Plug-ins you expected nothing from at the start and can't live without now

David Brock · May 21, 2025 at 1:09 AM

typical-love · May 21, 2025 at 8:54 AM

Creme said: ↑

DMG multiplicity, it took me some time to understain how powerfull uniq and usefull is this plugin during mixdown stage. Nothing come evn close.
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This one is on my very short list of "get to know inside and out" ...any tips or insights to share?

typical-love · May 21, 2025 at 8:57 AM

wanderer said: ↑

Hi,
This thread is about plug-ins (or any other sound processor) you tried without expecting anything useful and that eventually were exactly what you needed.

I guess another thread could be "plug-ins you had great expectations about but were just meh" :D

I had three 'wow moments' last year :

- Pulsar Audio Primavera spring reverb emulation. ( https://pulsar.audio/primavera/ )
I never was interested in spring reverbs. I had one in a guitar amp and almost never used it. Heard a Fender twin and found it cool, but I was more impressed by how the Gretsch guitar + Fender amp combo sounded than specifically by the reverb. I demoed some emulation plug-ins, like Audiopunks and others, and found them cool in tests but totally useless to me in a real mix context. I tried the Primavera with zero expectations, just because I could and had nothing better to do. Not only I found it very good sounding and versatile, but soon after I tried it in a mix and was stunned! It brought the black Metal rythm guitars I was struggling with to unexpected heights! Of course, springverb works for BM guitars, which after all often sound like distorted Surf-Rock. But it was also great on some synths (not only BM synths, but progressive /psychedelic / ambient ones too), with applications going further than just reverb. It's almost an instrument.

- Pulsar Audio Echorec ( https://pulsar.audio/echorec/ ).
I didnt even demo it when it became available as I was already happy with ReaDelay (for standard delay) and the free Valhalla FreqEcho (for psychedelic effects). I tried it just because Primavera was so great. And I was (again) stunned by what I could do with it. It was like my old analog echo guitar pedal, but with far more possibilities.

- D16 Group Decimort 2. ( https://d16.pl/decimort2 )
I had demoed it out of boredom and wasnt that impressed. Well, it's a bit crusher with resampling/filtering options and, well, it bitcrushes with filtering. As I'm mixing Rock and (extreme) Metal, I had no real use for a bit crusher and no interest in souding like a mid-80s sampler. Then I had to mix an Industrial Metal album and thought that some bitcrushing, glitch generators and so on could add something. So I retried Decimort in a real mix and it was just what I needed. In fact, I distorted the guitars with it with great results. It turned barely acceptable synth VSTis into beasts. Weirdly, I found that it made them sound more 'analog'.
It has applications going further than just 'sounding like old digital gear'.

Did you have similar experiences?
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You should check out Klanghelm TENS, up there with Primavera if not slightly over taking it for me. It's all AKG springs, slightly different sound. Can go very short with the timings which is sick.

shinyzen · May 21, 2025 at 9:29 AM

typical-love said: ↑

Exactly what I came to post when I saw the title. I'm a big fan of TDR plugs, but the idea of Arbiter didn't wow me. Then I tried it out. Now it's in every session multiple times.
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Arbiter is one of the greatest plugins of all time. Insane.

Melodic Reality said: ↑

AlexB 9K with Azzimov skin
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His new SSL AI brown and black are my new go-to's

Creme said: ↑

DMG multiplicity, it took me some time to understain how powerfull uniq and usefull is this plugin during mixdown stage. Nothing come evn close.
Click to expand...

Very powerful tool, well worth learning.

wanderer · May 21, 2025 at 10:12 AM

typical-love said: ↑

You should check out Klanghelm TENS, up there with Primavera if not slightly over taking it for me. It's all AKG springs, slightly different sound. Can go very short with the timings which is sick.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the heads up, I'll try it.

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Plug-ins you expected nothing from at the start and can't live without now

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Plug-ins you expected nothing from at the start and can't live without now

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