the wall, part of the furniture.
Bob Ludwig leaned on it. I leaned on it. It became a staple for both of us on records all through the ’80s and ‘90s, and most people who love those records have never heard its name. That’s exactly the point. It’s the most unobtrusive stereo bus compressor ever made.
The sound is big and smooth; it holds a record together without ever telling you it’s there. In my opinion, it’s one of the finest-sounding stereo compressors ever produced.
I still have my pair racked up in Laurel Canyon, and for years when people asked me how to get that glue, the honest answer was - you can’t.
There are only a handful of these left in the world. That‘s what makes what Metric Halo and Make Believe Studios did so special, they didn’t build something ‘inspired’ by it, they captured my actual units, exactly.
Music today doesn’t need more loud. It needs more glue, more weight, more
Some of Howie’s Mastering Credits
The Smashing Pumpkins, Beastie Boys, Prince, Madonna, Sheryl Crow, Gary Clark Jr., Twenty One Pilots, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Joe Cocker, Fiona Apple, Soundgarden, Arrested Development, Herbie Hancock, PJ Harvey, Nirvana, Daft Punk, Elvis Costello, Mariah Carey, Garbage, LL Cool J, Deftones, UB40, Iggy Pop, U2, Public Enemy, Don Henley, Metallica, Gorillaz, ZZ Top, The Black Keys, My Chemical Romance, Danzig, The Lumineers, Public Image Ltd., Filter, Marilyn Manson, Pantera, Disturbed, Queensryche, Papa Roach, Cage the Elephant, Bush, Tenacious D, Thirty Seconds to Mars, Vessel, Sugar, Bjork, Phish, Rammstein, N2deep, ELO, The Clash, Limp Bizkit, Creed, Muse, David Lee Roth, Yoko Ono, Chic, Ice Cube, Sonic Youth, Modest Mouse, Sinead O' Connor and more…
Howie has received 20 Grammy awards and 76 Grammy nominations, 4 TEC awards, 2 Juno awards, 1 Mercury prize award, 200+ gold and platinum records, and has over 8.6k total credits.
“This thing is insane. I’m kind of pissed that our secret weapon is now available to the public.
Howie’s 179 is legendary, and MB/MH knocked it out of the park with this one. It’s a perfect match to the hardware!”
-Will Borza, Howie Weinberg Mastering
Deftones, The Black Keys, The Lumineers,
My Chemical Romance, Foster The People,
Thirty Seconds To Mars, YUNGBLUD
Designed for producers, musicians, mix and mastering engineers who want that final weight, smoothness and glue for their productions.
Howie has used the 179-120 on over 2000 mastering projects - 76 of which have been nominated for Grammys and 20 of which have won. Add Howies179 to your toolkit today!
Quotes
“The 179 is a sonic marvel. It focuses your mix without removing anything, and quickly gives that amazing Howie finishing touch that so many of my favorite records have.”
- Greg Wells
Wicked (the movies), Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, Dua Lipa, Adele, Katy Perry, John Legend, Michael Bublé
“Take your hospital grade sanitized plugin compressors and throw them in the trash. This is your medicine now.”
- Rich Costey
Muse, The Mars Volta, My Chemical Romance, Deftones, The Foo Fighters, Bruce Springsteen, Linkin Park, Fiona Apple, Charlie XCX, Paramore
“One of the tightest, smoothest compressors ever built. This was the go-to Compressor for every mastering engineer thru the ’80’s and ’90’s. When Bob Ludwig mastered my records there was a pretty strong chance it was going thru the NTP. You could never get enough of this. I love this on tight electric guitars and as a drum parallel compressor as well.”
- Joe Chiccarelli
The Strokes, Beck, Morrissey, Weezer, U2
Howie’s 179 Sound Samples
between processing on (button blue) and off (button grey)
Drum Loop
Hip Hop
Indy Rock
Metal
“For me, the "Howie Weinberg sound" is two things (basically): a subtle-but-real classic album tone coloring and an exciting, rocking, aggressive compression that makes the music kick ass. This plugin is the heart of that sound.
When I first worked with Howie in the late '90s, he pointed out the pieces in his mastering chain and I remember him saying, "First it goes through these really nice Danish compressors. These are really rare."
I love this plug-in. It will be going on my mix bus very regularly from now on.
Effective, exciting and musical with a touch of color that's anything but detrimental to your mix.”
- Ari Raskin
John Legend, Black Eyed Peas, Kanye West, Justin Timberlake, Usher
“The Howie 179 plugin is everything you’d want in a mastering plugin. It can be tame and tasteful, or all the way to aggressive and statement making. I absolutely love it.”
