Product Reviews by KVR Members

Thiago Pinheiro makes sweet paks for AAS. I have a couple others that are fantastic. .. one for Strum and one for Chromaphone. I look forward to picking this one up too. The video demo sounds smooth and comes with useable presets. This is not much of a review. .. just an enthusiastic post from a user who is about to grab this pak.;-).

This is a first impression, not a full-blown review.

Wow!! I'm excited about this official release. Pianet T is very retro in concept and design, but it's also new to my ears. The sound pallet seems to fall between a Wurlitzer and Rhodes—so warm and fat, but there's a nice tine-clarity at the same time. This is sure to be a winner. It's got a solid, usable sound. Its charm is not FX-dependent.

I look forward to noodling, making patches, and tracking. Great job, Martinic.

Fantastic solution quickly and precisely taming harshness. .. nice to have a plugin that delivers w/o destroying momentum. I was pleasantly surprised to discover its powerful anti-boxiness abilities. Another winner by Techivation.

Disclaimer: I just picked this up so I won't be creating a proper detailed review, but I wanted to express my excitement over this plugin. I'm fairly known on forums for creating much longer reviews, but in the spirit of this plugin, I will be fast and fun with my writing.

Firstly, it's unique and I needed to launch and use it without preconceived notions. The plugin does most of the work under the hood, leaving simple, yet powerful knobs for the user to twist. This is a full FX unit, designed to provide an array of colors to whatever sound runs through it. It is not another basic lo-fi unit. This particular Finisher product "Retro-ises" tracks with flavors of the 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s. There are many useful presets that serve as a groovy starting point for processing. This is not for producers who want total, precise control over all parameters. This plugin is designed to be fast, fun, and musical. .. and it is! Users "dial-in, back, and do a little fine-tuning." I work in two settings, as a music educator and as a singer-songwriter. In both situations, I need to work fast. Teenagers and young adults quickly lose interest when the teacher is fumbling around within a DAW. With my own music, I'm the teenager (I wish). Still, I need to work fast before I lose my inspiration. I spent way too many years collecting and learning plugins with not much music to show for it. UJAM Finisher Retro is my rebellion plugin. I picked this up to help me dial in a vibe without losing myself and my muse along the way. So far? It's AWESOME!! UJAM has successfully set up this plugin to deliver genre-specific flavors. It works swimmingly on drums and bass, but I especially dig it on legato instruments. I'm currently having fun running an eBox guitar track through it. I can identify some of what Retro is doing behind the scenes, but not all of it. There is some wonderful algorithmic magic going on behind the wizard's curtain, and you know what. .. I don't care what going on as long as it sounds good. .. It's time to make music and let go of my control freak tendencies that have stifled my creativity for way too long. I have returned to using my ears more than my eyes.
I love this thing for all it is and all it isn't!

Note: After I complete my current Brit Invasion projects I am going to check out the other Finishers by UJAM.

This is not much of a review, but I wanted to share my initial impression of M-Compressor. ..

The market is flooding with compressors, and I have a few good ones, but there is nothing quite like this. I love the upward/downward integration and symbiosis. It's really fun to use, responsive, and very intuitive and musical. And, like all Techivation plugins, M-Compressor has an inviting, attractive interface. It is, however, a little more complex than the rest of the M series, but not bloated or scary in any way. I look forward to using this on upcoming tracks. Nice work, Techivation:

• Transparent.
• Low CPU, considering the power and responsiveness.
• I love these guys. .. super responsive support and innovative development.

DISCLAIMER
This user review will not be comprehensive; It will be my impression and reaction to the evolution of Tracktion. .. and my journey with this DAW.

