In an effort to help you hone in on those deals that are really worth your attention — and your money — I realised that the best strategy this year is ultimately to highlight those products that we would happily recommend at any other time of the year.

So don’t lose your head this week chasing countless “bargains” on things that you probably wouldn’t be considering without all the wild discounts; instead, use this bonkers sales period to strategically stock up on the actual best-in-class products, those that will actually deliver and have the most significant impact on your ability to make great music now and into the following year(s), and that will provide you the most fun and satisfaction while doing it!

• Arturia FX Collection 5 — 50% OFF It’s really not an exaggeration to say that in 2024 this is one of the only true “possibly all you’ll need” bundle of effects plugins, covering almost everything for either creative or purely technical mixing applications, from saturation and distortion (Dist COLDFIRE is a favourite) and compression, to classic and modern reverbs, delays, creative analogue filters, and the newer bus processing additions. Any of these plugins could be considered in the upper echelons in their respective categories, with Arturia’s combination of excellent GUI’s, thoughtful implementation of controls and additional advanced features that can be hidden if you’re not wanting to get bogged down in details. Arturia increasingly excels at demonstrating how to effectively balance the sonic power of analogue modelling with the flexibility and ease-of-use features that the digital environment affords.
• iZotope Ozone 11 Advanced — 59% OFF Over the last few versions, Ozone has really become one of my most trusted and most used plugins – partly because, with the Advanced version, you get all of the processing modules as a full suite of separate plugins. This means I’ve become accustomed to using individual Ozone modules right from the beginning of a creative project, for mixing and sound design as much as for its official use designation as a “mastering” tool. At this price, it’s excellent bang for your buck.
• Fabfilter — 25% OFF ENTIRE RANGE Including the gold-standard EQ and my current favourite reverb, Fabfilter plugins all have the magical quality that they are straightforward enough for beginners learning the basics of EQ or compression, but also accommodate and encourage some of the most advanced processing techniques and workflows there are, seeming to grow with you as your skills expand. These plugins are as essential as any for serious producers. A great starting point is actually the Fabfilter Essentials Bundle which consists of three compressor, equaliser and reverb plugins (Pro-C, Pro-Q, Pro-R).
• Eventide Blackhole — 72% OFF Being masters of both pioneering time-and-pitch-warping algorithms and digital reverb units, it follows that Eventide’s Blackhole is an all-time favourite for cosmically cavernous reverb effects. There are also great deals on their H9 plugin series range and the full Anthology XII bundle.

WARM UP WITH SOME OF THE BEST SATURATION PLUGINS:

• XLN Audio — 50-55% OFF their range, including three of our favourite plugins from recent years, RC-20 Retro Colour, the innovative and incredibly useful and inspiring sample library-organiser-instrument XO, and the newer and super-inspiring Life creative sampler.
• Output Thermal and Portal — 50% OFF Thermal has gradually become my go-to distortion and saturation plugin, often beating out class competitors like Arturia Dist Coldfire and Rift 2; Portal is excellent for granularly mangling a sound in ways that are almost always exciting and inspiring while still retaining a satisfying degree of intelligibility that means the results are still useable in an actual project! With both plugins, there is an air of professional-level control and flexibility, and the presets are extremely tastefully curated and well organised (never underestimate the value of actually good presets that you can navigate easily).
• Minimal Audio Rift 2 — 50% OFF Next-gen dual-stage saturation and distortion, particularly good for electronic music.
• IK Multimedia Amplitube 5 — 64% OFF Guitar amp sim with a host of options and effects, a sonic playground whether you’re working with a guitar or sound designing anything else!
• Brainworx Black Box HG-2 and HG-2MS — 91% OFF One of the best analogue-modelled tube saturators, now at a ridiculous price that everyone should take advantage of. The HG-2MS version adds mid/side functionality, but either version will provide some excellent warmth via the simple but deceptively subtle dual-stage controls.

INVEST IN SOME OF THE BEST SYNTHS:

• Kilohearts Phase Plant — 50% OFF Digital modular Swiss-army-knife, and a particular favourite among pro sound designers.
• Arturia Pigments 5 — 50% OFF Excellent combination of synthesis engines from virtual analog to wavetable to granular and additive, intuitive modulation system with plenty of visual feedback, and even one of the best built-in sequencers in the game. Best overall synth in the game in 2024? Very possibly.
• GForce AXXESS, Minimonsta2, impOSCar3 — 50-60% OFF Some of the most fun and most physical-sounding analogue synth emulations.

AWESOME SECRET WEAPONS:

• HY-Plugins Sequencers Bundle — 40% OFF Making techno this past year, the sequencers from HY-Plugins have been a true secret weapon. Each one uses a different sequencing method, from chained blocks to Euclidean circles generating fluid polyrhythms, and some are based on iconic hardware sequencers from the likes of the Roland 303 acid generator to the mighty MAQ 16/3 and Dark Time units from Doepfer. Dedicated sequencer units are a ridiculously fun way of exploring composition, parameter modulation and beat programming, and with plugins this deep and flexible you’re guaranteed to hit upon your own unique ways of using them (and generating inspiring happy accidents and track-starting riffs by the bucketload). Recommended.

• Cableguys Snapback — 40% OFF Cableguys new plugin is a collaboration with electronic music artist BT, and is an incredibly useful tool for creatively layering and enhancing drums with a particular emphasis on messing with the perceived timing of the transient/start of the combined hit to make things groove just as you want. It’s a cool concept based on a trick that we’ve had to do manually for years, so it’s both a useful timesaver utility tool while also opening up a host of new and fun creative possibilities. Check out Dan Worrall’s demo video on Snapback for more.
• Devious Machines Duck, Texture and Infiltrator 2 — 25% OFF Some of my most-used plugins, all of Devious Machines range is excellent. Duck long ago replaced LFOTool as my go-to envelope shaper, and Texture is one of those secret weapon creative tools for adding character and weight to sounds in a unique but totally intuitive and satisfying way. Meanwhile Infiltrator 2 is arguably the very best multi-effect plugin out there. All recommended!

The post The Best Black Friday 2024 Plugin Deals For Musicians To Level Up Your Productions In 2025 appeared first on Get That Pro Sound.

kHz ONE is a fairly straightforward subtractive virtual synth, featuring two main oscillators and a sub-oscillator, two filters, three envelopes, chorus and delay effects, two LFOs for modulation, and a modulation matrix to assign them.

While obviously not being as full-featured and flexible as Kilohearts’ flagship PhasePlant, or even as versatile as the also-free Surge XT and Vital, this synth’s strong point is its relative simplicity presented in a package with an intuitive control layout and overall well-designed user interface.

The analog-emulating synthesis engine covers a decently broad range of tones, and these high-quality oscillators coupled with kHz ONE’s also-excellent filters mean it’s great for simple-but-powerful pads and bass sounds. All without taxing your CPU as much as something like DIVA might!

It’s these features altogether that make it a particularly strong candidate as a starter instrument for learning subtractive synthesis, or just synthesis in general.

Until recently kHZ ONE has cost $19, but with Kilohearts discontinuing its development (presumably to focus on more next-gen features, improvements, and support for new ideas and their other existing fantastic instruments and effects plugins), the latest version is now free to download. (Link at the bottom of this article).

Bear in mind that we can’t now expect any future updates or technical support for kHz ONE. Kilohearts wrote, “kHs ONE has been discontinued and is no longer available through the regular Kilohearts Installer. A stand-alone installer for the very last version of kHs ONE is available below. Please note that kHs ONE is not available in the VST3 format.”

So that potential compatibility (check your DAW requirements) and support aspects not-withstanding, it’s a great opportunity to grab this excellent free tool and have some fun with it in the immediate term, particularly if you’re looking to get your feet wet in synthesis without getting overwhelmed by more elaborate options.

Specs: kHs ONE is available for both Windows and macOS in 64-bit VST2, AAX, and Audio Unit plugin formats.

Download from the Kilohearts site here: Kilohearts kHs ONE (discontinued, free to download).

For beginners, you can also download the manual here!

The post Kilohearts kHs ONE Synthesizer Is Now Available For Free appeared first on Get That Pro Sound.

So here we cut through the huge crowd of assorted options of varying degrees of usefulness and quality, and highlight a selection of genuinely world-class software effects, synths and bundles — tools that will actually give you the most inspiration or access to features and raw processing quality that will truly help you improve your craft and the results you can achieve. Ready for a fresh start in 2022!

• Audio Damage Blackvember — Use the code BLACKVEMBER2021 at checkout to get 40% OFF your entire order in the Audio Damage store, until Dec 5.
• iZotope Black Friday Sale — 95% OFF
  • iZotope Holiday Bundle Gold Edition Sale — 96% OFF
  • iZotope Holiday Bundle Platinum Edition Sale — 94% OFF
  • iZotope Holiday Bundle Diamond Edition Sale — 93% OFF
• Soundtoys Black Friday Sale — 73% OFF individual Soundtoys plugins, and get the Effect rack for $129. Or, get everything together in the Soundtoys 5 Bundle for, I think, the best price ever of $229. Until Dec 1.
• XLN Audio — 50% OFF their range, including two of our favourite plugins from recent years, RC-20 Retro Colour and the innovative and incredibly useful and inspiring sample library–organiser-instrument XO.
• Black Rooster Audio — Get the ALL Bundle featuring every Black Rooster Audio plug-in for only $1846 $99! Some of the very best next-gen analog-modeling of must-have vintage gear.
• Reason Studios — Partnering with Waves, they are offering a three-month subscription for $1!
• Youlean — 38% OFF the Youlean Loudness Meter, a great opportunity to get your hands on one of the most useful modern pro metering solutions.
• Native Instruments KOMPLETE Classics Collection Sale — 80% OFF
• Sonnox Black Friday Sale — 75% OFF
• Cherry Audio November Sale — 92% OFF
• SoundSpot Black Friday Sale — 97% OFF
• KV331 Synthmaster Player Sale — 70% OFF (that’s just $9)
• AudioThing November Sale — 70% OFF
• Waves Audio — Top-selling plugins for $29.99, with bonus discounts for multiple plug-in purchases. A great time to pick up some of their recent successes
• IK Multimedia 25th Anniversary Black Friday Krazy Deals — Some of their best software for only $39. Special introductory pricing on Total Studio 3.5 MAX and Total VI MAX, and savings on other MAX collections. Through November 30th, save up to 50% on SampleTank 4 MAX, T-RackS 5 MAX, and AmpliTube 5 MAX.
• Get That Pro Sound’s The Ultimate Guides Complete Bundle — Get a full 55% OFF with coupon code “BF2021” on our thorough guides to the fundamentals of making and mixing your music to a professional standard. Focusing on the key principles and concepts that you can start using in your productions right now: whether it’s the holy mixing triumvirate of Compression, EQ and Reverb, or learning to tame and maximize a powerful low-end for all your tracks, there’s a wealth of timeless knowledge right here.

The post The Best Black Friday 2021 Deals To Level Up Your Productions In 2022 appeared first on Get That Pro Sound.

But Pigments goes further than being simply an amalgamation of Arturia’s greatest hits: it features several different synthesis and sampling types, it’s own novel modulation system and powerful sequencing possibilities, and it attempts to house all this power and complexity in a sleek and intuitive interface that is fast and easy to use.

With Pigments now up to version 3, I thought it was the perfect time to take a look at what has been added in this latest version and how Pigments as a concept is maturing. I also wondered how it stacks up against the competition vying for your attention and allegiance in the fierce arena of modern soft synths. Does Pigments 3 do enough to stand out?

Let’s mix some colours…

What’s New in Pigments 3?

Harmonic Engine: joining the existing Analog, Wavetable (which includes some simple FM and phase distortion functionality) and Sample (with additional granular processing!) Engines, Pigments now has Additive synthesis capabilities courtesy of the Harmonic Engine. Unlike the subtractive nature of the Analog  engine, additive works by adding harmonics or partials to a fundamental tone, for glassy-to-buzzy futuristic sounds not too dissimilar to classic FM.  The Additive engine in Pigments offers control and modulation of up to 512 partials, as well as morphing and dual formant filters.

Utility Engine: Also supplementing Engines 1 and 2, you now have an all-new third, the Utility Engine. This one provides two noise sample layers and an extra oscillator layer. A great way to add some subtle sampled atmospheric grit, and/or a beefy lower-octave sub oscillator to your sounds, respectively.

Wavetables: The original set of 100 have been added to with 64 new ones. By my reckoning, that’s 164 total! You can also create and import your own wavetables and samples, offering near-infinite options for experimentation and customisability of your base sounds.

New Filter and Effects Options: Pigments has featured some cherry-picked filters and effects lifted directly from some of the V Collections most celebrated emulations since the last version, and these are now accompanied by the Jup-8 low-pass filter, and the JUN-6 Chorus for a touch of Roland magic. There’s also the vintage-emulating BL-20 Flanger, and by contrast, the decidedly non-vintage and excitingly modern-digital Pitch Delay.

Enhanced Filter Routing: You can now route each of the filters to either of the effects buses, providing quite a lot more sound design flexibility and nuance.

Multi-band compressor: A useful addition for making your patches sound very much mix-ready without necessarily needing further plugin processing, the multi-band comp goes along with the “self-contained, thoroughly modern sound design one-stop shop” ethos of Pigments.

