Acustica intros Teal: Your go-to palette for rich tube saturation.

[Ou_Tis]

But yeah, you go on lecturing me about what is the right way to use this thing. I don't know at all what I'm doing.. I never do.

Come on, man, you've been on the internet too long to not know that you don't flame the trolls and the ignoramuses! AA threads are some of the worst on KVR already and this is not helping!

According to Acustica, the focus of Teal is on darker tubes: "One thing that was requested, especially with tube machines, was to have models that are a bit darker. For example, when we introduced the emulation of a tube in Mystic, some people complained that the product wasn’t dark enough. And that’s why we decided to develop a product dedicated to tubes, focusing on darker tube distortion and saturation, with a particularly rich color."

https://gearspace.com/board/showthread.php?p=17214524

Granted, I haven't yet started demoing it myself. But I do like some of the audio examples in this video a lot:

[bmanic]

According to Acustica, the focus of Teal is on darker tubes: "One thing that was requested, especially with tube machines, was to have models that are a bit darker. For example, when we introduced the emulation of a tube in Mystic, some people complained that the product wasn’t dark enough. And that’s why we decided to develop a product dedicated to tubes, focusing on darker tube distortion and saturation, with a particularly rich color."

Ask yourself this:

Is it really smart trying to convince somebody that their own opinion, after testing the demo, is wrong and misinformed when you yourself are entirely basing this notion on a marketing blurb? Yes.. everything Giancarlo says can be considered marketing. He can't be objective (and I don't blame him.. it's his baby!).

Though to be fair, neither can I be objective. I know what I like and I have way too many years of experience using all kinds of audio equipment ranging from the mundane to the very weird, both hardware and software. So always, ALWAYS take any words on the internet as subjective unless it comes with irrefutable facts, examples and measurements.

In general, this is advice I'd give for all things in life.

Granted, I haven't yet started demoing it myself. But I do like some of the audio examples in this video a lot:

Those are just that dudes examples and excitement. I also watched that video before downloading the demo and thought the examples were really poor (where some of his choices of settings made the processed audio sounds much worse than the original sound source).. but I also quickly browsed through a few other of his videos and came to the conclusion that he doesn't really represent any kind of expertise (in my opinion) or similar tastes to mine. Thus I downloaded the demo to try it for myself.

.. which then lead to my conclusion that I then shared. Again, keep in mind that whatever I say here on these or any other forums, is just my own opinion and should never be taken as gospel. My word only carries any weight if you know me and my sound aesthetic preference.. and even then it can be risky as I've gradually changed my opinion on sound and sound aesthetic over the years (probably something that comes with age naturally).

That's about it. Hopefully you can see why your comment felt sort of offensive from my perspective. I try not to be too grumpy about such things but sometimes people strike a nerve. So take that as my apology for being a bit triggered. Sorry!

[bmanic]

But yeah, you go on lecturing me about what is the right way to use this thing. I don't know at all what I'm doing.. I never do.

Come on, man, you've been on the internet too long to not know that you don't flame the trolls and the ignoramuses! AA threads are some of the worst on KVR already and this is not helping!

You are absolutely correct! Though I do not think the person I responded to is a troll. I just think he/she/them may have been a bit misinformed and thought I dismissed the plugin too early.

Hopefully it's clear now that I don't do this just out of spite. I really do enjoy a lot of different Acustica Audio plugins and I did have high hopes for this one, as I usually do, but unfortunately this one just didn't suite me at all. Doesn't mean it's a bad plugin though! It's just not suitable for my sound aesthetic and due to it being so difficult to find the sweet spot of heavier saturation it didn't match the expectations I had for it. Thus the quick and decisive opinion of my short "review".

[Ou_Tis]

According to Acustica, the focus of Teal is on darker tubes: "One thing that was requested, especially with tube machines, was to have models that are a bit darker. For example, when we introduced the emulation of a tube in Mystic, some people complained that the product wasn’t dark enough. And that’s why we decided to develop a product dedicated to tubes, focusing on darker tube distortion and saturation, with a particularly rich color."

Ask yourself this:

Is it really smart trying to convince somebody that their own opinion, after testing the demo, is wrong and misinformed when you yourself are entirely basing this notion on a marketing blurb? Yes.. everything Giancarlo says can be considered marketing. He can't be objective (and I don't blame him.. it's his baby!).

Based on what you originally wrote, it was reasonable to think that by "boring" you might have been complaining that it's too dark for your taste. No offense intended. Thanks for elaborating on what you actually meant.

As my post made clear, I'm basing this not just on what the developer stated, but on the video.

