Looking for a multiband compressor with per-band saturation

[KTlin]

Hi

So I'm looking for a specific type of multiband compressor. I need one that has the following features (and that is preferably not very expensive):

- both downward and upward compression for each band that can be used simultaneously, meaning that for each band you can set a threshold/ratio/attack/release for the downward compression and a threshold/ratio/attack/release for the upward compression. As far as I know not many compressors have this feature and you have to choose between the downward and the upward compression (as is the case with FabFilter Pro-MB for example)
- a saturation/distortion stage for each band

At the moment I'm playing with SixthSample's Cramit plugin which is a very nice and free! three-band compressor (with both downward and upward compression for each band) and with a saturation/distortion stage (actually two, one before and one after the compressor). Unfortunately there are some limitations with this plugin: the saturation/distortion stage is not per band and the steepness of the crossover filter between bands cannot be modified.

Any suggestions?

[martiu]

Cramit PE, no saturation per band though

[WackyZoundz]

I would use a modular environment (plugin) and "built" my own multi-band compressor out of several plugins. That's the only way to get all the features I want (including custom filters for the crossover).

[martiu]

oh yeah, you can build the effect you want in the free Cardinal modular synth/fx plugin

[Vortifex]

I think Toneboosters MBC has what you seek but I'm not sure if the saturation is per band: https://www.toneboosters.com/tb_mbc_v1.html

[pekbro]

beat me to it, yea MBC...

[BackInCheck]

https://www.kvraudio.com/product/dynastia-by-outobugi

OTT-style multiband dynamics processor, but also has saturation per band.

[pekbro]

There are probably some nice spectral companders that could be used for this, not to mention one could just use a band splitter and whatever comp.

[xx JPRacer xx]

Like others said +1 for ToneBoosters MBC. If you want faster workflow but with less options check out Minimal Audio Fuse Compressor. If you want quick saturation for specific frequencies check out Spectre from Wavesfactory. Super quick workflow and result.

[KTlin]

I think Toneboosters MBC has what you seek but I'm not sure if the saturation is per band: https://www.toneboosters.com/tb_mbc_v1.html

Thanks! I forgot to mention that I already tried it, and yes, Toneboosters MBC ticks all the boxes, has a very nice UI and a very decent price. And the saturation is per band. Unfortunately, when I tried it I've noticed a weird behavior of the saturation algorithm. I'll have to write an email to Toneboosters about this issue (although the last time I wrote them an email about other issues I got no reply).

https://www.kvraudio.com/product/dynastia-by-outobugi
OTT-style multiband dynamics processor, but also has saturation per band.

Thanks! Never heard of this company before. I just checked their website and I really like the UI of their plugins, but for some reason most of the knobs don't have a text label. Weird. But I'll give them a try.

[onerob]

Melda MTurboComp. Wait for Black Friday or other occasional 50% discount.

I don't have it but demoed it for a while. It does it all (in edit mode). You can get upward compression by manually editing the transfer curve. It's ludicrously powerful but not a 'workflow' plugin.

[Held]

Kilohearts Multipass let's you do that very easily (and a lot more) https://kilohearts.com/products/multipass

[BackInCheck]

Thanks! Never heard of this company before. I just checked their website and I really like the UI of their plugins, but for some reason most of the knobs don't have a text label. Weird. But I'll give them a try.

They are relatively new, but the devloper has released a bunch of fantastic plugins for free within a few months. Check out Refire, if you are into "thick" drums.

All his current plugins include tooltips, so once you will hove the mouse over the sliders / knobs, it will tell you what they are doing. Very straightforward and the GUI is not cluttered with obsolete labels.

[martiu]

oh yeah, i forgot multipass, the other one is Unfiltered Audio Triad

[mixtur.se]

Waves studiorack https://www.waves.com/plugins/studiorack