HoRNet Valvola

Tried this one on drums and got some interesting results, but only with high Gain settings. The Tube overdrive is relatively fast sounding unnatural in the higher settings, but with subtle coloration and the additional Gain it brings some glue on the Drumbus. I experimented a little and was surprised as I realized that a Transformer like Transature from Analog Obsessions is bringing the sound extremely forward when it is positioned after Valvola in the signal chain. The coloration of the Valvola brings a gritty and rough restless sound to the ears and with added Transformer the unwanted distortion and dissonances disappear and bring some pretty good shine. Although the set-up of the Valvola is a little difficult it seems to be a better take on the tube-preamp sound. Phoenix from Shattered Glass Audio has more controls and EQ, but both plugins are very individual and the result is different with the similarity that both sound good.

Its good plugin. Emulation might not be perfect replica of tube, but there is definitely musical use for that. You can choose from 7 tubes and can do negative effect as well and this is good for cleaning signal. There is output gain setting, no wet/dry mix.

It can saturate signal and can give it buzzing over drive sound. With right setup it will do just a bit every now and then and its better then overused vinyl emulation.

The tube simulations basically sound good, but the output level is extremely low if not to say, much too low.

Next problem I have, the sonic results, you get from tubes, depend - apart from a lot of other factors- very much on different values of resistors and capacitors on anode, cathode and grid, what I hear here, basically is a very clean setting, without any - for guitar or bass - usable saturation or overdrive.

If I eg. stack two 12AX7 and a 6L6 or EL34, the result with saturation levels at 90-100% still sounds much cleaner and has a much too low output level than eg. a simple Tweed Champ circuit with only one 12AX7 and a 6V6 (or even 6L6), so these simulations do not at all behave and react like tubes in a typical tube amp circuit, rather like tubes in an old radio or another audio circuit.

Constant level control is - in my opinion - not only a useless feature, if it comes to tubes, it also affects the results in a very negative way, as it makes it impossible that cascading tubes can react like a real tube circuit, as an essential part of a good tube amp sound is the fact that the different stages overdrive in a controlled way the following ones. If they cannot, as the level is always automatically reduced before, you do not get any authentic tube overdrive, what is exactly, what's happening here. Then it also is no authentic simulation but just some fantasy programming without any connection to the physical reality of real tube gear.

I also do not see the sense of negative saturation, if positive saturation finally only results in (too) clean sounds.

I also tried to add the plugin after an already good tube amp simulation, but the results did not improve much, all I heard was a much lower output level but no real sonic improvements.

Good idea, but not a very convincing realisation. As it is, rather a toy but a usable plugin, at least for me, sorry.

this is really one of the best tube emulations, and the best free emulation, I really liked the saturation of the EL84, but i think i could add a gain control, some valves have low volume like the 6l6cg, and i wish i could make this adjustment in the plugin, and also the option to make the frequency response more linear.