If you buy a tape vst today.

[jens]

I didn't realise that Gobbler needs to be running permanently for the plugin to be accessible from my DAWs.

That's not the case. You can safely uninstall Gobbler from your machine. This won't affect the functioning of your Softube plugin(s) in any way. Alle Gobbler does is:

a) handling and storing your Softube license-related data

b) passing your respective registration data on to iLok

c) providing a multi-installer


The Gobbler application on your machine is only required for C) - but as has been mentioned here already, there are individual installers on the Softube website as well, so the Gobbler application is
actually not required at all.

[Mr. Spock]

Not tape but sweet.
Try LVC-Audio's White Pre on every channel, or OMPre, they are also on sale with 40% off.

Console Shaper Mix FX cascading into Softube Tape Mix FX, both with passthrough enabled, yes sir.

yes, LVC t-chain pre's fit into this category - I agree! This creamy, natural coloring without being too obvious or too much "saturator". I hope Matt will make more modules (as in PreAmped) like Tape etc.

I also use and love Softube Tape since a few months.

[Unaspected]

I'm going to have to sort that out though as I didn't realise that Gobbler needs to be running permanently for the plugin to be accessible from my DAWs.

?
Not here it doesn't. The Gobbler app has nothing to do with how an authorised plugin is loaded or used in a host.

That's not the case. You can safely uninstall Gobbler from your machine. This won't affect the functioning of your Softube plugin(s) in any way. Alle Gobbler does is:

You're both correct. I'm going to blame it on plugin-list-blindness. Like snow blindness but not. Just checked for a third time and it is there with Gobbler disabled.

I've spent a little more time with tape now. Finished the drum processing and I can't believe anyone says that Softube's Tape is subtle! Of course it can be but you can push it damn hard to get a variety of tones. It's capable of some dramatic bass enhancement - not a simple bass boost but a really tight, punchy sound. The tone control works well to control transients.

I most people just load it, and turn the large amount knob on the front all the way up, and expect it to get really grungy - and it doesn't really. To get it grungy, you have to open the hidden controls and drive the input hard - *then* it can get grungy.

But even so - I just played with Reelbus, and thus has way more exaggerated distortion, both among the presets, and when playing around with the parameters. You can dial it down of course, but I feel that it's control range was rather more extreme than Tape goes - and I quite like that Tape has a more refined control range.

For me, that's a mark of good design: Fewer options with parameters that focus around sweet spots and offer good resolution. Not that the parameters don't offer a wide range of tones.

Also, most people new to audio processing and those who don't come from a hardware background probably don't know about the importance or significance of correct gain staging. Indeed, Tape can get a little too nasty if one likes that kind of thing - but there is also enough room to drive for increased emphasis that is musically useful.

As with all plugins, it partners very well with True Iron placed ahead of it.

this is a new one for me, cheers

i like layering these type of things.
no demo...
and no hint of a licence policy.
most of the demos are ROCK
so not sure

You mean no demo for True Iron? Kazrog is another example of a forward thinking company. Download the product and use it fully featured until you pay for it to get rid of the nag screen. It's another one of these effects that works best cumulatively but as it also involves a hysteresis model, paring with Tape makes sense to me. There's a great thread on Gearslutz that goes into great detail on the plugin: https://www.gearslutz.com/board/product ... lugin.html

[sqigls]

Free demo downloads are currently unavailable, as we are developing and testing a new demo authorization system.

Not sure you want to buy yet? All of our plugins are used in top studios around the world, and are reasonably priced. We offer a no questions asked return policy within 14 days if you’re not completely satisfied with your purchase.

[Unaspected]

Free demo downloads are currently unavailable, as we are developing and testing a new demo authorization system.

Not sure you want to buy yet? All of our plugins are used in top studios around the world, and are reasonably priced. We offer a no questions asked return policy within 14 days if you’re not completely satisfied with your purchase.

This must have been recent in the last month or so. It sounds like the update will be an adjustment to the method rather than the functionality so just wait a little while and I'm sure demo downloads will be back up soon.

I sound like a sales rep. On his first day. With all the wrong information.

[chk071]

I think I already asked this once, but, forgot... What do you people mainly use a tape simulation plugin for? I find it hard to find a use case for me... Is it like an Exciter?

[Silaris]

Softube's Tape is the tape plugin emulation I use most often.

Black Rooster Audio's Magnetite and iZotope's Ozone 8 Vintage Tape are also good options.

In the past, I used u-he's Satin on a regular basis, but not much recently.

