D16 Group Announces Sigmund Multi Delay Effect

Hot on the heels of their excellent LuSH-101 synth, D16 Group has announced Sigmund, a high quality, full-featured delay effect.    Sigmund is based around 4 individual delay lines, each of which can be independently processed with feedback, multi-mode filter, overdrive, and amplitude modulator allowing for creative effects that reach beyond standard delay effects.

Sigmund is set to be released in mid-September.  Pricing is TBA.

HoRNet Releases Trackshaper Plug-in

HoRNet has released a new plug-in called Trackshaper for OS X and Window.  Trackshaper is described as a "mix on autopilot" tool that uses algorithms designed for different types of audio tracks (ie bass, kick drum, synthesizer, etc.) to quickly and automatically applies source-appropriate compression and EQ settings with a single, user-set "effect amount" knob to dynamically adjust how much compression and EQ is applied.  Trackshaper sells for €14.99, is 64-bit compatible, and comes in both VST and AU flavors.

Reveal Sound Releases Spire Softsynth

It's always exciting to hear from a new synth developer.  Reveal Sound started in 2009 and have now unleashed their first product, a software synth for Mac and Windows called Spire, which they describe as a "polyphonic synthesizer that combines powerful sound engine modulation and flexible architecture (with) a graphic interface (that) provides unparalleled usability."  

Spire retails for €69.

Review: PSP SpringBox

Product: SpringBox spring reverb emulator
Developer: PSP Audioware
Formats: Windows (VST, AAX, and RTAS), Mac (VST, AAX, RTAS, AU) - both 64-bit compatible
Price: $69
Demo: available on the product page 

PSP Audioware has long had a reputation for excellent, vintage-sounding plug-ins, and so far they show no sign of slowing down.  Today we're going to take a look at their latest release, a spring reverb plug-in called PSP SpringBox.

WHAT IS IT?
Back in the days before digital reverbs and high-end plug-ins, reverberation was still an important part of production, it was just produced in a more primitive way.  Back in those days, reverb was generally produced by amplifying an object that is vibrating from the music signal sent to it.  One method used a large, flat metal plate as the resonating body.  These were known as plate reverbs, and you undoubtedly have run into plate reverb presets on your favorite reverb plug in.  The sound of plate reverbs is generally quite smooth, and it became a favorite to use on vocals and percussion in particular.  The other main reverb of this type was the spring reverb.  In this case, instead of an amplified plate, a reverberating spring is used.  This results in a very distinctive "sproingy" reverb that has metallic and liquid qualities at the same time.  Spring reverbs were very popular in early electronic music as well as the Jamaican dub and Surf Rock movements.  Later on bands like Joy Division and Portishead would make spring reverbs an identifiable part of their sound.

PSP SpringBox, then, is an emulation of a spring reverb in plug-in form with a variety of features to aid you in sculpting the tone and timbre of the reverb.

INSTALLATION
Installation of PSP SpringBox is a two part process.  First, you run the plug-in installer, and once you've done that, you run the separate authorizer and you're good to go.  Helpfully, PSP also include de-installers.

DOCUMENTATION
Currently, there doesn't appear to be documentation for PSP SpringBox, but it's not an overly-complex plug-in, so it shouldn't be difficult for all but the noobiest of noobs to figure out.  I expect documentation is in process. [CORRECTION: Documentation is indeed included, it just wasn't where I expected it to be.  Full documentation is obtainable by pressing the '?' button on the interface.  I apologize for this oversight.]

INTERFACE
PSP SpringBox has a nicely-rendered interface that replicates the look of a two-rack unit with a brushed aluminum faceplate, and nice, shiny, black knobs (pause as all the people in Britain giggle).

Each instance of PSP SpringBox is actually made up of two different settings, an "A" and a "B" setting.  Only one may be active at a time, but it allows you to automate or switch between settings quickly in a live performance (for instance, if you wanted to switch between a short and long setting for accents in the mix).  Each of these features controls for the High Pass Filter. Presence, Damping, Time, and level Trim.  All of these settings do pretty much what you would expect from the name and give you a variety of options for shaping the tone of the reverb.

To the right of these two settings,  is a selector that allows you to use different amounts of virtual springs to create the reverb.  You can choose between two, three, four, and six spring configurations.  Low values tend to be sparser, more metallic, and "sproingier", while higher values sound more liquid and diffuse.