New Presets: 300 fresh presets from a large team of experienced pro sound designers, bringing the factory library up to 700+ presets. The optional extra Spectrum Sound Pack also adds another 500 presets in 5 banks of 100, providing an extra-vast canvas of inspiration and guidance for developing your own sound design skills, or an excellent pool of ready-to-go sounds for those who want quick access to quality patches without having to get their hands too dirty under the hood. The presets are nicely laid out using Arturia’s excellent and filterable preset library format, that will of course be already familiar to users of the V Collection instruments.

Built-in Tutorials: Pigments will be a fantastic instrument for relative newcomers to synthesis, since it couples its myriad synthesis types with a bank of excellent and clear tutorials built right into the plugin.

Beyond the overview technical specifications though, the things about Pigments 3 that really stand out to me are the overall sonic quality and character, the modulation system, the sequencer, and finally, the value for money.

The Sound

Pigments 3 sounds great, quite “modern” in contrast to some of the most “vintage” emulations in the V Collection, while still remaining rich and characterful by contemporary synth plugin standards, and clearly connected to the lineage of the classic machines through some of the borrowed filters and effects. So you can make Pigments sound more or less vintage (which is itself a very modern feature, I suppose). I had a lot of fun producing varying degrees of cool 90s synth flavours in particular, and many of the presets are geared towards the trend for that eras sonic aesthetics — although of course, it’s certainly not limited to recreating any one decades sounds.

The new additive synthesis Harmonic Engine further enhances Pigments ability to provide real cutting edge, warping and twisting sounds that have a cool FM-like sheen but with extra futuristic bite.

Meanwhile, it can seem that you can’t mention “wavetable” without invoking the, “But how does it stack up against Serum?” question. Happily, with such a massively versatile tool as Pigments, these kinds of questions are actually largely moot and sidestepped by the fact that this synth is so much more flexible and multi-faceted than most of what might be thought of as “competitors” (in fact they each have their strengths, of course). In terms of wavetable functionality, Pigments lets you further mangle your wavesets with simple frequency and phase modulation, phase distortion and wavefolding. You can import samples to create your own custom wavetables, and of course most significantly, you can combine a Wavetable Engine with an Analog oscillator, a Sample (granulated or not), an Additive noise or another wavetable!

All of this while, in use, seeming not very complicated at all, very intuitive and with a general aesthetic feeling of “openness” about the synth, which I think is partly down to the clean, non-skeuomorphic design, and partly down to the “let’s see how many cool, “dream synth” features we can bolt together while keeping things fundamentally simple” attitude that seems to underpin the whole enterprise.

Modulation System

One of Pigments most immediately eye catching (and as it turns out on closer inspection, one of the most powerful) aspects is the modulation system. The Modulation Overview strip across the middle of the interface gives you an immediate summary of what is happening, and you can very quickly click through to any source for more info or to assign additional routings.

It’s very visual, which on very first impression I found a bit distracting, but skip ahead 20 minutes to having made a few custom patches later, and I had very happily clicked with the amount of information being presented, noticing how the colour-coded mod sources provide a quick-glance overview of which animated wiggling line is actually doing what (more on that below). I wish I had had these kind of visual indicators of what my envelopes and LFOs were actually doing when first learning synthesis and sound design, so I can only say that for less experienced users this will be a godsend and massively enhance your rate of progress in understanding and effectively implementing the core principles and tools of synthesis. And if you already have some experience, the Pigments mod system, coupled with the broad synthesis type options, will encourage even deeper, more complex and more nuanced modulation routings than you might have been tempted to try and wrangle with before.

You’ll be aided in programming these advanced modulations by the series of modulation source options: alongside the expected ADSR envelopes and LFOs, you also have three other modulator types: Functions, Random and Combinate. The three available Functions are essentially multi-stage envelope generators (MSEGs) which you can shape and curve to your liking, adding up to 64 breakpoints, and set to cycle like LFOs or trigger once like a regular envelope. Under the Random tab, you have three random signal generators that can each be set to Turing, Binary or the classic Sample & Hold randomised patterns — ideal for injecting various shades of organic randomness into your patches in exactly the ways and amounts you would like. Finally, the three Combinate functions each generate modulation signals based on the interactions of one or two other modulation sources. While other synths and plugins might make this kind of feature into a tedious mathematical exercise, Pigments, in typical fashion, makes it easy and fun (via its simple dropdown Type, Source and Mod selectors) to produce radically complex mod sources that you can use to inject extreme levels of nuance and liveliness into your programmed sounds.

The Sequencer

I ended up spending an inordinate amount of my time preparing this article playing with Pigments sequencer, and it’s turned out to be possibly my favourite aspect of the plugin. It’s very full-featured for a sequencer built into a synth, featuring many of the “deep cut” controls and parameters that you would usually hope to find only in a dedicated sequencer plugin: polyrhythmic, individually adjustable lane lengths, randomisation options for virtually every parameter (pitch, trig probability, gate length etc.) for breathing life and completely programmable amounts of spontaneous variety into your sequences and rhythms; also the per-step parameter locks enable you to just go crazy experimenting with randomising everything and then gradually honing your sequenced steps into melodies and phrases that you wouldn’t otherwise generate manually.

And in fact, Pigments can output MIDI generated by its sequencer, so you can then send it to any other VSTi in your collection — this is not a typically enabled in most soft synths, but with Pigments, you not only get a cool sequencer for driving Pigments own sound engines, but you can use it to explore and reinvigorate the rest of your synth collection as well! It’s another way that Arturia have found to make Pigments stand out in a crowded field: kudos to them for that.

Incredible Value

Considering how many synthesis and sound design options Pigments 3 packs in, it represents pretty exceptional value. At its regular price of $199, it offers a huge amount; if it were the only synth in your collection, you could easily make vast numbers of different-sounding tracks in any number of styles by exploring everything Pigments has to offer. In the meantime, you would also be getting a pretty thorough grounding in every important aspect of modern synthesis, making it a fantastic “desert island” synth for learners and experienced users alike. The sound quality is pristine and never feels remotely compromised: this is a professional-grade instrument for serious production.

Conclusion

In terms of style and where it fits relative to the competition, Pigments 3 seems designed to sit somewhere between the immediacy of the Serums and Sylenth1s on the one hand, and the relatively open-ended “everything and the kitchen sink” sonic playgrounds of UVI Falcon, Zebra2 or the many analog-modular-inspired software instruments on the other. But really, that might be overthinking it, because I feel now that Pigments 3 kind of sits in a category of its own.

There’s a cool sense that Pigments’ developers and designers are rapidly exploring and discovering just what Pigments itself is, and what it could be. There’s an exciting air of breaking new ground in the way so many facets of synthesis and sound design are brought so neatly together, adding new features and watching this thing grow as an instrument in multiple different directions at once. It’ll be fascinating to watch where Arturia might take Pigments next, but for now, I’m going to put such questions to one side, roll up my sound-making sleeves and continue exploring the considerable fruits of their experiments so far.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, AU, AAX

Find out more at Arturia.

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The post Review: Arturia Pigments 3 appeared first on Get That Pro Sound.

Effects processing is in many ways at the heart of modern music production.

How we musicians, producers and sound designers creatively combine and chain together different processing tools and plugins is a fundamental aspect of getting a modern, professional and engaging sound.

And particularly in most electronic-based genres, the production processes and effects are not just an afterthought or sprinkled on at the mix stage, but are often a large part of the initial idea-generating, songwriting and arrangement processes too, with clever use of unique effects contributing to the freshness or character of melodic and rhythmic hooks, or making a transition or riser leading up to a big drop sound completely different from anything else out there and instantly more attention-grabbing.

So it’s never been more important to have some great creative effects plugins in your production toolset. But while an individual effect plugin like a distortion or a resonant filter or a delay can sometimes be all that is required to enhance a sound and make it work in a project, there are certainly creative situations and alternate workflows where using tools that combine multiple effects into a single powerhouse plugin can work wonders, providing huge injections of inspiration and quickly delivering results that you just wouldn’t have thought of were you manually chaining separate plugins. Enter: multi-effect plugins.

A great multi-effect plugin is almost more like an instrument than a purely technical “signal processing” tool. With multiple effects incorporated, you literally multiply both the creative possibilities and the operational complexity, which can make the initial learning curve a little steeper but also make the rewards of mastering the idiosyncrasies of the plugin and finding it’s sweet spots and unique character that much greater. Some of the multi-effects plugins on our list below are so open-ended that they are very much like a modular synth system, with almost infinite patching possibilities.

 

 

 

To keep this inherent complexity manageable, the best multi-effects plugin designs have very well thought out interfaces, routing capabilities and other features which provide access to that massive flexibility while still being contained in an ultimately closed and consistent work environment, which encourages a fairly consistent and efficient approach to achieving unique or favourite sounds and processing treatments without having to spend a lot of time managing the unwieldiness of chains or racks of individual plugins in your DAW.

For the purposes of our list, “best” does not always necessarily mean the most complex, the most features or the largest preset library; several of our plugin choices are relatively streamlined or only include a specific and limited effects combination, but they still combine sonic quality with versatility, speed and ease of use. Others I selected because they do something genuinely unique, or perhaps they do something familiar but they do it more elegantly or just sound better than their competitors. For these reasons, the list is not in rank order, since “best” will always depend on your specific wants and needs.

In any case, whether your budget is $0.00 or $200+, and whether you’re more interested in the musicality of vintage hardware-inspired effects, more purely futuristic and “digital” glitch factories, or cutting-edge modular sound design solutions that cover every conceivable use case and style, there’s something for everyone here. If you can’t find something here that piques your interest, well, there’s little hope for you!

21 Of The Best Multi-Effects Audio Plugins – List Summary

The list is not in rank order! For more details, links, specs and potential alternatives to some of the plugins mentioned, hit the links below to jump down the page to the appropriate section:

1. DS Audio Tantra
2. XLN Audio RC-20
3. Soundtoys Effect Rack
4. Cableguys Shaperbox
5. BABY Audio Spaced Out
6. Output MOVEMENT
7. Sugar Bytes Turnado, Effectrix
8. Unfiltered Audio BYOME, TRIAD
9. Eventide H3000 Factory, UltraReverb
10. Native Instruments Molekular
11. iZotope / Exponential Audio Excalibur
12. Glitchmachines Fracture XT
13. Illformed Glitch2
14. Melda Production MXXX
15. Kilohearts Multipass
16. Native Instruments Guitar Rig 6 Pro
17. Inear Display Amalgame
18. Zynaptiq Wormhole
19. Waves CLA Epic, Kaleidoscopes
20. iZotope Stutter Edit 2
21. Devious Machines Infiltrator, Texture

1. DS Audio Tantra

Tantra is a powerful rhythmic multi-effects processor, based around a set of 8 multi-stage envelope generators (MSEGs) and 6 main effects modules – Filter, Distortion, Delay, Lofi, Flanger, Glitch (plus additional EQ and Reverb sections at the bottom, and a Tremolo at the top for rhythmic volume modulation).

One aspect that makes Tantra stand out is the sheer sonic quality of the processing — it sounds modern and crisp but retains depth too, it’s not “plastic” or toy-like, and has a level of complexity and detail in the presets that is inspiring and easy to adapt to suit your own material once you get your head around how everything is set up and interacts.

The other cool parts of Tantra are the excellent routing and randomisation features. The order of the effects modules can be changed quickly with simple drag and drop for fast experimentation, and the effects are organised into two independent layers for even more organic complexity when desired.

Tantra’s randomisation dice icons, one for each of the effects and for each envelope generator, are ideal for generating a literally limitless supply of happy accidents and textural and rhythmic variations.

Everything is geared towards fast and easy experimentation — the name of the game with multi-effects — but the fine control options are definitely there when you want to really finesse a complex patch. Not many plugins pull off this balance as well as Tantra does. Recommended!

DS Audio developer Dmitry Sches is also responsible for a couple of great synth plugins, Diversion and Thorn, which are also both excellent-sounding and innovative, and worth checking out too if you like the look of Tantra.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Alliance

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2. XLN Audio RC-20 Retro Color

RC-20 is such a versatile tool. Whether you’re working on the slightly warped and frayed sounds of modern pop, hip hop and trap; rock of either modern or vintage flavours; or especially anything electronic from VHS-wobbly synthwave to scuffed up techno, RC-20 is like a Swiss army knife for adding just the right types and amounts of grime.

In use, it’s fast and streamlined — it used to take whole chains of separate effects to produce the  array of nuanced, grungy, processed colours that RC-20 churns out easily. I might consider it a secret weapon for adding character if it wasn’t already pretty popular!

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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3. Soundtoys Effect Rack

The Soundtoys bundle has been an unusual constant in music production tool kits for years, and for good reason. Effect Rack is a plugin that allows you to load all of the other Soundtoys plugins into it, thereby creating processing chains all within a single shared interface, and with some additional controls like the Input and Output knobs at the top, which are very handy for managing your gain staging.

One major benefit of this is the ability to save and recall presets that feature several different Soundtoys plugins, which would otherwise require you to save the chain as an effects chain preset in your DAW. So if you find yourself always using some combination of Echoboy, Decapitator and Filterfreak, for example, save some presets in Effect Rack and you can quickly and easily organise and modify your effects like you would with a single multi-effects processor.