THEN
Tracktion Waveform Pro 12 is the most recent version of a DAW that has been around since 2002, initially developed by a cat named Julien in the UK. I first bought a copy when Mackie took it over. I loved it, mainly for the one-screen, straightforward, transparent layout. It seemed way ahead of its time at the time. Eventually, it became a bit buggy, and updates were infrequent (one word). I moved on to other DAWs (a story in itself).
Years later, Tracktion reappeared! The original developer reacquired the software and resurrected it from the ashes like a phoenix. I kept an eye on development and occasionally launched it. I even reviewed a version along the way with an add-on synth called BioTek. Although I did not entirely switch back to Tracktion, it remained special and unique, standing apart from competitors due to its one-screen layout and Workflow.

NOW
Wow! Traction Waveform has evolved into a workstation beast! This DAW is designed to be fast, efficient, and creative. It delivers all the tools needed for music production, especially when working in electronic music. I realize we are dealing with audio, but it helps when the software looks good and Waveform looks marvelous. It is crisp and clean but not bloated and cluttered. Much work went into the interface to provide users easy access to tools without sacrificing the streamlined approach.

MY FAV Features:

• Gorgeous Interface.
• Intuitive, Musical Workflow.
• Fast programming via MIDI and Step Clip.
• Powerful FX Rack.
• Micro Drum Sampler.
• Micro Sampler.
• Melodyne Integration.
• Antares Auto-Tune Access.
• CPU Efficient.
• Responsive Support Team.
• Price.

SUMMARY
Tracktion Waveform does what other DAWs do but uniquely. It has a sleek, ultra-modern IU and provides a slick workflow. For music producers who are new to DAWs, they will be able to dive in, explore, learn, and make music. Music producers migrating from another DAW must be more patient as this software behaves differently. They may need to adapt before uncovering the wonder of Waveform's Workflow. I highly recommend this workstation for anyone in electronic music production who is tired of the usual big box offerings and wants something ultra-modern, inspirational, and musical. The Price is relatively cheap for what it offers, and the free version has many features and no track limitations. Users can start with the free version and then add features they need for a reasonable price.

INTRO
Smooth Operator by Baby Audio! I finally got it! I have wanted this since its release, believing it was a potent resonance suppressor with a simplified "smooth" workflow. I was right. But, I soon after realized that it is much, much more. Smooth Operator is a beautiful multi-function, dynamic tone-shaping plugin that combines Resonance Suppression and Spectral Compression and Equalization to improve balance, clarity, fidelity, and tone. This audio plugin is a sensational sonic clutter remover.

FIRST IMPRESSION
Like all Baby Audio plugins, Smooth Operator reveals a lovely, minimalistic, inviting interface. Background color options include three eye-pleasing pastels (Baby blue, seafood green, and Baby pink). Using "baby" colors did not escape me. The preset browser is at the top/center, with a Baby Audio logo to the left and the right. I found the double logos odd initially, but soon after, I discovered a reason, which I will reveal in the next section of my review.;-) Other viewable controls include a Mute, Side-Chain for ducking, creating space, etc., and Reset icons, Solo button, Focus slider (globally increases the intensity of the frequency range throughout the nodes, Output slider, Peak button toggles between Peak and RMS, which is handy, especially when used on Mix Bus, and a little corner gripper to scale the interface. The main window has five nodes spanning a 20 to 20k range. And that's it! Nothing daunting. It has a simple yet powerful approach to selecting a frequency and determining how much to process. Smooth Operator is very approachable, so I approached. ..

IN ACTION
This Baby is easy to use. It comes with 64 presets that cover just about everything. These are user tweakable and savable. Most of the work is being performed under the hood by clever algorithms. The bypass control is conveniently engaged/disengaged by clicking on one of the two Baby Audio logos! The solo button isolates whichever node is hovered over. S.O. is extremely useful for adding or subtracting specific frequency areas, not just high ones. It's super at cleaning up mud and gluing things together. I have read somewhere about using this plugin for De-Essing; however, I have not tried it, but I might.;-).