If you think most of the examples from the video are making the original audio sound worse then we have very different aesthetic tastes. Personally I often prefer dark and bassy over bright; but given your reaction I'd guess that's not what you meant at all.

[audiorea]

Also tried it for about 10 minutes. Same AA jank as always.. useless metering, buggy controls and this time around quite boring sound which is hard to manage between gooey goodness and harsh overdriven uselessness. The sweetspot is difficult to find. The best sounds I could get out of this plugin was running it really clean and subtle but I have so many other plugins that do that task better (including some AA plugins).

Also there is no way to uninstall the demo from within Aquarius. So yeah, quite a disappointing release.

Is there a plugin for AA that you prefer?
I'm using the knowledge and presets that you provide to the forum very well.
So I'd like to try the AA plugins you recommend.
You keep saying negative things about AA, but seeing that you keep testing it, I think you have a AA plugin that you really like.

Someone might ask me to try it myself, but I think 20 new plugins will be released before test all the plugins.
I'm really interested in AA's products and I want to sort out a few and test them.
It's better if it's a plugin recommended by someone I trust.

I don't intend to be sarcastic and my English is not good, so there may be a misunderstanding in the word choice.

[bmanic]

Is there a plugin for AA that you prefer?

There are many that I really like the sound of a lot. Here is just a short list of the AA tools I use when needed.

ASH
Lemon (totally unique sounding delay. Very easy to sit within a mix, probably due to the smearing)
Mystic (unique sounding thing. Very hit and miss where and when it works though)
Sunray (absolutely adore this ones compressor as it's so good at softening things)
Tulip (again a very unique sounding compressor. GR meter is buggy as hell so ignore it and go with your ears! Also has a bunch of really good sounding and unique preamps).

In general, I do not use any AA plugins for heavy saturation as they just simply do not work correctly for that task (other than the clipping ones). They just don't sound "correct" in my opinion. I also do not use Acustica Audio plugins for basic tasks any more. They don't have the audio quality advantage over other companies any more.. so for mojo, compression, EQ and other basic mixing tasks I never use any AA plugins any more. I only use them when I am absolutely sure that it fits perfectly and is the only option. I don't even keep them installed most of the time (except ASH which is indeed my go-to clipper as it's proven to be quite reliable). This forces me to only use them when absolutely necessary and when I feel like a particular plugin could benefit the piece of music I'm working on currently.

You keep saying negative things about AA, but seeing that you keep testing it

It's the same thing since more than a decade going back. They put almost zero effort or emphasis on usability and making things feel like a solid, working, professional product. Compressors gain reduction metering is always all over the place and never seems to work reliably. Input/output metering, same problem and keeps varying from product to product. Basic controls are all over the place and there is very little consistency from one product to another. It's just all very scatter shot all over the place. In some plugins mouse behavior is completely different to another plugins mouse behavior. etc. etc. It's just all very inconsistent and not at all thought out.

It always feels like walking on egg shells when using AA plugins. Thus I tend to avoid using any whenever possible. But like I already said above, I do use them when I'm absolutely sure that the tool is right for the job. But I use them "like hardware".. I install the plugin, then open the plugin, set it to do what I want it to do and then I immediately hit render and remove the plugin (and usually uninstall it too).

Another issue I have with the company is the way they are sort of like a sampling company.. they've developed this awesome back-end technology and are just pumping out product after product, seemingly at least one every month (though lately it's been like 2 or 3 per month!!) which completely bloats their portfolio and thus makes it increasingly difficult to support the previous products. It just doesn't feel reliable to use their tools in actual paid work, the way I'd use more traditional plugins from well established companies.

This is why I always render any results as soon as I use a plugin from them and why I try avoiding using them in difficult mix places like busses or aux sends. I try to stick with the plugins on inserts while mixing and almost never use them during production/composition phase where things can still change.

It's better if it's a plugin recommended by someone I trust.

Keep in mind that ALL audio processing, be it software or hardware, is always a subjective thing. There is no "better" in art.. at least not in terms of audio fidelity. Which is why it's so important to learn what YOU yourself like and stick to it. Don't let your own opinion get disrupted by what other people think.

[audiorea]

Keep in mind that ALL audio processing, be it software or hardware, is always a subjective thing. There is no "better" in art.. at least not in terms of audio fidelity. Which is why it's so important to learn what YOU yourself like and stick to it. Don't let your own opinion get disrupted by what other people think.

Thank you so much for your detailed answer!
I agree with you. I just wanted to sort out categories or plug-ins because there are so many lists.
That was really helpful. Thank you. I'll keep your advice in mind, too.

[Zaphod (giancarlo)]

Is there a plugin for AA that you prefer?