Another great and perhaps little-known feature of Effect Rack is that you can feed the output back into the input with the Recycle knob, creating the kind of feedback loops that were often a source of great dubby sound design effects in the days of mostly analogue studios, but which are not always possible using the default routing options in most fully-digital DAW environments. So if you want to get Echoboy or Primal Tap generating infinitely evolving delay lines while also sending them round and round through Crystallizer, PhaseMistress and the rest, check out Effect Rack.

Effect Rack is available as its own bundle package, featuring 14 of the 19 total plugins that are included in the full Soundtoys 5 bundle, which is a very good deal.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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4. Cableguys ShaperBox 2

ShaperBox brings together seven separate effects into a single interface, all with the same visual LFO-envelope style of defining how each effect is applied to the signal over time. With rhythmic control over Time (slowing or accelerating the sound), Filter, Pan, Volume, Width, Crush and Drive (various flavours of distortion), you have a huge range of creative options all available within a deceptively simple mode of operation.

The visual aspect is so much fun to play with, and as with any of the best multi-effects plugins on our list, the way that the effects can be easily combined and stacked is where some real magic can happen when designing and processing your sounds.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, AU

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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5. Baby Audio Spaced Out

While maybe at first glance “just” a reverb plugin (albeit a cool looking one), Spaced Out also features a treasure-trove of modulation effects algorithms under the hood, a 16-step delay sequencer in an enticing cube configuration that invites experimentation, and vast sonic flexibility that easily qualify it as a multi-effect for discussion here.

Much like the other excellent plugins in the small-but-rapidly-expanding Baby Audio range, Spaced Out has a clean and intuitive user interface with a very well-considered selection of a few tweakable manual controls. In use, the range and quality of sounds you can get out of Spaced Out is far greater than the relatively streamlined controls might suggest, and goes far beyond basic reverb applications and into inspiring textural sound design craziness. Highly recommended!

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU, AAX, RTAS

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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6. Output Movement

LA-based Output are well-known for their expressive and cinematically-geared plugin instruments, and Movement was their first outright effects processor plugin. The core concept is simple: you can blend the source signal with any combination of Movement’s 4 rhythm engines that each feature sidechains, LFOs and step sequencers as modulation methods.

The ideal balance can be found by sweeping around the XY pad, which shifts the blend between the two pairs of rhythm engines on each side of the GUI. You can also assign the 8 available effects to the XY pad, opening up some very cool possibilities for morphing through complex shifts in the sound with a single stroke of the mouse (also great for quick automation).

 

Movement is designed to apply rhythmic effects to any kind of input source while always remaining musical, whether you’re after subtle, er, movement, or much more full-on, warping craziness. There are 300+ presets to get you started and show you just how interesting the effects can get.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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7. Sugar Bytes Turnado

Both Turnado and Effectrix are two of our go-to, all-time favourite multi-effect plugins.

Turnado centres around 8 large knobs that can each be assigned one of the library of effects on the left and then dialled in to get unique combinations. This one was designed with live performance in mind, but it’s equally effective — and ridiculously fun — in the studio too, for experimenting and coming up with every-crazier iterations of mangled drum loops, synth sounds, vocals and anything else you can think of. No wonder it’s a favourite of master electronic experimenter Flume, amongst many others.

By contrast, Effectrix uses a looping step sequencer, and you can just paint in the blocks/steps that you want to be processed by the corresponding effect in each coloured lane. It’s a great way to quickly build up layers of interacting effects to build deceptively complex or nuanced rhythmic processing: perfect for obvious glitchy drum fills or more subtle grace notes and ear candy to enliven a dull loop, melody or bassline.

At the bottom, you can tweak each of the 14 effects in Effectrix to your liking; there’s also a Modulator Track where you can assign a couple of parameters on each effect to random or smoothly developing shifts. I overlooked this feature for a long while when first using Effectrix, but it can be the secret ingredient to really original effects and I always use this aspect now. (You can of course also use regular automation in your DAW to sequence certain parameter movements if you want to do it that way as well).

Again, a simple concept with a surprising amount of power and flexibility once you dig into all the available features and controls.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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8. Unfiltered Audio TRIAD

The original BYOME (“Build Your Own Modular Effect”) basically bolts Unfiltered Audio’s famously flexible modulation system onto a library of over 40 individual effect modules, many of which are pulled directly from their other fantastic individual effects plugins.

BYOME already presented a real sound designers playground of limitless options to dive into, but Unfiltered Audio had no plans to stop developing the concept there. The bigger brother of BYOME is TRIAD, which adds multi-band operation: so now you can also split the incoming signal into multiple bands, and process each frequency range with its own independent effects chain and modulation. This is great for adding different amounts or flavours of distortion to different frequency ranges, for example, or adding reverb and delay to only specific ranges while keeping the rest clean to avoid blurring and muddying up the sound.

You can currently buy these two in a massively discounted bundle at Plugin Alliance for a short time, so definitely take advantage while it lasts!

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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9. Eventide H3000 Factory

Eventide are responsible for many firsts in digital signal processing and some truly iconic effects units, such as the H910 and H949 Harmonizers, the Omnipressor, the Instant Phaser and Flanger, and the SP2016 reverb. And we couldn’t do a rundown of multi-effects plugins without mentioning the O.G., the Eventide H3000 Ultra-Harmonizer hardware unit: the very first commercially available digital multi-effects box.

The H3000 Factory plugin is the closest Eventide have come to porting the legendary power of the hardware into a single plugin form. With over 450 presets, the H3000 Factory literally has a setting for any aspect of a mix or sound design project, perhaps most notably the MicroPitchShift preset that quickly became a favourite of pro producers and has since been spun off into multiple other Eventide machines and plugins (including the recent dedicated MicroPitch plugin, of course!), and has provided the basis or inspiration for many plugins from other developers too.

The H3000 Factory is included in the fantastic Anthology XI bundle (one of our 20 best plugin bundles), and is still arguably the best way to mess with the full scope of that idiosyncratic Eventide magic inside the box. However, if you want to gain access to the other algorithms pioneered by Eventide with the H3000 (the Factory plugin centres around 4 of the hardware’s 21 algorithms), check out the H9 Plugin Series effects like CrushStation, Crystals and MangledVerb, that each represent another famous algorithm or preset and can be bought separately or together in the H9 Plugin Series Bundle.

We have to also mention UltraReverb here, since it’s one of my personal go-to sound design/mix plugins for it’s unusual reverb + delay + compressor feature set (in fact, borrowed from the more recent Eventide H9000 hardware). Having these three processors together in the same clean interface makes it fast and effective for dialling in workhorse sounds with some very cool twists when desired. It’s surprising how large a range of effects can be produced with this smart combo, and I’d definitely recommend checking it out.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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10. Native Instruments Molekular

Created in a collaboration between Native Instruments and fellow Germans Zynaptiq (whose Wormhole plugin you can find later in this list), Molekular is their take on a slick modular effects system featuring 35 individual effects from spectral shifters and comb filters to filterbanks and flangers, that you can select, chain and modulate in any combination you choose.

A bit like Outputs Movement plugin listed above, Molekular has a section for setting up LFO, envelope, logic and step-style modulation of effects parameters, and a cool central Morpher panel where you can introduce tons of motion by blending between 4 different effects snapshots.

Molekular runs inside Reaktor or the free Reaktor Player, and of course it’s also fully integrated to work with NI’s Maschine, so you can be effortlessly tweaking those Morpher settings with real hardware knobs in no time if you’re a Maschine user.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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11. iZotope / Exponential Audio Excalibur

Excalibur is a complete effects toolbox from the mind behind Exponential Audio’s highly regarded reverbs, which are now part of the iZotope stable but slightly confusingly retain the Exponential branding (since iZotope acquired Exponential Audio in 2019).

It is based around 4 independent Voice modules, which can be combined or sent to modulate each other in a number of very flexible ways. While not the most intuitive processor to get going with straight away, there are a lot of great presets to get you going quickly, and once you do get your head around how the Voices can be stacked, separated, or fed into each other, its power and potential become very apparent.

And obviously, if you know anything about Exponential Audio and their reverbs, you know that its going to sound fantastic. See, I didn’t include any dodgy King Arthur puns once!

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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12. Glitchmachines Fracture XT

Fracture XT is an enhanced version of their free plugin Fracture, featuring better buffer, delay and multi-mode filter algorithms, and a whole new granular processor.

The combination of these three modules together is surprisingly versatile, and you’re able to coax everything from the expected noisy glitched stuttering to more moody drone ambiences and fine-to-course textures that would suit a lot of different styles.

The patchbay section at the bottom really invites modular-style sonic experimentation, and the many randomise buttons sprinkled throughout the interface further encourage the creation of happy accidents and intriguing sound design that you never would have thought to aim for.

Pro tip: Insert Fracture XT on an audio track loaded with a quick set of random drum, pad and melody loops; Set up another audio track to record the output of the first one, hit play, and then jam away on Fracture XT for a few minutes as the playhead moves through your assorted loops and sounds…

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, AU

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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13. illformed Glitch2

One of the original and still one of the greatest glitch plugins, Glitch2 packs a huge amount of sonic potential into a ridiculously fun package.

A little like Sugar Bytes Effectrix mentioned above, Glitch2 works with a series of sequencer lanes that each correspond to one of an array of different effects over on the left. The effects can be combined, layered and reordered, and each one can be tweaked and modulated in the lower pane.

It’s great value, from an independent developer, is good for both live and studio use, and would actually be useful for a lot of styles beyond the obvious glitched-out electronica, like modern trap, pop and future bass production with it’s Tape Stop and Retrigger effects, for example. Check out this extended demo/walkthrough below for examples of what it can do:

 

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, AU

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14. Melda Productions MXXX / MXXXCore

Melda Productions have been steadily redefining how high-end plugins are supposed to look and behave for a few years now, with their characteristically clear and businesslike (in a good way!) interfaces paired with pristine sound and very innovative feature implementations.

MXXX is their crown jewel of effects, and quite possibly the most powerful entry on our list, featuring all of their other individual effects housed in a single plugin interface with 500+ presets. The 70+ individual effects can be combined in any combination using MXXX’s modular-style routing matrix, and then further modulated from there. You’re pretty much guaranteed never to run out of inspiration with this one.

It’s a sound designers paradise, but for those who understandably don’t have the budget to buy this plugin behemoth outright, Melda have also produced MXXXCore: a streamlined version that still features a huge number of extremely good effects and all of the other modulation functionality of the full version, but at a fraction of the price. You can even purchase any of the other effects you end up missing from the full version separately, if you want, and they’ll be made available within MXXXCore. An excellent way to tailor your multi-effects palette as you develop your skills and budget allows.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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15. Kilohearts Multipass

Kilohearts pioneered their own system of individual effects plugins that can be used as modular effect pieces within any of their larger host plugins, which include the Phase Plant synth, the free Snap Heap and this one, Multipass.

Multipass is particularly cool because of its multiband capabilities, meaning you can split the signal into up to 5 separate frequency bands and then process each band with any number of Snapin effects. The creative potential of this is obvious, as you can achieve extremely complex and nuanced, frequency-specific processing of a broadband source sound that would be quite difficult to do with other individual plugin effects and DAW routing.

If you become a fan of the Kilohearts Snapin system, you’ll no doubt eventually be looking at the Toolbox Ultimate bundle which includes all of their Snapin effects. While it’s an investment, you can use them in Phase Plant and of course standalone like regular effects plugins, so for many users it will be a very cost-effective solution in the long run to gain access to, potentially, all the effects and processor types you could need.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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16. Native Instruments Guitar Rig 6 Pro

Guitar amp simulators like Guitar Rig, as well as obviously being fun and useful tools for actual guitarists, have long been creatively misused by electronic producers of every stripe looking to bring some of that rock ‘n’ roll unpredictability, drive, grit and noise to liven up relatively clean and sterile in-the-box synths and drum machine sounds.

Guitar Rig Pro has always been a popular choice for this, partly because many people will have stumbled across it when browsing the tools included in their Komplete bundle, but also because it has a particularly well-stocked and easy to use menu of virtual rack effects. In there, you can find a broad-ranging set of effects processors, that can be inserted into the virtual rack and controlled like any custom-designed multi-effects plugin.

Guitar Rig Pro has always had modules like pitch shifters, Grain Delay and PsycheDelay, autofilters, the modulation options like Stoned Phaser and Electric Lady flanger, and some basic but effective Envelope, LFO and Step Sequencer modules. But significantly for us with version 6, you also get a whole range of new effects, many of which have been previously released as standalone plugins: the Crush pack made up of Freak, Dirt and Bite covering multiple flavours of distortion; the Raum, RC 24 and RC 48 reverbs; and streamlined versions of one of my all-time favourite reverb-delay-mod effects, Replika XT. Plus you get 12 of the DJ-style effects from Traktor, particularly useful for electronic production.