THE NODES
There are five nodes on the 20/20k curve: two white, two green, and one red. The white behaves like a floating parametric E.Q., while the green at the sides provides fixed high and low shelf bands, and the red in the middle is where the sweeping global stuff happens, affecting the overall threshold control and scrolling to adjust the Q of these E.Q. nodes. All in all, this is similar to a 4-band E.Q. with two shelves and two parametric peaks. Manipulating the nodes is creative, but as mentioned by White Sea Studio, "This is not surgical." With only five nodes, three of which are moveable across the spectrum, this cannot be surgical, but that is the point. This musical plugin helps users stay in the flow, moving forward, quickly dialing in their desired sound without being overwhelmed by a zillion controls, features, and chaos. The nodes are incredibly responsive and might take a little getting used to, as audible changes can instantly range from subtle to broad. I experimented and discovered pleasant, surprising results. When used conservatively, Smooth Operator can reduce unwanted overactive goo without deadening the overall sound — it does not throw the Baby out with the dirty bathwater.

All the work is done in real-time; it does not learn and render, which helps keep things moving, enabling the user to identify and address out-of-kilter frequencies. It excels at creative sound-shaping. It uses an FFT-based algorithm that splits the audio into numerous bands for users to manipulate in a unique layout and manner. According to babyaudi.io, "The algorithm automatically eliminates harsh resonances and muddy frequency areas. .. The plugin analyzes incoming audio at the DAW's sample rate and adapts its settings tens of thousands of times per second to attenuate frequencies with excessive energy build-up."

I WAS SURPRISED!
I initially thought of this plugin as only an intelligent E.Q. that would use bands to eliminate unwanted frequencies, but soon after, I discovered its ability to compress. It works wonders on percussive loops.

IS THIS A "SMART" PLUGIN?
Yes and No. Yes! It is cleverly and intuitively designed to provide users with a fast and fun way to remove unwanted sonic garbage and enhance all the good stuff. No, it does not use artificial intelligence or machine learning, but it does use algorithms and a unique combination of processes and design.

WHO SHOULD GET THIS?
Any eProducers who want a tool to help them spend more time creating and less time tinkering by making adjustments but letting the tiny little engineers beneath the surface do all the heavy lifting.

WHO SHOULD NOT GET THIS?
Digital audio gurus who have time on their hands and live to process audio, controlling every facet.

MY ADVICE
I suggest that users approach this plugin with kid eyes and ears — having fun, playing in it and through it, letting go of obsessive control, and simply enjoying the creative musical process of improving the harmonics of tracks with the goal being to Make Your Music Sound The Best You Can.

WHEN/WHERE TO USE THIS
Anywhere in the F.X. chain. Do you want to balance the raw audio or after it is processed? Both? Why not? I suggest using this in the beginning stages of production, not in place of audio repair tools, but for getting things sonically smoother before getting deeper into the madness of the mix. It's also useful at the end stages of production to crosscheck.

WORDS THAT COME TO MIND
Organic. Seductive. Sculpting. Musical.

FAVORITE Features:

• Looks lovely.
• Easy to use, yet powerful.
• It's a fantastic set of presets. A professional took time creating these. Very useful as is or as a starting point.
• Sounds fantastic — no audible artifacts of any kind.
• Responsive controls, especially the nodes and sliders.
• Non-destructive.
• Enthusiastic, responsive developer and support team.
• Reasonable CPU when processing. Low CPU when set.
• Priced great in comparison to competitors.

SUMMARY
As I listed the features and functions throughout this review, I realized that Smooth Operator is a new kind of channel strip that is perfectly named. It's not an automatic fix for sonic issues but it provides lots of assistance. It's like having another set of well-trained ears sitting beside you while you dial in the sound you have in your noodle. It's educational and informative — providing a way to compress and E.Q. without worrying about parameters, which is vital to audio production, especially in the early stages. Smooth Operator is a grab-n-go tool for musicians looking to get things right quickly. It's a creative tone-shaper that is exceptionally effective at enslaving harshness and enhancing sweetness. Smooth Operator works swimmingly on individual tracks, busses, or even the stereo bus* mix. I found this little beast most useful on recordings that sounded off to my ears, but I couldn't figure out why. It's also excellent on tracks that sound great by either confirming greatness or offering a subtle suggestion to make it even greater. For the price, I could not and would not pass this up. The audio software market is overloaded with "snake oil" plugins that promise the world. Smooth Operator delivers what it promises and is fun to use. I wholeheartedly give this Baby two adult thumbs up! Excellent job, Baby Audio. Thank you.