Below this, you'll find a bypass switch that allows you to turn the effect on and off - again, quite helpful for automation and live performance.

On the rightmost portion of the interface, you'll find global Wet and Dry levels, Diffusion (allowing rough sounding reverbs all the way to smoother ones), Spread (which allows widening of the stereo image), and Pan/Balance (which places the reverb to a specific place in the stereo image).

CPU USAGE
As you would expect from a high quality plug-in, CPU usage isn't negligible, but nor is it horrific.  Two quality modes (Low CPU and Brilliant) are available if CPU use becomes a concern.  On my 2.66 Quadcore MacPro, Low CPU mode ate up about an 1/8th of my processor load.  In Brilliant Mode, that went up to about a quarter.  Since this is the type of effect that is shared among many tracks via sends, this shouldn't cause problems for most people.

SO HOW DOES IT SOUND?
If you've used PSP's plug-ins before, it probably won't surprise you to know this sounds fantastic.  The various tone-scupting parameters are helpful in providing a surprisingly wide range of sounds.  Super lo-fi retro effects sound authentic and vintage, higher diffusion and spring count settings can provide smoother sounds that still ooze character, and even decent room and ambience sounds can be dialed in without much trouble.

THE VERDICT
A spring reverb is one of those things that I think everyone should have in their sonic toolbox.  Even if it's not the most cutting edge, surround-sound, convolution reverb, spring reverbs just offer so much character and near-instant retro credibility to a sound. It's not right for everything, but man, when it's right, it's really right.   Whether you're looking to dub out your drum kit, add some splashy surfrock shimmer to your guitar solo, or give your vocal track an authentic vintage vibe, you can dial it in to PSP SpringBox.  At $69. I think PSP SpringBox is well worth checking out if you're looking to add a spring reverb to your arsenal.  I can't wait to see what PSP does next!  [10/10]

kiloHearts Releases Disperser

Plug-in developers kiloHearts have released "Disperser", a "phase rotator" effect.  What does that mean?  I'll let them shed some light on that:

"Have you ever wanted to rotate the phases of your signal to create frequency sweeps? Funny, neither had we, but then we tried it and were blown away! Disperser smears high energy transients through space and time without modifying the gain of the sound. 

The result is a different take on transient shaping or, when used at extreme settings, an effect capable of shaping the sounds in ways you didn’t know you wanted to do. Boomy kicks, snappy hihats, synthetic wet basses or just a sweet utility to shape your signal's peaks and crest factor. The choice is yours! 

Disperser is available as VST and AudioUnit plugins which work in all popular digital audio workstations like Cubase, Sonar, Logic Pro, Garageband, Ableton Live, FL Studio, Reaper, Studio One and many others. Both 32 bit and 64 bit versions are available on MacOS X and Windows operating systems."

Disperser retails for $19 and a fully-functional demo is available on the product page.

FutureMusic Look at u-he Satin @ Musikmesse

I've always been a fan of tape emulators and this one looks quite interesting, indeed.

Illformed Releases Glitch 2, Now With Mac & Linux Versions

I forgot to mention this one the other day, so file this under "better later than never".  Illformed/dblue  released the original Glitch as a free plug-in for Windows back in 2005.  Since then, it's become a favorite among producers looking to add some rhythmic interest to whenever they need to FSU, as it were.  Now, nearly 8 years later, Glitch is back with a more refined, slicker interface, and for the first time ever Mac and Linux support.  Glitch 2 retails for $59 and a demo version is also available.

Sequencer

• Each program consists of 128 scenes that can be triggered via MIDI notes. Each scene has its own unique sequencer pattern, timing, and effect settings, allowing you to create tons of unique variations for every moment in your song, all ready to go at the press of a key!
• Multi-lane sequencer allows many effects to be played simultaneously, to create interesting layered sounds.
• Improved sequencer timing controls to better match your groove and song structure.
• Intuitive pattern editor with drag'n'drop. Draw, erase, resize, split and join blocks with ease.

Effects

• 9 cheeky little effect modules designed to slice, dice, chop, screw, twist, turn and mangle your sounds into radical new forms.
• Tempo-synced effects can easily be dialled in to precise musical timings such as 16th notes, 8th note triplets, and so on.
• Filter, mix, pan and volume controls on each module, to help shape and fine-tune the output.