- Bill Mimms
Justin Timberlake, Prince, Audioslave, Keith Urban, Death Cab for Cutie
“Dude.. this compressor is INSANE!!!!”
- Tony Hoffer
Beck, Air, The Kooks, M83, The Fratellis, Chromeo, Fitz & The Tantrums, Metric, Phoenix, Depeche Mode
“Howies 179 has a way of putting every element in its place without taking the life out of any of them, very convincing.”
- Cesar Sogbe
Prince, David Byrne,
Natalia La fourcade, Andres Calamaro
“Total game changer. The ‘Howie’ mode is on another level, and it’s definitely going into my workflow.”
- Glen Robinson
U2, The Ramones, Nashville Pussy, GWAR, Ringo Starr, Keith Richards, Probot, and Voivod
“The sound of Howie’s 179’s release makes it one of the most musical compressors I’ve ever used. The needle moves with the groove and holds on to the low midrange, thickening complex material while retaining dynamics. I used it extensively during the testing phase, and when they were given multiple options of masters, most clients preferred the pass with the 179.”
- Brad Boatright
Stranger Things, Obituary, and Monolord
“Howie's 179 is a great new addition to my existing tool collection. Simple and intuitive to navigate, yet powerful in the choices you can make, while being musical and fun. From subtle finishing touches to in your face ‘I don’t want this to breathe’, just within a couple of changes. No complicated menus or settings to dial in. Simple but powerful, and easy on the CPU. I could see this living on my digital mastering chain or on my mixing 2 buss
for quick and easy results.”
- Gentry Studer
Miley Cyrus, Deftones, Tiësto, Calum Scott, Metallica, Incubus
“Wow, this thing just jumped to the front of the line as my go-to bus comp. ‘In your face’ with no sonic coloration and beautiful slopes, which all combine to give it that sounds-like-a-record thing!”
- Dan Rothchild
Heart, Better Than Ezra, Roadcase Royale
“Howie's 179 compressor plug-in knocks it out of the park with a warm, clear, analog-like sound almost too good to be true. The transparent processing smoothly tailors the dynamics without choking the tone. I absolutely love it on just about anything. The 179 is my new go-to compressor.”
- Oz Fritz
Iggy Pop, Ginger Baker, George Clinton, Tom Waits and Primus
“Doesn’t matter the genre, the lowend bloom on Howie’s 179 is what proper lowend sounds like in my head. Howie’s lets me speedrun to that result.”
- Seth Munson
Nickelback, Bring Me The Horizon, Teddy Swims, Thrown, Northlane, Ninth Key, Lo Spirit
“I vaguely recognized the looks of the Howie’s 179, and when I started abusing it I immediately realized that it sounded and felt like a very wonky compressor/limiter I used to own. And suddenly it came to me! I used to own a pair of these some twenty-five years ago! They are awesome little monsters, and I've really missed them since selling them. Until now, that is.”
- Roberto Laghi
In Flames, Freak Kitchen, Entombed A.D.
“Howies 179 got the punch, weight and glue that we all heard on countless classic records.”
- Daniel Escobar
Rosé, Karol G, FKA Twigs, Lizzo, Lil Wayne,
Marc Anthony, Offset
“This compressor isn’t trying to be invisible. It has a cool personality that lets you dial in some satisfying pump and grab while still keeping the mix clear and exciting.
It’s the kind of mastering compressor I love, one that adds character, movement, and energy without sacrificing clarity.”
- Chris Baseford (Producer/Mixer/Engineer)
Nickelback, Daughtry,
Theory Of A Deadman, Shinedown
“The NTP limiters have long been considered something of a holy grail in mastering circles, known for their unique vibe, tone, and musical coloration. It’s great to see Howie’s legendary 179 now being modeled by the team at Make Believe Studios.”
- Thomas ‘Plec’ Johansson
Mayhem Architects, Imminence, Soilwork
“The 179’s are great dynamic tools for adding attitude and control, all with that same recognizable character we’ve heard across so many great records.”
- Connor H Carroll
Ava Max, Jay Park, Faouzia,
Yng Lvcas, Eric Bellinger, Vory
“MB Howies 179 proves that simplicity and depth aren't mutually exclusive. With just a handful of controls, this plugin handles everything I throw at it, from single instruments to full mixes, delivering a sonic range that spans from subtle glue to extreme coloration. What impressed me most is how such a limited set of parameters opens up what feels like nearly infinite sonic possibilities. After spending time with this emulation, I completely understand why Howie Weinberg loves his hardware unit so much. Metric Halo and Make Believe Studios have captured something special here.”
