By kritikon
On 30th September 2005
Version: 1.0
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The Interruptor BionicDelay
I'm another fan of anything useable in dub. Always on the lookout for big uber-delays.
Personally, I'm not that keen on the GUI of this one - some of the knobs are a bit on the small side and very fiddly to set any fine parameters.
Soundwise it's OK as a general delay - not an awful lot of character but useable because of the ability to instil some wow and flutter, and also useful is the ability to tweak the delay timing off the exact tempo. But it becomes really useful when you turn up the feedback to get the repeating filtered dub delays. To be honest, you should probably ignore my earlier whining about general delays, as obviously this one is aimed specifically at being a big resonant dub delay, and at that it does a rather good job.
A reservation I have is that there is a certain point at which the feedback suddenly comes to life, but below which it is difficult to control - it doesn't seem to do an awful lot, but you pass the magic feedback number and hey presto it is immediately an infinite delay - all or nothing. When it's at "all", it's great and characterful, and the filter comes to life, and the delays go on and on and take over your mix wonderfully...sigh....but at "nothing" it is just a boring difficult to fine-tune delay.
So this is my proviso - use Bionic delay solely as a huge dub delay with lots of feedback and filtering and you'll be perfectly happy with it. It definitely has a different character than things like RetroDelay etc. It lends itself to dirty, mulched up dub delays very pleasingly. The type of delay that you bring upfront in the mix and drop out everything else for in-yer-face dub effect.
Another proviso is to have a limiter, or at least compressor after it. It will grow too big quite easily and will clip if you let it. Automation is also a good idea to bring down the feedback afterwards.
It's definitely not my first go-to delay for dub, but I wouldn't like to get rid of it. I wouldn't use it at all for bread and butter delay, but personally I don't see that bread and butter delay is the point of Bionic Delay anyway. Just every now and then, you want to go silly with a delay, and this is the perfect freebie delay to go silly with. It doesn't do much of anything that many other newer delays can't do, and it's not the best-looking on the block either, but it has its own little niche place for grunged up infinite dub, and you'd be daft not to at least give it a try if you do anything in the realms of dub or ambient. Bigger knobs and some colour other than orange would help it, but they're only minor gripes really.
It has a "grooveL" and "grooveR" function which are useful little tools to get the delays off the exact beat and tempo. Not enough delays have this type of feature - exact tempo matching with delays can sound pretty dull, and even muddy up your mix badly, so this is a welcome feature.
Another little gripe with the tempo sync is the lack of options - you've only got the basics such as 1/2, 1/4 etc - I'd like a few more options of dotted and triplet delays. But as I said before - if you use Bionic Delay for what it's good at (huge dub delays), then you're probably going to use either 1/2 or 1/4 note delays anyway.
Not alot more I can say about it really. For me, it's a one-trick pony. Ain't anything wrong with that...it's a good trick. |
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Last edited : 30th September 2005
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By kritikon
On 24th July 2005
Version: 1.1
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digitalfishphones Floorfish
If any of you haven't downloaded the fishfillets plugins, then do so immediately. They do everyday studio chores with style and character. They are some of the best freebies ever released and are likely to remain classics.
Floorfish isn't just an everyday gate. It can be used for expansion and true gating, but it's also frequency conscious, so it'll do things like de-essing. And it does them extremely well. To be honest, I had it in my plugin folder for a couple of years without ever using it. One day I wanted to gate a really noisy old drum loop, and my normal choice of gate (the one in SX) just didn't cut it. I like the SX one - it's frequency triggered (not frequency conscious). But it often sounds a bit too severe, no matter how you set it...too clinical.
VFM - It's free. It's the quality of many a h/w unit that used to sell in bucketloads too.
Features - As I mentioned, it's not just a plain gate. You could use it on vocals to de-ess; you could use it to gate noise; you could use it to bring down nasty hats that hiss; you could use it to curtail overlong boomy subs to create more space in a loop. Because it's so smooth, you could use it to retain just a little bit of reverb but cut down the tails. You can use it for true expansion.
For anyone that uses drumloops, Floorfish is a must-have. I've used it on vocal samples as well - it won't completely get rid of noise, but it'll reduce the obvious hiss without totally destroying the feel of the vocal - difficult to achieve even close to that with straight Eq.
It barely uses any CPU, so you can slip it into any project easily.
Floorfish is characterised by its smoothness. You can gate out most of the noise, but its envelope is very smooth so you can still retain a little of the drums' ambience etc. And because of the frequency conscious gubbins, you can fine tune it so that to a great degree you can pull down nasty grating hats etc. It won't completely gate them out (no gate can do that), but it will bring them down to a level that sits more easily without lopping of huge amounts of kick subs etc. It's a very versatile gate.
Of course, if you pull the attack right down to zero, it can perform like almost any gate. It'll simply gate out noise in the quiet passages very well. But its the ultra smooth envelope combined with the frequency conscious bit that makes it stand out. It has all the usual controls - envelope attack and release, sensitivity (threshold) and ratio (which is the bit that is basically amount of gating). A useful extra feature is the stereo button, so you can work with either mono or stereo - a surprising amount of FX plugins don't allow that!
The listen button is also useful. Solo the channel you've got it on and press the listen button to hear which frequencies the gate is working on. No readouts as such, but as ever, your ear is the best judge. And thanks to Sascha for realising this and not making the GUI too busy or flashy with needless readouts and meters.
GUI - easy on the eye in monochrome. All the knobs are self-explanatory.
Sound - As I said, it's the smoothness that really appeals. You can do a substanbtial amount of gating without losing too much character of the original material, right up to straight extreme gating.
Presets - not many, but how many presets do you need on such a simple plugin?
Support - none unfortunately. Now Sascha has got himself a proper coding job, he said he won't be supporting these plugins any more...which is a loss to us all, but fear not. This is a very reliable plugin that won't upset your system. It's a few years old but it's rock solid.
I have noticed one drawback though. I can't get any more than 3 instances of it to play in any one project. I don't know why, but it just won't, so if you need multiple gates, you may need to render some down to audio post-processing. It's not that it bumps up the CPU or anything. It might be my system...I use SX2 on an AMD CPU. But it's not a real drawback...as I said, simply render to audio. It's too useful a gate for that minor glitch to put anyone off using it.
Normally I use the SX2 gate for everyday gating, and it's fine for that. I also have an old Behringer 4-channel gate that is great for when using h/w sources, but that too is a pretty bog-standard gate that just gates. I have an old Digitech flagship unit that has gates and noise suppressors in it that does a few more esoteric things, but it still doesn't work quite like Floorfish. Floorfish compares more to something like a Dbx gate. It really brings quality to something as mundane as a gate, which you often don't notice, but on those occasions when you have a noisy or nasty loop that can't be discarded because it has some vital character in it - Floorfish is most likely the tool that will make it fit into a mix without noise and without buggering up the feel of it.
And it's made by the same man who coded Blockfish and Endorphin, so you know it has breeding. |
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Last edited : 24th July 2005
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By kritikon
On 24th July 2005
Version: 1.0.1
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Kjaerhus Audio Golden Uni-Pressor | GUP-1
For anyone who likes character compressors, then GUP-1 is up there with the best. It can be clean when used sparingly and in smooth mode, but I bought it mainly for the character it imparts when you push it hard. It can pump away nicely when you unclick the smooth option and behaves favourably like a decent VCA h/w compressor. The upside is that it doesn't lose alot of shine in the top end like many h/w comps do though.
To my ears it sounds as though it's simply a cut-down version of GCO-1. That's partly why I bought it, although mainly because it has the sound and also has a sidechain. That seemed to be the reason Kjaerhus coded GUP-1; apparently there were requests for the sonic style of GCO-1, but simpler and with a sidechain. I've no doubt at some stage that GCO-1 will have a sidechain at some point . Kjaerhus have stated that GCO-1 is their flagship compressor, so it won't lag behing for long I would think.
So what distinguishes GUP from GCO?
1) It's got a few less options of compressor type - so it's quicker to set up.
2) The sidechain.
1) Its modes are smooth/pumping and opto. You can still have it in smooth mode while in opto mode. Personally I'm not that much of a fan of opto compressors; they lose too much shine, and I often don't like the slowish response they tend to have. So I don't use it in that mode, but it does sound like a fair emulation.
Smooth mode gives pretty clean results even when pressed quite hard, but it's when you unclick smooth that it really shines. It can pump and breathe on any mix...ideal if you're into bigbeat or similar - it can give a huge powerful sound while retaining alot of the sharpness of the original material. Put any drumloop through it and fiddle with the release and threshold at high ratios and you'll be amazed how sweet even a noisy old loop can become. Too many s/w comps just make the material sound flat when pushed hard - GUP-1 still retains some life in it.
2) The sidechain can be incredibly useful, yet there are still not that many ones available in s/w. In addition, GUP-1 has 2 filters on the sidechain; one a highpass, one a lowpass. Set them both at extremes and everything passes through the sidechain - easy to do straight ducking for example. But move them up around and you can set a bandpass, so that it then becomes a frequency-conscious compressor. This is more subtle but can be more useful - say you want a kick to duck the bassline; a kick can have a long sub on it, so the compressor might be too noticeable. But you can finetune the sidechain so that it only triggers the comp when the clicky transient of the kick sounds, but relaxes on the sub tail - can't do that with a wideband sidechain and an 808 boomy kick!
It also makes it possible to do things like compress to achieve exciter effect. Keep the lowpass open, but bring the highpass up - then trigger it by a copy of the audio you're compressing! If you've never used a bandpass h/w VCA comp, you don't know what you're missing. GUP-1 is the closest I've heard yet to that type of compression. It's also useful for bass compression - do the opposite and you can bring down the higher end while also compressing the dynamics of the low end - any bassline can become a big sub without the use of Eq.
So although GUP-1 initially looks alot simpler than GCO-1, in many ways it is an awful lot more flexible.
GUI - I love the straight-forward layout of the Golden compressors. You really don't need any manual to figure out what's what if you know anything about compressors.
The meters are more detailed than some - you can differentiate between very small dB differences at a glance.
My only gripe is the difficulty setting small changes. You can use shift to make small parameter changes, but it's a bit glitchy, and doesn't seem to like anything less than 0.2 dB per change - no option to type in numbers either. That could definitely be improved IMO.
Other features - there's an input attenuator, so you can bring down the input if the source is too high for whatever reason. There's a wet/dry mix - useful for upward compression of things like drums. There's also an A/B comparison button. This seems to be a more common feature and I like it. You can have a setting you know works, fiddle around with it, but not lose it if you go wrong somewhere down the line.
There's also an autogain button. Could be useful, although bear in mind the attack is minimum at 0.1mS, so you can still clip with autogain on - it simply determines an average peak of 0dBFS. Personally I think it's not its most useful feature, but some people like that sort of thing.
Documentation - the manual tells you the basics and is easily understood.
Presets - presets on a comp are a bit of a mystery to me. I never use them, but I suppose they're useful to some - and the presets are a good range of everyday compressor settings - you just adjust the threshold to get it to work.