Other guitar amp sim plugins definitely worth checking out for their broader multi-effects potential include Blue Cat’s Axiom, Positive Grid BIAS FX 2 Pro, and the recently updated IK Multimedia Amplitube 5.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, AU, AAX

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Buy Now At Native Instruments

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17. Inear Display Amalgame

Amalgame is designed to make it easy to create morphing, complex-sounding effects with a relatively simple and intuitive approach. Simply drag and drop one of the colour-coded effects blocks from the top menu grid down onto one of the 6 effects slots.

From there, each effect is already assigned to two XY modulation controls, so just by dragging the coloured dot around the XY pad you can immediately come up with some cool movement and variation.

On top of that, each X and Y parameter can then be modulated using a mini step sequencer, with adjustable rate and length, allowing you to dial in changes with clear vertical bars for each step.

By stacking up several of the available 6 effects in this way, you can accomplish anything from subtle mix enhancing modulation to full-on sound design destruction.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU, AAX, RTAS

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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18. Zynaptiq Wormhole

Zynaptiq are known for their sound design tools tailored to creating particularly cinematic effects, and  Wormhole certainly fulfils that role well. Ostensibly it’s for designing sci-fi sounds, gliding spacecraft, creature noises and manipulated voice FX in a tight and fast-to-use interface, but it’s capable of much beyond that too, including for musical ear candy in a mix.

It is based around three modules: spectral warping, frequency/pitch shifting, and reverb, and when combined with Wormhole’s distinctively streamlined and intuitive interface, you can warp even the most mundane source material into heavily textured and atmospheric sound design gold. There’s a lot of very high-quality signal processing going on under the hood, but Wormhole provides just the right balance of user control and simplicity to make it a very fun an compelling way to generate multitudes of dynamic, shifting and unique effects.

Check out the demo below which quickly conveys what Wormhole is capable of:

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU, AAX, RTAS

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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19. Waves CLA Epic, Kaleidoscopes

Waves have a few plugins in their extensive range that provide interesting variations on the multi-effect paradigm, and two very much worth a mention here are CLA Epic and Kaleidoscopes.

CLA Epic, a product of Waves long-standing partnership with Chris Lord-Alge, comprises a collection of the famed mix engineer’s 4 go-to delays and 4 go-to reverbs. Each one is based on a piece of his favourite studio hardware and has its own channel strip-style controls, but together they form a streamlined toolbox for bringing a huge range of depth and dimension to your mixes. Mix and match the available delays and reverbs to blend your own space-enhancing hybrid, always tailored to the requirements of your specific project.

Meanwhile, Kaleidoscopes is a super-suite of modulation effects, offering up Phaser, Flanger, Chorus and Tremolo modules across two FX engines that can be combined either serially one into the one another or side-by-side in parallel using the plugins Dual Cascade architecture.

Each of the two engines can use one of a selection of waveshapes, an external sidechain source or even your real-time performance as its modulation input, providing the opportunity to imbue your sounds with extremely lively and organic movement effects.

Both of these are a lot of fun to use, sound great and are extremely useful in a mix, and can now often be had for $peanuts with Waves continuing sales and discounts. Recommended!

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Waves

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20. iZotope Stutter Edit 2

Levelling up the fire-power considerably from the original Stutter Edit plugin, BT and iZotope are back with Stutter Edit 2.

Stutter Edit 1’s standout party trick was the buffering effects which made it possible to generate glitchy, twitching drums, vocals and synths with relatively ease. With version 2, you still have the Buffer module, but this can be toggled on or completely off if desired in favour of using the other cool new features.

Foremost of these are the “Time Variant Modulators” (TVMs) that can applied independently to every single parameter if desired. A TVM is basically a flexible LFO/envelope hybrid that can be clicked and dragged to edit its shape, in a way that will be instantly familiar to users of ShaperBox, LFOTool and synths with MSEGs like Zebra2. These can be used to modulate anything, but specifically the bank of 11 effects modules down the left side of the plugin interface, from distortions and various filter types to flanging, chorus, delay and reverb.

The combination of the easy and fun rhythmic/sweeping modulation shapes together with the mix of clean and glitching effects make this a very powerful and surprisingly flexible tool. Recommended!

Watch this walkthrough demo with the man himself, Brian Transeau aka BT, for some infectious enthusiasm, illumination of the key features and how it sounds in practice:

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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21. Devious Machines Infiltrator, Texture

Let’s wrap up this list with a brand new plugin: Infiltrator brings together several of the features and different workflow styles we’ve seen throughout this list, and artfully puts them side-by-side in an incredibly intuitive, fluid and modern GUI.

Infiltrator’s 10 effects slots can be loaded with any of 16 different effects such as frequency and pitch shifters, delays, comb and formant filters, ring mod and a great looper… not to mention the array of 12 different filter types, from Clean and Ladder (presumably Moog-inspired), to the filter colours of two other vintage analog synths, the SH-101 and MS-20.

Each effect has its own Curve Editor for introducing sequenced modulation via fully customisable envelopes (that can be as angular, as in the image above, or as smoothly curved as you like). When stacked, multiple effects each with their own modulation curves lead very quickly to beautifully fluid and complex overall effects. But the mod fun doesn’t end there: flip to the Sequencer view and you can then paint in any of the 32 steps that you want each effect to be triggered. This is great for controlling how dense or sparse you want your processing to be: everything from the occasional rhythmic glitch or fill dotted throughout a loop, to full-on Autechrean mind-melting rhythmic disruption, is easily achieved.

Add in great touches like the Master sections Drive, Compressor and Clean Bass (very handy!) controls, and the 4 assignable Macro slots across the top — plus the 750 superb presets — and we have a real next-gen glimpse of the future of effects plugins. Go check it out, you won’t be disappointed!

Originally filling this final spot, Texture is something a little different to the others on our list; it’s unusual in that it incorporates elements of sampling, granular synthesis, and conventional effects like dynamics, modulation and EQ to work its considerable multi-pronged, multi-effect magic.

Texture is essentially useful for adding enhancing layers to your existing sounds. The new layers are generated in such a way that they can track as closely and subtly to the source material as you want, either adding relatively “invisible” and organic frequency enhancement to drums and hi-hats in a mix context, or providing more radical tonal and textural transformations with the included filtering and modulation effects to create newly punchy and powerful samples.

With the upgraded version 1.5 you have the ability to import any sample as a texture source, so the sound design possibilities really are boundless and you can experiment with texturising everything from the wimpiest to the weirdest source material. Recommended, particularly for electronic producers with an “unusual drums” addiction!

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

[Back to contents]

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There are a lot of options for effects plugins these days, and it would be impossible to cover every decent one. So let me and other readers know in the comments if we’ve made any glaring omissions and which are your favourite or most-used multi-effects plugins!

And if you’d like to venture further down the rabbit hole, many of the multi-effects plugins discussed in this article are also part of larger bundles from particular developers, so for further research I would urge you to check out 20 Of The Best Music Production Plugin Bundles In The World.

As well as that, most of these developers also make other plugins that featured in our in-depth 10-part series on Sound Design Techniques & Tools, which includes selections of the very best plugins for delay, distortion, layering, modulation, pitch-shifting, creative filtering, granular processing and several more categories.

For a definitive collection of tips and techniques for enhancing your music to a professional level – from advanced compression techniques to shaping and placing your sounds in the mix with correctly applied reverb and fine-tuned EQ adjustments – don’t forget to check out the Ultimate Guides series: If you liked this post, you’ll definitely find these useful too:

25 Of The Best Drum Plugins In The World

10 Ways To Make Your Soft Synths Sound More Analogue

Sound Design Tools & Techniques Series Part 1: Delay

The post 21 Of The Best Multi-Effects Audio Plugins 2021 appeared first on Get That Pro Sound.

If you’re anything like us, you’ll probably appreciate the short list we’ve put together below to highlight a few of the most exceptional deals we’ve noticed for musicians and producers this weekend in the realms of world-class software effects, synths and bundles. Whatever your budget or style, there are some real bargains to be had:

1. Soundtoys: Up To 70% OFF the bundle and individual plugins

Until: December 03, 2020

The Soundtoys bundle has become one of only a handful of true staples of every self-respecting producers plugin toolbox regardless of style or genre, and their Black Friday Sale is always the time to get it at the very lowest price of the year. What’s more, each of the individual plugins are also heavily discounted, so now is definitely the time to pick up modern classics like EchoBoy, Decapitator and Crystallizer if you don’t already have them.

2. Waves: Weekly Runup Deals, + Free New Plugin

November – December, 2020, dates vary

Waves are offering deals on all of their individual plugins and bundles in the runup to Black Friday and Cyber Monday. As Waves often do, you get a greater percentage discount when you buy more plugins, with bonus discounts of 30%, 40% and 50% on each additional plugin purchased. A great time to snap up some industry-standard tools for your productions, like the API 2500 vintage modelling compressor, SSL 4000 Collection and H-Series bundles, and the excellent Ovox Vocal ReSynthesis.

Waves have even put together a Buyers Guide featuring 30 of their most popular plugins and bundles —  check this out for help with navigating their extensive range to find exactly the tools you’ll get the most use and best results from.

Plus, on Black Friday itself, November 27, Waves are releasing a completely free new plugin from their CLA range in collaboration with mixer Chris Lord-Alge. Sign up here before Dec 27 to ensure you’re in line for the free download!

3. Baby Audio: 60% Off Complete Bundle, Up To 40% Off Individual Plugins

Until: December 06, 2020

Get up to 40% off all of Baby Audio’s much-loved, simple-but-addictive creative tools Super VHS, the new Parallel Aggressor. the Comeback Kid delay, and I Heart NY compressor. Or just get all four of them in the Complete Bundle and save a full 60%. Recommended!

4. Soundtheory Gullfoss EQ: 35% Off

Nov 30 – December 03, 2020

Gullfoss from Soundtheory is a leader in a new generation of smart EQs that take a huge amount of work and time out of certain mixing and mastering tasks, that previously took a lot of manual tweaking to get similar results. Gullfoss is a favourite amongst film and media sound designers, techno producers and everyone in-between who wants to milk every last drop of clarity, intelligibility and texture from their tracks and recordings.

This is the best deal Soundtheory have ever done for Gullfoss. Highly recommended!

5. iZotope: 95% Off Holiday Bundle, and More

Until: December 8, 2020

iZotope have big discounts on pretty much all of their range this year, including the Music Production Suite 4, the Tonal Balance Bundle, and all versions of mastering tool Ozone 9, but this particular Holiday Bundle has to be one of the best value offerings around. Including everybody’s favourite creative multi-band distortion/channel strip Trash2, the unique spectral synth Iris 2, and three of Exponential Audio’s reverbs (no doubt owing to the iZotope brand partnership/acquisition).

Not to mention the Elements Suite, providing the intro versions of each of iZotope’s flagship mixing, mastering and audio repair solutions.

Separately, you can also get 50% off a crossgrade from any paid iZotope or Exponential Audio plugin to iZotope’s newest cutting edge reverb, Neoverb.

6. AudioThing: Up to 67% Off

Until: December 02, 2020

Some of our favourite and most fun and characterful plugins, and also incredibly affordable – even more so right now. We recommend: the Frostbite 2 multi-effect, Phase Motion 2 phaser, and the Roland Space Echo-inspired Outer Space delay.

7. Loopcloud: 3 months for $3 plus Loopmasters Bass Master Plugin for Free

Until: December 02, 2020

Loopmasters‘ very cool and rapidly developing sample library/manager platform Loopcloud is our one-stop shop for sample organisation and shopping on the fly, putting everything right at your fingertips as you work without needing to even leave your DAW.

With their own range of sample packs covering every conceivable style and sub-genre, alongside a huge range of packs from the best boutique labels around, all under one easily browsable roof: Artisan Audio, Black Octopus, CAPSUN, Sample Magic, Wave Alchemy, ModeAudio and many, many more. 4 million sounds, apparently, but we stopped counting after the first million… You’ll never run out of creative fodder for your productions!

If you haven’t yet clued into the magic of having your sample library fully manageable and integrated with one of the largest online collections of audio production assets that you can audition and drag straight into your project as you work, now is the time to get on board – it could radically improve your workflow, drastically cut the time you spend organising and finding the most useful samples for each project, and generally revitalise your personal sample library for the months ahead. Recommended workflow enhancer!

8. Arturia: 50% Off V Collection 7, Pigments 2 and FX Collection

Until: December 03, 2020

It’s essentially everything from Arturia at half-price. That should be enough to get your virtual wallet out, right?

These three products represent some of the very finest vintage synth emulations, with the latest version V Collection 7 including the new CZ V, Synthi V and Mellotron V; lush effects processors and saturation devices in the the full FX Collection modeled on some of the most celebrated classic hardware units from the Electro‑Harmonix Memory Man delay pedal to warm old analog desk preamps; and then there’s Pigments 2, an untypically forward-looking killer analog-wavetable-hybrid synth with incredibly powerful modulation options.

Whatever your style, you can’t go wrong with any of these.

9. Creative Intent: 50% Off Tantrum, Remnant and the Deformation Bundle

21 Nov – November 29, 2017

Tantrum in particular is one of the most unique, fun and easy-to-use distortion plugins around, yet has seemed to fly mostly under the radar. Check it out and buy for half as much money as usual!

Remnant is also a very inventive plugin with a killer graphic interface, guaranteed to inspire any soundscape design session with its fragmentary delay effects.