[systmu]

Acustica audio's new Taupe is a the best just demo it. Gives it that real record 3d depth wow. i've tried them all. Softube is great too though. I dunno if I'm too late. I'd probably put uad above softube but softube is great but Acustica is just wow. The Depth. their 2 new plugins are the best plugins I've ever used. Taupe and Elrey compressor.

True iron is great too and a must have.

[jancivil]

I think I already asked this once, but, forgot... What do you people mainly use a tape simulation plugin for? I find it hard to find a use case for me... Is it like an Exciter?

In general, there are flattering characteristics of tape recording a lot of people find desirable.

Part of this is something like an exciter, yes. Some of it is a rounding effect, so if you have say an instrument, say a guitar library particularly and an amp sim following, or some synth models, a word which gets used is 'fizzy'. It lacks a certain je nais se quoi, something in the translation is lost or the expectation isn't quite met.

There's a number of things going on.
Myself, I lost interest in a whole bus sent through one of these softwares a few years ago. I would rather impart some 'warmth' or 'dirt' with saturation and be kind of surgical with it. And I use an exciter pretty frequently.

Someone warmed up their Arturia ARP 2600 over to the Music Cafe with two things, yesterday: 'RD-20', which I'd never heard of and Satin. I may buy the former I like the GUI (and what the track physically sounded like) so much, but for me the other is doing too much, I don't really go for bus FX to color a whole group or anything on the master bus.

For my part, I like some basic white noise like a tape hiss, which is slightly perverse but it has a normalizing effect on me psychologically - such as you have a silence, a completely dead spot if you create a real gap in the audio - because I got so used to tape hiss in the past.

[chk071]

Thanks jan. TBH, I think I feel the same, and would rather opt for surgical additions I'd do to the sound, rather than send the whole bus through such a effect.

[dr_After]

After reading most of this thread I bought Softube Tape during Black Friday sale. And I must say that I am amazed! I tried Slate Tapes, I own Satin, I checked some Nebula tape libraries from the past, some of them are good, some are bad, but Softube Tape is just instant "de-digitalization" plugin, that gives great smoothness on vocal and drum buses and it is a must on the master channel. It does not kill transients, it does not mud the mix, it is just what I wanted: a tape plugin that works. Plus very nice high quality filter. And I love this sound. I always seek for vintage "new retro wave" feeling. Some Roland VSTis + Softube Tape on master = I am in my favorite 80s era. I recommend it!

[zvenx]

Softube's tape was until this morning my favourite native tape emulation.
But I use UAudio tape emulations on a daily basis, did I not have the Uaudio, I would until this am immediately switch my tape needs to the softube.

This morning however I tried a new release that doesn't have a lot of functions and tape is but one of the things it does, and not many options of either tape machines or tape formulations, but to me it sounds fan-frigging-tastic and so easy to use.

https://klevgrand.se/products/reamp/
rsp

[The Noodlist]

Tried the Klevgrand REAMP demo, they do some sweet stuff. The tape preset has an EQ cut around 1.5kHz and a smaller one around 3kHz, there's also a slight boost in output level.

I'm a fan of LVC-Audio's White Pre and OMPre preamps, that's means VTM is going on sale. Not tape, but tried the demo of OMPre, and I really like it.
Edit, cycles per second fu.

[nilhartman]

Softube Tape, Goodhertz Wow Ctrl and u-he Satin are my very favorite ones: sound lush and inobtrusive at the same time, melting with the source rather than sounding like an effect.
BRA Magnetite and Airwindows ToTape/FromTape are worth mentioning, even though I don't use them much.
VTM on the contrary sounds gimmicky and artificial to my ears, like a glossy, thick varnish coat over the incoming audio.

[Elektronisch]

Hi, is Softube's tape still on your very top list ? I am very new to Tape-kind of vst and I know that some other similar plugins have been released this year (Overloud for instance).

Let's forget about the price tag of ST's Tape, will you choose it over other new comers?

Cowby

Let me tell you one thing. If you will buy softube plugin you will add yourself to all possible famous labels black list. Let me explain, every major label before saying if your music is good or not ask you "what plugin did you uses for tape saturation?". If you will answer not correctly your track wount be aproved. Softube these days is totaly not relevant. No way. Just avoid that one. Your tracks wount be aproved.

Im using uhe satin. I like the sound. Labels aprove it. Dont know hoe accurate it is, dont care sounds good also it seems it does a little bit more then saturation only witch maybe explains why it sounds so good. Never tried anything else apart Ikm saturator x and fabfilter saturn tape presets and reelbus 3. Satin sounds just different, not like your typical saturation.