Reverb is the new louder!

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You probably know the louder is better trick.
Some synths have presets that are louder than +-O dB - very annoying. Sylenth1 is one example I remember. But there are more.

Have you noticed that some devs try to attract their products attention by adding a ton of reverb (and quite often low quality reverb) to their presets?! I am sure you know what I am refering to!
Reverb is the new louder!

Triaz is another example with overdose of effects, annyoing! Could give more examples.

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Nothing new, that has always been the standard. Presets are just a demonstration of what that plugin or device can do, you're not supposed to actually use them right out of the box.

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Cherry Audio has the worst reverbs I've ever heard on synth plugins. They love to drench presets in it for some reason.

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Even though the D-50 is hardware, when it was released, the effects were big part of its impact back in the day. I didn't adjust it much back then, imo it sounded good at the time. These days, I disable the reverb in the plugin version as there are better options now.

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I don't mind if I can turn the FX off permanently (i.e. they don't turn on again when switching to another preset).

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No_Use wrote: Sun Apr 05, 2026 1:26 pm I don't mind if I can turn the FX off permanently (i.e. they don't turn on again when switching to another preset).
I do the same. I use a test template that features an interface which allows me to send program change messages combined with switching the effects off immediately. Included effects are useless anyway, they are never as good as anything that can be added later on.

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Zeisner wrote: Sun Apr 05, 2026 8:33 am Nothing new, that has always been the standard. Presets are just a demonstration of what that plugin or device can do, you're not supposed to actually use them right out of the box.
This is so wrong. Processors from Lexicon, Eventide, and other high-end manufacturers were valued specifically for their presets. Most engineers had only a handful of presets they used from each box, and nothing else. It was even common for them to have units in their studios that were permanently set to just a single preset.

The last thing an engineer or their paying clients wanted to do was burn expensive studio time menu-diving and incrementing parameters in the tiny LCD displays, one screen at a time. These boxes were cumbersome and tedious to edit, but that was OK because few owners did. Eventide and Lexicon invested a lot in expertly crafted factory presets, and that was a big part of why they were so expensive. These units were known for particular famous presets, and scrolling through the preset menu was all most owners were willing or able to do. This is why the presets mattered so much.
THIS MUSIC HAS BEEN MIXED TO BE PLAYED LOUD SO TURN IT UP

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Last edited by havran on Tue Apr 07, 2026 8:15 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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If a dev releases a plugin with lots of bad presets, it tells me that the dev doesn't know his own plugin.
There are plugins that inspire to create own sounds, but first and foremost I want good presets, not 1000 presets necessarily, rather 200 good ones.
If you make an emu, well, I didn't like the reverb of Swayed at all first, but it seems to be a part of its authentic sound, not sure whether it would have been better to add the option of a better reverb.
DX7 was used as a preset machine successfully.
Rarely I am in the mood to create my own presets, I prefer a fast workflow and a fast workflow needs good presets.

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DCrown wrote: Mon Apr 06, 2026 2:32 pm If a dev releases a plugin with lots of bad presets, it tells me that the dev doesn't know his own plugin.
There are plugins that inspire to create own sounds, but first and foremost I want good presets, not 1000 presets necessarily, rather 200 good ones.
This.
I once read a story from somebody who repaired synths that 70% of all the Prophet 5 that came in for repair still had all the factory presets intact.
ABX is enemy to GAS

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