10. KV331 Audio Synthmaster: Up To 82% Off

Until: November 30, 2020

Cult favourite soft synths, the semi-modular SynthMaster 2.9 and it’s wavetable sibling Synthmaster One both have a loyal following that includes everyone from beginners to chart-topping EDM artists, because they are incredibly powerful and punch far above their modest price range.

Synthmaster has the ability to make sounds using almost any type of synthesis you can think of, including VA, Additive, Wavetable, Wavescanning, Phase Modulation, FM, Pulse Width Modulation, Ring Modulation, Amplitude Modulation, Physical Modeling and SFZ Sample Playback synthesis. This makes it, among other things, an invaluable learning tool if you’re looking to expand your synth programming skills. And with its 1800 factory presets there’s plenty of raw material for inspiration and to show you exactly how to get the most out of every synthesis combination and the extensive modulation options.

This deal includes all of the various Synthmaster versions, bundles and crossgrade options, so whatever your budget or skill level, there’s definitely something for every producer here.

You can also currently get our Ultimate Guides series of ebooks for a full 55% off the usual price – including the entire Complete Bundle for the best price we’ve ever offered!

The most thorough guides on the fundamentals of making and mixing your music to a professional standard, focusing on the key principles and concepts that you can start using in your productions right now: whether it’s the holy mixing triumvirate of Compression, EQ and Reverb, or learning to tame and maximise a powerful low-end for all your tracks, there’s a wealth of timeless knowledge right here.

Head over to the Ebook Store for details of what’s included in each guide, and simply enter the coupon code “BF2020” at the checkout to activate your savings!

The post The 10 Black Friday 2020 Deals For Musicians That We’re Most Excited About appeared first on Get That Pro Sound.

We previously covered why you might want to use saturation plugins to add life, character and warmth to your mixes (see that post here).

So you know you want to use saturation to improve your mixes and increase their punchiness, warmth and presence, but don’t know where to start?

Or you want to take your analogue experiments up a notch while still keeping everything In The Box?

In either case, and whether your budget is $0.00 or $200+, there’s something for everyone here. Take a look at this selection of the best saturation plugins around:

1. FabFilter Saturn 2

Saturn 2 is a pro-grade distortion and saturation plugin with a fantastic interface and workflow for multi-band saturation, allowing you to apply broad strokes or get very detailed and clinical with equal ease when applying warmth and distortion to the parts and frequencies of your sounds that need it while avoiding the rest.

Saturn 2 can produce effects ranging from warm and subtle analogue saturation to full-on crunchy bit-crushed digital distortion, and for many users this plugin is a potential one-stop shop for saturation as it’s so flexible – the modulation, panning and even compression options are excellent (as always with FabFilter), and the clickable spectrum analyser field at the back is where you can visually set up the crossover points for your different frequency bands, that can then all be treated independently.

In between that feature and the simple mix knob, you have a whole bunch of options for how, and to what degree, you process your sounds. The latest update, Saturn 2, saw the interface get a welcome refresh and improved modulation visualisation, new subtle saturation and linear phase processing for mastering, and a range of additional distortion types in the processing Style menu. Recommended!

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU, AAX, RTAS

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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2. Soundtoys Decapitator

Excellent sound, great interface and simple controls. As with other Soundtoys plugins, it’s easy to set up several settings and demo them against each other with the “compare” knob.

Beyond this, Decapitator also has a really cool “Style” selector feature. Choosing one of the five lettered buttons engages a different saturation algorithm modelled after each of five pieces of classic gear. The letters stand for Ampex analog tape machine, EMI channel, Neve channel, and the Triode and Pentode settings on the Thermionic Culture Vulture valve enhancer. Between the Style selection and the simple Mix, Drive and EQ/Tone knob controls, you have just the right number of options to quickly find the vibe you’re after without getting bogged down.

From the name you might suspect Decapitator to want to tear your head off with distortion the whole time — and it can indeed easily do this, with the Punish button! — but when you’re after more subtlety, it’s amazingly good at just sitting quietly too and adding that warm analogue vibe to any part or track.

If you get Decapitator as part of the Soundtoys 5 Bundle (which I definitely recommend, as featured in our Best Bundles roundup), you’ll also get other plugins that can provide a number of alternative saturation colours with the likes of Devil-Loc Deluxe (great on drums!) and the tube amp-modelling Radiator. Even the delay Echoboy, with delay amount dialled back to zero, can make an extremely useful saturator, with its multitude of colouration types for quick and dirty processing and sound design.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, AU, AAX, RTAS

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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3. iZotope Trash 2

Trash 2 can apply everything from extremely subtle tape-style saturation to the heaviest tube amp and digital crunch, fuzz and general destruction!

As I mentioned in our recent Sound Design series article on Distortion, Trash 2 is extraordinarily versatile, featuring a series of switchable filters, multi-band dynamics, waveshapers, LFOs, envelopes, and even delay alongside the distortion algorithm sections. It’s basically a very cool and unusual channel strip plugin in disguise!

But what makes it so good for saturation duties is the degree of control you have to sculpt the processing to your preference. Even by simply dragging around in the waveshaper window in the Trash module, you can stumble on a vast range of characters very quickly. Couple this with the algorithm menu and the ability to treat any of 4 user-defined frequency bands independently, and you have everything you need to add warmth and punch in any sound design or mixing scenario.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU, AAX, RTAS

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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4. Softube Saturation Knob, Harmonics and Tape

I couldn’t decide between these so decided to just include all three under one listing. Totally cheating, I know. Softube offer something for everyone when it comes to saturation, starting with the Saturation Knob — which is free! Simple and light enough to use on many channels throughout a full production.

The straightforwardly-named Tape has become a go-to for many producers when it comes to adding that cohesion and glue that recording to tape famously provided in the mythic Olden Days of the analogue studio era.

The most recent (and most expensive) addition, Harmonics, is an interesting beast, kind of a Saturation Knob in Hulk mode!

It uses what Softube call “Dynamic Transient Control” to analyse the input signal and apply its processing in a more program-dependent and sympathetic way than perhaps some earlier plugin algorithms might have done, which can help retain the details and transients of your sounds, which are typically the first things to go when you start to apply heavier saturation and distortion.

Like Decapitator above, it also features five different distortion models to choose from, but unlike that plugin Harmonics covers a broader (and less model-specific) range of saturation source types: Solid State, Transformer, Master, Tube and Modern.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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5. Klanghelm SDRR

Another fantastic all-rounder for your saturation needs, SDRR centers around its four modes: Tube, Digi, Fuzz and Desk. Each mode changes the interface graphics as well as displaying some controls that are unique to that mode.

As with all the plugins from this highly-regarded independent developer, the sound quality is equal to any in the game and the value for money is exceptional. Plus, its the thoughtful details, and things like the clear controls and easy size, quality and calibration options that all add up to make SDRR a pleasure to use.

Also check out Klanghelm’s free IVGI saturation & distortion plugin, for a streamlined but excellent taste of what SDRR offers.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Klanghelm

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6. D16 Group Redopter 2

Redopter models hot-rodded vintage vacuum tube guitar amplifiers to impart that distinctive creamy, growly tube saturation to your sounds, which is quite different from some of the tape saturation plugins we’ve looked at so far. The Pre Filter and Preamp sections, together with the knobby 4-band parametric EQ, mean you have a deceptively huge amount of control to shape the overall tone and select the frequency points at which the saturation starts to break up the signal when driven harder.

And all without any flashy animated visual displays! Which is not to say the GUI isn’t great — in fact the skeuomorphic controls and hardware unit-style brushed metal faceplate are actually very inspiring for diving in and tweaking out parameters while keeping your attention fixed firmly on the sound. Recommended, especially for electronic/techno producers and anyone who processes a lot of synth sounds.

Also definitely check out two other D16 plugins for alternate flavours of distortion-type processing:  Decimort 2 is my personal favourite for bit-crushing, and the multiband distortion unit Devastator 2 is particularly good for harder and industrial techno styles, amongst other uses.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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7. u-he Satin

As well as being extremely fast and simple to operate — you can basically get away with only touching the Input and Output dials while watching the nice VU meter 90% of the time — Satin is certainly up there with the very best-sounding tape emulation plugins.

Of course you can get under the hood when you want to, opening up the Service tab and messing with the finer parameters to your hearts content, from the amount of hiss and wow & flutter to setting a tape EQ “Bump” and changing the specific tape type and speed.

Satin also has some other cool tricks up its sleeve. In the regular Studio mode, you can assign each instance of Satin to one of the eight groups, with each group behaving like a multitrack tape, ‘remote-controlled’ from any instance in that group — great for real-world applications when you want to apply tape saturation across multiple tracks in a full mix/project setting, which is often the case.

You also have Delay and Flange modes, making Satin a multi-effect plugin with authentic tape delay and tape flanging effects!

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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8. Sonnox Oxford Inflator

Something a little different from the typical tape and tube-modelling saturation plugins, the Sonnox Inflator is — even after many, many years! — something of a secret weapon, and still particularly popular amongst media and film composers who are often processing strings and orchestral elements, largely acoustic mixes and other things where the typical compression and saturation tools and settings might produce unwanted pumping and other unwanted colouring.

When you want the power, warmth and modern presence that is typically associated with “saturation” but you also want to maintain a relative transparency in the processing, check out the Inflator.

I won’t pretend to know how it actually works its magic, but the sonic usefulness of the Inflator has definitely outlived its original, distinctly Windows 95-style interface…

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, AU, AAX, RTAS, UAD DSP

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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9. Black Box Analog Design HG-2

The HG-2 was already a highly coveted analogue hardware unit before it’s makers, Black Box Analog Design, partnered up with Brainworx to do the painstaking software modelling for the also-highly-regarded plugin version.

Typically used on the overall mix buss, the HG-2 adds a magical mixture of loudness, parallel tube saturation and highly controllable harmonics, the latter controlled with dedicated Pentode and Triode dials.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Alliance

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10. SPL Vitalizer MK2-T

The original Vitalizer is another hardware staple of professional studios around the world, in part because it does a rather unique combination of things. Yes, boosting tube presence and harmonic richness is certainly its jam, but at the same time it’ll provide stereo widening, frequency separation, compression/expansion, loudness and overall clarity to a mix. Whether you’re looking to fix problems or to enhance an already great mix, the Vitalizer should definitely be considered alongside more typical saturation processors.

Also check out SPL’s TwinTube: Modelled on their own hardware modules, TwinTube provides two big dials: one for adding tube saturation (warmer, louder), the other for specifically adding harmonic content like an exciter/enhancer (presence, clarity, sparkle). Awesome sound, and again the interface makes it a breeze to dial up your preferred settings.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU, AAX, UAD DSP

Buy Now At Plugin Alliance

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11. URS Saturation

One of the early professional favourites for in-the-box saturation, URS Saturation still deserves a mention on our list. The interface is streamlined, and the controls are extremely quick and intuitive to dial in. Choose from ten vintage analog algorithms (covering six tube preamps, two speeds of tape, and two transformer types), crank the Input for more drive, and set your Saturation and Dry-Wet balance in the middle for varying degrees of full or parallel processing.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU, AAX

Buy Now At URS

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12. Brainworx Vertigo VSM-3

A high-end hardware recreation that is equally popular with mastering engineers and adventurous producers when mixing. As with many plugins from Brainworx, this software model of the Vertigo Sound VSM-2 Mix Satellite is well-regarded in its own right for bringing the power and much of the sonic character of the hardware to the convenience of the plugin format.

The VSM-3 features two independent (virtual) saturation circuits, identified on the faceplate as 2nd Harmonic FET Crusher and 3rd Harmonic Zener Blender, referring to the different characters of distortion created by each circuit. The Crusher side can be considered more of a smooth, rich saturation, while the Blender side contributes more of a brighter, exciter-like vibe. You can blend any combination of the two with the central THD Mixer knob, as well as align them serially or in parallel, and each with its own stereo or M/S setting, for a huge range of spatially-enhancing saturation effects.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU, AAX, UAD DSP

Buy Now At Plugin Alliance

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13. iZotope Ozone 9 Vintage Tape

Available in iZotope’s mastering suites Ozone 9 Standard and Ozone 9 Advanced, and with the option to load as a separate plugin in Advanced, the Vintage Tape module is an excellent go-to for typical saturation duties when mixing and mastering. It features stripped-down but extremely well-considered controls for choosing tape speed, Bias (for tuning the saturation response), Harmonics and smooth high and low-end EQ bumps with the Emphasis sliders.

With characteristics modelled on the Studer A810 analogue tape machine, Ozone’s modern, super-clean interface and clear controls will be especially appreciated by anyone who wants the desirable sound of classic hardware but without getting waylaid by the often strange and completely unintuitive quirks of the old machines and their controls, quirks that are usually — for some reason! — also recreated in the plugin versions.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

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14. Universal Audio UAD Ampex ATR-102 & Studer A800 Tape Machines

Two separate plugins from Universal Audio, modelling two of the most popular tape machines that could be commonly found in most professional studios of the analog era. Thought I should mention both!

