u-he Twangström 1.0 released

[sascha]

Hi guys,

just wanted to quickly post that we have just released Twangström, our flexible spring-reverb box-of-tricks.
It's a highly configurable 2- or 3-spring tank, along with a drive section, filter stage, envelope, and mod matrix.

In Twangström, tanks are based on 'physical modelling'. As opposed to plug-ins using impulse responses (IRs) of actual devices but being limited in expression and manipulation, our approach mimics the actual physics of mechanical reverberation. Thus we're not reproducing sonic results, we're actually simulating their origin. And it's all controllable in realtime, on a per-sample-basis. Which boils down to quite some power at your fingertips.

If you'd like to hear or test drive it yourself (or just buy it for 69€), hop over to https://u-he.com/products/twangstrom. We've had lots of fruitful discussions and a great exchange of ideas throughout the public beta phase over in our company forum (viewforum.php?f=31), so everybody's of course invited to share ideas and feedback or questions of any kind regarding that thing.



Oh, and by the way, happy new year!

Cheers & twang on!
Sascha

[zvenx]

Congrats.
rsp

[recursive one]

The Springy Thingy?

[Urs]

The Springy Thingy?

Yep, that's it

[Halonmusic]

Loving this thing. Thanks Urs!

[neverbeeninariot]

How do I load impulse responses? </joke>

This made it into one of my tracks already, just sounds freaking great. Nice work, u-he dudes!

[Liero]

Instant buy!

... but I have to say that, like Satin, this is a plugin that might be extremely accurate but isn't about instant musical results. I'm finding myself doing a lot of difficult tweaking to get the right sound, and it definitely does not work with all sources! I'm not saying it should be, just an observation...

[jens]

Did it significantly change since the beta? Is it worth trying again if one found the beta disappointing soundwise? (Even though I swear I could hear the springs rattle)

[Urs]

Did it significantly change since the beta? Is it worth trying again if one found the beta disappointing soundwise? (Even though I swear I could hear the springs rattle)

The new Bright mode definitely adds what some people had been missing during beta.

[sascha]

I'm finding myself doing a lot of difficult tweaking to get the right sound, and it definitely does not work with all sources! I'm not saying it should be, just an observation...

That sounds so much like me in the late 80s when I was trying to amplify music through a reverberant guitar amp...

[jens]

Did it significantly change since the beta? Is it worth trying again if one found the beta disappointing soundwise? (Even though I swear I could hear the springs rattle)

The new Bright mode definitely adds what some people had been missing during beta.

Does it react dynamically to the input?

But then I'll redownload and test it again!

[Funkybot's Evil Twin]

... but I have to say that, like Satin, this is a plugin that might be extremely accurate but isn't about instant musical results. I'm finding myself doing a lot of difficult tweaking to get the right sound, and it definitely does not work with all sources! I'm not saying it should be, just an observation...

I'm not sure how familiar you are with springs, but they definitely don't work on everything. Sound amazing on guitars, have even heard them used on drums to good effect (Camera Obscura's "If Looks Could Kill), and I've really been liking it on rhythmic synth pads recently. Never tried a spring on synths before, but Twangstrom adds a nice darkness to synths that I really like. It's definitely a sound unto itself though, and personal tastes will vary.

In regards to fast results, in my short period with the release version, what I've found works best is to save the "Touch of Twang" preset as default and start from there (if using as an insert). It's just a generic enough sounding spring that if I could just use the Mix knob and nothing else and get a great spring sound.

Tip: if you attach the LFO to the input knob (use negative modulation values) and increase the drive to halfway, you get a classic Fender "Vibrato" into a spring sound. Similar to a Princeton/Deluxe Reverb. Great for surfy guitars.

[Funkybot's Evil Twin]

I'm finding myself doing a lot of difficult tweaking to get the right sound, and it definitely does not work with all sources! I'm not saying it should be, just an observation...

That sounds so much like me in the late 80s when I was trying to amplify music through a reverberant guitar amp...

I remember seeing a post on Gearslutz from Dave Derr a while back where he talked about how he wasn't a fan of spring reverbs on electric guitars and always turned them down in the studio to use high-end studio verbs. Love Dave, he's a great guy (us Northern New Jersey guys gotta stick together), but he's totally and unashamededly THAT 80's guy. "Hey, can you turn off that awful amp reverb? I'm gonna patch in the Lexicon later."

[sascha]

"Hey, can you turn off that awful amp reverb? I'm gonna patch in the Lexicon later."

Luckily this has changed with more recent guitar bands like Interpol, Arctic Monkeys/Last Shadow Puppets etc. It's all coming back again.

[jens]

... but I have to say that, like Satin, this is a plugin that might be extremely accurate but isn't about instant musical results. I'm finding myself doing a lot of difficult tweaking to get the right sound, and it definitely does not work with all sources! I'm not saying it should be, just an observation...

I'm not sure how familiar you are with springs, but they definitely don't work on everything. Sound amazing on guitars, have even heard them used on drums to good effect (Camera Obscura's "If Looks Could Kill), and I've really been liking it on rhythmic synth pads recently. Never tried a spring on synths before, but Twangstrom adds a nice darkness to synths that I really like. It's definitely a sound unto itself though, and personal tastes will vary.

I was basically having the same problem as Liero and I own about ten or so different devices with springs in them... that includes a few multi-keyboards from the 70's and 80's btw...

I never really analyzed them but the one software spring-reverb that sounds the most accurate, mixeable and unobtrusive to me (the one in the BBE stomp-board) reacts VERY dynamically to the input - the higher the input, the louder and brighter it gets and that seems to cause that typical gorgeous "twang" - and at least the beta of Twangström didn't do that at all...


When I first tried the Stompboard, I more or less immediately thought something along the lines of "Wow, that's finally really sounding like a spring reverb", which made me listen a bit more closely.