Note: According to their website, Baby Audio offers a free trial, "Our trial versions output 5 seconds of silence every 60 seconds — until activated with a license key." I dare you to check it out.

*Sidebar Question: Buss or Bus?

Disclaimer: This is not a proper review; yet, I wanted to share my initial impressions.

Remix by Acon Digital is simple amazing. .. especially for the price. I used as a plugin with my DAW and inside Acoustica. In both cases, the results were mostly astonishing. I dropped an old rockabilly song in there. I figured that would be an ideal start-point as it was a 4-track recording with Drums, Bass, Guitar, and Vocals. I flew through the presets, i.e., Karaoke, Separate Bass, Separate Drums, Separate Piano, and Separate Vocals. Each preset worked perfectly. .. removing/isolating. The only place I struggled was separating the guitar. However, separating Vox, Drums, and Bass worked flawlessly. I was amazed at how each instrument completely vanished without losing the other stuff.

Remix boasts a neat/clean, easy to use/inviting interface with a responsive scaling feature. I will certainly make great use of Remix. .. so many exciting ways to utilize this tool for music production. I look forward to upcoming updates. I give it a 9/10 (so far) and a big fat thumbs up.

Disclaimer
I've written and posted over 200 user reviews in the past 10+-years. You've probably seen my name here and there. I have clearly spent too much time writing reviews and not enough time writing and producing music. I recently vowed to stop doing reviews unless I came upon something extraordinary. Alas, here we are.. .

De-Essers, in General
De-essing (also called de-sibilizing) is the process of reducing harsh and/or loud sibilant consonants, i.e., "s", "z", "ch", "j", soft "c", and "sh", in voice recordings. De-essers are similar to compressors but more focused on the high frequencies that cause "s" and similar harsh spikes. There are many software units available on the market. Some are more effective than others, but even the best options, have a tendency to make audio sound unnatural and cause artifacts. They affect the frequency balance with their dynamic processing, which is good and bad. The goal is to use a de-esser that is straightforward, accurate. and natural-sounding — one that will help smooth out abrasive high sounds. As modern-day producers strive to brighten-up mixes, it's even more important to tame loud sibilants to avoid blowing out listeners' eardrums.

Intro
T-De-Esser Pro is the expanded and enhanced version of Techivation's fabulous free T-De-Esser Plus release. According to the developer, "Our plug-in is meant to smooth out high sounds in a very natural and musical way." So, does it live up to this claim? Let's investigate.. .

Getting Started
There is a simple purchase, download, install, and authorization via a code. .. no iLok or dongle of any kind. No confusion. The plugin was recognized and launched swimmingly in Apple Logic Pro X and GarageBand, Cockos Reaper, MuTools MuLab, Serato Studio, Image-Line FL Studio, and Twisted Wave. The initial launch reveals a neatly designed, eye-pleasing, inviting interface with no clutter or chaos. Yet, this comes with more features than a standard de-esser.

Buttons, Knobs, Sliders, Menus, Gizmos, etc.
• In the center of it all is a big processing dial that regulates how much audio signal slides through before the effect is engaged. This is the threshold.

• Users can de-ess in a wide frequency range, which is easily selected via four presets scopes (Low-hi, Mid-hi, High, Hi-end) as well as a handy slider to dial in more custom, specific range via a slider (1kHz to 20kHz). The presets are fixed and the slider is smooth and responsive. This is an excellent feature when working with instruments like guitar, cymbals, and sound FX.