There are many that I really like the sound of a lot. Here is just a short list of the AA tools I use when needed.

ASH
Lemon (totally unique sounding delay. Very easy to sit within a mix, probably due to the smearing)
Mystic (unique sounding thing. Very hit and miss where and when it works though)
Sunray (absolutely adore this ones compressor as it's so good at softening things)
Tulip (again a very unique sounding compressor. GR meter is buggy as hell so ignore it and go with your ears! Also has a bunch of really good sounding and unique preamps).

In general, I do not use any AA plugins for heavy saturation as they just simply do not work correctly for that task (other than the clipping ones). They just don't sound "correct" in my opinion. I also do not use Acustica Audio plugins for basic tasks any more. They don't have the audio quality advantage over other companies any more.. so for mojo, compression, EQ and other basic mixing tasks I never use any AA plugins any more. I only use them when I am absolutely sure that it fits perfectly and is the only option. I don't even keep them installed most of the time (except ASH which is indeed my go-to clipper as it's proven to be quite reliable). This forces me to only use them when absolutely necessary and when I feel like a particular plugin could benefit the piece of music I'm working on currently.

You keep saying negative things about AA, but seeing that you keep testing it

It's the same thing since more than a decade going back. They put almost zero effort or emphasis on usability and making things feel like a solid, working, professional product. Compressors gain reduction metering is always all over the place and never seems to work reliably. Input/output metering, same problem and keeps varying from product to product. Basic controls are all over the place and there is very little consistency from one product to another. It's just all very scatter shot all over the place. In some plugins mouse behavior is completely different to another plugins mouse behavior. etc. etc. It's just all very inconsistent and not at all thought out.

It always feels like walking on egg shells when using AA plugins. Thus I tend to avoid using any whenever possible. But like I already said above, I do use them when I'm absolutely sure that the tool is right for the job. But I use them "like hardware".. I install the plugin, then open the plugin, set it to do what I want it to do and then I immediately hit render and remove the plugin (and usually uninstall it too).

Another issue I have with the company is the way they are sort of like a sampling company.. they've developed this awesome back-end technology and are just pumping out product after product, seemingly at least one every month (though lately it's been like 2 or 3 per month!!) which completely bloats their portfolio and thus makes it increasingly difficult to support the previous products. It just doesn't feel reliable to use their tools in actual paid work, the way I'd use more traditional plugins from well established companies.

This is why I always render any results as soon as I use a plugin from them and why I try avoiding using them in difficult mix places like busses or aux sends. I try to stick with the plugins on inserts while mixing and almost never use them during production/composition phase where things can still change.

It's better if it's a plugin recommended by someone I trust.

Keep in mind that ALL audio processing, be it software or hardware, is always a subjective thing. There is no "better" in art.. at least not in terms of audio fidelity. Which is why it's so important to learn what YOU yourself like and stick to it. Don't let your own opinion get disrupted by what other people think.

Hi, Niklas, thanks for sharing your detailed feedback. It’s clear you have a strong perspective on our tools, and we respect that everyone has different experiences with any audio plugin. As you noted, audio preferences are highly subjective, and what works for one person might not for another.

Regarding the metering and usability concerns you’ve mentioned, I just wanted to clarify a few points. We’re continuously refining our workflow and development, and some of the aspects you mentioned, like consistency across products, are areas we’ve been putting substantial effort into. Our aim is to offer a smoother, more unified experience across the board. We’ve also integrated feedback from some of the top DSP developers globally, which has helped us address issues like the metering reliability and user experience you pointed out.

It’s great to hear you’re still finding certain products valuable, like ASH and Lemon, and we appreciate your patience as we work on these improvements.

[Zaphod (giancarlo)]

Giancarlo has become a joke. In one of his posts in that thread he repeatedly stated that Jam and Tiger among other Aquas were generic processors. I busted out laughing because I don't remember any of these product releases being touted as being generic. but of course he has to tell you he has something new and shiny and improved in order to keep you buying whatever aqua they're hawking this week, flailing madly to keep his unsustainable business model afloat

Look, there’s a straightforward and logical answer to this. When we create a generic product, it’s not that we don’t aim to match the original machine’s sound or functionality – it’s just not the primary focus. For example, with Tiger, designed as a general-purpose compressor, or with JAM, which handles overdrive and dynamic saturation, we’re focused more on versatility than on precise emulation. Some elements are simply incompatible with a generic framework because they require specific controls or detailed adjustments that wouldn’t work well in a general interface.