VFM - excellent tool for the cheap price. Close to the real h/w deal. |
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By kritikon
On 25th May 2004
Version: 1.0
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Matt Craig ParisEQ
It's very difficult to review an Eq as it is so much down to personal taste rather than objectivity. But I'll try.
Paris Eq is what I would call more of a specialFX Eq than a mastering Eq or a particularly sweetsounding Eq. It most certainly can be used for your average tracking duties though, but it really isn't clean enough or characterful enough to me for mastering duties. It lies somewhere in the middle of clean and character. It's OK for Eq cutting, but I'm wary of doing much boosting with it - the bass seems a bit too wooly or fluffy, the mids are OK but the highs can be a bit too harsh when boosted.
But it's no worse than many other free Eqs out there. And the fact it has its own special features actually make it quite a contender for most useful free Eq.
Features - it's the soft-limiting and resonance that are its best weapon (offhand, only TCNative has the same facility) - it can be used like a filter (which to all intents and purposes is what filters are). You can set boost to a maximum, fine tune the frequency and bandwidth, and make sounds very lively, even howl. And then if you sweep the frequency, you've got a nice tool for mangling sounds available. That can be useful for hats if you're very very careful - some hats etc can benefit from being a bit overdriven. I wouldn't normally use Paris for boosting Eq on highs - it can be too harsh, but when you use it as a specialFX, even in the highs it can sing.
As for cutting - I've no real complaints...an Eq has to be pretty bad to ruin a sound when cutting. It can compete with most Eqs here. I wouldn't boost more than the usual 3dB for precision tracking (unless specialFX) and again it's no worse than any other Eq there.)
It's free and it performs the usual Eq duties no better and no worse than most other free ones. But it has the specialFX qualities which gives it an advantage over the rest.
GUI - easy to use, pleasing on the eye. Each channel individually switchable on/off to save CPU. It would be a bonus to be able to type in values, but it's no big issue - the controls are fine enough to cope with mouse work. Invert phase - could be useful I suppose, although I never use it. A global bypass switch - big thumbs up for that - makes it easy to A/B compare to your original sound. It misses a graph to display your frequencies, although that's not a must-have on any Eq - it actually makes you use your ears rather than your eyes, so there's a good argument for omitting graphs - but it would be good to have the option.
Stability - no problems there. Minimal Cpu hit. I've never tested the latency (when used as an insert, it's compensated for in my host, so it's not any kind of issue)
VFM - it's certainly better than the standard Eqs that come with Cubase, so you should d/l if that's your host. I don't know about the other hosts, but I would imagine the same applies. Go spend money if you need a quality Eq for mastering, otherwise give Paris a run - it can be very good. |
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By kritikon
On 25th May 2004
Version: 1.0.1
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e-phonic Retro Delay
What! No reviews!
RetroDelay certainly deserves one. It's free and it has tons of character. It's also one of the more flexible delays available even for money. The names gives you an obvious hint - old-style delay with a filter to let you dampen the delays aka tape delays. But there is far more than that. You can make modFX such as phasing, chorusing, flanging; filters not only lowpass but all the other types you could reasonably want. Saturation to grunge it up, distortion to destroy it, reverb to dub it up. For many at KvR, you'll probably find that Ohmboyz by OhmForce is high up on their list of delays (and with good reason) - well it has another competitor now, and it's free! It isn't actually a direct competitor, becuase RetroDelay has its own distinct character - it's not quite as madly flexible as Ohmboyz, but nevertheless there ain't much you can't do with it. CHARACTER - that's the key word. You can give real flavour to your delays - it's not a sparkly clean echomachine.
Sounds & Feautures - to business then. Can be made to really dirty up delays - saturation is mild and the distortion is dirty, but useable. Added bonus of a limiter to control the peaks - which WILL happen if you set it extremely with lots of resonance on the filter etc. This makes it invaluable as a big dub delay - you can have simply huge echoes lasting minutes with loads of feedback and filtering without overloading your host. Bloody marvellous!
The filters are sweet sounding - LPF, BPF, HPF, low-shelf & high-shelf. They have a particularly sweet spot in the lowermids and mids - which is exactly where any big delay is going to have its biggest impact - big delays work perfectly for that reason on vocals, stabs, guitars etc. And drums for dub .......seriously - if you make dub, you'll be in absolute heaven with RetroDelay - it is the best delay for dub I have yet come across in the VST world. The reverb is just grungy and grainy enough, there's a panic button to fade out delays when you're done feedingback to buggery (and the panic has a time setting too - so your fadeout can be smooth over several seconds - Bliss!)
The filters are sweet, the limiter is extremely handy, you can temposync it, crossfeed it for ping-pong, set it by ear, switch to v.small delay times for modFX such as flanging, reverse delays too! You can apply an LFO or env to the filter as well as resonant feedback, you can LFO delaytime to make pitched FX. And you can switch on or off all or any of those features - seriously - this is one very heavy duty delay. e-phonic deserves a blowjob for giving us this delay for free (but I'm not offering).
GUI - sweet. Easy on the eye, well laid out, nothing there that shouldn't be, and nothing that should be there that isn't.
Stability & CPU - can use CPU strongly IF you use all of the features, but that's not unreasonable. Rock-solid.
This gives ANY commercial delay (inc h/w) a bloody good run for its money (can you tell I love it?). I love it. |
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By kritikon
On 25th May 2004
Version: 1.1
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e-phonic Invader
Anything by e-phonic you can generally rely on as being eminently useable, usually with lots of sonic character, and there's no disappointment with Invader.
It's aimed at being a spcialFX synth, which is exactly what it does best, so don't expect to be able to play Chopsticks on it, or even play a recognisable note depending on the settings!
Invader is a VSTi that I load up often when I'm doing dub. It's just perfect for those heavily delayed synth bleeps and warbles that you use for effect rather than as part of any melody. In fact, every now and then I get a sound from it that's quite reminiscent of my MS20 - generally it's not aimed at being a clone of anything in particular, but when you patch up weird sounds, it can take on some definite analogue character. It can range from mild but interesting to complete modulation madness, and it does it better than most general synths.
Sound - as stated, it has it's own character, and occasionally takes on the character of quite esoteric h/w synths. The perfect sound for dub, ambient, experimental, or soundtracks. It can be obviously digital and thin, but more importantly can be full and warm-sounding.
Features - plenty of scope for modulation mayhem - you can modulate pitch, filter, FM, amplitude, and the mod sources and destinations are quite flexible. One of the nice things about Invader is that you don't have to be an expert programmer to get weird sounds from it. OK, it helps to know what you're doing if you have a specific sound effect in mind, but any beginner can have immense fun and good results by just twiddling knobs at random. Many synths work the exact opposite way - play with too many parameters and you ruin a sound if you're not careful. But Invader invites you to make silly sounds, and then delivers. Not a huge amount of oscillators but it really doesn't need that many.
GUI - if you're not familiar with synthesis, then you could be scratching your head to fathom it out, but it does actually make sense and is logically laid out. My only beef is the GUI is a bit too small for my screen settings - too many GUIs are designed for low res, but if you're working with a big host it's often better to have very high res, so you can get more of your mixer channels etc on-screen - but this makes some GUIs very small and difficult to read from any distance. I would like it bigger.
Presets - not many, but I'm not convinced that Invader needs any more. Because it's designed to make weird specialFX by modulation, you'll probably have to make your own, otherwise they're too distinctive and easily recognised to be of original use. It really is a breeze to get your own sounds - simply move any or all knobs until the sound is as weird as you want it to be.
Stability - no crashes, and a surprisingly small CPU hit considering it's Synthedit. I'm often not flattering about Synthedit VSTi's, but it shows it can be good if programmed well with thought (which e-phonic has done) |
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By kritikon
On 25th May 2004
Version: 1.0
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Land of Cockaigne Satyr
I really want to like Satyr, but unfortunately I can't. Of many of the Synthedit creations available, Satyr has perhaps the most warmth and a tendency towards analogue-ish style sound (I'm very wary of saying VSTi's sound like true analogues because to be honest there are only a very few so far that have convinced me - it certainly can be done, but it is claimed far too often, when if you have a stand full of analogues - you can obviously hear the difference with most VSTi's).
S0.......Satyr seems to have a sweet point at the lower end of the keyboard - good for rounded basses and lower mids. Octaves 1+2 can sound very warm with Satyr. I'd almost compare it to the type of sound you can get with things like Junos - fat, warm, spongey basses - not spikey enough to do aggressive acid-ey sounds or hard-edged basses at all though. Very nice for bottom end pads too. I've never had much character out of it at the top end though - personal taste obviously, but it's far far from a workhorse synth.
Features - well, there are lots of them - lots of modulation options and a good set of envelopes etc, but some of the parameters just don't seem to make much of a change to the overall sound - it's a knob-festooned GUI, but really, half of the features could have been left off for all the use they are. It just seems overly fussy and complicated to me. And I like programming my own sounds - I don't use presets, so I know my way around synths - but somehow (and I'm not sure exactly why) Satyr just doesn't get me making decent sounds much. It's not inspirational, even though looking at it first glance, you'd think it was capable of all manner of weirdness - but it's a real fight to get unique sounds from it in reality.
GUI - initially you think "wow - lots of knobs, lots of features, therefore great to play with" but again I don't even like the GUI - it's too dark for one thing. You're endlessly peering at your screen close up to try and decipher what the legending says. And some of the parameters seem to be in the wrong place to make intuitive editing possible. It's not nasty - it just isn't user-friendly.
VFM - free, so you can't knock that part.
Stability - I've certainly seen better. High CPU hit and sometimes crashes for no apparent reason.
Sound - as mentioned before, it can have its uses. Bassy and roundedly warm. But not that flexible - I've never had a convincing mixable lead from it. Pads are good at the lower end but not the top.
As said - I want to like it. Obviously a lot of effort went into this synth. Perhaps it just needs a little modification regards CPU etc. Initially it looks like a beast but just doesn't deliver. I'd say go for it if you want mono lines - it doesn't crash for that, and there is quite a good range for those mono basslines or lower mid lines - sometimes it can almost be a bit squelchy, but then doesn't go far enough to present real character - that's probably what makes me not like it in the end, sorry. |
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By kritikon
On 25th May 2004
Version: 1.0.4
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reFX Vanguard
I have much the same view of Vanguard as mentioned in the other reviews. It really is pretty good value, it's capable of a fair bit of variation in sound with a good set of edit parameters. It fills it's own niche in much the same way JunoX2 did. It's not a VSTi Virus and it never was meant to be and it's not advertised as such whatever rubbish you may have read about it. It's aimed pretty well squarely at the dance/trance crew and as such it does its job extremely well. If you want those hard edged or very full-sounding stabs, hoover type sounds etc then this is the synth for you. I can't think of any other synth I own that does hoovers galore straight out of the box. I don't always make that type of music, but when I do I go straight to Vanguard. It's a direct successor to JunoX2 but it adds a whole heap of things that you couldn't do with JunoX2. For example it's more capable of getting heavier bass, you can modulate the sound a whole lot more, it has very useful FX such as the trance gate. The gating is not done by many other VSTis and it works seamlessly. If you make that specific style of dance, then the trancegate is an invaluable tool. It has a very impressive set of filters (more than on the JunoX2) which can produce some very hard and nasty sounds. But you also can make softer more subtle sounds with it - easy for pads and most types of leads. Not everyone's cup of tea, but if you're a dance-head, you definitely should try out Vanguard - it was made for you.