• The Intensity dial works in ratios (1.0:1 to 10.0:1) and is reminiscent of standard compressors. I like how these ratios have micro tunings beyond the standard 2:1, 4:1, etc.

• In my noodling, Sharpness seems to affect the smoothness of the audio. According to White Noise Studio, "Sharpness will set the crossover slope between the unprocessed frequency area and the de-essed."

• Attack (0.0ms to 30.0ms) and Release (1.0ms to 120ms) work as they should.

• Mix (0% to 100%) is a slick way to blend and fine-tune-adjust after the user has the desired effect. .. wet vs. dry.

• The Quality menu is something I found interesting and unique. This drop-down enables users to manipulate oversampling via the internal processor that correlates to aliasing (1x, 2x, 4x, 8x, 16x). If a user's processor was struggling, I would recommend rendering after tracking. On my system, the difference between 1x and 16x was almost exactly double within one of my DAWs (31% to 60%).

• Another feature that goes beyond standard de-essers is the Saturation (0 to 100%) "Filter" (orange when engaged). This drives the audio through virtual analog circuits to create a subtle form of distortion with harmonics. What I like about this particular saturator is how it processes the selected high-frequency range. Using Saturation also helps to smoothen the sibilants.

• Hi-cut (3kHz to 20kHz) reduces some of the overall annoying hi feq. harmonics, Mode (processing of stereo vs. side signals), Link (balance between L, R, mid, side), Undo/Redo.

• Lookahead is really nice to have. It allows the unit to get a jump on the input signal, thus resulting in more accurate processing. The manual warns that this feature "will increase latency." So, like the oversampling feature mentioned above, it's probably best not to use Lookahead for tracking.

• The A/B switch is invaluable for comparing and dialing in.

In Action
T-De-Esser Pro is extremely responsive, even without Lookahead engaged. The controls are all easily adjusted, with smooth transitions between parameters. The presets (available via download) provide a nice start-point, and if you've ever worked with compressor/limiters and similar hardware or virtual gear, it's not difficult working from scratch. I found it easy to go from subtle de-sibilizing "s", "z", "ch", etc. for vocals up to 10 kHz to more extreme editing/sound design with cymbals and screaming electric guitars. Harsh drum transients can also be warmed-up without sacrificing the overall punch. Users can also domesticate out-of-control snares without beating them into roadkill. By virtue of the Saturation feature, this unit has two ways to de-ess. For me, I need my de-esser to do a better, more natural job than editing manually with EQ, compressions, and de-amplification. Alas, T-De-Esser Pro does it for me! Words that come to mind. .. smooth, creamy, effortless, fleshy. Note: Users can click on "Filter" in the audition section to hear the side-chain input, and the "Diff" button allows you to hear what's being altered/removed.

Things I Like A Lot
• Eye-pleasing interface that scales nicely up to 150%.

• Stress-free workflow. .. easy to ascertain the desired effect. Fast.

• Hover tooltips, which are super helpful in getting to know the plugin and identifying numerical parameters.

• High-quality algorithms that yield a sweet sound - ranging from natural to FX. This de-esser is hard-working, but the results are organic and seemingly effortless.

• Extra cool features include Lookahead, Oversampling, and Saturation "filter"

• Amazingly complete for a v1 release.

• Lifetime License.

• No iLok or dongle of any kind is required.

• Enthusiastic, forward-thinking, responsive developer.

Thing's I'd Like Added/Changed
• Although this plugin is relatively CPU/latency efficient, I'm hopeful future versions will be even more optimized to keep performance up and consumption down.

• Ability to turn off hovering tool tips. Once a user knows the plugin well, this might become annoying.

• Here's a dream. .. a wish-list item. .. what about a built-in frequency analyzer to illustrate A/B of original vs. effected?;-) That would be cool! I, like many producers, use my ears and eyes when editing audio.