For instance, we might need specific controls to reproduce certain nuances accurately, so in those cases, the elements are either omitted or integrated in a user-friendly, adaptable way. This doesn’t mean the elements within Tiger or JAM don’t work well or aren’t faithful to the originals, but absolute fidelity isn’t always the aim in these broader-use products. For example, we offer a full Gold compressor suite as part of our Gold product. Tiger, however, includes a simplified version of Gold’s compression, based on generic time constants and optimized for versatile use. Its focus isn’t to replicate Gold’s compression down to the finest detail.

We explain these distinctions clearly with each product release. The same goes for something like Pumpkin, which centers on waveshaping but excludes preamplifiers. Its emphasis is user-controlled, and that’s clear in the interface and function. For more complex tube emulation, especially those with darker characteristics, we had to use specific implementations that JAM’s engine couldn’t fully accommodate. That’s essentially the reasoning.

[Zaphod (giancarlo)]

flailing madly to keep his unsustainable business model afloat

For years, people have doubted the sustainability of our model, yet every month we employ no fewer than 20 people. It might seem like we’re one of the few companies releasing a lot of products, but in reality, many others produce two or three products monthly. For instance, there’s a popular thread about a well-respected developer who’s recognized for being highly prolific. In our case, it gets attention simply because we were early in setting this trend. Looking around, many companies are now doing the same, whether through collaborations with external teams or in-house efforts.

Not every product under Acustica is solely developed by us. For example, behind our upcoming release, Teal, much of the sampling and sound-matching work was led by Stedal, whose expertise has been invaluable. Additionally, we’re about to launch a new product with contributions from a mathematician I consider among the finest in Europe. His work is now integrated into our framework, expanding our sampling-based system similarly to how some AI algorithms operate. Over the years, our products have evolved to combine Volterra Kernel processing, AI components, and DSP methods developed by external consultants for new challenges like pitch-shifting, which we had never tackled before (in our approach).

[Zaphod (giancarlo)]

Also there is no way to uninstall the demo from within Aquarius. So yeah, quite a disappointing release.

You’ve known our products and Aquarius for a long time, dating back to your time as a beta tester.. In any case, just to clarify, in Aquarius, go to the Updates page, select your product, and choose the uninstall option from the dropdown menu—just like with all our products. We also have an updated version of Aquarius coming soon that will make things even clearer…

[Dr.Gunjah]

For years, people have doubted the sustainability of our model, yet every month we employ no fewer than 20 people.

So you hire 20 people every month that create more and more plugins? What could possibly go wrong?

[billinder33]

Is there a plugin for AA that you prefer?

ASH

What is it about this plugin that you like more than other clippers? Do you use this in an instrument, buss, or mastering context?

Also, have you tried Indigo? That's the only one that's piqued my interest lately.

Funny you mentioned Lemon. Had ~10 Acustica plugins which, in the era before the machine gun spray of releases, was a sizable portion of their catalog. I basically abandoned them with the latest computer, but Lemon's the only one I ever considered reinstalling. Maybe if it had some siblings, which is why I'm curious about Ash and Indigo. I can live with some amount of Acustica's quirkiness (sluggish controls, shiat metering, bloat) in mastering since there are fewer things competing for my attention.

[trusampler]

Cool to hear you guys are making alot of progress, @ Acustica Audio ! Can you get some of those new employees to start working on a Lime 3 update ?

[kmonkey]

We’re continuously refining our workflow and development, and some of the aspects you mentioned, like consistency across products, are areas we’ve been putting substantial effort into.

I can guarantee and claim 100% factually that you are failing at it miserably. At this point, it is not even an opinion of mine. Don't believe me? Read on.

Our aim is to offer a smoother, more unified experience across the board.

So then explain to me

1. why are you not offering so-called FLAT interfaces in all your plugins as you do with some? Look at your Gearspace product threads. You randomly release products with two variances of interfaces. And then when you don't, people ask and beg you. Again look into any product release in any forum when you released a product without it. Sounds like a unified experience? Nope.

2. your download sizes that are mentioned in Aquarius are almost exclusively 100% incorrect on product release. Example (random) you say the product is 600MB and then I start downloading and it's 1100MB. Or even worse, your download meter goes to 100%, then resets and downloads something else.

3. You are deliberately still to this date misinforming people and using technical terms which is completely inaccurate in 100% of your product catalog and that is ZERO LATENCY. You refer to this term a lot yet none of your products that use your sampling tech have zero latency. Of course, you add a super tiny * mark at the bottom saying it is low latency. Sounds unified yes.

We’ve also integrated feedback from some of the top DSP developers globally, which has helped us address issues like the metering reliability

Yet after a decade of releases your metering is still wonky. As if I am looking at a needle moving 12 frames per second and jumping all over the place.