You can do this the traditional way by turning up the input gain, or you can reach for the ‘Flux’ knob which will make things real dirty real quick. But subtlety isn’t its defining trait, there are also a number of ways to get crunchy tape distortion. Like all good ‘subtle’ effects it is not necessarily noticeable until you turn it off, and then things sound just a little boring without it.
Kramer Master Tape does a fantastic job of glueing everything together with a light magnetic sheen. Waves Kramer Master Tapeĭeveloped alongside veteran recording engineer Eddie Kramer, this plugin is modelled on a rare tape machine that was used in London’s Olympic Sound Studios which has been graced by the likes of Jimi Hendrix, The Rolling Stones and a small cult band called The Beatles.
#Softube tape saturation manual#
This is a pleasant surprise but easy to miss, a good reminder to always read the manual even for your plugins! To top things off, there’s a ‘Stop’ button for – you guessed it – classic tape stop effects which can be automated.Ĭheck it out on PluginBoutique here. It seems contradictory that the results can have so much clarity and detail even with the boldest levels of saturation.Īt first glance, it looks like there are just three controls, but if you click on the right side you open up a ‘remote control’ which gives you further options including a ‘stability’ knob for Boards of Canada style wow and flutter. The sound is instantly impressive, it coaxes so much character out of your sounds. If this were a ‘shoot out’ to crown the meanest tape sim in the west, Tape would be the clear winner despite tough competition. Softube is clearly not shy about Tape being a saturation machine. Below this is an amusing inscription: “WARNING: HIGH AMOUNT CAN LEAD TO DESIRED DISTORTION”. Positioned front-and-centre is the ‘Amount’ control, which is where the saturation happens. Inside are emulations of three different machines, each with their own tone-shaping characteristics. Tape is a fantastic offering from Softube, who has won much acclaim for their highly realistic recreations of studio gear over the years. 5 Of The Best Tape Emulation VSTs In 2020 1.
In this round-up, we look at 5 top quality tape simulation plugins that are guaranteed to bring the warmth. Simply put, if audio from an actual tape can be captured digitally with all these characteristics intact, then we know representing analogue signals with digital technology isn’t so far fetched. While some may find the idea of digital emulations to be paradoxical, the fact of the matter is plugin manufacturers have put a hell of a lot of effort into studying the various idiosyncrasies of magnetic audiotape and tape machines in general. Tape saturation is one of the most cherished forms of distortion with few detractors. How many things in our environment can be considered truly perfect? Another answer lies in the tonal characteristics – subtle harmonic enhancements add just that extra bit of colour, and we often exaggerate this effect by overdriving the input for even richer results. One simple answer is that imprecisions are natural. Obviously this is subjective, but there are a few possible reasons for this. Much like with tubes, the sonic characteristics are highly celebrated as ‘warm’ and ‘musical’. Although popularity dipped as digital tech took hold, it never fully went away and even experienced a strong resurgence in the last decade or so. It goes something like this: digital audio is too precise and lacks a certain charm, character and…wait for it…warmth! The truth is that digital audio isn’t inherently cold or boring and there are plenty of ways to create movement and warmth entirely in the box.Īs you know, magnetic tape was the default recording medium for decades. Much fuss has been made over the need for analogue emulation plugins.
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