KVR Audio

Agility · Post by **Agility** » Wed Jul 10, 2013 12:10 pm

Reelbus is OK, decent for tone I suppose but fails to give that warp like effect real tape does where it softens the transients and adds thump, though no tape sim I've tried can do that other than VTM, not tried the UAD tape plugs though.. hopefully U-He get it right also.

wsaidah · Post by **wsaidah** » Thu Jul 11, 2013 12:59 pm

softens the transients sure it does! its all in the settings you need to play with it more

bmanic · Post by **bmanic** » Thu Jul 11, 2013 8:57 pm

.. and the different models/algorithms have a HUGE impact on the sound. They are all very, VERY different.

Also, it makes a big difference how hard or soft you drive the machine. Try pre-emphasizing certain areas with an EQ and then reverse it with identical but reversed EQ curves (pro-Q is a symmetrical EQ and perfect for this task.. so is the free ReaEQ in reaper (also available as free vst plugin)).

Cheers!
bManic

bmanic · Post by **bmanic** » Thu Jul 11, 2013 9:01 pm

Beatworld wrote:
Davias wrote:You have to be subtle if you want to avoid too much distortion.
Agreed, don't drive it too hard and tweak saturation to taste, more often than not by reducing it.
I find you don't want to exceed 0db on the RB meters.
Between about -3 and 0 is the sweet spot in my experience.

.. and remember, the VU meter is an averaged meter! So if you are hitting 0dB constantly it means your peaks can be more than 6 to 12dB over the average, thus hitting the tape very hard!! This would indeed completely obliterate the peaks, even with the 'Professional' tape algorithm.

I feel like realbus sounds the best when I'm around -7 and -5 on the meter. Very program dependent though. I often use it as a high frequency limiter by emphasizing the highs with a shelf in Pro-Q (forcing the high frequencies to hit the tape harder) and then de-emphasizing them post Reelbus. Just like people used to do with tape in the old days!

Cheers!
bManic

Tp3 · Post by **Tp3** » Fri Jul 12, 2013 9:07 am

bmanic wrote:Try pre-emphasizing certain areas with an EQ and then reverse it with identical but reversed EQ curves

Equilibrium has this feature ? haven't seen it there...

Agility · Post by **Agility** » Fri Jul 12, 2013 11:41 am

wsaidah wrote:softens the transients sure it does! its all in the settings you need to play with it more

I've played with it enough, I'm very familiar with it.

I have a tape impulse(Beamsonic Studer) and tried VTM, they both exhibit a 'warp' like effect(you'll know this if you have VTM, just by inserting it(even more so with the 2in setting) it rounds off the sound and beefs up the low end) on the sound like heard on records back in the day(I'm making 80's style music hence why I'm using tape emu's) Reelbus does not do this aswell as any of the others I've tried. I thougth Reelbus was good until I heard VTM.. but Reelbus has it's uses I guess.

Maybe Jeroen can add this in the future.

HanafiH · Post by **HanafiH** » Fri Jul 12, 2013 12:02 pm

But can it deliver that indefinable can't-get-Quantegy-anymore feeling that only european tape manufacturers can deliver? You know, the tape that comes from the company who make their real profits from laminating oxide onto the back of railway tickets and credit cards? Wouldn't want to miss that reel world je ne sais quoi on my minging beats.

ObsoleteAcc99 · Post by **ObsoleteAcc99** » Fri Jul 12, 2013 12:07 pm

[DELETED]

hibidy · Post by **hibidy** » Fri Jul 12, 2013 7:37 pm

Ok. So you guys don't like it. I don't expect everyone to have the same opinion about things.

bmanic · Post by **bmanic** » Fri Jul 12, 2013 7:58 pm

Tp3 wrote:
bmanic wrote:Try pre-emphasizing certain areas with an EQ and then reverse it with identical but reversed EQ curves
Equilibrium has this feature ? haven't seen it there...

I think the DMG algorithm is completely symmetrical. You can always try by inserting two opposing, identical EQ bands and flipping the phase to the original audio. Pro-Q nulls to about -100dBFS. I suspect EQuilibrium should do the same (with the DMG algorithm when no proportional Q is used), if not even better.

Cheers!
bManic

bmanic · Post by **bmanic** » Fri Jul 12, 2013 8:04 pm

hibidy wrote:Ok. So you guys don't like it. I don't expect everyone to have the same opinion about things.

Well as a counter. I love it! Use it far more than Slate VTM. I think it's just the nature of the beast. VTM was modeled on a high end tape deck but reelbus was not. It was more of the typical Revox B67 machines or similar.. not sure which deck the "professional" algorithm is from but all the others are fairly low-end machines.

Personally I find these kinds of machines much more useful in a mixing environment than a super high-end one, because I use it for effect. I adore the way transients turn to mush (the exact thing Theo doesn't like).

It's especially useful on single hits and synth stabs and such. It brings a very different flavor to the mix than what a typical limiter or compressor.. or even any of the nice waveshapers (FF Saturn, Gclip etc.).

I've also had far more luck with reelbus on guitars and bass tracks to really thicken them up.

What I don't use reelbus for is mixbus duties, unless it absolutely has to change the sound radically (reelbus is virtually impossible to keep subtle). In this role I feel like the only option is Slate VTM, which it excels at.

Cheers!
bManic

hibidy · Post by **hibidy** » Fri Jul 12, 2013 8:15 pm

I meant theo and shy from the previous post.

But yeah, I like it just fine.

Brother Charles · Post by **Brother Charles** » Fri Jul 12, 2013 9:35 pm

TheoM wrote:Well personally I agree with someone I spoke to about it via pm. Not sure if he would be happy to go public about it but we both agree that reelbuss pretty much makes anything it goes on sound worse.

I agree as regards the stereo bus. I like it on drums though, Theo. I use it judiciously, but it does sound pretty cool on drums. I think of it as an audio "spice". Don't ruin the food with too much curry, sage or jalapeno, but a little can make a nice flavor. Yes, No?

codec_spurt · Post by **codec_spurt** » Fri Jul 12, 2013 9:51 pm

I'm trying to find a good reason not to buy this.

Got a rough idea of what it does. Don't really need it. Might be nice though.

Just want to donate to Jeroen more than anything else.

So many people say it's good.

Jeroen is so generous with his plugins, but his demos are so damned annoying.

Oh well.

bmanic · Post by **bmanic** » Fri Jul 12, 2013 9:57 pm

Don't "donate" and thus buy a plugin that may be useless to you. Jeroen is an incredibly talented and smart guy. He knows the plugins are worth much more than he is asking for them so there is most likely a good reason why they are so cheap. Probably the dude is "donating" his expertise, time and awesome plugins for the greater good of the music producer community!

Or he is slowly but surely building a massive library of awesome plugins and counts on people getting addicted to them.. like a crack dealer he slowly but surely empties all our wallets!

Instead, why not get one of his plugins that you feel like you absolutely need. Have you tried his FlX plugin? I find it remarkable!

Cheers!
bManic

TB ReelBus - thoughts?