MusicMan

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W.A Production - Helper Transients 2 Plugin Giveaway! [until 11/15/22] https://plugincoupons.gumroad.com/l/helpertransients2 Demo and info:

I stumbled across someone recommending this as an alternative which looks pretty interesting too. It's made by TBProAudio who make some decent plugins as well and seems to cover the same, but also be a bit more comprehensive and it's only €12 not on sale. I had pretty much decided I'd buy the Boz version, but now I'm thinking this could be a worthy contender. Simple to use still, but also has more features and functionality. ST1V2 - Stereo signal control ST1 is a simple tool that lets you control the width and the panorama of a stereo audio signal. It includes a mono-to-stereo function, a stereo field enhancer, a rich panning knob that includes spectral panning, and a bass-focus feature. The phase and correlation meter visually monitors the panning position and stereo width. https://www.tbproaudio.de/products/st1 Have you ever compared this one Brian?

I'm thinking this will be in the next Softube Volume too, which wouldn't be so bad if they reduced the price based on the plugins you already bought.. I know it's only $15 but I decided to sit this one out. I have quite a few tape delays and after testing this, it does sound good and does have a nice sounding self oscillation. But with Valhalla Delay I was able to get pretty damn close to the sound. The other tape delays all sound good too, they just all have their own flavour. Valhalla just had the closest sound and self oscillation, along with lower in CPU. This one is still good though, but I may end up buying the next Softube Volume when it's released.

Oh I didn't know that! I've only ever seen it pitched as gain matching, not bypassing sections of plugin chains. Will have to check it out ?

I like metal/heavier as well, which is what I was mainly aiming/hoping for with the LE as I'm well covered across my other amp sims for smooth tones, or a little backed off on the gain. The PA I liked all round though, as it seemed to handle between both of those spectrums well.

Hertzrider was the plugin I never knew I needed to have! That thing is fun with drums and was very glad I got that one ? I've heard good things about the others you mentioned too. I haven't gotten into their reverbs either yet. I'm sure they're decent as well, it's just I locked in on some other ones first.

Some of the gain matching plugins are pretty handy too, but also not quite the same. They just keep the gain the same over the FX stack, so you're not tricked into thinking it's better because it's louder. Whereas with MCompare as two instances, you can compare between any two points in the FX stack to see how multiple plugins at once are affecting the sound. I watched the teaser video and it was super easy to set it up to A-B anywhere in the stack ?

I've never really considered that one, but it's almost impossible to go wrong with PSP so should be a winner ?

I have referencing that I prefer (MetricAB) but MCompare is kind of cool in that you can insert it as a send earlier in you FX chain and then place another instance at the end to easily A-B your chain instantly and gain matched. That's kind of different and a nice feature. It also allows blind testing too. The AGC wasn't great from my tests though. I think I'd only ever set the gain manually.

I wonder if they might try and wait until Black Friday sales now...

I got the PA version the other day and that sounds better than the LE (Free) version of this, but I actually don't mind the sound of the LE either. Not a bad freebie. For my tastes V3 sounds much better than V2. I can't comment on Pro, but given it should sound better than LE hopefully, it might be worth a demo.

Interesting example.. I actually came very close to saying the exact same thing about that limiter in my reply!! I can't give DMG points for creativity with the product name, but as a track limiter it's an excellent choice! ? Works well for busses too and like you mentioned Nick, light on CPU, quick to dial in and sounds good too.

Thanks Brian, this turned into quite the interesting thread about panning! I get a lot of those points and sometimes something light on CPU and purpose built is worth it for the workflow, even if it can be done with existing tools, especially if it's only $12! I'm going to demo this one too.

They're practically all great. I still think Nova sounds better than Fabfilter ProQ3. Not the sort of thimg to use on all tracks unless you've got a beefy CPU, so ProQ3 still has it's place, but there guys punch well above their price. The only one that hasn't instantly grabbed me yet is Molotok. The rest I love and just picked up SlickEQ as well. Another great sounding EQ with some nice saturation. They can be reasonably complex for some of them and even require the manual at times ?

I'm still waiting for them to do another 70% off sale again like last year so they're back to $49 for the Mu/s ? Will be interesting to see if they do it for Black Friday sales, or Cyber Monday.