CPU - a small hit and won't overload even a modest PC while playing chords.
VFM - lots of good presets that show off what you can do with the synth. All useable musically, so if you're not into patching then you're off and running straight away. You can spend far more for dance synths that won't sound much better than Vanguard.
Support - I've had no issues with it recently. Very good support. At first release I couldn't get mine to load (it was a Win98 issue it seems) but that was fixed pretty quickly by ReFX as usual. ReFX have high points for responding to problems. Now it is rock solid in my system. I'm not aware of any other issues that haven't been fixed equally quickly. You will get far more support from ReFX than most of the big developers out there.
GUI - not at all difficult. Everything is laid out logically and it's pleasing to the eye to work with.
Features - already mentioned a few but here are more.
3LFOs with various destinations.
Lots of options with detuning and PWMing to really thicken up sounds.
3 Osc.
Gating FX for rhythmical pads etc.
Big set of osc choices and filter choices. The filters are the real strong point - all the usual LPF, BPF, HPF etc, but quite a few distortion filters combined with the usual to give you a very hard edge to the sound. Formant filter, comb etc.
Vanguard does a wide range of sounds specifically aimed at dance - ReFX gained a following precisely because they target their plugins to a specific audience. |
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By kritikon
On 25th May 2004
Version: 1.0
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Steinberg VB-1
Overview - it's free, it's a bass guitar synth, it doesn't claim to do anything else and it actually does its job reasonably well. It couldn't be any easier to program to tweak the sound, and although there are better ways of getting a bass guitar sound more accurately, it a useful tool to have. Got mine free with Cubase.
Sound - you can't use it for every occasion you need a synth bass guitar, but it definitely sounds OK for general purposes. I find myself using it more and more simply for the fact that it can be quite tedious to patch VSTi's to make a realistic bass guitar, and I'm not into samplers that much. I sometimes lay down my basslines with VB1 and then load up a different VSTi to get the fine-tuned sound I need, but other times if your not too fussy about the sound, VB1 will suffice more than adequately. As mentioned, it defaults to picked sounds, and I've never managed to completely get rid of the initial picking click - not always a bad thing, but when doing e.g. dub style music when you don't want that click, then it isn't the best tool. Especially if you're going to compress your bass guitar sound - it can be quite annoying as it really shows up the click. But if you do want a picked sound, then it's fine. It will also do a few more synthesized type sounds very reminiscent of an FM synth, so it's not just a one-trick pony - no amzing synth sounds, but enough to vary it up a bit.
CPU - uses barely any CPU, which is why I often use it to lay down ideas with before rendering to audio.
GUI - couldn't be any easier. A complete novice will be able to tweak the sounds with no difficulty whatsoever.
Stability - I've never had any problems with it at all. No glitches when tweaking parameters whilst playing.
Presets - It comes with a handful, and doesn't really need any more because it's so easy to use.
VFM - it's free. No point in not at least giving it a try.
Features - you can adjust the bridge position, the string height, the pickup position, tone etc - all you need really. I would prefer an option to completely switch off the picking click. I would probably use it much more often if it had this.
I assume it's a physical modelling synth, but I don't know for sure - but whatever...it sounds close enough to a real bass guitar for general purpose use or for laying down ideas. Not useable in every situation, but I've heard far worse, and to be honest there are plenty of VSTis with the full set of editable parameters that struggle to achieve anything like a bass guitar sound, so you shouldn't write VB1 off. Bass is one of those areas that is surprisingly difficult to get right, and VB1 lets you get the basics right - I'd happily use it for anything middle-of-the-road or pop where it's not that important to get unique and original bass patches going. It doesn't pretend to be a Moog Modular and if you don't expect it to be, then it won't disappoint you too much.
Try it and see, there's no harm in it. |
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By kritikon
On 14th May 2004
Version: 1.0
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GForce impOSCar
I'm biased...I used to have an OSCar, and for reasons beyond my control, I no longer have it. It was my most favoured synth - big powerful sound, very playable, immensely flexible. GMedia have made an incredibly true emulation - you either like the sounds the OSCar makes or you don't, but you simply cannot fault the attention to detail that was implemented in getting this VSTi to sound identical to a real OSCar. And considering that an OSCar is a very collectable synth, considered one of the more powerful and characterful synths, then it's even more impressive that they nailed it with impOSCar!
GUI- same as an OSCar. You don't need a degree to see what's what. Big points for the parameter display over every knob, CC edit page is a breeze to set up control over every single parameter.
Sound - Simply stunning. Big fat warm analogue sounds (OSCars had DCOs but it was the analogue VCFs that were the hallmark). ImpOSCar has exactly that filter sound - no bass loss, the same amount of noise if overdriven as the original. Dual filters separatable - which is what gave OSCars such a good sound, so it's also highly flexible and can make very vocal type patches. Ranges from full-on analogue fat, to ethereal digital cleanness (when you use the additive section and don't overdrive the filters). Full bottom end, can squeal, roar, searing leads. Also (a big ALSO) the filters are effective at the top end - most usual analogues lacked in the upper range, as do many VSTi filters. ImpOSCar sings sweetly right at the top of the keyboard, without making you wince. It's an unusual synth that can sound like a bass grunty monster and also like a ProphetVS/Wavestation (the additive tones often remind me of these synths).
Features - loads. Subtractive, dual filters (lots of types), additive, FX that sound like a part of the synth (instead of tacked on), full automation, loopable envelopes (combined with LFO and on different timing cycles makes it capable of very unusual modulations), arpeggiator. Alot more under the bonnet than first appearance may suggest. Has a ducking delay (hugely useful for clean mixes) little things like that are rare in VSTis (even in full FX suites!) and make it truly splendid.
Docs - A real paper manual! Love it. Don't really need to RTFM, but it's a good'un anyway.
Presets - 13 or 14 banks supplied - covers all bases to get you going. Ultravox, Underworld etc? (patches supplied from these and other users)
Support - great. If you get no reply from GMedia (which you will) you often see one or two of them here at KvR.
VFM - IMO excellent. Some may balk at the price - but consider... it is a very true emulation of one of the most collectable (and now rare) synths ever commercially produced. I can't buy one here - if I could it would be $3000. Make your own mind up.
Stability - rock solid. Never crashes even when changing any parameter (such as oscillator type) whilst playing. It's a fully working first release!
Full marks. |
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By kritikon
On 28th January 2004
Version: 1.2
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digitalfishphones Dominion
Another winner from Sascha.
Dominion's an esoteric plugin - well worth the d/l, even though you may not use it all the time. The sort of plugin that tends to be of specialist nature and you'd normally expect only a reputable "name" company to release (with the price tag to match). It's an envelope shaper that allows you to emphasize or reduce the attack and sustain characteristic of whatever you throw at it. So what use is that?
On drums (which is probably what most people use it for) you can emphasize the initial transients (the very quick "hit"). Only one other FX - Transient Designer - springs to mind - and that's a h/w expensive unit... and well-acclaimed too. So what it does is make the drum track sound alot more snappy and in-yer-face. It can give it more energy by emphasizing the first stick hit, which is very important if you've used compressors etc on the drum track - comps usually take away some of the energy and realism of drums even though they increase the overall volume - and most comps will also reduce the high frequencies and sizzle. Dominion lets you put that all back into the drums that have already been compressed - so you get snappy livelier drums that also sound louder after the compression.
Not an obvious effect, but once you play around with it, you'll notice your drum tracks just have that extra little "commercial" sheen to them. You can use all manner of Eq, compressors, limiters etc on drums, but they can often sound dull - Dominion puts some life back into them - especially useful for more accoustic type drums rather than electronic drums.
But the bonus is you can also increase the sustain portion - which in audible terms is similar to what you get with a compressor. Sometimes a comp can only be used so much before it ruins the feel of a drum track, or makes noise too noticeable - so try out Dominion instead of a comp - it may do the job, and you can still boost the attack to get the snap as well as the body.
It doesn't have to be drums - use Dominion to emphasize the attack of accoustic guitar without needing to use bucketloads of Eq to emphasize the picking! Or to bring up the body of a guitar track. Use it to tone down background reverb in a noisy loop or an audio clip that you got wrong but can't rerecord for whatever reason. Use it to take a drumloop further back in the mix, or bring it forward. Use it on kicks even to emphasize the initial click without using mid range Eq boost on a sensitive mix.
Features - the bonus is the added harmonic enhancer and saturation circuit - all of usual Sascha high standard - not overly obvious but just enough to give a little more sheen without being harsh. Will work in stereo or mono, and has his trademark top quality brick wall limiter to really beef up your sound if that's what you want.
Cons - apparently has some P4 denormal issues, but he has a d/l'able fix for that.
Like exciters etc - complicated but just adds the quality extras you can't get normally. |
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Last edited : 28th January 2004
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By kritikon
On 27th January 2004
Version: 1.1
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digitalfishphones Blockfish
It's definitely a character compressor - it adds flavour to your channel. It can be made to be fairly clinical, but it's not crystal clear, nor is it meant to be.
Features - very simple on the front panel - two huge knobs for compression and speed - it really couldn't be any easier than that. You don't have to know what threshold attacks and releases etc do - if you want that level of control then use a different comp, basically. You simply twiddle those 2 knobs until your sound is what you want. There's a stereo button (works in mono if not lit), locut and air (go on...have a guess what they do!), VCA or opto (VCA being a little more severe than opto, and quicker), a "complex" button (more of which later) and a switch to get to the inside panel for more detailed controls.
Documentation - separate d/ls that are an excellent read - well recommended.
Presets - covers all the main bases - guitars, basses, vocals, drums etc - all good presets well programmed to work with the instruments.
Stability - rock solid.
VFM - free. And still competes with expensive commercial comps.
Sound. A character comp - not crystal clear (although can be made to be pretty subtle). It's one that you'd use if you like to impart a distinct flavour to your compressed channel - much closer to analogue comps than most VST dynamics FX out there. With the speed on quickest and on VCA it doesn't let any transients through at all - obviously not how you'd always set up a comp, but good to know it will tame those difficult signals - and with high compression and quick speed, you'll hear more obviously the character of the comp - warm and ever-so-slightly grainy.