Speaking of Studer, Universal Audio’s model of the A800 Multichannel Tape Recorder is more of a one-to-one faithful recreation, the opposite approach to Ozone’s Vintage Tape above. You can almost smell the tape and motor oil. Probably the most accurate representation of how real multitrack recording tape actually sounds in a plugin, but with an authentic array of controls and calibration settings, you’ll also need to know (or learn) what you’re doing to really get the most out of this plugin.

The results can be fabulous, but it’s not necessarily the easiest route to saturation heaven if you didn’t come up in the era of operating real tape machines. On the other hand, if you want to expand your knowledge of the intricacies of classic tape recording and technique but you don’t have access to an actual studio reel-to-reel tape machine, the UAD plugins are a great, authentic option.

The same can certainly be said of the Ampex ATR-102, although this one was originally used in more of a mastering and “final polish” context than the recording-workhorse Studer. It’s my personal favourite of the two, especially for using on the master bus chain and mixing into it or when doing my own “mastering to tape”, and with it’s controls for applying destructive hiss and wobble, it’s awesome for processing synths in a subtle or extreme fashion too.

Available for: Mac, PC | UAD DSP only, requires UAD hardware such as the Apollo Twin MkII audio interface to run.

Buy Now At Universal Audio

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15. Fielding DSP Reviver

Using a streamlined version of a saturation configuration we’ve seen used in a number of the plugins in our list, with Reviver you have direct control over the balance of second-order and third-order harmonics, which can be thought of broadly speaking as defining the characteristics of tube amplifiers (second-order, warm, smooth) and tape or solid state amplifiers when overdriven (third-order, punch, fatness, detail) respectively.

Reviver is a marvel of highly controllable saturation, that with minimal controls can cover a lot of distortion bases while also being pleasingly pro-quality and free of artefacts and aliasing, delivered via a disarmingly simple interface. And perhaps best of all, at a price that anyone could afford. Recommended.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU

Buy Now At Fielding DSP

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16. Waves Abbey Road J37 Tape

Modelled on one of the tape machines used at the world famous Abbey Road Studios in London (most famously the recording home of The Beatles, and many others), the Waves J37 Tape hits a sweet spot between authentic sound, highly useful features nicely laid out in an inspiring interface, and, importantly for many, sheer value for money with a price ($35.99 deal at the time of writing) that makes it a quality tape machine emulation for almost every budget. Recommended!

I noticed Billy Bush make an insightful point in this promo video for the J37 thats totally worth remembering: whether or not you want to “sound like The Beatles”, or even need or want the exact sound of a real tape machine and its characteristics, the specific way that this plugin (and by extension, all the plugins on this list) has been uniquely modelled and developed gives it a unique colour and workflow that, regardless of how authentically “analogue” it sounds, is a highly creative tool that can be used in a variety of ways by modern producers, making modern styles of music that might never have occurred to The Beatles or George Martin. So go crazy, stay creative, and don’t get too boxed in by the idea of “correct” ways to use and apply saturation and distortion!

Available for: Mac, PC | VST, VST3, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Waves

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Conclusion

So there you have it, an (almost) definitive list of plugins that can help you achieve a better, warmer, more expansive Pro Sound. I recommend trying them all, but eventually wittling it down to a smaller selection of your favourite ones for specific tasks. Remember, Less Is More – you don’t want plugin overwhelm getting in the way of actually making music.

I really hope this article is useful to you – it takes a lot of time and work to research and put it all together, so if you’d like to show your appreciation do consider purchasing the Ultimate Guides below, and/or purchasing your plugins through our links, some of which will provide us with a small commission at absolutely no additional cost to you. Thanks!

For a lot more sound design and processing tips, check out the Ultimate Guides series, a definitive collection of tips and techniques for enhancing your music and bringing it to a professional level:

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Find more suggestions on great-sounding, analogue-warm plugins and how to get the most out of them in these related articles on GTPS:

50 Of The Best Compressor Plugins In The World

25 Of The Best Drum Plugins In The World

10 Ways To Make Your Soft Synths Sound More Analogue

The post 16 Of The Best Saturation Plugins In The World 2020 appeared first on Get That Pro Sound.

We’re rounding up our 10-part Sound Design series with a look at granular synthesis, and take a deep dive into some of the very best granular plugins for breaking your sounds into tiny grain particles and smashing them back together in interesting and never-quite-heard-before ways. Let’s go…

What Is Granular Synthesis?

Granular synthesis is a method of splitting a constant, referred to as grains, which can then be reconfigured, modulated and resequenced, and spat out the other end as a new, generally quite ethereal sound. The degree to which the new sound is recognisable to the original source is determined by several parameters:

Grains – sets the number of grain samples being played back simultaneously

Length – sets the length of each grain, usually denoted in milliseconds, allowing for more staccato/choppy effects with shorter lengths or smoothing things out with longer ones.

Position – determines where in the source sample the grains will be sampled from; as with other granular plugin controls, the Position knob often pairs with a Random control to randomize the position of every grain, for an infinitely evolving sound.

Speed – determines how fast you move through the source sample, playing grains as you go. Negative values make the grains play back in reverse.

With the number, length and position of the grains determined, the granular engine can play them back consecutively, reversed, partially overlapping, or layered neatly on top of each other; the volume and frequency content can be adjusted; grains can be looped, enveloped, pitched up or down, panned across the stereo field, phase aligned… You get the idea.

“Essentially, granular allows you to morph, stretch, push and pull the very “molecules” of your sounds, and in real time.”

What Is Granular Synthesis Good For? – Some Tips

To my mind, granular synthesis is inherently futuristic sounding, partly I think due to the subtle glitchiness and otherworldliness imparted by the character of the clouds of grains (It was so futuristic, in fact, that when composer Iannis Xenakis came up with the concept in the late 1950s, he had no way of actually trying it out with the kinds of powerful digital processing tools that we have at our disposal today, and had to make do with analog tone generators and very laborious-sounding tape splicing!).

But also because you get a lot of movement built into a granular patch, with the grains providing very complex and subtle modulations that immediately make it sound much more sophisticated and fascinating than a typical subtractive synth starter patch.

Organic electronic to industrial electronic

You can use source samples of acoustic and organic instruments and environments, and mangle them while still retaining something of their organic, real-world essence — if desired. You can also create very robotic, morphing mechanical sounds too. In all, it’s an undoubtedly atmospheric sound, perfect for generating cinematic pads, drones and FX layers with relative ease.

Synthesis, meet sampling

Perhaps the greatest aspect of granular synthesis for sound designers is that is truly blurs the line between synthesis and sampling. The best granular processing tools allow you to import (ideally drag and drop) your own audio samples as source material, so you can start coming up with absolutely unique textures and effects right away, and you will never run out of creative possibilities. The creative possibilities will be dictated simply by your ingenuity with combining source audio material with great granular processing settings – and unlike with more traditional subtractive synths, there really are limitless possibilities.

Reinvent your sample collection

Granular synthesis gives your existing sample library a whole new lease of life! Thought you had done everything your could with your current drum samples? Why not use them as the basis for a bespoke collection of new ambient pad sounds? Or use kick drum one-shots as the basis for rippling percussion loops?

As with most of the techniques and tools covered in our sound design series, some combinations of source material and particular processing tools work better than others for creating useable and desirable results. Granular is no different, and which granular plugins you connect with most will be determined by a number of things: first of course, the quality and character of the sound produced; but also consider which interface you find easiest and most inspiring to explore and get experimental with, and which plugins have the controls, flexibility and additional features that you reach for most.

Blend granular processing with the dry sound

Granular doesn’t have to an all or nothing affair. Like any effects processing, you can achieve some of the best and most polished results by applying granular more delicately to simply enhance certain aspects or frequencies of an existing sound, adding subtle reinforcement or additional movement and interest around the edges of the part without completely transforming its character. Seeing granular processing as just another shade in your palette, rather than a big splash of solid colour that has to drench everything, will lead you to more sophisticated sounds and uses in your compositions.

Combine granular processing with other effects

Of course, you can combine granular processing with other effects. Reverb and delay are especially good effects for granular sounds, mainly because they can be used to extend and accentuate the dreamy, ethereal droning quality that granular excels at.

But don’t stop there: try feeding your previously distorted, compressed, pitch-shifted, reversed and otherwise heavily processed sounds into one of the granular plugins below, and see what new twists you can bring. Try the granular processing both before and after your other processing and editing: you’ll get quite different results.

We’ve discussed some of the best sound design processing techniques in the previous articles in this series, like stereo processing, layering and distortion, so if you want to dig more into these areas, be sure to catch up on the previous parts in the series:

• Part 1 – Delay
• Part 2 – Distortion
• Part 3 – Layering
• Part 4 – Classic Modulation FX
• Part 5 – Stereo & Panning FX
• Part 6 – Pitch Shifting
• Part 7 – Reverb
• Part 8 – Step Sequencers & Envelope Generators
• Part 9 – Creative Filtering
• Part 10 – Granular Synthesis & Sample Processing

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The Best Granular Plugins For Sound Design: Roundup List

Granular synthesis plugin processors fall into two broad categories. First, those that need to be fed with a pre-recorded audio sample to act as a kind of “oscillator” sound source. These might be typically be considered granular “instruments” in their own right. And second, there are plugins that are designed to be used as insert effects for processing source sounds in real time, behaving in much the same way as other effects processors like phasers and reverbs.

Here we’ve put together a list that includes a bunch of our favourites of both types. Check it out:

1. Audio Damage Quanta

Hitting a sweet spot between recognisable and highly playable synthesizer parameters and interface features that invite granular exploration, Quanta makes quality granular textures easy and exciting and has to be up there with the very best granular plugins currently available.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST2, VST3, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

2. Inertia Sound Systems Granulizer 2

Something of a next-gen granular plugin for me, with the clean streamlined GUI of The Mangle’s and Granite’s (more on those further down) but with some different sculpting features that are at once intriguing and a huge amount of fun to explore.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST2, VST3, AU

Buy Now At Inertia Sound Systems

3. Steinberg Padshop 2

With version 2, Steinberg overhauled Padshop into a much more modern granular affair, with a bunch of new filters and effects, an added arpeggiator and a whole new second spectral synthesis engine.

If you’re a Cubase Pro user, you’ll be lucky enough to find Padshop included in the bundled plugin instrument library. But even if you don’t use Cubase, you should still consider Padshop if you’re after some of the highest-quality, smoothest granular pads and effects around.

Also see: Steinberg’s HALion 6 mega-sampler features a cutting-edge granular engine, and incorporates the Skylab granular instrument which is similar to Padshop.

This video offers a good, concise overview of some of the effects you can achieve with Padshop:

Available for: Mac, PC | VST2, VST3, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Steinberg

4. NI Reaktor Ensembles (Free and Premium)

By now the worst-kept secret in music software must be how fun and exciting it can be delving into the online library of free user-created ensembles made for Reaktor 6. And of course there are a range of granular ensembles to check out: Dron-e, GrainStates, GrainCube, GRIP Grain Cloud Synth… the list is too long to really even skim the surface here.

Beyond the free user ensembles, there are also some premium third-party offerings that are more than worth mentioning: Twisted Tools have a whole range of multi-effects processors that incorporate granular modules like Buffeater and Rolodecks, as well as the free granular sampler FLAKES; there is also Blinksonic Cataliz, a very cool granular synth and beatlooper.

Also see: Native Instruments have a couple of premium Reaktor Player-hosted granular synths, Form and Straylight, which provide a clearer (but far less fun and satisfying) path to achieving your own granular sounds.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST2, VST3, AU, AAX

Download At NI Reaktor User Library

5. Ableton Max For Live Devices (Free and Premium)

For Ableton Suite users, the Max For Live (M4L) devices user and third-party libraries offer a similar playground, and also feature some great granular processors that will particularly appeal to those you prefer to stay within the Ableton devices ecosystem when producing and experimenting.

Of course there is Robert Henke’s (aka electronic/glitch pioneer Monolake) well-known Granulator II which is even now included in Live 10 Suite; Grain Scanner from Amazing Noises, and the granular synth/looper Iota.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST2, AU

Download At Ableton

6. Melda Productions MGranularMB

Czech developers Melda Productions are quietly building an impressive reputation through their vast range of modest-seeming-but-actually-very-powerful-and-versatile audio plugins that cover every possible processor you might need for mixing, mastering or sound design processing duties. The “MB” in MGranularMB stands, as usual, for multi-band, allowing you to process your sound source in several different frequency bands, providing a degree of control over the granular effect that is unusually precise and frequency-specific. This makes it especially good for adding granular effects to bolster existing instruments and elements in your mix like drums and lead sounds rather than completely transforming things beyond recognition, although it is entirely capable of that too when you want.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST2, VST3, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

7. Sound Guru The Mangle

The Mangle was one of the first modern-era plugins to nail a certain flavour of “musical” granular sound that has made it an early and enduring favourite of many professional sound designers and media composers.

A straightforward interface with intuitive controls and a pleasing but not obtrusive eye-candy animation of active grains make this a solid workhorse granular processor for quick experiments and batch processing.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST2, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Sound Guru

8. New Sonic Arts Granite

Like The Mangle, another workhorse granular sample mangler that strikes a great balance between streamlined efficiency and offering a well-considered number of modulation capabilities to quickly transform and sculpt your sounds. As well as excellent, musical results. Maximum fun for sure.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST2, AU, Standalone

Buy Now At New Sonic Arts

9. Hvoya Audio Ribs

One of several good free granular effects plugins, Ribs is an excellent choice for dipping your toe into the world of granular synthesis and seeing if it’s your timbral jam before spending money on fancier premium options – it may be all the granular you need.

