Black Lion Audio - Level-Loc

Explosive? That’s Shure!
The original Shure Level-Loc was designed in the 1960s as a simple, affordable compressor/limiter for speech reinforcement and leveling in live sound and broadcast applications.

Over the years, the original Level-Loc became the secret weapon of some savvy sound engineers who noticed the unique effect of its “sledgehammer” compression and optional saturation module. The Level-Loc brings serious grit to anything thrown at it, and it’s especially appreciated on the drum bus. With this trick out, prices for the Level-Loc skyrocketed on the used market, and plug-in emulations began to appear.

Working closely with Shure, Black Lion Audio has re-energized the Level-Loc with all the heft of the original, but without the vintage pricing and questionable reliability that comes with a sixty-year-old product.
Vintage vibe, modern options.

While the Shure Level-Loc began as a utilitarian sound reinforcement tool, its accidental, aggressive, and colorful sonic imprint has been adopted into modern music production as a creative effect.
Black Lion worked closely with Shure to retain everything that made the OG Level-Loc great—quirks and all—while adding modern features and connectivity not found on the original:
• ‘Mix’ function: Get instant parallel compression, adjustable to your taste.
• Combo jack input: Connect line-level or mic-level signals without the need for an adapter.
• ¼TRS Output: We added a TRS jack while retaining the original’s XLR output and high/low impedance options.
• Phantom Power and Pad: The original Level-Loc was intended for use with dynamic mics, but we added a +48v power source and a 50dB A15LA pad to our version for modern studios.
• Release Mod: The original Level-Loc had a fixed release time; we added fast/slow release times to modernize our take on the classic.

Crunch and Grind.
The Level-Loc’s compressor threshold is set by the “Distance Selector,” true to the unit’s origins as a public speaking machine. Choose your threshold and adjust the input level for hard compression; adjust the mix for instant parallel compression. This will really bring out the room tone in your drum sounds.

The compression ratio of the Level-Loc is fixed and very high.
If you are feeling particularly adventurous, try disabling the pad and feeding the Level-Loc a line level signal and boosting the line level to saturate it a little, then use the Mix knob to adjust the coloration to your taste; you can get everything from subtle saturation to full-on distortion. You can even saturate the input and compress simultaneously.

When it comes to giving your productions a unique character there is simply no better tool than the Level-Loc.

Features:
• Creative effects processor combining compression, saturation and intense distortion.
• Modern reimagining of Shure's highly sought-after Level-Loc, designed in close partnership with Shure.
• Mix function for instant parallel compression.
• Modern connectivity options including TRS and XLR outputs and a combo jack input, plus +48v for condenser mics; a pad, and a release time modulator.