Randomize, Mutate, Glitch!

• Randomize and Mutate functions can be found at almost every level. Mutate a single effect to get slightly different parameter variations, or instantly Randomize everything in the entire scene to create unexpected, chaotic and inspiring results!
  
  
  
  
  
  

SKnote Releases Rev250 Digital Reverb

Italian developers SKnote have released Rev250, a reverb plug-in modeled after the world's first digital reverb.  Rev250 models every stage of the signal path and includes features for downsampling, a chorus, a phaser, a delay, and much more.  Rev250 is available for both Mac(VST/AU) and PC (VST) with an RTAS version apparently on the way.  It retails for $29.99.

XILS-Labs Releases LaMasque Delay 1.5

XILS-Labs has released what they call a "major revision" of their LaMasque Delay plug-in.  LaMasque will also be on sale until February 20th for 20% off at only $58.  Here's the details:

•  FREEZE/DUB button: When this function is engaged, it will read the "loop" of the delay until you disengage it. The one and only solution for huge DubDelays. It can also be used to generate all sorts of interesting loops and textures, and allows you to keep playing and improvising over the loop, in Live or improvisation situations
• LOCK DRY/WET LEVEL Button: You can now browse all presets while preserving the Dry/Wet level ratio you have set. This feature is very handy to experiment with the 120+ presets currently available in the factory libary.
• 16 Masks instead of 8: Like in our Oxium synthesizer, you can now benefit of a larger number of Masks, or grid zones. More possibilitites that are especially usefull combined with the new multiSelect and MultiEdit features of the Masks.
• MultiMasks selections: The only way to approach real complex grooves, or to edit in a fast and intuitive way. You can now select several Masks with a combination of different techniques, and move their locations, or change all their locators with a single mouse drag. Three fast buttons to select ALL MASKS, ODD MASKS, or EVEN MASKS. Or the combination CTRL + CLICK to select continuous or discontinuous Masks. MouseOver of a mask will now select it automatically. Background color and shape changes will reflect the status of each Mask ( Selected, Unselected )
•  Display of the incoming audio signal inside the Grid Area: Everybody will love this feature, that will drastically improve workflow, speed of use, and represent a giant step in the global ease of use of Masks based instruments. It's so cute you could spend hours just playing and watching it. Its not only cosmetics, it will greatly help you positionning the Masks exactly where you need them while you play a part.
• Revamped management of the Masks locators: When you approach the right locator of a mask with the mouse, it will gradually turn Red, : you can then safely move it ( Green is the color for the right locator). In the V1 version you could move a mask by accident while wanting to only change its length, the V1.5 behaviour completely removes this possible confusion.
•  New Level Toggle for the Masks Level Parameter: When this button is on, the delay signal will only be heard if the incoming level is over the Mask Level. It therefore acts like a treshold parameter, and its a great tool for playing and experimenting Live, or to find quickly the best Masks configuration while moving them on the grid..
• New Zoom Function: Zoom x4 the grid area for accurate editing of the position and lenght of the masks.
• New Presets & video tutorials (see below): around 50 new presets have been added to get you started. The focus have been put to add usefull presets like Slap Back Delays, PingPong Delays, Resonators, Pseudo Spring Reverb delays, et etc. The number of presets in the factory library is now over 120
• Installers: You can now choose the format you want to be installed on your system (VST, RTAS, AU)

Fixed bugs

• Windows: With certain combinations of Daws/Systems, the GUI could become sluggish. Now fixed
• Windows 7 RTAS: now installing fine.
• RTAS version: now alaways in perfect sync with all Protools versions (also decimal tempo is now working )"

PSP Releases Pianoverb 2

Developers PSP have announced the release of PianoVerb2, the follow-up to their highly-regarded freeware Pianoverb.  PianoVerb2 is a "resonant reverb" that uses multiple resonant filters to simulate the behavior of piano strings.  This allows everything from run-of-the-mill reverbs to unusual resonator-type effects.  The new version offers a modulation section, a high pass filter for tone-shaping, independent dry and wet controls, and more.  PianoVerb2's will regularly retail for $49, but for a limited time, you can save 20% and get it for only $39.

