KVR Audio

msl · Post by **msl** » Sat Jul 23, 2005 4:28 am

I rather like the endless "which <insert effect of your choice> is best" threads, so I thought I'd have a go at kicking off another one with the old favourite, reverb. Rather than just say which is best, how about some blind listening, just for fun!?

For simplicity, I started with a short piano clip lifted from the ArtsAcoustic website (here). I applied vaguely similar presets from a few different reverbs to this and normalised the output based on peak level. I stuck to presets, even if they are a little hit-and-miss, to avoid skewing the results with my own incompetence.

Which ones do you prefer? Maybe you can even guess which reverb some of them are!

Reverb 1 (mp3 / flac)
Reverb 2 (mp3 / flac)
Reverb 3 (mp3 / flac)
Reverb 4 (mp3 / flac)
Reverb 5 (mp3 / flac)

These are all encoded both with Lame MP3 encoder using the '--preset standard' option, and with FLAC (for higher quality if you can play FLAC files). Go ahead and add your own reverb of choice to the original sample and post a clip here too, if you like.

shamann · Post by **shamann** » Sat Jul 23, 2005 5:05 am

#3

no idea what any of them are though.

mandolarian · Post by **mandolarian** » Sat Jul 23, 2005 5:56 am

#0 - I like the dry version best.

But it's a freakin' piano, they're their own spring/plate verb!!! I'm tired of the 'solo' instrument tests. What a verb sounds like when it has to mix with others is a more telling test. Do you think we could get a band together to make some varied dry samples?

That said, for me, #3 was the least objectionable.

Thanks for playing another round of the Best Soft Verbs of Forum Eff. As much as I'm whining, I'm a total verb slut and scarf up every verb thread on KVR like it was a George Massenberg clinic.

Tune in next week for another session of:
What's the Best Compressor to squash those peaky verbs!

kilroy · Post by **kilroy** » Sat Jul 23, 2005 6:01 am

Piano sources are pretty hard on reverbs. Complex instrument.

These examples demonstrate this rather well...softening of transients, weird zings and resonances, generally unnatural sounding environments that feel detached from the source and conflict with the essence of the sound. When it comes down to having to use reverb on something...and having it actually *sound* good, I think many times piano is a tougher source than percussion. It certainly has been in my experience.

Anyroad...try this one out.

www.headroomproductions.com/Audio/PianoRoom.wav

kilroy · Post by **kilroy** » Sat Jul 23, 2005 6:18 am

mandolarian wrote:#0 - I like the dry version best.

Indeed

What's the Best Compressor to squash those peaky verbs!

No such thing as "the best" anything. That said this sorts things for me when I am working with software. It preserves the high end nicely, even if you are really digging in, it has an input gain, and the metering gives you an idea just how hard you are kicking the levels coming and going at the auxillary.

mandolarian · Post by **mandolarian** » Sat Jul 23, 2005 6:21 am

Oooh...Compressor X. Sadly a DX only plug. A cool one, but I was just kidding about the next best....oh, nevermind.

mandolarian · Post by **mandolarian** » Sat Jul 23, 2005 6:30 am

kilroy wrote:Piano sources are pretty hard on reverbs. Complex instrument.

Yeah. A little toooo complex for my taste. An obvious example of the excesses of a war-like, imperialist culture. Imagine, one person doing the work of 10 horn players.

Now if it were a forte piano perhaps we could discuss the sublties of tail and tone.

kilroy wrote: Anyroad...try this one out.

www.headroomproductions.com/Audio/PianoRoom.wav

2016 piano room, perhaps?
Better...but still gotta go with the zero-verb option. Frik, I'm cranky tonight.

kilroy · Post by **kilroy** » Sat Jul 23, 2005 6:37 am

mandolarian wrote:Oooh...Compressor X. Sadly a DX only plug. A cool one, but I was just kidding about the next best....oh, nevermind.

Ah, that I realize mate. But I am enjoying some rather tasty homemade Elderberry wine, and was game for a bit of one uppance.

kilroy · Post by **kilroy** » Sat Jul 23, 2005 6:41 am

mandolarian wrote:
kilroy wrote: Anyroad...try this one out.

www.headroomproductions.com/Audio/PianoRoom.wav
2016 piano room, perhaps?

Naaaah.

mandolarian · Post by **mandolarian** » Sat Jul 23, 2005 6:49 am

Naaaah. Yeah, that would've been my 2nd pick. Is Naaaah Version 2 available in VST format?

kilroy · Post by **kilroy** » Sat Jul 23, 2005 6:52 am

mandolarian wrote:Is Naaaah Version 2 available in VST format?

Naaaah.

mandolarian · Post by **mandolarian** » Sat Jul 23, 2005 6:55 am

Aha! It's another DX plug. Not the 'X' verb? That's pretty good if you like that sort of thing.

kilroy · Post by **kilroy** » Sat Jul 23, 2005 7:15 am

mandolarian wrote:Not the 'X' verb? That's pretty good if you like that sort of thing.

Now why would a hardware bloke like me use a plugin if he didn't have to?

But wait...this is KVR. (makes face and scratches chin in contemplation)

The mystery deepens.

mandolarian · Post by **mandolarian** » Sat Jul 23, 2005 7:30 am

Eww! You use hardware??? That's so heavy. Try to get with the program here at KVR. We emulate hardware, we don't actually want to touch it. It could have germs. Yukk!

We want our new shiny software to sound exactly like some old stinky, cheesy hardware, but without all those horrid cables and dangers of electical shock.

But I do like my Eventide. But I keep it away from the computer and only bring it out in a fit of nostalgia and try to remember how a rotary knob can work without a mouse.

markroom · Post by **markroom** » Sun Jul 24, 2005 5:18 pm

i think dis is a trick question and dey were all done with the same free plug and msl is being a smart arse

Yet another reverb thread :)