The real bonuses are the locut and air buttons - with heavy compression you might get too much bass - locut chops it out nicely, and air adds a great sparkle to those lost high frequencies (which if you didn't know - good h/w comps often lose highs - so it's not a fault - it's the nature of compression) Air is great for bringing accoustic guitars back to life after compression, and using both locut and air definitely helps with drumtracks - it means you can compress more heavily than you naturally might without ruining the nature of the channel.
Inside the panel is the real detail - you can alter the frequencies of the locut and air filters, and many details of the compressor itself to quite drastically alter the nature of the compression - or you can just subtly tweak it to get into some fine perfectionist detail. Often you won't need it, but it makes it very well-spec'ed.
"Complex" - changes it into a dual compressor linked in series. Useful if you want to use it more for groups or even as a master comp - a more subtle compression for each module that lets you compress more heavily with less audible pumping you'd get with just one compressor at the same compression level.
Not a do-everything comp - great for most situations though, full of character and alot more flexible than it first looks. |
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By kritikon
On 27th January 2004
Version: 1.1
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digitalfishphones Endorphin
No reviews yet....strange!
I'll be the first, then.
GUI - straightforward and obvious what you're doing. I like it.
Features - lots of them. VCA or opto compression - I rarely use the opto compression, but it definitely has a different flavour to VCA - slower and less obvious but good. VCA compression can tame most severe peaks without noticeable artifacts etc. and it seems to be pretty quick when the attack is minimal. M/S mode - again I rarely use it but no doubt has its uses. A brick wall limiter tacked onto the end with -0.1 dB max output so you can use it either as a comp alone/ comp + limiter/ limiter alone. Saturation circuit that can be used alone or in conjunction with the 3 previous options. All the usual a,r,threshold and gain controls. An output AND input booster. Switching for the high/low sections. Pretty well every function you could want in a comp.
Documentation - Absolutley outstanding! Sascha has a separately downloadable tutorial that is over 1.5MB - well worth reading even if you don't use Endorphin. If you're new to compression etc this is an invaluable help.
Presets - not many (5?) but it gives you enough of an idea as to what it can do. Put it as a master insert then load up preset "Loud and Punchy". It may be heavy-handed but you can't fail to be impressed at what it does to your mix - instant gratification and a many-fold increase in quality of any of even your crappier mixes.
Support - Sascha is working commercially now, so there'll be no more updates, but he used to be very available and supportive. Doesn't really need updates as they're good as is.
VFM Absolutely free and several steps above the standard of the usual freebie. Compares well against expensive commercial offerings.
Stability - Never had a crash. Uses around 5-10% CPU on an Athlon 1.1G 512RAM system. Not a particularly small hit for a comp, but when you hear the quality it more than makes up for it.
Sound - the best bit last. A real stunner. The saturation circuit is very subtle (not one of those overdriven grungy affairs) which adds character but doesn't lose any perceived sound quality - it adds that sparkle and warmth that is felt rather than heard. The compression is what I'd call character rather than clinically clean - possibly you may not like its character, but it's difficult to hate. Not one for absolute crystal clarity if that's what you want. Probably the best single band limiter I've heard - you can push it ridiculously hard and it still sounds clean with no nasty clipping heard, and the bonus is you can switch it in or out. The two comp bands are well chosen - my only wish would be to have adjustable x-over - but it's preset. It's chosen to sit well over an entire mix, and it works very well - you can also boost or cut both bands individual output.
Ideal use - a stunning master comp/limiter, that can also work on channels.
My only essential plugin on EVERY track - competes with several 100s$ mastering suites! |
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By kritikon
On 5th December 2003
Version: 1.0
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Smart Electronix DFX Geometer
I've still got this one, but almost deleted it several times - the only reason I haven't really is because you just never know when you might need a weird FX when your inspiration runs out for programming patches in synths and FX.
VFM - free, so no excuse for not at least giving it a whirl.
Patches - there is a small handful that give some kind of idea what Geometer can do, but not many, and considering it's a funny FX to figure out, I could certainly do with more.
Stability - It's never crashed on me, but it can take a reasonable amount of CPU depending on the settings etc. It's not necessarily the type of FX that you would have to run live though, so rendering to audio would solve that - it's more the type of FX that you'd just throw onto the odd vocal sample or for a break on some drums etc.
Documentation - there are help screens that show up, which at least give some idea about the functions and features - I wouldn't have a clue without these. (in fact I don't have much of a clue with them either)
Features - it's not quite a one-trick pony - it will make some varied sounds, but it tends towards the degrade-and-destroy type FX - you really have to tweak the settings an awful lot to get away from noise blasts, but patience can occasionally be rewarded.
Sounds - as above. It will make some robotic/vocoder-ish type FX and is distinctively different from your usual run-of-the-mill robotic FX. If you were into the Underworld-y vocal FX, you might be able to do it with Geometer, but have your own angle.
It can also (and regularly does) make a complete screaming distorted mush out of whatever you put into it. Probably right up your street if you're into industrial, I guess, but I wouldn't call Geometer musical most of the time, so it's not usually my cuppa tea. I can also see potential in it for ambient meandering type music though.
It does some esoteric shenannigins with splitting up your audio at whatever points you dictate, then stretches/bit-reduces/extrapolates in some manner I have no idea about (nor do I want to!)
It's free - if you like noise, give it a try. It's also worth taking some time with to get unique sounds that occasionally you'll get (usually by pure luck) that I've never had on any other s/w FX.... so I haven't deleted it. It'll never become a classic, but it's distinctively different. |
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By kritikon
On 23rd November 2003
Version: 1
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PSPaudioware PSP PianoVerb
I generally don't like any of the freeware reverbs apart from SIR (which is pro quality, depending on what .wavs you throw into it) Reverb can make or break a track, and bad reverb is just bad with no redeeming features on the whole IMO.
However, I'll make an exception to Pianoverb. It is in no way designed to be a general purpose room or hall reverb, pretends to emulate no real spaces and for what it is designed to do, does it very well.
It's designed to emulate a metallic string based reverb - or more of a string resonance, should I say. It does this very well, and although I don't often use it, it usually surprises me at how effective this can be. If you use it to make a drumkit sound like it's played in a drumbooth or studio, then you'll fail miserably - but as should be obvious from the name and design, if you use it on piano, clav or harpsichord patterns, then it stands out. Because it doesn't have the usual reverb controls, and it can be specifically tuned to a metallic resonance it won't swamp your mix with nasty artificial reverbs aka Freeverb, Ambience etc. But it will give a sense of space and almost realism to dry keyboard sounds.
I've also found it useful for guitars as a kind of spring reverb when used in a chain of effects - it very much suits the cheap and nasty kind of cabinet reverb you might often want to use with guitar tracks (or on synth tracks that you want to sound guitar-ish).
It has a definite flavour and will do what the blurb suggests it'll do - use it outside of this scope and it's your own fault, not PSP's.
The GUI is pretty, distinctive, easy to use and obvious. It's also fairly small compared to some so it doesn't take up too much screen space, but the design of large knobs means it's also in no way fiddly to use. One of the best GUIs IMO - alongside things like the Classic series from Kjaerhuis (or however it's spelt).
Features - various tuning parameters, dry/wet mix, decay etc and a useful bypass button (I wish all plugins had a bypass button - top marks PSP!)
One-trick pony? - sort of, but it's meant to be, so nobody can complain about it not sounding like a Lexicon - it was never meant to!
It's free, it's of the usual high standard set by PSP and of the usual distinctive character from them. Not a must have if you're purely electronic or synth based - but if you ever use piano, harps, clavis, and even guitars then you should do yourself a favour and try this one out as an alternative to the usual crappy freebie reverbs that almost never deliver (apart from SIR).
And it's bright yellow - how many other plugins are that pretty? |
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Last edited : 23rd November 2003
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By kritikon
On 23rd November 2003
Version: 1
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rgc:audio High Frequency Stimulator
This one is definitely worth having in your plugin folder, although, personally I rarely use it much. I should qualify that by stating that it is purely designed as a harmonic enhancer with no other gimmicks up its sleeve. It's not one of those mysterious enhancers that use a mixture of band-split delays, harmonics, compression, Eq and phase correction. So you can't compare this to a BBE or Aphex etc. You could use it as one of several insert FX in a chain to achieve that overall enhancement effect though.
GUI - it's obvious and simple - nothing flashy, but for what it does it would be a waste to have CPU taken up by flashy graphics.
Features - minimal but useful - a frequency scale which allows you to control which frequencies and above it enhances, and a dry/wet mix basically. Doesn't need anything else. I would rather it come in a choice of VST and DX - but that's only personal preference - it works very well as DX only.
Stability - very stable, very little CPU and I've never had a crash or conflict with it.
Manual/Presets - doesn't really need any.
Sound - It has definite uses. I find it good for drum tracks/groups, to add a little sparkle, but with the proviso that you should be careful about using it on hats and cymbals - it tends to make them a little too harsh and grating. That is no problem with HFS though - all harmonic enhancers do that to hats if you don't use it very subtly. It works well on snares, toms and other drums though.
I find it works slightly less well on instrumentation unless used very very sparingly, but again that is down to the nature of the process rather than the plugin itself. If you use it 100% wet and then solo it you hear what it does to the sound, and it seems to add the harmonics in a true manner, with no Eqing tricks or deceptions going on.
I would say it's safer to use this kind of technique on group tracks rather than over a whole mix, although you could do that also. It's especially useful if you use alot of drum samples (or any kind of sample) say, off sample CDs - many of which are often taken off vinyl, so they tend to be a bit lacking in top end. It's generally a safer bet than using too much Eq which can be dodgy unless you get it spot on, and use a very good Eq.
Really this is almost a one-off. The only other competition I'm aware of is the DSPFX harmonic enhancer, which is not free, but offers the choice of odd or even harmonics (personally I find no use for even harmonics though). So it stands out as filling in its own niche. If you had good comps, Eq and band splitters, then you can certainly use this in your mastering chain, so it can be versatile.
RGC do tend to make different and unique s/w and this is no exception - it's good to have it for free, but you probably won't use it an awful lot. But a thumbs up for a useful plugin not covered by other companies. I'd rather have this than some of the plethora of same-old plugins in other areas provided by other companies. |
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Last edited : 23rd November 2003
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By kritikon
On 23rd November 2003
Version: 1.2
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Kjaerhus Audio Classic Chorus
It lost some points on things like documentation, but really you shouldn't need any manual with this - it's designed as an easy to use, but good quality studio essential chorus and it delivers in spades. It is meant to be straight-forward and it is - I particularly like the GUI - no bells and whistles and gimmicks to get in the way - it's obvious what each knob does.
Sound - the main focus. It can be used on pretty well anything and sits very nicely in a mix - it's not too artificial sounding, although if used in extreme it can give your desired effect. There is no glitching - used to be some problems with CPU spikes and noise bursts etc. but it's been regularly updated and is now rock solid. Excellent support there, then.
As a studio basic essential it has squarely achieved its aim (like most of the other Classic series plugins). It will thicken up pads nicely, swirls around to the right amount and is good enough to be used as a 100% wet effect as an insert if you want. Try it on any instrument and you won't be disappointed.