Eventide Releases H3000 Ultra Harmonizer Plug-in

There are certain pieces of gear that are so venerated that they are spoken of with a sense of near-holiness.  Eventide's H3000 Harmonizer was one of those pieces of hardware.  Now, excitingly, Eventide has translated several of the algorithms from that unit into plug-in form.  The H3000 Factory combines pitch-shifting, filtering, modulation, and delay type effects in a modular interface that allows the different effects blocks to be combined in virtually limitless ways.  The introductory price is $199, with the regular price coming in at a steep $349.  Certainly a fraction of the price of the real thing, but possibly a bit excessive.  The plug-in is available in AAX, VST, and AU formats in both PC and Mac formats.

Review: PSP Echo

Product: Echo  Delay Plug-in
Developer: PSP Audioware
Format: PC (VST, RTAS, and AAX) and Mac (AU, VST, RTAS, and AAX)
Demo: Available on product page.
Price: $99 (introductory offer until September 17th, only $79)

PSP Audioware are no strangers to delay plug-ins, having previously released Lexicon PSP 42, PSP 85, and the PSP 608 Multi-delay, but until now they hadn't taken a swing at creating a tape delay.  That all changes with the newest member of the PSP family, the simply-named Echo.

WHAT IS IT?
PSP Echo is a feature-laden emulation of a tape echo unit.  If you're not familiar with this type of effect, back in the days before digital delays, echo effects were achieved with a unit that basically contained a specially modified tape recorder.  A record head would record the incoming signal to tape and an adjustable playhead would then play the signal back slightly later depending on the settings.  What made it special was that you could set it up so each successive delay either brightened or darkened in tone, which, with high feedback settings, could create some wonderfully degrading sounds.  This very warm, distinctive type of echo eventually became a hallmark of dub music.

INSTALLATION
Installation is simple as can be and authorization is performed by via use of an automatic authorization program downloaded from the PSP website.

DOCUMENTATION
Documentation consists of a 14-page illustrated PDF file.  It does a good job of explaining the function of each of the controls in a concise manner.  It does assume some degree of familiarity with how a delay works, but that's the sort of thing easily discoverable through some experimentation.  It's more fun that way, too.

INTERFACE
Like all of PSP's plug-ins, Echo mimics the look of vintage hardware, right down to the wood panels.  Controls are laid out in an easy-to-read and logic manner, making tweaking easy and fun.

The top line of controls consists of settings for the virtual "tape" that creates the delays including "wow" frequency and depth to imitate the warping experienced on old machines with inconsistent tape speed.  You can even set the IPS (inches per second) that controls the quality of the sound recorded to tape.  Slower speeds result in a darker, less hi-fi sound, with high speeds providing the opposite.  There is also an input knob that lets you trim the input levels of the signal, and settings that allow you to manually set delay times or have them automatically sync to your hosts tempo.  You'll also find the Ping Pong knob which allows you to control the amount of stereo ping-pong in the delays from quite wide to mono.

On the very right side of the top row is the Ducker button.  Depressing this switches views from the tape settings to the settings for the built-in ducker.  This is useful for preventing the echos from clashing with the original input sound and is a nice luxury not usually found on these types of effects.  You'll find settings for the Threshold (the level at which the ducker kicks in), Range (amount of signal attenuation), Open (how long it takes the ducker to open), and Close (bet you can guess what that does).

The center panel consists of all the controls for the timing of your echoes.  As mentioned previously, these can automatically sync to note divisions of your DAW's host tempo, or can be set manually in milliseconds like we did in the bad old days.  As a third option, there is a Tap Tempo control to allow you to manually tap in the tempo you'd like the delays to occur in.  Finally, if your delays get a bit out of control due to high feedback settings, there is a panic button that will stop the effect.

On either side of the center panel are identical sets of controls for both the left and right channels.  These include knobs for Drive (adds a tape-like saturation to the delayed sound), highpass, lowpass, and combined filters for altering the tonal content of each successive echo, Feedback (the number of echos), and FB-Pan, which allows you to set the pan for the delayed signal.

Finally, at the bottom is the Output section.  Here you'll find settings for Linking channels (so both left and right channels have the same settings), Spread (controls the stereo spread of the dry signal), Dry Balance (balance between the left and right channels), and your standard Wet/Dry controls.

