Hi, I recently tried Phoenix II without any expectations, but it is really good for some reason. This old plugin resonates with me more than newer ones (for example Alkane).

Firstly: I know about the aliasing, i matched the level.

Does anyone here who is tech savvy know why this plugin sounds so sweet? It does not break in an unpleasant way like many others that I know.

And please, no AI answers or false hallucinations from AI.

 

http://www.cranesong.com/phoenix_II.html

 

Last edited by a moderator: Feb 20, 2026 at 11:06 AM

I'm not sure you will get many answers. Because who knows really? For sure it helps that the designer knows tape machines inside out and has deep knowledge of tape machine electronics, knowing electronics engineering is kind of a must when creating accurate analog emulations I think. Also he is a recording engineer in addition, he knows how a good tape should sound. That makes the plug-in probably also very musical with a big sweet spot which is more important many times than having a technically advanced plug-in with million times oversampling and the lowest aliasing possible (low aliasing is a plus for sure though ;) ). So the plug-ins algorithms are kind of old, is that true?

I haven't tried the plug-in myself, at least not yet, how is it compared to the usual suspects like Softube tape, Acustica Taupe studio etc?

 

Last edited: Feb 20, 2026 at 11:34 AM

You should try it! I guess what you said with sweet spot is very true. Even if I put processing on 100 and input on 10 (on a drum bus), it just makes them so beefy and gives that "thump" in the low mids, while others start to distort very unpleasantly and just get a way too aggressive feeling. (i tested against the UAD tapes which are also great)

 

While using it and listening critically, I was blown away too, so I tried to deconstruct it using Plugin Doctor.

I noticed this things:
- frequency response is almost identical to dry, there are little to no phase shifts
- it is plain waveshaping on low frequencies, but as the frequency increases the transfer function becomes more and more unusual (and the output is compressed more). So the plugin compresses the high frequencies more than the lows, and it is normal for tape.
That's a good thing because music is not white noise, but is more tilted towards low end, so a normal waveshaper compresses low frequencies more than high ones on average material.

In the end, I suppose that it's a clever waveshaper with opposite pre-emphasis and de-emphasis. This explains the frequency depandant saturation but the minimal phase-shift (the generated harmonics are phase shifted indeed, and that explains why it's not that type of saturator that you would use to decrease crest factor).
Moreover, I think that in normal use the aliasing produced would be almost inaudible.

I like this "minimal emulation" approach. YMMV, but I found tape sims like this, SPL Machine Head, Airwindows TapeHack2 and MIA 413 Tape more useful (and fun to use) than something like IK tapes

 

You could try shooting the plugin out against the JClones JSFX re-implementation of Phoenix. If they sound the same, then the source code's right in front of you.

https://raw.githubusercontent.com/JClones/JSFXClones/master/jsfx/JClones_Phoenix.jsfx

If you need a jsfx host, ysfx lets you run jsfx inside any DAW: https://github.com/JoepVanlier/ysfx

 

Post (translated from Russian to English) from Tokyo Dawn on explaining the plugin and their re-interpretation of it into a free JSFX plugin, dated December 2023:

 

Crane Song - Phoenix II (Tape Emulation Plugin) Source: www.kvraudio.com/product/phoenix-ii-by-crane-song

Phoenix II is an update of Crane Song's suite of TDM plug-ins designed to emulate the unique properties of a magnetic tape machine.

Phoenix II runs both NATIVE and DSP on Avid's AAX format. Beta now available with additional AU and VST3 formats. Phoenix II uses 32-bit floating point math and has a lower noise floor than the original release.

Designer Dave Hill has crafted this software with the same attention to detail he used to create the electronics for ATR Service's much heralded "Aria" discrete tape recorders. His intimate knowledge of analog electronics, as well as decades of experience as a recording engineer has spawned a very useful, musical suite of plug-ins. The Phoenix II process not only incorporates the nonlinear saturation characteristics created by magnetic tape itself, but also includes the interrelation of an analog tape recorder's record/reproduce electronics and equalization curves. Phoenix II is a ground-up application derived from HEDD technology, and specifically engineered and optimized for Avid's AAX architecture.

