Stillwell Audio update: new site, updated plugins, Fe26 release

[sstillwell]

https://streamable.com/2vl3oq

The 1973 works like it should but the HPF knob is gone when it is set to 300Hz. Sonically the HPF works fine.

Whoa…what the heck? Checking…

[sstillwell]

https://streamable.com/2vl3oq

The 1973 works like it should but the HPF knob is gone when it is set to 300Hz. Sonically the HPF works fine.

Okay, what DAW/host, what plugin format, what operating system? I've tried with VST3 on REAPER and Live 11 on macOS Tahoe - it works fine. I can obviously see it's NOT working fine for you, so I want to try to track it down, but I need to be able to reproduce it to fix it effectively.

If I could make a Hail Mary suggestion...purge the cache on your browser, download a fresh copy, and reinstall from that copy. It's slightly possible that you got a corrupted download.

[sstillwell]

This looks like it may be machine/video card specific...do please confirm your OS, plugin format, and DAW host/version.

[Songwriter101]

Hey,

yeah, maybe it's only on my side.

Windows 11 Pro (latest updates)
Nvidia GTX 1080
Cubase 15 Pro latest version
VST3 version

Got the same missing knob on Reaper 7.69 after clearing all my Cache, browser history and downloading it again.

Let's wait for the feedback of other members

[bmanic]

Just gave this a spin for a few minutes and I have to say, this is definitely one of the better transformer emulations out there. It reminds me of the way IK Multimedia did their Iron and Steel emulations.. that is, you can not really over drive them into any kind of heavy saturation at all.. the signal just sort of gets "fuller" and slightly softer.. more pillowy.

Yeah, this one is going to be hard to resist as I just love subtle saturation. I do however think a lot of people will be passing this by simply because they will not be able to hear it's effect immediately. That would be a mistake. This is one of those plugins you need to insert on 20+ tracks, then bypass it and note the differences. It'll also have quite a profound difference depending on where in the chain you'll have this.. at the start or at the end, or both!

I mean the plugin description on the website says "Obvious when you push it" but that's not really the case.. I pushed it's Drive to 100%, 24dB of input gain and an additional 40dB of input past 0dBFS on a full mix and it barely did anything. So yeah, don't expect to be shaving off peaks or saturating snares with this thing.

.. so in that regard it works exactly like the IK Multimedia transformer. You can even decrease the harmonics by pushing past a certain point.

[sstillwell]

Just gave this a spin for a few minutes and I have to say, this is definitely one of the better transformer emulations out there. It reminds me of the way IK Multimedia did their Iron and Steel emulations.. that is, you can not really over drive them into any kind of heavy saturation at all.. the signal just sort of gets "fuller" and slightly softer.. more pillowy.

Yeah, this one is going to be hard to resist as I just love subtle saturation. I do however think a lot of people will be passing this by simply because they will not be able to hear it's effect immediately. That would be a mistake. This is one of those plugins you need to insert on 20+ tracks, then bypass it and note the differences. It'll also have quite a profound difference depending on where in the chain you'll have this.. at the start or at the end, or both!

I mean the plugin description on the website says "Obvious when you push it" but that's not really the case.. I pushed it's Drive to 100%, 24dB of input gain and an additional 40dB of input past 0dBFS on a full mix and it barely did anything. So yeah, don't expect to be shaving off peaks or saturating snares with this thing.

.. so in that regard it works exactly like the IK Multimedia transformer. You can even decrease the harmonics by pushing past a certain point.

Great feedback—that’s a really good read of what it’s doing.

I was aiming more at transformer behavior like you’d see in something like a 1073 path (not a direct model), where it takes quite a bit before you get into anything that resembles obvious distortion.

The “push it” wording on the site is probably a bit misleading—it’s less about turning into saturation and more about the effect becoming more apparent in context as levels build.

Using it across multiple tracks and then bypassing is exactly the use case. If it’s too obvious on a single instance, it tends to turn into mud pretty quickly across a mix.

Thanks for being first out of the gate with some honest feedback.

EDIT: I updated the website based on this feedback. The tagline/subtitle is now "Subtle per track. Unmistakable across a mix.", which I think you'll agree is more representative, and alludes more to the intended use case.

[solvni_music]

every VST2 plugins registered , i try to move licence file to VST3 folder , but it dont work.

[DrGonzo]

Congrats!

Will OLGA and Oligarc also get a high res GUI? Really sorely needed these days...


Thanks!

Absolutely. Everything's getting brought up to date...I only have five left to go!

And more new plugins...man, it feels GOOD to do new plugins.

Welcome back. I missed you.

[sstillwell]

every VST2 plugins registered , i try to move licence file to VST3 folder , but it dont work.