I have only one minor complaint, which is that the delay seems to be set into discrete steps rather than continuously adjustable, but that is a minor irritation indeed - the step are set at useable increments.
It's not a mega modulation do-it-all mod FX but it isn't designed to be - it's easy to use, does what it says on the box and can be used in several instances as sends or inserts as it uses so little CPU, so you don't have to worry about rendering to audio. I applaud the developer for his idea of straight-forward studio basics with no frills, but all the real things that you need on a day to day basis. It happily sits next to more expensive s/w and h/w choruses which few plugins, especially freebies, can achieve.
A shortish review, but it's not a huge plugin that needs in depth reviewing. Simply put, you'd be stupid not to have this one in your plugin folder - I've had many s/w choruses and the Classic chorus is now one of only 2 that I regularly use. In fact I never use any of my h/w choruses nowadays, because apart from some very fine detail and the ability to program in more channels of chorus, they don't improve on the thickening effect this one gives for everyday use.
This one's a real advert for free VST FX IMO. I'd happily pay for it. |
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By kritikon
On 23rd November 2003
Version: 1
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Smart Electronix Ambience
GUI - a very nice-looking interface. It's obvious what everything does, and it's nicely set out in appropriate sections.
Stability - rock solid and most importantly it doesn't use much CPU so it's no hassle to use it as a send and maybe a few instances of inserts if you use alot of reverb. Probably one of the best in terms of CPU in its quality range.
Features - all the usual parameters. An added bonus that not too many reverbs give is the gating - IMO this is one of the strengths of Ambience - basically because although I don't much like it as a general purpose reverb, it is good for metallic based reverbs such as plates and springs - if you're going to use it as a plate reverb, then the gate is essential for some treatments with drums. Many better sounding reverbs don't give you the option of the gate, so this is a big plus.
Sound - I don't like knocking freebies but I really can't say this is a general purpose reverb or anything approaching release quality reverb. As mentioned, I think it has good value as a plate or spring reverb - it's character is definitely metallic and a little reminiscent of, say, some 80's Yamaha reverb. Reverb is very much down to personal taste, so many will disagree with me, but it is far to metallic to be used as a room, hall or other real-space reverb. I'm also reluctant to knock it too much because it really shouldn't be compared with pro quality reverbs - as long as you bear in mind that this is a free reverb and use it as such then you won't be disappointed, but if you've had any experience of the good reverb units, then basically, you wouldn't touch Ambience for general treatments.
I would say it has value for specialist treatments - artificial reverbs, special FX used sparingly, and plates. But the lesser reverbs really show up when you use it as a send on several channels - the metallic edge begins to get very noticeable, and make it unusable for a serious mix..especially if you want realistic room space reverb. I've heard it compared to good reverbs - and trying not to sound too condescending (as said - it's down to taste often) - those comparisons are from people who probably haven't had much experience with the better ones - it has a type of in-yer-face appeal, but for serious useage that is not at all what you want or need. Good reverb should be almost un-noticed in a mix - Ambience cannot do that. Not that you can't get pro quality freebies - things like Endorphin, Fish Fillets, Freealpha disprove that (they are superb quality for free) but Ambience is not one of them - I am a bit picky with reverbs, but a lesser quality one can ruin a track - I don't mind artificial in-yer-face mod FX or specialFX but room & hall reverbs are meant to be realistic - this isn't.
Compare to something like SIR that is free, but pro quality but uses alot of CPU and has latency - you have to balance those considerations. Ambience won't gobble CPU and is great for sketching rough mixes, but it's not mix quality. |
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By kritikon
On 21st November 2003
Version: 1
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RNDigital Labs Inspector
Another invaluable studio tool
As mentioned - try out the Equium/Firium demos... you'll most likely want them after hearing them.
One complaint - I would really like the ability to enlarge the screen and zoom in on parts of the frequency spectrum. I use highish screen resolution, which can make Inspector difficult to see detail - it's very good for seeing the overall picture of your spectrum but if you really want the fine detail then there are a couple of other analysers that enable you to get in much closer (and full screen too) so check them out (also free).
Having said that, the GUI on Inspector is one of the best around - it's pretty obvious what and where everything is. The real icing on the cake is the gubbins at the bottom that tells you how much headroom you've got, the peaks (with a choice of modes!), and even more importantly - how long your clips are and for how many samples. It is incredibly easy to get completely unnoticed clips in your songs which you don't find out about until you burn to CD, by which time it's too late, and there goes that CD into the bin. Some limiters have attack settings - if you do have an attack, that's where the clips can slip through: You'd think you could hear them, but if it's quick enough, you don't. Especially so with non-read-ahead dynamics plugins. So this is where Inspector is invaluable - it can tell you what your ears don't - no problem if you record to analogue, but potentially a fatal error with digital media.
I've also used Inspector to test out other plugins such as brickwall limiters - fortunately most do what they say, but every now and then you come across one that lets clips through - and Inspector is a great way of telling you which ones to keep and which ones to put in the dustbin.
Another minor grizzle - on several occasions I've noticed appreciable dBs of bass content showing on Inspector (I'm talking sub30 Hz here). This still shows even after supposedly filtering out the bass - and that's with a variety of Eq plugins/filters some of which are expensive and which I trust. I've checked for ground loops etc (and anyway, it's the wrong frequency for that) and it seems to be non existent, but shows up repeatedly in Inspector. Initially this gave me some concern that maybe it wasn't too accurate in other frequencies, but having checked it out it seems to be accurate over the rest of the spectrum - it stubbornly wavers around the 20-30Hz even when all music is stopped and all connections cut! - some kind of bug, but fortunately not of any real importance (could be for analysing your basslines and kicks - but for that kind of detail I use a more zoomable analyser anyway - one that I can get 20-120Hz filling the whole screen).
But really they are minor problems - it's invaluable for clipping, a good overall analyser and most importantly it barely uses any CPU at all! Compared to one that uses 30% on my system! So you can have multiple instances easily and just forget them. |
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Last edited : 23rd November 2003
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By kritikon
On 21st November 2003
Version: 1
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PSPaudioware PSP MixSaturator
PSP do everything with character and quality. Mixsat is no exception - the bundle is good enough to be used on mastering, although Mixsat was intended more for mixing than mastering - Vintage Warmer is their big brother for mastering. Mixsat is single band as opposed to the 3 on offer in VW, but if your final mix is a good one, I find Mixsat good enough for mastering.
It imparts a very ear-pleasing warmth to a mix or to any group. The compression on the highs is intended to add top end sparkle, but personally I find it a little artificial-sounding and steer clear of it. But with a good mix, you don't need it anyway. The valve sim however makes any mix fuller and "warmer" (which is a pretty subjective term I suppose). Because of the way it emulates valves, you get limiting with harmonics - and you can choose 3 types of valve - which basically adds in higher order harmonics for the 3 types. I like the PSP sound of their valve sim - even on high settings it still sounds musical, and on type 3 it may hurt a full mix, but it is invaluable for crunching up a drum group or individual loop. You don't have to worry about compressor settings, attacks, releases, thresholds etc - you just turn up the valve% until you like what you hear. It's the equivalent of having Eq, compressors, a limiter and an enhancer all in one easy interface.
If you want big bass, then Mixsat will deliver - can make weedy basslines sound full and thick or just add that extra little sub - to my ears better used in the mixing stage rather than clamped over a full mix, but some people will like that effect too.
It really is a studio essential - useable in channel recording or mixing stage, group mixing or mastering. It doesn't hog too much CPU (I get around 10% or under with all features turned on - Athlon1.1GHz, 512Meg RAM) Which considering the great effect it gives is very good.
Presets - comes with a useful set. From preamps to drumloops, to digitalising to valving to mastering, and bassifying or sparklifying. Not too overdone mostly as some plugin presets tend to do. You could actually make do with presets only and never have to tweak it?
Interface - it's very obvious what's going on - no rocket science needed at all. No manual needed.
VFM - alot depends on the kind of sound you personally like. I feel it's one of the best valve sims out there and I consider it much better value than enhancers. To get an equivalent sound you would need a good Eq, an enhancer and a good comp or limiter (not that you shouldn't have those anyway!). Some people may not like its sound - it certainly adds its own character and plenty of it, so in some ears it actually ruin their sound.
One small reservation - it does tape saturation sim also. If you like this effect, you might need to check out the competition - Personally I find T-Racks does a better Tapesat, as does Endorphin, but that's not why I have Mixsat - it's the valve sim that shines. But its tapesat is still very useable. |
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By kritikon
On 21st November 2003
Version: 2.01
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db-audioware Quantum-fx
Almost full marks from me - dropped 1 point from the GUI, but that's debatable as they went into such attention to detail that you can use your own backgrounds and sliders/knobs if you are that fussy. And it's easy to do it - I tried with some and it's a piece of cake - I've never done that type of thing before, but you just d/l the .bmps into the right folder, unlock the FX and edit in the workbench in one easy page. A stroke of genius.
Sounds - as basic as you want or as weird as you want. There are lots of different types of filters, mod FX, delays, dynamics (as multiband as you want too), sidechains, Eqs blah blah blah - there really isn't anything I can think of that isn't there. And almost all of them are very good quality - Possibly the Eq isn't up to the standards of things like Equium/firium, but for everyday use I find them up to the task - possibly I wouldn't use them at the final mix/master stage, but because the dynamics are so clean, you shouldn't really need Eq on your master (when you consider that if you want 10 multiband comp followed by a 15 multiband limiter you can have it - why should you need Eq?)
And the dynamics are good - they are more what I'd describe as clean rather than character - that was probably a deliberate policy to make them useable in any circumstance - if you want character comps then you have the ability to go into the workbench and add in your own subtle distortion or valve sim or Eq for the character.
Features - now has PDC, so no matter what host you use, Quantum will work with it. A totally modular setup - it has presets that are all very useable and cover the standard to the sublime, but if you want you can set up your own FX as in the SynthEdit style - building up FX blocks and chaining them together in any way you want (I do this with some trepidation, as you literally can do it in any order and connection that you want - so if you aren't sure what you're doing, you can explode your monitors with extreme ease!)
Presets - worth the purchase price on their own. Multifilter delays that can make a drumloop sound like a Tibetan Chime orchestra. Filtered overdrive that can make a standard bassline into a didgeridoo. Excellent guitar amps and FX, huge chorus, jet flanger etc etc etc. One of the newer presets that DB has included is a ducking delay - so very useful - can you think of any other delay that has that feature, and that can have its output also chorused, filtered, resonated, Eq'd and then limited just in case? Hmmmm?
And if it sounds a bit daunting editing your own FX block - you can do big variations on the presets by simply going in and editing the workbench settings without changing connections and it is made so easy - you almost don't need the manual, it's so intuitive for such a big idea.
VFM - might seem expensive, but for all those FX and the modular nature, it's a bargain. Collect all those as separates would cost several times the $299 and might not be as good quality!
Edit: Now V2 is out I had to add in some stuff.