Thanks Brian and that's the only thing that is holding me back. I'm just not sure it adds something. I do find that it's good having a few limiters, as some definitely work better than others on different source material. But I do have a selection and many of them have deeper controls. It's a crazy good price though. I would even be considering it at $29, purely based on what I already have and like. I am giving it a demo though ? I saw you rated the Boz planner. I've always skimmed over that, but in giving it a read it sounds quite interesting.

Some great sale items there ?

How does this one rate to some of the other main contenders for limiters? I'm not sure I've ever tried it.

I knew it was from one of the issues, due to the CM in the name, but wasn't sure which one. I grabbed it anyway, but haven't installed it, or checked if I owned it already ? You can also get it direct from WAProd too: https://www.waproduction.com/plugins/view/multibender-cm

Welcome Jude ? I was really surprised finding this one and how well it stacked up against some of the paid options. I tend to use a mix of plugins, from free to some of the premium ones. More expensive doesn't always equal better. Sometimes it increases the odds maybe, but still no guarantees. Hope you enjoy it ?

WA Production: Multibender Lite - Free @ VST Buzz https://vstbuzz.com/deals/free-multibender-lite-by-wa-production/ Note: FREE! "MULTIBENDER LITE (CM)" BY W.A. PRODUCTION IMPORTANT NOTICE FOR M1/ARM MAC USERS: THIS PLUGIN CAN BE USED VIA ROSETTA 2, HOWEVER IT IS NOT YET NATIVELY COMPATIBLE WITH M1 SYSTEMS.

I actually tried to open the demo in Plugin Doctor, but I'd need to activate the full demo or buy it and I've been liking keeping them as 10 minute demos so when I'm ready I can do the full trial. For some reason in Plugin Doctor that trial/activation part works differently to in Cubase (quite possibly intentional on their part!). But I did check it out in Bertrom analyser and the curve in that was pretty basic, just a simple high shelf with the two 361s with one been steeper and also dropping the overall volume down. The 180 rolls off some of the lows as well as boosting the highs. That may change a little depending on what material is passing through it I guess. It does sound nice though. I recreating a somewhat similar curve in Fabfilter ProdQ3 but I didn't quite sound as good. Maybe some saturation would get it closer. Once you start adjusting the dry/wet/comp the curves do get a little more complex and I'd say introduce some harmonics. So recreating on a static EQ or dynamic would require A-B matching which would make it easier to just own the plugin! And Dopamine you literally just turn on, drop the output gain to level match and it's already there, but you can also tweak. Agreed on those IK tapes! I love them, but even Acustica Audio Taupe is lighter on CPU! ? That next day test is funny... sometimes I've been producing stuff and getting right into it late at night only to hear it the next day and not be impressed at all ? Luckily not too often, but I've learnt not to get my hopes up the next morning just in case!

I feel somewhat glad to hear that! I do like the Townhouse for a coloured SSL as well and the native SSL for clean G Comp I like too, so I'm pretty well covered with them. I do have quite a few other G comps as well though just for good measure ? Agreed on Arturia, OL GEMs and BRA. These guys have some great plugins and I'll often reach for something out of them. All 3 are actually quite different in their sound too I'd say. They all sound good, but sonically I'd say they're quite diverese. I think I may have watched that video before, but I'll check it out again. Out of all the LA-3A compressors I tried, the Overloud was my favourite and considering it can do 2A and 3A is a bonus too. I do actually rate the Acustica Audio stuff pretty highly and rabbit hole is a good way to describe that! They can be a CPU monster, but in their updated Erin they have boasted great performance gains. I don't own it and haven't given it a demo yet, but might be promising if it works out to be more efficient without sacrificing on sound quality. https://gearspace.com/board/new-product-alert/1390043-acustica-audio-renews-erin-state-art-mastering-suite-new-modules-hypercomp-tech.html

I own Mixbox and have glossed over that one and barely used Tone Control. The IK website doesn't go into much detail, although you can target specific EQ bands with it. "A classic tube tone control that recreates the tone shaping stage found on the best tube amplifiers. The Tone Control effect can deliver incredible presence and warmth to the sound." It seems very heavy handed, so another one of those plugins where a little goes a long way. I'll have to check this one out a little more too.