Ah...hold it. Do you have REAPER-only licenses? If so, go to our support knowledgebase https://support.stillwellaudio.com/kb/index.php and specifically to the article about "are there any newer versions than are on the website" - https://support.stillwellaudio.com/kb/faq.php?id=15

There's a known behavior with those version 3.x plugins where if you have a REAPER-only license and are using VST3 on REAPER...the host doesn't identify itself in time during the plugin load. We developed that VST3 support before REAPER actually had VST3. We had to patch around it, and they never became full releases on the website. Try the installers there and see if they fix the issue.

[thebutler]

I've reproduced the error in Live with 1973. I'm working on it now. It seems to be specific to Live, specific to VST3 only. It doesn't do the same thing in Pro Tools (AAX) or REAPER (VST3).

Thanks for the reports!

Well, I don't know which error you've seen in Live; my issue was with 1973 under Cubase Pro 15.0.10 (VST3) - do you think it's the same.? (someone else - Songwriter101 - also confirmed it there...).

[solvni_music]

every VST2 plugins registered , i try to move licence file to VST3 folder , but it dont work.

Ah...hold it. Do you have REAPER-only licenses? If so, go to our support knowledgebase https://support.stillwellaudio.com/kb/index.php and specifically to the article about "are there any newer versions than are on the website" - https://support.stillwellaudio.com/kb/faq.php?id=15

There's a known behavior with those version 3.x plugins where if you have a REAPER-only license and are using VST3 on REAPER...the host doesn't identify itself in time during the plugin load. We developed that VST3 support before REAPER actually had VST3. We had to patch around it, and they never became full releases on the website. Try the installers there and see if they fix the issue.

Yes it is reaper licence for all

[sstillwell]

I've reproduced the error in Live with 1973. I'm working on it now. It seems to be specific to Live, specific to VST3 only. It doesn't do the same thing in Pro Tools (AAX) or REAPER (VST3).

Thanks for the reports!

Well, I don't know which error you've seen in Live; my issue was with 1973 under Cubase Pro 15.0.10 (VST3) - do you think it's the same.? (someone else - Songwriter101 - also confirmed it there...).

Every known issue was patched - there were two primary issues. One applied to 1973 only in Live, the other to 1973 and Vibe EQ and I don't think it was specific to any particular host. I'm not sure I was replying to you specifically in the message above, but if I accidentally did, sorry for confusion. Try the latest build - it should fix your issue.

[bmanic]

Absolutely, good description. Personally I think FE26 is pretty obvious (especially on lower frequencies) but I just know from experience that it's sometimes difficult when developing an algorithm to remember that not everybody is attuned to the minute details that you, the developer hears, as you've been working on it for who knows how many hours!

I was struggling with this very concept when developing one of the saturation algorithms for FabFilter Pro-C3. I kept keeping it too subtle and wouldn't let it go into silly territory. Heck, it's still probably way too subtle.

But yeah, very nice plugin you've done here and I'm definitely going to purchase it when I figure out how to work your webshop. I guess it's a bit oldschool in that I actually can't use Paypal? Right?

Unrelated question: Any idea if Psycho Dither will ever get updated? Does Schwa have any time for the plugins any more? It's a quite unique sounding dither in my opinion and still doesn't have anything quite like it (see? I LOVE subtle stuff! ).

[sstillwell]

But yeah, very nice plugin you've done here and I'm definitely going to purchase it when I figure out how to work your webshop. I guess it's a bit oldschool in that I actually can't use Paypal? Right?

Unrelated question: Any idea if Psycho Dither will ever get updated? Does Schwa have any time for the plugins any more? It's a quite unique sounding dither in my opinion and still doesn't have anything quite like it (see? I LOVE subtle stuff! ).

Let me check - Stripe supports a bunch of payment mechanisms...if it supports PayPal and isn't turned on yet I can absolutely do that.

Psycho Dither is already updated and available. It took major code archaeology to resurrect that one...the deliverable that I got from Schwa when he went to Cockos was incomplete...not his fault, but still took me until now to get my head properly wrapped around the math so that I could confidently say that the new version matches the intent and effect of the original 32-bit-only, VST2-only, Windows-only version. You have NO idea how pleased I am to get that back into the mix...it really is a superb plugin for that very specific task.

Note: If you already have a license for Psycho Dither, reach out via support ticket so I can get you an updated license...the one thing that I don't think works properly is decryption of existing legacy licenses (see earlier about "incomplete" deliverable). I can and will absolutely regenerate new licenses for any existing customers, though.

[sstillwell]

Unfortunately it looks like PayPal is not supported via Stripe. I've enabled as many extra methods as I can readily do, so if you want to try again, maybe you can find a method that works for you. If all else fails, reach out via support ticket...I'll find a way.