Phoenix II has five different tape-analog characteristics, The type is selected with a switch for easy comparison between the types, and the brightness is also selected with a switch. Gold is the position where the color is approximately flat in frequency response, with Sapphire being a brighter, and Opal being a warmer tonality. A level control determines the amount of the Phoenix II process integrated into the audio signal, and an input trim determines "how hard you hit the tape." Because the DSP process is level dependent, the input level trim control has been improved and an output trim control has been added.

The input trim can also be used to prevent clipping in the rare cases where clipping may be a problem and bringing up the level of a track for an increased amount of color. This can be useful on material that is hitting close to or at digital zero and on material that has a low recorded level. When the input trim and output trim controls are at 0dB, (no change in gain) and no tape process is being added to the sound, the plug-in is bit accurate, meaning the output exactly matches the input.

The Phoenix II contains five separate flavors:

1. Luminescent is the most neutral sounding process of the five.
2. Iridescent has a similar magnetic character, but with a fatter bottom and midrange. (This plug-in is the most similar to the tape knob on HEDD-192.).
3. Radiant is characterized by a more aggressive compression curve.
4. Dark Essence is even more aggressive. (The effect is a color with a wider frequency range-when used on a vocal Dark Essence can reduce sibilance problems by increasing the apparent loudness of the rest of the signal.).
5. Luster starts more gently than the other four processes, but becomes as aggressive as Dark Essence when the process is at full scale.

 

I would say the reason it sounds so good is because they set out to make something very usable under very tight constraints. It's the reason why I think SPL Machine Head is also a brilliant plugin, and nothing really comes that close in squeezing sound and performance. Modern CPUs are incredibly strong and at least in my opinion, that's the downfall of modern plugins. Too much range, so a lot more to explore, most times leading to mediocre results or outstanding results that are incredibly narrow in actual real world use. I can use Machine Head on every track of a session, both in performance and sound. Could I do the same with the most realistic tape out there? Not quite without making sacrifices in both things Machine Head gives me for basically free.

 

I came to the conclusion that if you want to emulate tape in digital the smart way is finding some hack to reproduce the intended effect using less math as possible, rather than emulating it by in depth component modelling

 

Listen, first of all may his soul rest (Dave Hill). Dave Hill was a literal wizard you have to understand that. Globally regarded just from his little Wisconsin abode as one of the if not the, Einstein of the Audio world.

As someone who has had multiple Crane Song hardware (currently unfortunately I only have the Solaris). His ONLY plug-in pretty much they've ever made (Phoenix II) makes perfect sense in relation your question.

Didn't he also basically invent sub picosecond jitter?

Regardless, yeah anyone who has ever owned or the very least used any piece of crane song hardware will tell you the man was a wizard. Also, if you ever saw him talk at all you'd understand immediately lmao, his brain was wired differently.

I had just canceled a preorder for their Interstellar when it came out a few years ago (dumb business/financial BS) and he died shortly after and I was like yeah I'm an idiot also crane song stuff about to get even more expensive lol

Those converters are just ridiculous, even some of the 500 series tube stuff is just so good everything they ever made is just amazing, that's what happens when you have a truly singular purpose

On top of that his hands have touched much more than just that in the audio world that's not widely known.

In conclusion, to answer your question, pure love of the game. That is all. Why does it sound so sweet? Pure, unadulterated, love of the game.

 

Last edited: Feb 20, 2026 at 8:16 PM

I think until RME "Pro Fs" interfaces he was the first one to crack it, Fireface 400/800 was still in like 800ps range back in the day.

 

Yeah wild, side note, for more "budget friendly" converter conversations, I always say go RME, hands down.

like 6 years ago I stil didn't even know how they got some of them down to the prices they did, fantastic gear

 

you forgot to add that you also do not want articles and advertising to be reproduced or linked here.