Also see: Argotlunar, another good free option for both Mac and PC.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST2, AU

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

10. Audiority GrainSpace

GrainSpace has a more knobby, hardware-inspired interface that could certainly inspire where other more futuristic-looking plugins can get distracting. Supremely flexible and nicely laid out, providing a plethora of controls that really invite tweaking, experimenting and listening. My favourites of course: the Freeze control and the Chord Resonator, ideal for techno.

Note: Some have noted the resemblance to Mutable Instruments Clouds module. If you are especially keen to acquire the sound of the Clouds hardware Eurorack module in plugin form, you could also consider Softubes official software emulation that is available as an add-on for their Modular plugin suite.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST2, VST3, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

 

11. Inear Display Litote

Litote is subtitled as a “granular exploration box”, which sums it up pretty well. A deceptively simple GUI houses some very cool features for producing morphing, infinitely-evolving and randomized granular soundscapes.

Central to Litote’s operation are the XY pad, allowing you to morph between up to four different audio engines, and the Trajectory section where you can set the plugin on a semi-random path, sit back and watch/hear it unfold – a bit similar to Omnisphere’s The Orb modulation device thingy.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST2, AU

Buy Now At Inear Display

 

13. Glitchmachines Palindrome

Glitchmachines, headed by sound designer Ivo Ivanov, have created several glitch effects and instrument plugins over the years, and Palindrome is the jewel in the crown to date: 4 granular samplers fused together which can all be modulated and effected separately, before being brought together for multi-layered granular chaos. Palindrome, like other Gltichmachines plugins, features a large number of points in the signal paths for randomisation, which help make it especially good for generating loads of sonic variations very quickly: always high on any serious sound designers priority list.

Also see: GlitchMachines Polygon is another VST instrument with granular capabilities, while Fracture XT is an excellent granular glitch processor insert effect, again with multiple randomisers.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST2, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

 

14. Xenakios PaulXStretch

An odd entry perhaps in a discussion of granular plugins, since PaulXStretch is not technically a granular processor. However, it does produce results reminiscent of beautifuly gritty granular pads and drones, and I’m betting that if you’re remotely interested in granular sound design, you’ll certainly also be excited by what you can achieve with this one.

Based on an original standalone app called PaulStretch, PaulXStretch is an effort by indy developer Xenakios to put the same functionality into a more convenient VST/AU plugin that you can load in your DAW.

Basically, PaulXStretch uses an extreme time-stretching algorithm (think 8x or more) to stretch out any sound sample waaay beyond recognition and turn it into a long, smooth-but-grainy, almost universally beautiful drone. There are only really a couple of controls: duration and resolution. Experiment with different combinations of these two factors on a variety of material for subtly different timbral effects, but either way, grainy ambient magic is almost guaranteed whatever audio you throw into it.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST2, AU

Download At Xenakio’s Blog

 

15. accSone Crusher-X 8.5

Perhaps the most full-featured and slick granular synth processor, Crusher-X is designed for post production and sound design industry-grade granular processing. Not cheap, but arguably the very best dedicated solution in the granular business.

Check out this short demo of sounds being processed with Crusher-X by Hollywood movie trailer sound design specialist Robert Dudzic:

Available for: Mac, PC | VST2, AU

Buy Now At accSone

 

16. Madrona Labs Kaivo

Kaivo is a semi-modular software synthesizer with a similar semi-modular patching layout to Madrona’s other flagship synth Aalto. Kaivo’s USP, though, is that it features a rather unusual but exceedingly powerful combination of sound generators: granular synthesis and physical modelling.

Using the Granulator, Resonator and Body modules, you can come up with some very cool and expressive patches that have a character quite distinct from your typical straight-up granular synths. Recommended.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST2, AU

Buy Now At Madrona Labs

 

17. Omnisphere 2.6

Somewhat buried amongst the vast range of sonic options that make up Omnisphere, you’ll find a granular processing function, which combined with the ability to import your own samples introduced in version 2, makes this powerhouse synth a perhaps unexpected granular processing beast. Load your own sounds or draw from the famously extensive factory library, swtich on the Granular module in the selected Oscillator settings window, and you’re away. Try combining the granular processing with FM or Ring Modulation, and stack granulated sample layers and synthesizer oscillators, in any combination, in the 4 available oscillator slots, for even more sonic mangling possibilities.

The controls and GUI of the Granular section are fairly streamlined, but when combined with the many other features and effects of Omnisphere, you’re not really inhibited from getting pretty detailed with your processing. In fact, Spectrasonics have a knack of providing just the right number of controls for balancing speed and depth of work.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST2, AU, AAX, Standalone

Buy Now At Spectrasonics

 

18. Output Portal

Portal is an extremely musical take on granular, and excels for processing vocals, synths and lead lines. The initilaized GUI is pretty streamlined, centering on the circular visualizer that illustrates the granular parameters, but you can also go under the hood on the Advanced page if desired and get hands-on control of every aspect of the processing. Beautifully done.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST2, VST3, AU, AAX

Buy Now At Plugin Boutique

 

19. SoundMorph Dust

Another granular processor with a mesmerizing visualizer panel, Dust is based on the physics of a real-time particle simulation, so you can set the number and motion of the particle “emitters” bouncing around the main window and hear how the granular parameter values change accordingly. It’s so fun, and sounds equally fantastic, although you might forget what you were doing before once you start watching the animated emitters… 

Available for: Mac, PC | VST2, VST3, AU, AAX

Buy Now At SoundMorph

 

 

 

That wraps up this series on sound design – it turned out to be a lot more work than I anticipated(!) at the start, but I’m super pleased to have put together such a broad-ranging resource for you, and I hope you find a bunch of useful and inspiring tips and discover new plugins that will aid you in your own quest for original and evocative sounds in your productions. Thanks for reading!

For a bunch more sound design tips and other related plugin recommendations, don’t forget to catch up on the previous parts in the series:

• Part 1 – Delay
• Part 2 – Distortion
• Part 3 – Layering
• Part 4 – Classic Modulation FX
• Part 5 – Stereo & Panning FX
• Part 6 – Pitch Shifting
• Part 7 – Reverb
• Part 8 – Step Sequencers & Envelope Generators
• Part 9 – Creative Filtering
• Part 10 – Granular Synthesis & Sample Processing

For a lot more sound design and processing tips, check out the Ultimate Guides series, a definitive collection of tips and techniques for enhancing your music and bringing it to a professional level:

If you liked this post, you’ll definitely find these useful too:

What’s The Best DAW Music Production Software, Really? An Essential Buyers Guide

25 Of The Best Drum Plugins In The World

10 Ways To Make Your Soft Synths Sound More Analogue

The post Sound Design Techniques & Tools Series: Part 10 – Granular Synthesis & Sample Processing appeared first on Get That Pro Sound.

As a lot of successful sound design is about balancing broad, dramatic strokes of processing and effects with an ear for maintaining focus, clarity and precision, the humble filter is an absolutely key sound designers tool.

What’s more, filters can also be used dynamically — that is, adjusted over time via sequencers or automation for a whole range of special effects from rhythmic modulated fluctuations adding breath and interest to a dull beat, to sweeping through clouds of white noise to generate epic riser and dropper effects.

In this penultimate part of our sound design series, we’re going to run down some favourite tips and tricks for using filters effectively and with as much creativity and flair as possible! Many of the tips discussed will make use of other principles and tools we’ve explored in previous articles, like stereo processing, layering and distortion, so if you want to dig more into these areas, be sure to catch up on the previous parts in the series:

• Part 1 – Delay
• Part 2 – Distortion
• Part 3 – Layering
• Part 4 – Classic Modulation FX
• Part 5 – Stereo & Panning FX
• Part 6 – Pitch Shifting
• Part 7 – Reverb
• Part 8 – Step Sequencers & Envelope Generators
• Part 9 – Creative Filtering
• Part 10 – Granular Synthesis & Sample Processing

There is also a lot of general information on the different types of filters, their functions and the best filter plugins in our article The 10 Best Creative Filter Plugins In The World, so check that out if you’re not sure about any of the terminology I use here.

What’s the difference between a filter and an EQ?

There is a lot of crossover in functionality between filters and EQs; in fact, an equaliser is made up of a series of what technically can be described as filters. The differences mainly apply to how they are typically used in practice. Whereas you might use an EQ to make relatively subtle tonal changes for rebalancing of the frequency spectrum, filters can be used for more dramatic frequency sculpting, completely removing whole sections of the frequency spectrum and emphasising others with resonance and cutoff controls, making them important tools for sound design duties.

There’s obviously a lot of overlap in functionality, particularly in the modern digital/plugin domain, since EQs like FabFilters Pro-Q 3 can easily be used for simple filtering duties and automated for simple filter sweeps. But what the best creative filters also incorporate are some kind of sequencing or modulation element, which means that rather than being held at a static setting, they can be programmed to behave differently over time, usually rhythmically. This modulated filtering is what can really imbue your sounds with additional movement, and as we know from all the previous instalments in this series: movement = life and interest. Here are some of my favourite tricks for using filters in creative sound design projects:

1. Stereo Filtering

You don’t need to apply the same filter settings to both channels of a stereo signal. Try treating the left and right channels with different filter cutoff frequency and resonance settings which can literally open the sound right up, giving the impression of pushing it out to the sides for extreme width. Remember that you can also automate the filters in each channel to modulate over time, adding really interesting movement from very subtle undulations to swirling psychedelic madness.

There are several ways to set this up, and which you choose might depend on which DAW and filter plugins you’re using, or just your personal preference and what other effects processing you might want to do. If your DAW allows you to split or render out each side of a stereo sample or track to its own mono audio channel, that’s one simple way. Alternatively, you could use two send FX channels, have each one panned hard left and right, and have separate filter instances with different setting son each one. And of course some filter plugins have built-in stereo functionality, for example Fabfilters excellent Volcano 2.

For more on this variant of the Haas Effect phenomenon, check out our article on this and other psychoacoustic tricks that are incredibly useful for sound design.

2. Resonant Peaks To Boost Kick Weight

This trick stems from the days of beefing up sampled kick drums on the MPC, but can be used on any sound that you want to add more sub and low-frequency weight to. Insert your filter on the channel and turn the Resonance control almost all the way up. This works best with analog-modelled filters that self-oscillate when pushed to extreme settings. You’ll know when your filter is going into self-oscillation when it begins to emit a constant howl at high Resonance settings. Now, with your sound playing back, adjust the Resonance control so that it is just below self-oscillation, and then sweep the Cutoff down to where you can hear the filter applying a healthy emphasis somewhere in the low frequency range. Adjust each of the filter settings to taste, and you should quickly find a sweet spot where even the limpest low frequency  kick or FX hit can be super-charged with targeted low-end power.

3. Drive For Warm, Gritty Harmonics

Most filter plugins have a Drive knob which can be used to saturate the filtered signal. Experiment with how the Drive knob impacts the sensitivity of the other filter controls, and of course see how you can abuse it with extreme settings for creative effect.

4. Radically Transform Sounds By Filtering Out Their Most Characteristic Frequencies

Much of our efforts in sound design sessions are spent on attempting to disguise the origins of our sometimes mundane or uninspiring source material, and transform it into something otherworldly, or industrial, or organic. One excellent way to approach this challenge is to hone in on what gives a source sound it’s distinctive and most recognisable character, and then filter out the frequencies where this character resides. For example, maybe you have a sample of a car door being swung closed. This is a pretty recognisable sound as everyone is extremely familiar with it from their daily lives. But what makes it so recognisable in terms of frequency content? There’s the rush of air right before the impact, and then a muted “clump” together with maybe a couple of subtle metallic rattles (depending on the age of your car I guess!). That’s at least 3 different layers of sounds, each occupying a distinct frequency range, and any of them could be isolated and soloed or muted with a filter. Combine this with other common sound design techniques – reversing, pitch-shifting etc. – and you can very quickly make a dozen FX hits which sound nothing like a car door, and which can be tailored for a whole variety of uses.

5. Never Underestimate The Power Of A Filter Sweep To Add Instant Drama

It’s perhaps the oldest trick in the synth programming book, but gradually opening up or closing down a low-pass filter gives the impression of the sounds energy expanding or contracting. Layered with other sounds, it doesn’t have to be in-your-face obvious, but can be a subtle background element for all kinds of percussion and spot FX hits also.

6. Add Filtered White Noise Layers To Your Other Elements

If your lead synth lines are lacking presence, sparkle or just raw grit, adding a filtered white noise layer to the synth notes could be just the thing for adding missing bite. The simplest way to do this is generally to duplicate the synth MIDI pattern, and have the duplicate play back a basic white noise preset in your favourite soft synth. For example, u-he Diva and Xfer Serum both feature dedicated Noise oscillators, so all you have to do is initialise the synth to a blank preset, mute the other oscillators if necessary and crank the noise oscillator up to full. Use the synths built-in filter, in either low-pass or high-pass mode, to shave off unwanted parts of the noise and help it blend perfectly with the original synth sound. This technique can be applied to drum and percussion samples very effectively too: add a white noise hit to anything from kicks to snares, hats and punchy perc FX for extra cut and presence in a busy mix.

