Saturation plugins

Saturation plugins

You can never have enough saturation plugins, or can you? Today I´m  testing a few of them just to see how much variety we can expect and if we really need all of them. 

I took all of the plugin on a spin for both guitar and bass, and you´ll find the related playlist at the end of this post. 

Saturator X 

IK-Multimedia makes the excellent T-racks range of plugins, which includes Saturator X.
This plugin is versatile overall and covers a lot of ground.

My only issue with the GUI would be the omission of a mix button, but it has an auto-gain feature which is great. Saturation can add to the overall volume, which makes it difficult to compare before/after results so an auto-gain feature is very handy.

The results were quite subtle when driven lightly, but quickly turned into a more distorted and brighter sound when pushed hard. This isn't a bad thing though and I can see this one becoming a go-to when I´m going for some edge.

Elysia Karacter

This plugin from plugin-alliance is based on a hardware class-A distortion unit from Elysia. It has 3 different modes to offer, auto-gain, a mix control and a tone/emphasis control. There is also a mastering version which offers even more controls (stereo, M/S etc). 

Overall this plugin is bit wilder than the others, and can completely destroy the audio if that´s what you want. I used the mix control to just blend just a hint of distortion and this worked great on bass. I would probably use it more as an effect on guitar as the results were more obvious. This plugin is a killer on drums and perfect if you want to really smash something.   

Indent 2

Unfiltered audio, also distributed by plug-in alliance, develops more experimental plugins targeting the moden producer. Many of their products come in a light version, and I decided to test Indent 2 which is the little brother of the more feature rich Dent 2 .Indent has quite a few algorithms on offer, a creative modulation system, a mix control and very a handy auto-gain control button. 

The algorithms are relatively similar when used carefully but this plugin can really mess upp your sound if that´s what you like. I don´t know how accurate the emulations are but they didn't strike me as natural. That´s however not the point, you can definitely get both subtle and completely wild tones out of this plugin. The modulation system makes this the perfect special effects distortion plugin.

Decapitator

Decapitator from Soundtoys is a true modern classic in the plugin world, and has been a staple in studios all over the world for years. 

The plugin comes with 5 different algoritms:

A - Ampex 350

E - Chandler®/EMI® TG® Channel

N - Neve® 1057 input channel

T -  Thermionic Culture® Culture Vulture® triode setting

P - Thermionic Culture® Culture Vulture® pentode setting

The plugin offers a lot of control and offers emphasis, hi/lo cut and a mix control as well as auto-gain. Just be careful because the output does change when switching modes even if the auto gain is switched on. There is also a punish button for additional gain, which creates a heavily distorted sound. The algorithms aren´t as varied as om some of the others, but the plugin offers a lot of control and it´s not hard to understand why this is a modern classic. 

Klevgränd REAMP

Swedish company Klevgränd has a range of unique plugins that typically offers odd twist. REAMP is probably one of the most traditional plugins they´ve made, but it nevertheless has a beautiful GUI.

The feature set is similar to Decapitator but offers more algorithms.

The interface allows you to drive different areas of the audio spectrum, and includes a 4-band tone control post saturation. I´m not sure what the harmonics button in the lower right corner does exactly but I suspect it´s like a drive control. There is however no auto-gain feature so you have to adjust the output volume by ear. 

It can sound anything from subtle to very distorted and the different algorithms offers a lot of variety.
The algorithms doesn't sound as realistic as, say a dedicate amp or tape plugin, but that's again missing the point as you can really sculpt the tone anyway you want you with this plugin. This was one of the more versatile plugins of the bunch.  

SPL TwinTube

The next plugin, also from plugin-alliance, is SPL TwinTube which based on a hardware device from German company SPL. This plugin, for whatever reason, appears to be relatively unknown to the broader public, but it´s a go-to plugin whenever I need to add some some sparkle.

The interface is a bit quirky, and although true to the hardware it´s not quite as useful in a plugin format. It provides independent control of harmonics and saturation and the focus frequency of the saturation process can be selected by pushing the combinations of buttons. There is no auto-gain feature here so you´ll have to adjust by ear. 

I find that this plugin excels on the brighter side of things, but be careful not to drive it too hard. 

Waves Vitamin

Vitamin from Waves is a multiband harmonics plugin which offers a lot of control. You can adjust the cross-over frequencies, transients, stereo width and the width, drive and volume of each band. There is however no auto-gain control on offer.

I flicked through the presets and it´s clear that this plugin has the potential to massively alter the sound of any source. The Guitar and Shiny Guitar presets are included in the playlist. 

Don´t expect any vintage tones though, and I would probably use this more as an tone sculpture tool  than to add vintage warmth to a track. It would be perfect for making something cut through a busy mix.

Black Box Analog Design HG-2

The HG-2 plugin is based on a hardware box from Black Box Analog Design that uses 4 tubes to drives different types of saturation. This allows you to pentode (even) and triode (odd) harmonics which enables you to customize your tone. There are also a few controls not available on the hardware unit, such as high frequency lift and an alt tube button that provides a slightly more  aggressive sound. 

This plugin isn't about heavy distortion but rather subtle saturation that could fatten up almost any source.  It also seems to make the guitar sound slightly wider. The only thing I didn't like was the lack of an auto gain control and you´ll be going back and forth between output and the other controls a lot.  In short, HG-2 just makes everything sounds better when used in moderation. 

elysia Phil's Cascade

Plugin-Alliance build a hardware unit which was then emulated it in order to create Phil's Cascade. It´s a bit of a Frankenstein's monster with components setup in interesting ways to provide unique tones. 

It can indeed provide a lot of variety and invites you to experiment. Of all the plugins I found this to be the less intuitive confusing. 

Audiority Pre X7

The Pre X7 is based on a tube preamp and you can saturate the audio on both the input and output. 

It´s allegedly based on an Alembic (F-1X?) bass preamp but can of course be used on any type of source. It´s very subtle until you push it hard, and even then it´s not overly obvious. 

It sounded beautiful on bass and just gave it a slight edge, and possibly cleaned up a hint of low mid. It doesn't offer a lot of flexibility, the effect is rather like switching your cheap mic-pre to a more expensive one. You´ll never wanna go back once you´ve tried it. 

  

Saturation knob

I decided to throw in the free Saturation knob from Softube in the mix as it´s been a favorite of mine for years. It´s more of a one trick pony compared to the others and doesn't offer a lot of control, but it can some serious attitude to drums, guitars and synts. You might want to check out their new Harmonics plugin if you like this. I would have loved to include it here but unfortunately my demo expired.

Samples

Each track is named based on the setting I used for the respective plugin.

Bass

Guitar