Thinking of buying quantum FX just wanted to know if anyone has tryed it and what they thougt??
http://www.db-audioware.com/quantum-fx-more.htm
L
Quantum FX opinions?
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- KVRAF
- 8713 posts since 24 May, 2002 from Tutukaka, New Zealand
Fuckin' awesome. 
I don't use QFX exclusively...far from it. I still use a selection of other plugins, but I tend only to buy the quality ones. Since QFX, I no longer constantly hunt for freebie ones, unless it's for some weird off-the-wall mangling FX. You still need some other delays (as they can be more flexible and different character than the QFX ones) compressors (QFX is more in the clean variety, although you can patch up some dirty compressors etc) and reverb. Eq, even...but I don't use alot of Eq anyway.
QFX's strong point is the quality of most of the individual FX modules, and the modular nature, so you can make some truly mangling FX with them if you have the time. Among my favourites are the guitar amps (I often have to run 2 instances in series to get the sound I truly want), the overdrive, which is lovely and warm, and the capability to inflict lots of filtering on things like delays. It now has a very neat and tidy way of sidechaining too. QFX's sidechaining is my favourite to use...it's just so straight-forward - I use SX, and now there is no need to use quattro groups to sidechain.
All of the Eqs and compressors do a very good bread and butter job for clean and precise compression and mild Eqing.
The choruses can be stacked into huge ones with multiple channels, and the flangers can get be very subtle or very metallic too.
Be aware that you may need to do some rendering/freezing to conserve CPU - some of the FX can use a fair bit, especially if you have several big ones running. But it's worth that very minor hassle to me.
To be honest, I don't often patch up my own FX, but when I need something specific, it is unbeatable. You want a delay with 4 taps, and a different modulation effect on each DDL, but with cross-feedback into each channel, and then some feedback Eq filtering? It's almost impossible to do that with conventional plugins, even if you have several of them in series. It's even worth the price just for the ducking delay - that's a rarity from any other developers on its own.
Once you get past the initial scratch-head learning curve, there's a template for all the basic FX that you can start from without the need to patch up your own FX right from scratch. And the possibility for mammoth imaginitive FX chains is huge.
Having said that - the presets alone would keep you happy for quite a long time:
There are simple delays, filtered delays, multitap filtered delays, ducking delay, swept overdrive, valve sim, chorus, flanger, wah-wah, guitar cabs and amps, reverbs (not its strongest point...but has a superb room reverb that is specifically suited to guitar (although dodgy for some other uses), harmonic enhancer, compressors, multiband compressors, limiters, multiband limiters, frequency-conscious compressor, graphic/parametric/paragraphic Eq.....there isn't much missing straight from the box.
Can't recommend QFX highly enough. You'll probably empty out your freebie FX folder considerably if you bought QFX. For what you get, the price isn't much short of an absolute bargain. You could easily do a whole project and master it only with QFX - and do it better than the FX supplied within most hosts. Personally I don't, but it really is only the quality ones that I buy otherwise. Probably the only other FX I regularly use apart from QFX are:
Delays - RetroDelay and Ohmboyz
Reverbs - SIR (soon to get a UAD and EMT plate)
Compressors - SX multiband and Kjaerhus GUP1
I still like the SX chorus
Crysonic Spectralive
Pocket Limiter
That's it...QFX usually replaces all the other 500 assorted FX I used to have to sift through. When I have my UAD - that and QFX will probably be the only FX I use at all.
I don't use QFX exclusively...far from it. I still use a selection of other plugins, but I tend only to buy the quality ones. Since QFX, I no longer constantly hunt for freebie ones, unless it's for some weird off-the-wall mangling FX. You still need some other delays (as they can be more flexible and different character than the QFX ones) compressors (QFX is more in the clean variety, although you can patch up some dirty compressors etc) and reverb. Eq, even...but I don't use alot of Eq anyway.
QFX's strong point is the quality of most of the individual FX modules, and the modular nature, so you can make some truly mangling FX with them if you have the time. Among my favourites are the guitar amps (I often have to run 2 instances in series to get the sound I truly want), the overdrive, which is lovely and warm, and the capability to inflict lots of filtering on things like delays. It now has a very neat and tidy way of sidechaining too. QFX's sidechaining is my favourite to use...it's just so straight-forward - I use SX, and now there is no need to use quattro groups to sidechain.