Summary
The developer claims, "Our plug-in is meant to smooth out high sounds in a very natural and musical way." So, does it live up to this claim? The answer is YES!!! Upon launch, it's apparent that T-De-Esser Pro offers more than most de-essers, including its little brother - the free version. This plugin crosses over into side-chain compression and is fully stocked with features, without being a bloated, chaotic mess. The Pro edition delivers more flexibility, versatility, and options. It keeps the sound musical and doesn't create artifacts. It doesn't just work as a repair tool but also as a creative tool that can help you be more creative while fixing the issues in the audio.

Techivation's T-De-Esser Pro is an extremely effective, hi-end plugin that delivers musical results, and best of all. .. it's fun to use.;-) The only question I think potential users need to ask is, "Am I a hobbyist, who simply wants to clean up spoken/sung word(s), or am I more than that?" Amateurs have the free versions (I think there are two options). Pros and pro-hopefuls have this spectacular version that comes with a lifetime license! The price is very reasonable considering what other hi-end units cost, but when you consider free lifetime updates, it's a fantastic bargain!! I highly recommend this sweet tool for any eMusician, producer, sound designer, DJ, etc., looking to improve their control of sibilances or for sound design and mixing. It delivers as promised.

For my final sentence, I'll quote Tory G, "T-De-Esser Pro is a freakin' beast!"

*I sincerely hope my user review has been helpful. .. or at least a fun read.;-).

Version Reviewed: v1.1.2 for Mac.

https://techivation.com/t-de-esser-pro/.

For several years I've been looking for a straightforward, yet powerful MPC-style drum sampler to replace AudioSpillage Ekektroid (abandoned), One Small Cue Poise (never developed for Mac OS X), Native Instruments Battery and Kontakt (many reasons), Geist, etc. I found all of these sampler-based options either missing essential features, way too bloated and complex, or ridiculously expensive. I yearned to have my sampled drum kits in one sweet place that was easy to use, with a smooth workflow that didn't get in the way of my creative process. I don't know about you, but once the momentum has stopped, it's difficult to get it going again. I avoid software that tangles me in a web of menus and madness. Yet, when I need to go deeper into some advanced features for editing, I need to know those tools are somewhere under the hood.

I am happy with my synth-based options like SonicCharge MicroTonic, D-16 emulations, etc., but I have a huge drum sample library and need a way to access, play, and tweak my kits. Note: Serato Sampler and Serato Studio show lots of promise. Still, it's nice to have a dedicated sample-based drum machine to drop into random DAWs. This is especially important for those of us who change DAWs like underpants. .. or perhaps even more often.;-)

Enter Apisonic Labs Speedrum, the pro version of Speedrum Lite. It's currently going for €49.00, which I feel is a bargain. .. way less than upgrading Battery. I just downloaded the very latest version (v1.20), and I'm loving it! Anyone else digging this little beast? Note: The free version is super cool and provides a nice gateway into the full version. I'll be leaning on the full version of Speedrum for my drum/percussion sampler needs.

Some of my favorite features:

• Easy to install, authorize, and get started.

• MPC Layout in 16 or 32 pads.

• Lovely clean interface.

• Resizable from 60% to 200%.

• Excellent pad control.

• Fast as lightning. .. appropriately named "Speedrum."

• Lots of sample layers, chokes, editing features, etc.

• Built-in transient shaper.

• Nice browser for sample selection with drag-n-drop.

• Small footprint and light on CPU.

• Sounds fantastic.

• Fun to use. Musical.

• Excellent developer responsiveness and support. I've sent several emails and all of them were answered quickly.

Things I'd like to see added

• Stand-alone version for DAW-less work.

• Include both round-robin and multi-layers with velocity mapping.

A couple of useful links:

https://www.apisoniclabs.com/speedrum.html.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYE13pBRksc&t=1s.

Note: One thing that blows my mind about this software is how amazing it is for version one.