Hey guys, i'm currently using the mcdsp analog channel but i was wondering if there are any better tape emulation plug ins. An increasing number of bands don't want to work with my studer and want to track straight to pro tools (not just for demos either), so i need the absolute best tape emulation plug in. I need this more for me than for the bands who don't seem to mind the ice pick high end. Search results showing audio plugins for all operating systems (Windows, MacOS, Linux, iOS and Android), tagged as Tape Emulation. The results are sorted by date added (newest first). It does come at a cost, but if you have the money, it’s worth it. Omnisphere 2 is the best synth VST out there right now. Arturia Pigments 2. The best newcomer. Arturia is renowned for incredible attention to detail, so when they say Pigments was 20 years in the making, you can expect it to be one of the best synth plugins money can buy. Use these plugins and people will be asking for your studio secrets in no time. Make sure to grab the whole LANDR-approved free VST plugin collection: 10 Free VST Plugins That Will Give You Better Bass; 10 Free VST Plugin Effects That Will Spice Up Your Mix; 10 Free VST Plugins That Will Give You Better Drum Tracks; The 7 Best Free Synth VST.
There are many types of cassette decks today: later models can achieve extremely high fidelity, while earlier or cheaper models can significantly color the sound before it even hits tape. The tapes were in different widths, from two inches to 1/8 “for compact cassettes; and tape speed can range from 30 ips on a professional machine to as little as 1,875 ips on a compact cassette.
Various lineups were also available: the humble compact cassette had three general types (iron, chrome and metal), each of which sounded very different, and three possible different noise cancellation systems (Dolby B, C, or S, although the latter is rare). There are several common characteristics we associate with tape sound, the most important of which is saturation. The tape approaches this limit very gradually and carefully. There is no unexpected hard ceiling like in the AD converter – instead, there is a smooth curve that begins to round and tame the peaks in the signal long before they reach the limit. This means that added harmonics disappear quickly as they become higher in frequency, more like a triangular wave than a square wave.
With this basic knowledge in place, let’s check out a dozen of our favorite tape emulation plugins.
This plugin has been around for many years, becoming really vintage in a way. It’s not the ultra-precise tape model we might expect from modern plugins, but it does provide a tasty saturation that sounds really good. Since it has been on the market for a long time, it can be found in many well-known works as an alternative to basic saturators.
/camel-crusher-vst-free.html. Price: $ 149. Free demo for 30 days: PSP Audioware.
The original Magneto tape emulator pays tribute to the days when Steinberg first introduced the VST standard. The third version is built directly into the Cubase mixer, and the MkIII is available as a plug-in. Actual updates are no longer to be found, but you can read flattering reviews from the distant 2011, when this plugin became a discovery for the digital market.
Reelbus 4 doesn’t bother with ribbon knobs – it’s a clean and easy-to-use tabbed interface for grouping functions related to flanging, delay, and ribbon stop / start effects. Separate noise control is a nice bonus and a relatively unusual feature among tape emulation plugins.
Price: 39 euros. More on the website: Toneboosters.
The three Saturn tape styles simulate the saturation and frequency response of the tape, but the instrument does not offer other features such as noise or wah as it acts as an extended saturator. Despite the upgrade to the second version, the plug-in still does not load the computer processor and has advanced options for coloring your material.
Price: 129 euros. Free demo for 30 days: FabFilter.
Saturator X includes several tape modes as well as other interesting options. Like FabFilter’s Saturn, these are simplistic models that only focus on saturation, but again, this can be a nice bonus, helping to keep CPU usage low and avoiding distractions like minor offset levels. You do not need to go into details, just select the type of saturation and mix it in percentage.
Price: 80 euros. Free demo for 14 days: IK Multimedia.
Four plug-ins, each simulating a different classic cassette deck with its own recipe selection and the ability to adjust the bias level for a huge range of tapes. This kit will be useful for advanced users who want to enrich the sound with real cassette and tape emulation.
Price: 199 euros. Read more: IK Multimedia.
A well-known plug-in with a choice of multitrack or stereo deck, two different tape compositions, 15 “or 30” tape speeds, and three offset settings. VTC can be soft and transparent with little mixing or aggressive distortion. Since its release, the tool continues to occupy a revered place among the world’s engineers.
Price: by subscription only (monthly cost – $ 9.99). More details: Slate Digital. Spicy guitar free vst.
Satin is the most fully featured model on this list. We do not often mention the products of this company, since we are not able to use these plugins, but after testing the demo version, we were impressed! This plugin gives you complete freedom. An incredibly powerful and flexible tape emulator.
Price: 129 euros. You can download a free demo on the website: u-he.
The default settings give the subtle, almost imperceptible sheen of a high-end car. Switch to other, brighter tape models, or decrease the speed to enhance grunge, or change the saturation structure to produce obvious distortion.
Price: 49 $. Read more: Softube.
IZotope Ozone comes with a Vintage Tape module, which can also be used as a standalone plug-in when mixing a track. Although designed for mastering, the functionality, tape saturation technology, gives you complete freedom to process any audio source.
Sold only in the iZotope Ozone 9 set. The minimum cost is $ 699. More details: iZotope.
Kramer Master Tape simulates a dedicated stereo map used by Eddie Kramer at Olympic Studio (London). You can control noise level, wow / flutter and saturation. Alternatively, check out the Waves J37 Ribbon Saturator.
Currently on sale at a discount, only $ 29. Download free demo and also buy: Waves.
This is not really a tape emulation plugin, but this instrument is a copy of the famous green delay block with the addition of spring reverb. The roughness and character are modeled with extreme precision, resulting in organic reflections of sound.
Price: 49 euros. More details: AudioThing.
Which are the Best Tape Emulation Plugins? Let me share my top 5 recommendations. =)
Hello, Mike here, and I am a composer.
Just. Like. You.
I love using plugins that add that vintage, analog vibe to the instruments and sounds in my music.
I even like using it on the master stereo bus, to color the entire track with that warm, analog character.
Using a tape emulation plugin is one of the easiest way to get this sound, unless you happen to have high-end analog hardware to route your audio through.
In the classic vintage era of music production they used analog master tapes to record the music to. And it shaped the sound with that analog, warm vibe.
The great thing about tape, and the reason for us wanting to use it even today, is that it colors the sound in what many consider a very musical way, much like vinyl, due to the analog “roundness”. Keyshot 4 mac download crack. But which tape emulation plugins should you choose?
Now there are of course a few more tape emulation plugins on the market, so you can dive deeper into this subject if you wish. One brand I feel I need to mention is UAD, which does amazing plugins which work well on their hardware DSP.
Here are 3 tape plugins they have developed: UAD Oxide Tape Recorder, UAD Ampex ATR-102 and UAD Studer A800.
I recommend that you start by installing a trial version of a tape emulation plugin, and experiment with adding different amounts of analog warmth and saturation. Good luck and have fun with tapes! =)