SIDECHAINS! Might not sound incredible, but really is. You can make all of your own sidechained compressors (which are quickly catching on it seems). There's also a neat preset included which is a sidechain resonant filter . This is a good one to use if you're not sure how useful a sidechain can be. It use the input of a source channel (say a drumloop) to feed a filter to anything else. So you could use the loop to modulate a filter on a pad, or a vocal etc - exptrapolate that out, and you could make up a patch with some kind of vocoder that is modulated on a vocal with the loop as the source. You can use sidechains to have dynamic reverbs etc where the reverb decay time or level is fed from a copy of its own audio! Something like a reverb that is weaker on a strong signal (to avoid muddiness) but stronger on a weak signal (where it will be heard more easily. Or a reverb that has a big decay time on the strong snare hit, but shorter on the lesser hits, such as hats!
And the implementation of the sidechains is so easy. You load up 2 instances of the same FX; 1 on the source channel and one on the receiving channel, set 1 to send and 2 to receive within QFX. No more dicking around with quattro groups on Cubase. Now that has got to be a good thing. It means that QFX will be able to use sidechains in almost any host - even those that don't normally allow sidechaining.
And there are a couple of "premium FX". Hopefully this'll be developed further, because the new guitar amp Aura is a real beauty. It has very smooth overdrive, and the whole thing oozes quality and boxy cabinet sound. I've used it on drums and all sorts of things to good effect.
The whole V2 upgrade's alot smoother; it now feels like it's complete. No odd little glitches when loading FX with the host running, minor CPU improvements, slightly slinkier GUI - it feels like it's really come together in all the areas where it matters - the sound quality was always excellent |
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Last edited : 30th August 2005
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By kritikon
On 21st November 2003
Version: 1.3
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Ohm Force OhmBoyz
Probably the fullest-featured delay plugin around.
2 delay lines, each with up to 4 taps. Almost all parameters assignable to its own LFO with a full choice of LFO wave types and speed. A fully resonant filter on each channel which will self oscillate and basically blow your monitors if you don't have a limiter in place! Auto tempo sync or free-running. Lowpass filter separate from the resonant filter. Distortion filter. Full midi with the pro version but VST automatable with the Standard. (But with a delay, how often are you going to edit most parameters anyway?)
Sound - top notch. Very very flexible - it can do quite full phasing and flanging due to the complete excess of LFOs available. It will even do multi-tone drones. It will do your basic echoes, slapbacks, multitap delays (up to 8 taps), tape echoes and all-out resonating dub megadelays, and it does them all well with good sonic reproduction of the delays, or destruction of the delays if you want it to.
Features - because of the distortion filter, you can make subtly deteriorating echoes, which when used with the Eq filter can make some highly realistic analogue style tape echoes. On top of that you can also LFO in some slight delay time changes to give you the wow and flutter effect.
The resonant filter is ideal for the dub delays - set to high resonace it screams - and you can use it exactly as you would with a mixing desk because of the automation. You simply flick the sustain button and the feedback is set to maximum on both channels - if you have a mild resonance, it will gently increase into the dub self-oscillating echo swell and carry on until you turn it off - the same effect as using a send FX on the same FX return channel. Mad Professor all in one button press! Other delays can resonate, but very few sound as pleasing to the ear as Ohmboyz. And even if you don't have the midi version, VST automation can control the sustain. You can automate the panning, which enables you to create pingpong delays in time with the tempo to whatever beatsync you want, or gently sweep the panning from side to side to get those circular-sounding delays (and of course you can do this on top of all the other stuff too) Or just have the panning completely random.
The LFOs are also good to stop delay-fatigue which can happen if you use long delays all temposynced - you put a very very light LFO onto the delay or tap tempos so that it subtly runs ahead and then behind the delay beat - excellent for moving hats to create a more humanised feel with slight timimng variations
Interface - I advise the standard version - you can get a "funky" skin, which is certainly artistic, but you won't have a clue what does what. With the standard one, everything is obvious, and it won't take long to get creative with it. A small but good feature is that when you don't turn on the 2nd delay line, it disappears off the screen, making it alot less cluttered.
Nobody should be without Ohmboyz. |
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By kritikon
On 21st November 2003
Version: 1
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Big Tick Nasty Shaper
Variable scores on this one, but mainly for specific features rather than its sound
Interface - To be honest, I'm not entirely sure what the A, B, C, D knobs do - I think they are types of wave distortion - soft, hard clipping etc and maybe split into frequency bands. I'd like it to be clearer, but there are only a few knobs you basically just play until you've got the distortion you want by ear.
Presets - none. Id like some so that I could know what does what, but again, it's the kind of plug you just experiment with.
VFM - free
Stability - mostly excellent. It always works well until you turn on the oversampling - more often than not my system crashes when I use it - dunno why. But I'm happy enough without it.
Features - quite a big variation in the type of distortion you can get. It doesn't seem to do that lovely warm gentle overdrive, but will certainly scream with nasty distortion, and the subtle distortion is quite gentle (still identifiable as distortion rather than overdrive, but very musical). That's one of 2 main reasons why I like this one
It can be a real screamer, but in moderation, it won't swamp your mix and it's useable - some distortions just stand out too much even on mild settings for my liking - Nastyshaper can do both easily.
The other main reason is a follow on from the previous. I often use it on drum groups with almost no distortion and it works like an exciter. Subtle stereo distortion means you can add just a hint of crunch (like you could use limiting) to add the top sparkle, but it adds the stereo field, making it excellent for livening up tracks using mono drum samples. In fact I use Nastyshaper as an exciter more than as an out-and-out distortion effect. Not as extreme as something like Cyanide, but then you can't use Cyanide as an exciter. Also try it out on something like a 303 emulation - not all of those are that close to a 303, but you'll be pleasantly surprised what Nastyshaper does to basslines if you use it very subtly. Or any bass sound (doesn't have to be a 303)
When you do get it screaming, using the 4 pre knobs can alter the tone alot, giving you a fuller bassier sound, or a harsh scraping toppy sound. I don't play guitar, but imagine it is very useful as a guitar pedal because of this feature.
So that's it.... there's only so much you can say about a distortion FX. I prefer Nastyshaper over commercial ones simply because it has other uses and doesn't overdo it at low levels. It's certainly not a valve type of distortion, but isn't meant to be so it achieves its aims well. And it's easy on the eye too. It's become one of my stidio essentials - not always used, but appreciated when it is - for being simple and musically useable - not too many bells and whistles to get in the way, which is what a studio essential should be. |
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By kritikon
On 21st November 2003
Version: 1.3
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Ohm Force Mobilohm
Another beauty from Ohmforce.
Features - it's a phaser on steroids. It has 4 independent phasers all switchable and volume-adjustable. Each one can have LFOs applied to pretty well every parameter, and ALL of the LFOs are independent (you're not just stuck to a limited number of LFOs that you have to use for more than one parameter!) which makes for 50 or more LFOs - I've never counted, but it's an immense number.
It has controls for the phase, several for tonal control and a bandpass filter, pan, speed, feedback - all the usual things, but the level of tonal control and the LFOs are what really make it stand out. You can tailor the frequencies to fit into your mix very accurately - most phasers just phase up and down the whole spectrum, but not Mobilohm - it has very precise tone control on each phaser, and then a global tone control. The LFOs make it useable as a general-purpose filter not just a phaser. You can get gated phasing, rhythms within the phase or the speed of the phasing itself. Set some of the parameter LFOs to extremes and your end sound bears no resemblance to the original - on a simple drumloop you can get huge booming kicks followed by high squealing snare resonant blips. Then randomise it and you have complete chaos.
And because there are 4 phaser circuits, you can use it to split the whole thing into 4 frequency bands to get it to sit in a mix - 1 for phasing lows, 1 for mids, 1 for high mids and 1 for highs - then switch the circuits in and out (automatable) change the rhythm of the LFOs and you can have a whole piece of song playing from just one source sound. It really has huge capabilities which many people I suspect only just touch on every now and then.
The other side is that you can actually use it as a standard phaser! Sounds lush and thick, or thin if you want it to. There is no type of sound that it can't be used on at some time. It has no audible glitches unless you program them in deliberately - another Ohmforce feature that's common - excellent audio quality.
It might be worth paying extra for the pro version with full midi - there are so many features that you may want to automate, it can be difficult with only VST automation (but another good one is that they allow you to specify the order of VST parameters priority - so if you can't automate what you want - go in and customize in the subedit page!) Plus you get more than 16bits with the Pro Mobilohm - though to my ears I'm perfectly happy with the 16bit limitation.
The reason I marked down the sound a little is that it can sound a little digital when used as a basic one channel phaser - it can sound lush and rich, but you generally have to use more channels to achieve that - but it's a very minor complaint - it can vary it's sound as much as you are prepared to put in programming effort.
Not for the faint-hearted if you're unsure about in-depth programming, but you can't go too far wrong by just turning knobs at random though. Flexibility=complex |
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By kritikon
On 21st November 2003
Version: 1.3
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Ohm Force Hematohm
I didn't give a great review of Frohmage, but now I can let rip with a review of the other Ohmforce plugins - As with all of theirs, they are flexible and very very distinctive. Haematohm is possibly one of their weirdest ones released - and I love it.
Sound - It's a frequency shifter - in practice it sounds like a pitch shifter but not quite. Basically if you put, say, a drum loop through it, it'll sound like the drums are being pitched up or down, but it's far more extreme than that, as it's shifting the actual frequencies in it to huge ranges away from normal up to KHz or down to double figure Hz. The difference you hear from a pitch shifter is that it retains the original quality of the sound much more than a pitch shifter would (sounds odd I know) - whereas if you pitch shifted a vocal it would sound like Smurfs, Haematohm retains the quality of the speech somehow - difficult to explain in words.
An added bonus is the delay which is fed back into the shifting. This means the delay can constantly rise or fall or both with the LFO - similar to what you get in some of the better h/w FX units. This can create weird alien landscapes or be useful in moderation with drums or hats to subtly alter their "pitch" and give a more human feel and sound. Or be used as a kind of chorus to vocals - In fact you could use it to double track a vocal line, but pitched down a little without all the hassle of either rerecording the vocal or time stretching/pitch shifting via a sampler. Not realistic if overdone though.
One trick Pony? On first hearing and some extreme FX, you might think so, but as mentioned above it has extremely useful real world applications that can save you an immense amount of time and effort over doing it the traditional way. One of its presets is called Human Touch (if I remember correctly) - try that out on drum lines or vocals and be surprised at how subtle but effective it is. Or you could feed a synth note into it and make what basically are arpeggios - musical if done right, or weirdly alien if not (which is good). You can control how much shift is introduced, how much delay, and how much the delay is shifted - marvellous.
It can also be a great master or group effect for the odd bit of weirdness - pitch up a whole group, or the song at the breakdown or end of an intro as a crescendo - or just use it on cheesey techno snare rolls - instant in-yer-face effect!