THE VERDICT
Echo is one of those plug-ins that clearly had a lot of thought put into it.  Sure, it does what you expect it to, but they throw in nice extras like the ducker or the tape speed selector that take it a step beyond.  It's easy enough to use for beginners, but there is plenty to be tweaked under the hood for more experienced users, so it's a plug-in that will grow with the user.

Soundwise, the quality is every bit as excellent as you would expect from PSP's rather sterling reputation.  The tape effects sound extremely convincing and exhibit all the artifacts of the real deal as you change settings on the fly.  In terms of flexibility, you can achieve just about any kind of delay effect you might need from short, rockabilly slapbacks for vocals and guitar, to trippy, evolving dub echoes.  The tape wow emulation also sounds great on pads and sustained sounds for making them sound like they're coming from a piece of gear on its last legs.

For many years, my tape echo plug-in of choice was the excellent one built in to Logic.  I think that all may change, though, now that Echo is on the scene.  [10/10]

PSP Audioware Releases Echo

PSP Audioware has released Echo, a new high quality tape-echo plug-in available in AU, VST, RTAS, and AAX formats for both Mac and PC.  Until September 6th, you can pick up Echo for $69 as opposed to the usual $99 price.  Buy it before September 17th for just $79.

Review: KiloHearts Faturator

Product: Fatuator
Developer: KiloHearts
Format: PC (VST) and Mac (VST and AU)
Demo: Audio and downloadable version on product page.
Price: $19

Hot on the heels of their One synth, new developers KiloHearts are back with their first effect plug-in: Faturator.  Let's have a look!

WHAT IS IT?
Faturator is a distortion plug-in aimed at providing everything from slight drive and color to bone-crunching distortion.

INSTALLATION
Installation is performed simply by dragging the plug-in to the relevant plug-in folder.  As it is, this will run in the demo mode.  To authorize, you simply enter the serial number you're e-mailed upon purchasing it.

INTERFACE
The interface for Faturator brings to mind the Fairlight CMI or Apple II computer with its tan frame and green "computer" screen.  As you can see, it's quite simple.  You have meters for your input and output levels, sliders for Drive, Fuzz, Color, and Mix levels, and a "Stereo Turbo" dial that provides stereo widening for even bigger sounds.

IN USE
For a plug-in with relatively few controls, it's surprising how flexible the sound of Faturator is.  By varying the levels of the different parameters, you can be subtle and just warm up your sounds slightly or completely tear them apart.  The sound of Faturator is a bit more 'digital' to my ears than some of the other similar plug-ins on the market, which makes it especially appropriate for newer styles like dirty electro and dubstep.

As for what it'll work on... well, damn near anything with the right settings.  It's great on drums, can add some nice, gritty dirt to synths, and even works great for edgy vocals. One nice feature of Faturator is that it's designed to preserve the dynamics of whatever you feed into instead of just bricking everything.  Not sure how they achieve this, although if I had to guess, it probably uses some form of parallel distortion, much like you would use parallel compression.

THE VERDICT
Let's face it - there's no shortage of distortion effects out there.  But Faturator separates itself from others in a number of ways.  As mentioned, the sound of Faturator has a bit of a digital sound to it, which gives it an edge for more modern styles of music.  The stereo widener is a nice feature missing from most distortions that opens the door to bigger, more imposing sounds if you want them.  The CPU use is almost negligible, and at $19?  Even if you don't use it on everything, the price is absurdly reasonable.  [8/10]

Review: Dada Life Sausage Fattener

Product: Sausage Fattener
Developer: Dada Life / Tailored Noise
Format: VST (Windows/Mac) and AU (Mac)
Price: $29

The strength of some plug-ins is the depth of programmability you can get lost in for days.  With others, however, the appeal lies in simplicity and the ability to achieve the result you want with little time and effort.  Dada Life's Sausage Fattener is the latter.

As the name implies, Sausage Fattener is aimed at fattening up whatever you feed it, whether it's a single track, some stems, or an entire mix.  If you just want some light compression to tame dynamics, look elsewhere.  Sausage Fattener is designed to smash the ever-loving hell out audio.