With percussion, a nice additional trick is to subtly modulate the filter cutoff on the noise layer with an LFO or other automation signal, adding an extra level of variation and interest to a repetitive drum pattern or groove.

7. The Magic Happens Around The Cutoff Frequency

As I referred to in the intro, when using filters, perhaps the most important thing to focus your ear on is the point in the frequency spectrum where the cutoff is starting. The cutoff control interacts with the Resonance and Slope settings dynamically: that is, change any one of these, and it changes the character of all three.

8. Multiple Filters In Series

Now we’re getting into one of my all-time favourite techniques. Things get especially interesting tonally when you stack multiple filters on top of each other, each with their own slope, band and modulation settings.

My favourite way of creating Incredibly expressive synth leads is by performing multiple passes of automation recording on a couple of different plugins inserted one after the other, layering up little sweeps and shifts that can sound incredibly expressive. Experiment with layering different filter modes together: low-pass and hi-pass; low-pass and band-pass; two band-pass filters etc.

9. Modulate With LFOs And Envelopes

One of the most powerful aspects of filter plugins like Volcano 2, Cytomics The Drop and other advanced filter plugins is their modulation options. LFOs, XLFOs and Envelope Generators can be assigned to any filter parameter, including other modulator parameters, so they can modulate each other for almost infinitely complex and evolving filtered textures with surprisingly little work. Perfect for sustained pads and atmospheres, and for the filters-in-series trick mentioned above.

10. Give Your Synth Plugins A Modulation Upgrade With Additional Filters

Some of the best-sounding synth plugins are modelled on classic analogue hardware synthesizers of the last 40 years, which means their raw sound is great but they can be fairly basic in terms of routing, filtering and modulation options. But if you add a powerful filter plugin like The Drop or one of Arturia’s 3 Filters You’ll Actually Use to the synths insert effects chain, you have effectively given the synth a dramatic flexibility and modulation enhancement. This is something like what Hans Zimmer may have had in mind when he requested the Diva filters be added to his custom version of u-he’s Zebra, ZebraHZ; but you don’t have to be a world-class composer to effectively make similar “mods” to whichever synth you like!

11. Combine Filters With Other Plugin Processors And Effects

Combine pitch-shifting with heavy filtering and you can literally transform a sound beyond recognition. Try pitching down a fairly high-pitched percussive hit or synth note, so that all that energy which previously occupied the higher range is brought down to the mids or low range. Then use a high-pass filter to remove any bunched-up frequency content that has been brought down into the sub/bass range and will only contribute mud and boominess. Now you have a clean mid-range sound with a bunch of grit and texture quite unlike anything you would normally generate from scratch with a synth or drum machine. Layer with other sounds to taste, if you want to re-fill out any missing frequencies for additional punch.

12. FX Order: Think About Where In Your FX Chain The Filter Will Go

The order in which your plugins are placed will greatly impact the final sound of the channel, as the output of each one has a bearing on the effect of the next. A saturation effect preceded by a filter will sound completely different to the same two plugins the other way round, for example, while adding heavy compression to the chain will have a different effect depending on whether it comes first or last. Once you’ve come up with some interesting effect chains, try dragging and dropping them around to see if you can come up with variations that work better or just differently. Sometimes reordering can make a subtle difference; other times, you can stumble on whole new effects to add to your toolbox.

As I mentioned near the top of the post, I’ve already covered a lot of info and filter plugin recommendations in The 10 Best Creative Filter Plugins In The World,, so check that out for further ideas.

For a bunch more sound design tips and other related plugin recommendations, catch up on the previous parts in the series:

• Part 1 – Delay
• Part 2 – Distortion
• Part 3 – Layering
• Part 4 – Classic Modulation FX
• Part 5 – Stereo & Panning FX
• Part 6 – Pitch Shifting
• Part 7 – Reverb
• Part 8 – Step Sequencers & Envelope Generators
• Part 9 – Creative Filtering
• Part 10 – Granular Synthesis & Sample Processing

For a lot more sound design and processing tips, check out the Ultimate Guides series, a definitive collection of tips and techniques for enhancing your music and bringing it to a professional level:

If you liked this post, you’ll definitely find these useful too:

What’s The Best DAW Music Production Software, Really? An Essential Buyers Guide

25 Of The Best Drum Plugins In The World

10 Ways To Make Your Soft Synths Sound More Analogue

The post Sound Design Techniques & Tools Series: Part 9 – Creative Filtering appeared first on Get That Pro Sound.

In this part of our sound design series, we’re going to look at how step sequencers and envelope generators can be used not just to trigger notes for creating melodies and bass-lines, but to step-automate volume, filters, pitch, panning and a host of other useful parameters.

Catch up on the other parts in the series:

• Part 1 – Delay
• Part 2 – Distortion
• Part 3 – Layering
• Part 4 – Classic Modulation FX
• Part 5 – Stereo & Panning FX
• Part 6 – Pitch Shifting
• Part 7 – Reverb
• Part 8 – Step Sequencers & Envelope Generators
• Part 9 – Creative Filtering
• Part 10 – Granular Synthesis & Sample Processing

What Are Step Sequencers?

The thing step sequencers and envelope generators have in common is that they both operate on the principle of dividing up time into a series of equal slices or “steps” and applying different values to each step separately. The method feels, in some ways, closer to traditional computer programming than conventional musical “playing” or performance; but because of the radically different approach, it is also the mode of creation that underpins techno and other futuristic music that melds human feeling to robotic grooves. For sound design purposes, we can use step sequencers and envelopes to come up with incremental, evolving sound processing that we wouldn’t have thought of doing using more conventional, manual approaches.

Happy Accidents

Step sequencers enable you to come up with combinations of note pitches, pitch bends, timing and filter settings that you would never really think to program in a piano roll or other type of MIDI editor. When you combine this capability with novel sound sources like drums, foley, atmospheres and other FX, you can warp sounds into new and unexpected shapes. The fun part is that you can surprise yourself as you experiment with tweaking parameters and adding different settings to random steps as you play back your sounds on a loop.

Resample And Keep Processing

Once you’ve generated your sequence, don’t stop there! Try bouncing it to audio, throwing it into a sampler or audio editing track in your DAW, and start chopping: slice, mute, reverse, re-pitch individual steps. Put some steps on their own audio channel and apply different effects or processing to them, like long reverbs or bitcrushing. Whatever you can think of here. The cool thing is that as you mangle each step separately, they will still share a commonality and relationship which will throw up interesting new snippets of sound FX and weird little semi-melodic phrases that you can bounce and save as complete, unique spot FX samples.

The Best Sequencer Plugins For Sound Design: Roundup List

1) Sugar Bytes Thesys

With its five lane layout, interesting and unusual sequencing can be generated faster and more reliably in Thesys than most other sequencer plugins I own.

The top three lanes are where you set the Pitch, Velocity (in effect, volume) and Gate (or note length) for each step; use the bottom two Performance and Modulation lanes to apply changes like pitch bends and rolls, as well as many layers of CC modulation that can be sent directly to the corresponding parameters in your soft synth or sampler (or indeed hardware), that make it a very fun plugin to use.

The great strength of Thesys is its flexibility, taking the best of classic analogue sequencers and adding plugin power to keep things powerful but intuitively streamlined. Connect Thesys to control any synth or sampler in your plugin (or hardware) arsenal.

Generated patterns can be simply drag-and-dropped to a MIDI track for saving or further mangling. Lane lengths can be individually adjusted to create weird and polyrhythmic sequences at the drop of a hat.

The all-important Randomizer and Mutate functions mean you can always find fresh inspiration and discover those happy accidents.

Also check out: Consequence, also from Sugar Bytes, which skews closer to the arpeggiator model for creating chord sequences, but still has plenty of innovative and fun features which could be applied for sound design purposes.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST2, AU, AAX

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2) Sinevibes Array and Inertia

Sinevibes have a whole bunch of sequencer variants in their plugin lineup for Mac users, and we particularly like Array and Inertia for sound design.

Array, the “spectral sequencer”, is a novel take on step sequencing, as it splits the incoming signal into 8 frequency bands whose waveforms are displayed across the GUI, and then allows you to input, mute and filter step notes on each band individually — effectively step filtering the sound, with unusual combinations of present and omitted slices of the audio spectrum on each step.

Steps can be painted in individually, randomly or as complete blocks (with all notes on a band toggled on/off with a key command), and eight snapshots can be taken of your sequencer settings to rapidly flip between for even more variation and performance capability. The master filter and resonance controls at the bottom also allow you further sculpt the effect to your taste.

Meanwhile, Inertia has a great, clear GUI that makes it easy and fun to create crazy level modulation with the highly graphic step sequencer. A particularly useful aspect of Inertia is the waveform display above the level sequencer, which makes it easier than usual to align your volume ramps and stutters precisely with the existing dynamics of the audio. And again, the randomize function is great fo generating infinite variations of your sounds quickly — a key aspect of effective and productive sound design workflow.

Available for: Mac | AU

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3) Cableguys ShaperBox 2

ShaperBox is actually a sort of rack-container for six of Cableguys individual plugins that all use a similar editable multi-stage envelope-based interface to effect one of several common modulation parameters: Time, Filter, Pan, Volume and Width.

Incredibly flexible for a whole host of sound design and processing applications, ShaperBox still manages to provide remarkable fluidity and simplicity in its layout and workflow. It allows you to make stepped sequence, rhythmic modulations, or go entirely off-grid (at least within the set loop length) and stack some truly unpredictable combinations of modulated parameters for warping your sounds as carefully or crazily as you wish.

One of the best plugins available, of any kind, for balancing utility and ease of use with huge amounts of fun and inspiration: a must for every sound designer.

For an alternate take on envelope-based “step” processing, also of course see Xfer LFOTool, from the makers of the wavetable synth Serum.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST2, AU

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4) FXpansion Geist 2

Not perhaps an obvious choice when discussing sequencer plugins, but I’ll still contend that Geist 2’s sampler-sequencer, when combined with FXpansions streamlined TransMod system for quickly modulating parameters, has led to some of my best and fastest-to-put-together, sequencer-based compositions.

For working with your own samples and resampled sequences, nothing has come close to Geists workflow when mangling and applying multiple layers of modulation to create truly evolving sequences so (relatively) effortlessly. I also use HALion 6 for sound design and sample mangling purposes, a tool which can do literally anything – but it also takes about 6 times as long to navigate through the options and possibilities before you find the right parameters to edit. With Geist 2, once you get over the initially intimidating range of options, the eight engines etc., and come up with workflows that suit your approach, it can become a perfect sound design sequencing tool.

Try loading a pad bank of drum, foley and synth hit sounds and then programming a simple MIDI sequence in the Pattern window; add modulation lanes and multiple TransMod LFOs to parameters like Tuning and Filter Cutoff for sequenced combinations that you would never come up with otherwise.

Available for: Mac, PC | VST2, AU, AAX, Standalone

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5) HY-Plugins HY-SEQ16x3

The Doepfer MAQ 16/3 is one of the most coveted analogue sequencers, particularly among the current crop of hardware-wielding techno producers. The HY-SEQ16x3 is an excellent homage to the hardware, and includes features like Probability-controlled and drawable LFOs amongst its myriad modulation options that make it very powerful in its own right.

The key differentiator when compared to the others on this list is the method of inputting step settings via the 3 rows of 16 rotator knobs. This simple interfacing method is deceptively sophisticated, in that it encourages you to come up with series of edits and parameter changes that you just wouldn’t otherwise conjure.

If you have a MIDI controller with knobs, create a template for HY-SEQ16x3 with the knobs assigned to the on-screen step knobs, and you’ll get some of the same hands-on tweakability that makes the original hardware unit so inspiring. 

Available for: Mac, PC | VST2, AU

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There a re plenty of other options too, of course: various M4L (Max for Live) devices if you are an Ableton live user;  the tracker-based DAW Renoise (perfect if you want to sequence your sounds and modulations with a certain 90s-IDM Aphex Squarepusher flavour); and other powerful arpeggiator-based plugins like Kirnu Cream and five12 Numerology.

Catch up on the other parts in the series:

• Part 1 – Delay
• Part 2 – Distortion
• Part 3 – Layering
• Part 4 – Classic Modulation FX
• Part 5 – Stereo & Panning FX
• Part 6 – Pitch Shifting
• Part 7 – Reverb
• Part 8 – Step Sequencers & Envelope Generators
• Part 9 – Creative Filtering
• Part 10 – Granular Synthesis & Sample Processing

For a lot more sound design and processing tips, check out the Ultimate Guides series, a definitive collection of tips and techniques for enhancing your music and bringing it to a professional level:

If you liked this post, you’ll definitely find these useful too:

What’s The Best DAW Music Production Software, Really? An Essential Buyers Guide

25 Of The Best Drum Plugins In The World

10 Ways To Make Your Soft Synths Sound More Analogue

The post Sound Design Techniques & Tools Series: Part 8 – Step Sequencers and Envelope Generators appeared first on Get That Pro Sound.