VFM - I got it when they did $10 specials so it was an absolute bargain - now it's more realistically priced, so maybe you should test it out first - it's one you won't use regularly, but when you do it has no equal, especially if you want weird. So weigh those 2 things up.
Features - didn't give it 10/10 because it doesn't do everything you might want, but that's small fry compared to how individual it sounds when you do. It's not a studio essential, but if you like odd FX they don't come too much odder than this, but it's eminently useable. |
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By kritikon
On 21st November 2003
Version: 1
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Ohm Force Frohmage
I'm surprised there are no other reviews of Frohmage, so here goes...
I gave some conflicting marks to this one - it's free, therefore it's excellent value for money.
Documentation - as always Ohmforce provide manuals as a separate d/l and they are always good.
However - interface... Frohmage comes in only a "funky" skin, which I generally find to be utterly unfathomable; it's a shame they didn't release it in one of their sensible skins. If you haven't d/led the manual you'll likely have no idea what any of the knobs do.
Sound - the important bit for any filter - personally I don't like the character much. The blurb says you can get slow subtle filter sweeps - well I've never got one out of it. It will certainly scream in a distortion/overdrive kind of way and maybe that's why it's so poular - you seem to either love Frohmage or hate it. I'll catagorically state that I love every Ohmforce plugin I've got...they are geniuses, but I don't like Frohmage, so consequently I don't like QuadF either. They definitely have character, but I can't get what I call warm pleasant filtering out of them - I expected a filter that would do your standard synth filtering but also have the quirkiness that Ohmforce generally put into their plugins. I find only the quirkiness with no usefulness.
I'll amend that by saying that if you like distortion, you would probably find Frohmage right up your street - I can see uses for guitar treatment, in Industrial styles etc, but as with any filter it's almost 100% down to style and personal taste, and it's not mine.
It's certainly not a one trick pony, as you can vary the number of bands that it filters, but I find a lack of env following a big hindrance to any filter - makes it very difficult to use a filter as you would with a synth, which is what I want out of a filter.
Stability - rock solid.
Support - Ohmforce excel in this area.
I don't like to knock freebies nor Ohmforce (I love both!) but this one simply doesn't perform to what I expect of a filter. I just don't like the harshness it gives and I find it almost impossible to use it without destroying sonic quality of the source material. I would probably have given it great marks if it was labelled as a distortion/overdrive type of effect in fact.
But you should try it for yourself though - many users love this filter, and I can see why, if their tastes tend towards it's defined type of sound. But if you are expecting a synth-type filter then look elsewhere. I dabbled with using it as a guitar treatment, but I have other FX that are specialised in doing that, and I prefer their sound to Frohmage.
To defer some of my negativity though, Frohmage certainly has its own distinctive character (which is a mix of airy and nasty?) and should be praised for that. You like it or you don't and full marks to Ohmforce for providing that kind of plugin.
(Now I feel guilty for knocking it, but you can't like everything, eh?) |
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By kritikon
On 14th November 2003
Version: 1
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Mark Henning AnaMark LF
This is one of those synths that I've almost wiped off my hard drive, but always stayed my hand at the last key stroke for some reason.
It's fairly basic - after all, it's a freebie version done as a taster for the fuller featured bigger brother.
It's mono (no shame in that - monos are still very useful for leads and basses). There are no FX (for me this is no problem - I often feel FX mask the true character of a VSTi).
The reason I've nearly deleted it is because it seems to have not much middle ground - it's basically a very digital sounding synth - it's designed to be - but that can really be a problem with a monosynth - digital basslines just rarely cut it in a mix - with leads it's not such a problem, but LF is either very quiet and bland, or it screams out with digital nastiness. Either way, even with a lead, it's difficult to get it to sit in a mix happily.
You can tone down the nastiness, but then it seems to lose any character at all. Some of the obscure knobs can occasionally produce a really useable patch though - you can twiddle all of the knobs to no effect whatsoever, but just one knob will get the right sound - this is also another reason I nearly deleted it; The knob terminology is so ridiculously obscure, that I have no idea what most of them do. I like programming synths - I like complicated ones and I like programming from scratch - but I still have no idea what I'm doing with LF - just bad labelling IMO.
I've still got LF because just on the odd occasion you want a bit of real noise and crunch - well it can do that quite well. In fact, I'd say LF is more suited to making industrial sounds, and if that is your style maybe it's a good synth to own. I can imagine the full version with more features could be quite useful, but LF is so "only just there" that I have never investigated it. Basically for the usual dancey stuff or pop or accoustic and most probably for rock, I don't think LF has alot of use. Grungey electro, industrial experimental then go for it - it's free anyway so what's to lose?
I really don't like to knock freebies, but this one rarely does anything for me - I only keep it because once in every 30 or so songs - I find some kind of use for it (and I'm a sad synth collector - I find it very difficult to get rid of 'em) |
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By kritikon
On 2nd November 2003
Version: 1.02
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Superwave Superwave P8
As freebies go, especially as SynthEdit synths go, this is up there with the best. Not necessarily in terms of features (it has some limitations), but in terms of sound. Played purely with 1 or 2 voices, it's fairly ordinary. BUT ... some people consider the extra detuned oscillators as a gimmick ... well, it may be, but the point is that most other VSTis don't offer this facility, and when used, it makes SuperwaveP8 a very strong-sounding dominant synth.
Basically it has 6 extra voices (identical to the main oscillator) but all detunable by independent amounts - and you can do this with both oscillators - so it makes for a huge amount of oscillators (14!) and a wide thick soupy sound - very "analogue". When you consider that some big analogue patches used detuned VCOs and PWM and chorus to make the distinctively analogue sound, then these extra "Superwaves" aren't cheating - they are offering you a classic analogue trick that standard synths don't offer.
A very good set of patches to start off with, all of which identify what type of sound easily - you want a Jarre sound or a Numan or Van Halen pad, then it's labelled. No gimmicks - it just shows you what it's capable of.
I especially like the sync sound - it can squeal sharply and also be used subtly and musically - the 2nd oscillator can sweep from a good set of mod options from envelope, LFO, midi or whatever - in fact the whole modulation set is very flexible - not possibly set out as well as it could be in the GUI, but there are alot of options there.
The GUI - I have some problems with it, but overall it is well thought out and obvious - it looks like a real synth should in most aspects, so it is easy to program. Filters are set apart from envelopes and LFOs and modulation options - you really can't find it too difficult to tweak even if you are new to synth programming.
FX - nothing amazing, but sound an integral part of the patch unlike many other VSTis. You can argue whether VSTis should or shouldn't have FX, but this one works well - simple delays that don't overpower the patch.
It's not a do-everything synth by any means, but if you like fat analogue sounds (especially pads) then SWP8 is better than many commercial synths. Capable of basses (similar in a way to the Juno sound - big flabby bass useful for some styles,but not others). Good for leads and some special FX.
There are some problems such as not being able to latch LFOs to song position (i.e it won't restart the LFO at the start of a bar - it freewheels) but this is more a Sythedit problem than a SWP8 problem.
There are some Synthedit synths out there that are weird and wonderful, but often unusable. Some are useable but bland. SWP8 is both useable and flexible. You could replace some bog-standard analogue h/w synths with SWP8. A problem is that it's so fat sometimes that it overpowers your mix - 14 DCOs is not always good so use sparingly.
One of the better Synthedit creations- very very useable. |
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By kritikon
On 28th February 2003
Version: 1.0
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SC MonoOne
This is one of those synths that I just had to do a review for because it gives me so many mixed feeling.
First off - it is really really basic - there are hardly any mod options, and not much of anything to speak of. It has a nice GUI, but it's never going to be a synth that has you scratching your head on how to program it - it's just too cut down and underdeveloped.
BUT ..... This odd little synth (which I guess was someones first dabblings in synth development) has the best sounding oscillators of any VSTi's I own!
Really and truly - the oscillators are beautiful - they are meaty and fat, and have the full spectrum in there. They could be from a Moog or an OSCar! They are the most analogue oscillators I have heard on any VSTi - no trace of thin-ness, weediness, or nasty brightness. The problem is, there is nothing much you can do with them in terms of a real synth and modulation options.
I wholeheartedly recommend that you d/l this baby and then put it through a plugin filter, or even a hardware filter. My problem was that I don't overmuch like most plugin filters - Waldorf are getting better at it, and I quite like the Phatsync bundled with Cubase 5.1, but the rest leave me cold. I haven't heard the new quad Frohmage from OhmForce yet, so maybe that is one good option for these oscillators. It cries out for more functions and it could be a beast - I love, love, love those oscillators and can think of loads of good VSTi's that would be incredible with these oscillators - imagine something like Crystal with these huge OSCar-like oscillators! (gulp)
So overall, the synth is hardly credible as a VSTi because it doesn't do anything, but play those oscillators even with no filter on them, and it just takes you back to VCO heaven in the 60s and 70s - better than all new ones by far, and they need no Eq - why then don't they make this into a real synth? It puzzles me no end. |
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By kritikon
On 28th February 2003
Version: 1.1
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Steinberg Model-E
A useful synth if you are maybe new to analogue synth clones, and want some fat-ish sounds, but this one really fails to inspire me.
It's one of the older analogue clones, and it really shows. It's also not cheap - for what you get, in fact it's very expensive. The filters don't sound anything like any Moog I've ever played on, and the actual oscillators themselves are not that big, which was a character of Moogs.
If you want to learn about analogue synths then this is not one to learn on - they insisted on using the arcane terminology of Moogs, which I could accept, if they made it sound like one! But it doesn't. It only looks a bit like one.
Admittedly you can get some lovely pads, and occasionally some pleasing leads, and even some powerful basses, but it really doesn't have an awful lot of character to be worth the asking price. Many free VSTis that are given away nowadays have a wider range of sound and are more authentic than Model-e.
You can get lots of banks of sounds for it, but when you d/l them and play through them all, it soon becomes apparent that they sound very similar - that's because the range of Model-e isn't very wide. The envelopes are slow, which precludes most twangs and blips, although you can get the odd boing from it. The modulation options are limited, and the stupid terminology won't help if you are new to synths.
