softube free saturation plugin for pro tools

#Softube free saturation plugin for pro tools professional

Ok, so now you know about saturation and why it’s great, where should you use it in your mix? The is great for creative sound design purposes like making a guitar or vocal fuzzy or gritty, but for mixing one would usually be a bit more delicate with the settings, creating a smoother tone. This gives a “hard-clipping” kind of compression, which is aggressive if driven hard (think of pushing the levels too high in your DAW). Transistor saturation plugins emulate the audio being driving through transistor circuitry. It can increase perceived loudness, dimension, and fatness. It’s often characterised as sounding warm, musical, and punchy. Tube saturation adds a subtle form of compression, but when pushed hard can have an aggressive edge. Tube saturation plugins emulate the sound of the audio being driven through tube amps, introducing what are known as “even order” harmonics (again, don’t worry about these terms too much!). They tend to roll off high-end frequencies and boost the lows a little, too.Īs I say, pretty subtle, but tape saturation is often described as sounding punchy and warm, which is great for adding fatness and depth to your mix. They introduce what are known as “odd order harmonics” (don’t worry too much about the difference between even and odd order harmonics – that’s for another day), which create subtle compression and slight, irregular shifts in frequency response.

Obviously, we record straight to our computers nowadays, so tape saturation plugins emulate the sound of the audio being recorded through tape machines. Let’s have a quick look at each of them, their typical characteristics, and then where we might use them: Tape saturation They are generally used in subtle amounts, but collectively over a mix can make a huge difference. So what hardware are these plugins actually emulating? Well, there are three main types of saturation: Tape, tube, and transistor. If your music sounds thin, weak or “cheap”, the chances are very high that saturation will help. It’s subtle, but our ears pick up on the subtleties of music. Why should you be using saturation in your mixes?Īs already stated, saturation will take your music from sounding in the “digital” realm to sounding warm, analogue, with added depth and character. (Notice the example wave with saturation is fuller and fatter without peaking any higher). On the left-half is the signal with no saturation applied, and on the right is with saturation: I like to think of it like the saturation control on a television it makes the colours more intense and vivid, right? Saturation plugins do the audio equivalent. Saturation simply enhances the frequencies that are already in a sound. There are different types of saturation – and they all have their own character – but the premise is the same. In the audio plugin world, saturation involves emulating the audio being driven through analogue hardware equipment, adding harmonic distortion. Why you absolutely should be using saturationįor more tips on using saturation, click here.Interested? You should be because it’s simple, easy and the impact can be huge. Mixing with saturation can mean the difference between a thin, tinny, digital-sounding mix and a full-fat, warm and organic mix.

#Softube free saturation plugin for pro tools professional

Well, not to put too fine a point on it: It can mean the difference between your music sounding like it was created at home on a laptop, or sounding like it was created in an expensive, professional studio. Of course, the distorted sound of electric guitars is known to us all, but what about using saturation and distortion (being two heads of the same beast) in a more subtle way? What does it do in the mixing process? There are some incredible free plugins out there on the market, and I’ll share them with you later in this post.

Saturation really is an integral part of the process when it comes to creating amazing-sounding mixes, and it doesn’t even have to cost you anything. Saturation is one of the most misunderstood and underused plugins in mixing – it adds warmth, punch and depth to your mix, and can give it a high quality, “expensive”- sounding sheen.Īt some point in the music production journey, EVERY successful producer and engineer I know has at some point stumbled across the revelation of saturation and distortion.