- Oleg “Yorshoff” Yershov
Kamal, Alyona Alyona, Involver, Elderwind, Adrian Hoffmann
“This limiter has the ‘magic sauce’ that Howie has been putting on his masters for years. It is now part of my mix chain. It really glues everything together - Drums, mix, you name it. It Just works!”
- Dave Schiffman
Vampire Weekend, PUP, Audioslave,
System of A Down, Charlie XCX
“Don’t let the simple interface fool you, this thing has vibe for days. It’s quickly finding its way onto all my mixes. If you know me you know I’m a little crazy about compressors, and this one is worthy. You’re probably thinking that you need another compressor as much as you need another hole in your head, but... this one deserves a spot in your toolbox. Any compressor can compress, but this adds energy and punch to whatever passes through it.”
- Steve DeMott
Ubisoft, Microsoft Studios, 1Tribe Collective, Mimage Pictures, Alika Hope, T&T Dreamin’, Tom Weber
“Howie’s 179 perfectly captures Howie’s signature sound, a sound that we heard on some of the most legendary records in the history.”
- David Gnozzi
Dweezil Zappa, Adema, Alyssa Raghu, McSolaar, Ministry, Michael Kroeger (Nickelback),
Ryan Shuck (Orgy, Julien K), Monte Pittman
“What impresses me most about 179 is how effortless it feels. There’s a polish and musicality that feels intentional rather than hyped. The 179 is a thoughtful collaboration between my friends Howie and Make Believe and it’s a processor I find myself reaching for because it consistently makes things sound better.”
- Jade Alyse Berry
Jackson Wang, Jason Derulo, Timbaland, Common Kings, Honorable C Note
“Howie’s new plugin is rad. It’s somewhere between a compressor/saturator/tape machine/all around gel box! It sort of reduces the need for limiting in mastering quite as much. Digging it, and the tone is great too!”
- Jason Livermore
Rise Against, Propagandhi, Bad Religion,
NOFX, Descendents, A Day to Remember,
Molotov, Mario Bautista
“There's no magic involved, just flawless engineering packed into an easy-to-use tool that lets you achieve great results in no time.”
- Danilo Madonia
Moody Blues, Double You, Eric Clapton, Renato Zero
“This compressor brings tracks to life and adds the final touch to every mix.”
- Mati Gavriel
Jon Batiste, Kesha, Belinda Carlisle, Diane Warren, Pentatonix
“MB/MH teamed up with one of the top names in the business to bring us a really cool modern take on a vintage design. It can slam, but I love using it to finesse - gluing and thickening the low-mids with the beautiful tone they captured from Howie’s 179.”
- Mike Monseur
Colter Wall, Wynonna, Little Big Town, Sam Barber, The War & Treaty
“The 179 is the ultimate tone box. The tone from this box is killer and works on everything!”
- Paul Kruz
JayTrigga & Ari, RayVanny, JayRox, Skales, Roberto, Harmonize
“The MB Howie’s 179 plug-in is a revelation. It made an immediate impact on every mix I’ve been working on and is already my all-time favorite compressor on Kick Drum!”
- Stephan Hawkes
Dance Gavin Dance, Eidola, Chelsea Grin
Key Features
- Detailed model of Howie Weinberg’s NTP 179-120
- Add smoothness, weight and glue
- Apply the analog saturation of Howie's units
- World-class Signal Processing and Workflow
- Adjustable UI size
- MH Preset Manager - Provides cross-platform presets
Try It Free for 30 Days
We want you to hear how MB Howies179 can bring your mixes to the next level – that’s why we have a free, fully functional 30-day trial of MB Howies179 available for download.
Try MB Howies179 for yourself today!
The +DSP version of this plugin running with zero latency on hardware is included all Metric Halo 3d Audio Interfaces.
Tech Specs
System Requirements
- Mac OS X 10.10 or newer. Intel Processor or Apple Silicon. AU, VST 2 & 3 or AAX (Pro Tools 11 & newer Native) host. 64 bit.
- Windows 7 or newer. Intel Processor. VST or AAX (Pro Tools 10, 11 & 12 & Native) host. 64 bit.
Licensing Requirements
- iLok.com account.
- License includes two activations for your account.
- iLok dongle is optional — you may install the license on your machine or on an iLok or the iLok Cloud for portability.
- Only one license required – works on all supported platforms.