All of the Eqs and compressors do a very good bread and butter job for clean and precise compression and mild Eqing.
The choruses can be stacked into huge ones with multiple channels, and the flangers can get be very subtle or very metallic too.
Be aware that you may need to do some rendering/freezing to conserve CPU - some of the FX can use a fair bit, especially if you have several big ones running. But it's worth that very minor hassle to me.
To be honest, I don't often patch up my own FX, but when I need something specific, it is unbeatable. You want a delay with 4 taps, and a different modulation effect on each DDL, but with cross-feedback into each channel, and then some feedback Eq filtering? It's almost impossible to do that with conventional plugins, even if you have several of them in series. It's even worth the price just for the ducking delay - that's a rarity from any other developers on its own.
Once you get past the initial scratch-head learning curve, there's a template for all the basic FX that you can start from without the need to patch up your own FX right from scratch. And the possibility for mammoth imaginitive FX chains is huge.
Having said that - the presets alone would keep you happy for quite a long time:
There are simple delays, filtered delays, multitap filtered delays, ducking delay, swept overdrive, valve sim, chorus, flanger, wah-wah, guitar cabs and amps, reverbs (not its strongest point...but has a superb room reverb that is specifically suited to guitar (although dodgy for some other uses), harmonic enhancer, compressors, multiband compressors, limiters, multiband limiters, frequency-conscious compressor, graphic/parametric/paragraphic Eq.....there isn't much missing straight from the box.
Can't recommend QFX highly enough. You'll probably empty out your freebie FX folder considerably if you bought QFX. For what you get, the price isn't much short of an absolute bargain. You could easily do a whole project and master it only with QFX - and do it better than the FX supplied within most hosts. Personally I don't, but it really is only the quality ones that I buy otherwise. Probably the only other FX I regularly use apart from QFX are:
Delays - RetroDelay and Ohmboyz
Reverbs - SIR (soon to get a UAD and EMT plate)
Compressors - SX multiband and Kjaerhus GUP1
I still like the SX chorus
Crysonic Spectralive
Pocket Limiter
That's it...QFX usually replaces all the other 500 assorted FX I used to have to sift through. When I have my UAD - that and QFX will probably be the only FX I use at all.
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- KVRian
- 1184 posts since 13 May, 2004 from SF Bay Area, California
Thanks Kritikon, I've been looking at QFX too, and I found your comments really helpful. Once you get past the initial learning curve, how easy would it be to build something like the following:
- mono input into a pair of delay lines
- time of each delay line modulated by a separate random LFO
- each delay line feeds into a multimode filter
- each filter feeds ACROSS to the opposite delay line with adjustable gain
- stereo output from the combination of the two filters
Can you spot any elements of this design that would be problematic in QFX? If it's straightforward, I might just go for it now, while they're still running their discount offer...
- mono input into a pair of delay lines
- time of each delay line modulated by a separate random LFO
- each delay line feeds into a multimode filter
- each filter feeds ACROSS to the opposite delay line with adjustable gain
- stereo output from the combination of the two filters
Can you spot any elements of this design that would be problematic in QFX? If it's straightforward, I might just go for it now, while they're still running their discount offer...
If you like 80s retro sounds, check out my latest tune…
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- KVRist
- 49 posts since 30 May, 2003 from Glasgow, Scotland
Can you spot any elements of this design that would be problematic in QFX?
No problems at all. Here's your full algorithm running in the QFX workbench...
I'm not sure exactly what you're aiming for, but this prototype is a weird random pitch shifter, with feedback and occasional visits into self-oscillation. Very Dr Who. I hope that's what you THOUGHT it would sound like
. A couple of comments on the design...
- I wasn't sure precisely what you meant by "random LFO", so I used a sinewave whose frequency changes every 250ms for the first delay, and a normal sinewave for the second delay. You could also use a noise generator connected to a Sample/Hold module for truly random modulation.
- I added a limiter to the end of the effect. Always advisable when mucking about with feedback loops and resonant filters!