The plug-in features only three real controls.  A gain control for trimming levels, a Fatness knob that starts at compression and unabashedly leaps over into distortion (with the sausage graphic getting increasingly angry looking as you increase it), and a Color knob that controls the overall brightness of the sound.  As such, it doesn't sound as if it would be very flexible, but a pretty wide variety of treatments are possible with even this minimum of controls.

This plug-in is not going to appeal to everyone.  Basically, this is one to check out if you make music on the harder end of the spectrum and are looking for a simple way to get more "in your face" kinds of sounds.  Really adds thud and oomph to dance drums, attitude to basslines, and nastiness wherever you might need it.  The sound quality is very good and even pushed to extremes, most material still retains its overall character, just meaner.  So if you're looking for a way to give you music an attitude problem, at only $29, this is a great place to start!  [9/10]

Sonic Charge Releases Permut8 Effect

Here's what they have to say:

"Permut8 is an effect plug-in that embraces the sounds of primitive signal processing hardware. At its core is a 12-bit digital delay with variable sample rate from 0 to 352 khz. The delay is controlled by a programmable processor that allows you to change and modulate the delay time with various "operators". The input and output stages offers virtual analog components for saturation, limiting and filtering. The sound of Permut8 is raw and complex but noisy and warm at the same time."

Permut8 goes for $66.

Virsyn Releases Version 2 of KLON The Vocal Designer

Virsyn have released version 2 of the KLON vocal designer.  KLON features 16 built-in pitch shifters with natural pitch and formant manipulation allowing it to be used as a vocal doubler, a harmonizer, or even turning a single vocal track into a choir.  Here's what's new in version 2:


- Totally revised pitch shifting engine for maximum sound fidelity.
- Ultralow latency for realtime operation.
- Separate handling for transients and consonants.
- Improved choir algorithm. 
- CPU load reduction.


KLON is available for Mac and PC in VST, AU, and RTAS formats.  Virsyn is currently running a spring promo offering KLON for just $99.  A demo  is available here.

Zynaptiq Announces Unveil

With Musicmesse happening this week, we can probably expect a lot of interesting announcements from various gear manufacturers and software developers. But how many of those will offer something completely new?

Zynaptiq appears to be one such company with the announcement of a new plug in for Mac AU format called Unveil. Here's what they have to say about it:

"UNVEIL is a real-time, de-mixing based plug-in that allows attenuating or boosting reverb components within a mixed signal of any channel count, including mono sources, as well as modifying reverb characteristics. Additionally, UNVEIL allows you to bring the key features of a recording into focus, or move them to the background, by attenuating or boosting perceptionally less important signal components. Based on our proprietary, artificial intelligence based MAP (Mixed-Signal Audio Processing) technology, UNVEIL allows fixing previously unusable location audio and dialog, tightening up live music recordings, removing reverb and “mud” from musical signals, as well as creative sound design.

UNVEIL has many uses, some of which are:

• Audio engineers can attenuate reverb in recordings
• Film mixers and dialog editors can remove reverb from dialog and location sound
• Music producers can turn vintage drum-loops rich in reverb into dry recordings, and vice-versa
• Foley artists can remove ambience from sub-optimally captured sounds
• Mix and mastering engineers can bring key mix elements into focus by attenuating components commonly referred to as "mud"

FXpansion Announces Etch Filter Plug-in

[via FXpansion on YouTube]

D16 Releases 64-bit Versions of Plug-ins

D16 Group has announced the release of 64-bit versions of their plug-ins. Here's what they have to say:

"Newest versions for SilverLine collection (currently 1.3.1), Drum

Machines (1.5.1) and Phoscyon (1.9.0) contain following changes:

- Native 32bit / 64bit versions are provided. For PC we have
separate VST 32bit and 64bit versions and for Mac we have
universal 32/64bit version.

- New preset browser with improved functionality.

- More flexible and easy-to-use options control configuration.

- Redesigned MidiCC control including improved Midi Learn mode
and assigns management.

- Fixed some major and minor bugs and compatibility issues.

The updates are available at User Area main page and they are exactly the same as the last published versions of Release Candidates, so please check out the version you have installed to be sure you're up to date - this concerns only users who tried Release Candidates versions.

http://userarea.d16.pl

Important note to Mac users: due to Apple's guidelines our new updates require MacOSX 10.6 or later. If you use OSX older than that we advice to stay with current versions or update your OS before installing our
new updates."