But it's not all bad - it's just that newer VSTi's have overtaken it by a long way, and some of the new clones have got the character of the old synths better - this one didn't really capture anything of the old Moogs. It's useable, but they need to drop the price a long way to get many sales I would think. |
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By kritikon
On 28th February 2003
Version: 2.0
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LinPlug Free Alpha
I won't go into all the features on this little beauty, as it's already been said, so I'll say why I use it so much as a solid workhorse for stock analogue synth sounds.
a) it has an accuracy feature - turn it down from 100% and you get progressively more subtle instabilities in the sound - which gives a very analogue feel to it - it becomes far less sterile than many VSTi's out there.
b) it's warm sounding - no nasty bright high end (which many people like) but nevertheless wasn't a feature on most analogue synths. The blurb says they tried to get that warmth, and Linplug got this right. The filters lose some of their effectiveness on high notes, but I like that - so do most genuine analogue synths.
c) very easy to programme - it's laid out simply and sensibly - no menus and switching between pages.
d)The mod matrix - excellent for a freebie. Not as many options as I'd like, but it's free, so you can't expect the world. And it often surprises with it's gritty edge if you modulate the oscillator symmetry - sounds like a kind of oscillator sync (very useful) for leads.
e) the filters - maybe it's just me, but I actually prefer the Freealpha filters to the ones on their DeltaIII which is alot posher. DeltaIII filters sound a but white-noisey in high resonance to me, but the Freealpha ones self-oscillate comfortably and musically.
f) it's a workhorse - you can get all the standard analogue sounds you need and know that it will sit in a mix properly. The Roland Junos were popular for this - thay weren't amazing, but you can find a use in any track for it. Same with Freealpha - it maybe won't have your jaw dropping, but you come back to it again and again, for basses, pads, e-pianos, brasses etc.
It's one of my most used VSTi's. It won't sound like Darth Vader, no arp, no amazing character, but it's very well programmed and very musical and warm which is what makes a useable synth. |
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By kritikon
On 28th February 2003
Version: 1.0
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reFX Claw
I thought there'd be more reviews of this one, which maybe shows how the 303 is going out of favour with the dance crew.
And that somes Claw up really - it is designed as a 303 clone. Does the world need more 303s? Well, if you like that sound, then short of actually shelling out and buying a real one, this is the next best thing. To my ears it is THE most realistic 303 plugin. I have Rebirth, and I now use Claw in preference (even though I don't use it that often - after all, you can't have a 303 in everything). I used to own a 303 way back when, so I know what they sound like - Claw gets that difficult to obtain lemon-sucking edge when on pulse wave and filter down, which is the real test of a 303 clone. It can sound very hollow but also has the true 18dB/Oct Curtis chip squelch.
A very useful addition is the hi-pass filter to obtain that hollow sound. Without it, Claw can be just a little too bassy. And that is actually a bonus - with one flick of a switch you get 303 squelches that sit ideally in a mix. A real 303 lost its bass end with the resonance up. You can do that with Claw too, but if you want to retain the bass content you can - and there aren't many true analogue synths that could achieve that particular trick.
I still own an MC202 (same circuits/filters as a 101) and Claw also does a very good 202 emulation when the resonance is further down. So it's alot more than a one trick pony - sure, it's aimed squarely at the techno dance-heads; but that just shows how ReFX got it right again - they give (for free!) one of the best 303s AND the best 202, all in one package.
There is midi automation, a good set of presets to start you off, and it is very easy to use. Very little CPU useage also. Stable as a rock bolted to the ground.
It won't do pads, it's not polyphonic, but so what - if you do dance, you NEED Claw, and that's what Claw sets out to give. And it does with bells on.
Top marks to ReFX again. |
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By kritikon
On 10th June 2002
Version: 1.?
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rgc:audio Triangle I
Initially I wasn't overly impressed with Triangle, but it's grown on me. I liked the smoothness of the sound straight away, but felt it wasn't too versatile. But after using a few times, I've had a good range of sounds from it. It has a very musical filter (in that it will still sound good when self-oscillated) which is not too common in VSTis. I find it good for mid range sounds, and good in the higher range too. What lets it down is the bass response of the filter - it seems to be common in VSTis that it's hard to get filters to work in the bass range. Sure Triangle will give nice rounded warm basses, but it won't resonate usefully down low - it's good for warm bass, but not if you want to do spikey bass with fast decay/attack times.
But I'm being picky really - only classic synths such as 202 or SCI Pro-One have really fast decay portions to the envelope - even Junos etc are a tad slow on that front, and old Korgs are even slower. But Triangle holds up against most common analogue hardware.
In fact, I mainly like it for some of the more delicate sounds - it's not a power house, but careful programming will give some rich filter sounds when you modulate to get movement going in the mids. It doesn't sound anything like a Korg MS series synth, but it reminds me of the type of hollow haunting sounds you can get with those. Which is praise for Triangle - you CAN compare it with analogue synths (unlike alot of VSTis).
The layout is good - obvious and logical with no frills to brighten it up too much.
Not too hard on the CPU, and rock-solid reliable.
The FX are a good addition to the sound - nice chorus and decimator. They complement the patches rather than overpower them.
I don't use it in everything by any means, but it's a good workhorse for those general-duty sounds and some occasional flourishes. Not an in-yer-face character synth, but good quality at what it does.
Quality is the main theme - won't set you on fire, but you can rely on it. |
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By kritikon
On 9th June 2002
Version: 1.4
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reFX Junox²
I have to admit I've only tried the demo version (played with it for 2 days), but I will be ordering the full version asap.
JunoX can't do everything, but if you want to do any hardhouse, trance, anthemic dance tracks then this synth is an absolute MUST have.
It has a very full and fat sound - perfect for stabs and hard edged pads, or as lead lines and a good range of basses (although the lower to upper mids are it's real strong point). It has an amazing set of filters on it - it can be very versatile with some careful tweaking to pull out some of the fatness. The formant filters are great for special FX, and the specials are huge, or you can do basic boingy sounds if you want. This synth is what the Alpha Juno should have been (but Roland cocked it up with lack of filters(s)).
I use a Juno 106, Alpha Juno and 202 amongst others, and the JunoX honestly beats these (with maybe the exception of the 202 for acidy subs). Junos are sought after and well used, but JunoX can do far greater ranges of sounds, and generally has an awful lot more power to it.
My only complaints are the LFO seems to not do too much, and the filter loses alot down in the basses - but JunoX isn't really a bass synth, and it more than makes up for that by the sheer power of the mids.
If you're into presets, it would take alot of time to get bored with these, and if you're into programming, it will repay your efforts many times over - and it's well laid out - you don't need a manual at all. Another VSTi that makes me play for pleasure.
$30 !? If that's still the price, it's a bargain - my wallet is out already.
Not a do-it-all synth, but essential for dance music in most forms. It is one of the most analogue sounding VSTis I've heard so far, and I will use it in preference to most of my hardware synths, including most of the collectable ones. It's so good, you need good Eq - simply to take out some of the fatness for a balanced mix.
Technoheads can't go wrong with it. |
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By kritikon
On 9th June 2002
Version: 1.2
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Muon Software Tau
Difficult one to review really, as it actually produces a decent warm sound, no audible glitches or zipper noise. It is quite useable as a very basic monosynth for warm basses, and it doesn't have any pretentions of being a complicated highly editable synth. I guess it is released as a taster to interested customers for the pro versions of their synths - but to be honest it hasn't made me too interested in trying them out.
The reason why - it says it has an 18dB/Oct resonant filter, and the layout and design is obviously meant to convey the impression it's some sort of 303 clone.
Well it ain't, and the filter isn't very resonant. Personally it sounds like a 24dB/Oct filter to me (and not a very good one either). I use a Juno 106 (which has a pretty weak filter), an Alpha-Juno (which doesn't even have a self-oscillating filter), and an MC202 (which is the dogs b******s if you can't afford a 303 for proper acid lines) - and the Tau won't sound anywhere NEAR any of these synths. It is in no way anything like a 303 - if you want one then shell out for Rebirth. If you want Roland 80s style synth sounds there are numerous freebies out there that do a far better job, and some that you pay very little for that are good synths.
You could even pick up a JenSX or similar for next-to-nothing that will sound better than the Tau.
However, it's free, so I shouldn't knock it - but it irritates me to think that some might shell out for the pro versions thinking they're going to get something capable of 303 sounds. Uh-uh! The GUI (to me) speaks of false marketing and I don't like it (just one of my personal pet-hates). Muon have lost any custom they might have had from me.
However, if you want a free very basic synth (that actually DOES sound analogue and smooth) then d/l it for a try, but it is not a Roland silver box and never wil be. |
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By kritikon
On 9th June 2002
Version: 1.0
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mda Piano
A very simple to use VSTi that does exactly what the name suggests. There aren't huge numbers of presets, but who need them for a piano? There are enough parameters to tweak for a bit of variation, such as 'hardness' and 'muffle' and flat or sharp tuning, so you can get a good-ish reproduction of pedal use and timbres, and nobody would need a manual with this thing - it's too straight-forward to need one.
It sounds better than any S+S workstation piano sounds I've ever played with (including the famous Korg M1 - which was excellent, but only suited certain styles IMO), and can be used in almost any mix or style. It can't compete with a full sampler, but for most people it will be perfectly good enough, and only true orchestral types will complain about the sound.
Add a little reverb and it will cover over any imperfections you might hear (not that I had any complaints with the dry sound anyway). Considering it's free, it is an amazing VSTi, and competes with most of the piano rack modules that came out a few years ago.
It's very reliable and you'll barely register any CPU useage, so no need to save power and record to audio.
I've always wanted a decent piano sound and can't get it on any of my hardware synths, but never considered it worth the several hundred bucks to buy a module. This fills the gap perfectly.
Everybody needs a piano at some stage, and this is it. I scored a few points off it for features and presets, but really that's irrelevant, as it is a piano - if you need envelopes and filters, then put it through some plug-ins to make it un-piano-like (?) but why would you want to?
Simple, reliable, uncluttered, clean and a VERY good emulation of a piano - it does everything it should. |
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By kritikon
On 24th May 2002
Version: 2.2
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Green Oak Crystal
It's aprox 8 months since I did a review of Crystal, and it's evolved so far since then. It was previously a very Wavestation-like synth (at least it could make very Wavestation-like sounds). Now it has overtaken the Wavestation by leaps and bounds and has become a master-of-all-trades-jack-of-none.
Crystal can now use Soundfonts in .SF2 format, so it has become a sampler with hugely impressive facilities (when you consider that there are plenty of apps out there that you can use to make your own .SF2 files from .wav files)
The modulation matrix now has doubled, which gives you 12 destination/target options + double the number of envelopes. This was my one bugbear with Crystal in the past - it could make very distinctive and unique sounds, but was limited to being merely a very capable synth by the smallish number of mod options available. Now there is almost no sound that you can imagine, that Crystal cannot make. There are modulations galore, and the number of synthesis options is almost overwhelming - granular, FM, resonant subtractive etc. with a hugely improved set of filters that add some serious oomph under the bonnet.
It has reverb FX alongside the other delay lines (which can give phasing, flanging etc anyway) so you don't even need to use FX plugins with this beast.
Hard sync on oscillators, and no doubt other additions soon, continue to make this a breath-taking piece of work.
That is one of the stunning things with Crystal - Glenn continues to make note of all users suggestions/bugs and implements all of the best ideas with amazing speed. It just grows and grows, each version almost transforming the synth before you've had a chance to get to grips with the huge synthesis capabilities of the last version. There is no equal for user support, period.
Every time you sit down with Crystal, you get lost in the myriad possibilities and wonder why you don't use it for everything. Not easy to programme, but huge in scope and sound. |
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Last edited : 23rd February 2003
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| Latest 37 reviews from a total of 37 |