Cheers,
Dave
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Dave Brown
www.db-audioware.com
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- KVRAF
- 2049 posts since 18 Sep, 2003 from Seattle USA
Hmmm - somebody mentioned discount? 
How hard would it be to build a waveshaper (both sym/asym - positive & negative ability) to generate or stimulate already existing even and odd harmonics (like an audiophile single-ended tube amp does) and balance or control them across the entire freq range? It is probably pretty easy if the basic dsp algos are there for me to wire together - I'm guessing?
How hard would it be to build a waveshaper (both sym/asym - positive & negative ability) to generate or stimulate already existing even and odd harmonics (like an audiophile single-ended tube amp does) and balance or control them across the entire freq range? It is probably pretty easy if the basic dsp algos are there for me to wire together - I'm guessing?
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- KVRian
- 1184 posts since 13 May, 2004 from SF Bay Area, California
Oops I thought I posted here again to thank Dave for such a helpful reply -- I'll definitely check out the demo, and assuming it works okay with my setup I'll be a customer before long!
If you like 80s retro sounds, check out my latest tune…
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- KVRian
- 1184 posts since 13 May, 2004 from SF Bay Area, California
(And by the way, yes, that weird Dr. Who effect is exactly what I'm looking for -- trying to re-create a patch that a student of mine put together in Max/MSP...)
If you like 80s retro sounds, check out my latest tune…
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- KVRian
- 690 posts since 31 May, 2002 from chez moi
I've found QFX very easy to use and easy to build new fx. Two nights ago I whipped a new filter: 2 multimode filter, serial or parallel, adjustable envelope follower, adjustable LFO, link cutoff and resonance from filter1 to fileter2, etc.
I think this is a good example of what can be done in QFX. I don't have any background in audio dsp. I just looked at the features I've seen on some other filter effects and tried to copy them into something useable in QFX. Easy to do with good sounding results.
s
I think this is a good example of what can be done in QFX. I don't have any background in audio dsp. I just looked at the features I've seen on some other filter effects and tried to copy them into something useable in QFX. Easy to do with good sounding results.
s
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- KVRAF
- Topic Starter
- 5629 posts since 22 Sep, 2005
Ok well I bought it and WOW im pretty amazed by the flexiblity.. As a OFX newb The only thing is I cant seem to find a preset for pitch shifting ANYONE KNOW HOW I CREATE OR LOAD A PSHIFTER (non time c/e)...
ThX
L
ThX
L
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- KVRian
- 1184 posts since 13 May, 2004 from SF Bay Area, California
Haha, I just bought it too, and I'm similarly impressed.
I'm not in desperate need of a pitch shifter, but it would be nice. The company forum (http://forums.db-audioware.com/) seems to be set up to take feature requests seriously. Apparently there's talk of an audio buffer module which would allow granular techniques including pitch shift. [edit: this hasn't been promised, just proposed...]
Meanwhile, I'm amazed at how good it sounds and how intuitive it is to modify existing effects or build new ones.
I'm not in desperate need of a pitch shifter, but it would be nice. The company forum (http://forums.db-audioware.com/) seems to be set up to take feature requests seriously. Apparently there's talk of an audio buffer module which would allow granular techniques including pitch shift. [edit: this hasn't been promised, just proposed...]
Meanwhile, I'm amazed at how good it sounds and how intuitive it is to modify existing effects or build new ones.
If you like 80s retro sounds, check out my latest tune…
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- KVRist
- 49 posts since 30 May, 2003 from Glasgow, Scotland
We are working on the audio buffer feature right now. It can do "resampling" styles of pitch shift - that is, the length of the audio is not preserved. It's really good for "tape stop" effects and other creative types of pitch shifting.PaulSC wrote:Apparently there's talk of an audio buffer module which would allow granular techniques including pitch shift. [edit: this hasn't been promised, just proposed...]
Quality pitch shifting is somewhat of a "holy grail" in the audio DSP world. Having said that, you can build a basic pitch shifter in QFX using delay lines modulated with sawtooth oscillators. There's an example in the QFX online library (which is currently offline for maintenance work, but will be returning shortly).
Dave.