Presence

The best thing about Presence is that it's simple. You can insert this, twist a couple knobs and make your source sound better right away. I find this particularly useful for dead-sounding mixes, but can be just the thing for drums, acoustics, vocals and the typical targets that benefit from exciters.

The GUI is pretty straightforward: Low & High gain, input/output gain and a very-welcome low-cut filter (this is great because you can augment the lows with the exciter, but roll off unwanted subs with the filter). A unique feature is the "Tilt" dial, which can be used to shift the whole spectrum to more highs or more lows. I find you can really dial in a nice, professional high end on a master with this. I'm not sure if this is just a simple "tilt EQ", but usually things are more dynamic with SKnote's stuff. At any rate, it does not sound harsh, even on significant boosts!

I do have to take some points of the GUI for a reason that plagues most of SKNote's "grey" line: the grey-on-black text is very hard to read, and I just have to wonder why he doesn't punch of the whiteness a few notches. Overall, I love the GUI, but I just cannot read the font on my smaller monitor.

I like to follow up Presence with SKnote's Roundtone tape emulation plug-in. This can help soften any harsh tones from the boosts in the exciter, for a more natural sound.

All in all, it's hard not to recommend this plugin! I would say it doesn't quite clear up the midrange elements like a BBE or Aphex, but is one of the best I've heard for high and low end. Another interesting and appealing release from SKNote, again featuring his unique approach to plug-in design, at a very low price.