Page 1 of 2

Best Analog/Tape Emulating Plugins

Posted: Thu May 03, 2012 4:57 pm
by JoeOsoDopke
What are YOUR favorite plugins to use to achieve this kind of sound? What gives you that really warm, or really crusty sound to your music? and if you care to share, why?
Any kind of plugin, compressors, limiters, saturators... Go!
I like the tried and true PSP Vintage Warmer. It just makes everything it touches sound much better to my ears.
I also like the waves stuff to an extent.
And throw in some vinyl crackle samples too to give it some character.

Re: Best Analog/Tape Emulating Plugins

Posted: Thu May 03, 2012 5:00 pm
by nowaysj
Search on this, we start a thread on this at least once a month.

Re: Best Analog/Tape Emulating Plugins

Posted: Thu May 03, 2012 5:11 pm
by deadly_habit
i just use a cheap tape deck... crazy i know
hit up your local goodwill/thrift shop

Re: Best Analog/Tape Emulating Plugins

Posted: Thu May 03, 2012 5:24 pm
by Augment
PSPVW4life

Re: Best Analog/Tape Emulating Plugins

Posted: Thu May 03, 2012 5:33 pm
by Samuel_L_Damnson
The tape setting on scream4 in reason :D. With the damage knob turned all the way down though.

Re: Best Analog/Tape Emulating Plugins

Posted: Thu May 03, 2012 7:17 pm
by fragments
I'm absolutely in love with Waves Kramer Master Tape...but I've also heard good things about Nomad Factory's Magnetic II...many people will tell you nothing sounds like tape, but actual tape. I've also gone Deadly Habit's route...I use a cassette dubbing machine as well as a VCR. I find with my cassette dubbing machine I get a lot of hiss and mechanical noise, but ...depending on what you are after this may or may not be OK. it's great for noisey pads/atmo hits etc you can make a copy of a copy of a copy of a copy and get some really washed out craziness.

There is a chance I'm getting my hands and a reel to reel machine and some tape for free... 8)

Re: Best Analog/Tape Emulating Plugins

Posted: Thu May 03, 2012 7:32 pm
by deadly_habit
as far as plugs i'd recommend for tape emulation
wow and flutter
de la macha unstable
urs saturation

Re: Best Analog/Tape Emulating Plugins

Posted: Thu May 03, 2012 11:53 pm
by Basic A
Tascam 38.

theres one usedon ebay for under 150 american right now.

Re: Best Analog/Tape Emulating Plugins

Posted: Thu May 03, 2012 11:56 pm
by Mad_EP
deadly habit wrote:i just use a cheap tape deck... crazy i know
hit up your local goodwill/thrift shop
+
nowaysj wrote:Search on this, we start a thread on this at least once a month.
=

Answer.

Re: Best Analog/Tape Emulating Plugins

Posted: Thu May 03, 2012 11:57 pm
by wormcode
nowaysj wrote:Search on this, we start a thread on this at least once a month.
Yeah for sure. You'll find a lot of info. Here's a recent one: http://www.dubstepforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=235390

I recommended the Bootsy/Variety of Sound plugins in there, and I still highly recommend them.

Vintage Warmer is nice. The absolute best I've come across in the software realm, like the ones that have convinced me if I needed to sell my reel to reels and tape machines I wouldn't have to worry are the UAD plugins. Specifically the Studer A800 and Ampex ATR emulations. Going UAD is pretty expensive though, and you might as well buy some hardware tape machines unless you want to remain ITB. The 2nd best I've come across is Nomad Factory Magnetic which is pretty cheap and runs natively without hardware.

It can be achieved using free plugins like the Bootsy, it's just not quite as easy. Very possible though.

Re: Best Analog/Tape Emulating Plugins

Posted: Fri May 04, 2012 12:13 am
by Basic A
On a serious note though, Antress Modern - free VST pack. you want all of it.

Re: Best Analog/Tape Emulating Plugins

Posted: Fri May 04, 2012 1:30 am
by deadly_habit
Basic A wrote:On a serious note though, Antress Modern - free VST pack. you want all of it.
is that the legacy pack you have to find on torrent sites or file sharing?

Re: Best Analog/Tape Emulating Plugins

Posted: Fri May 04, 2012 2:49 am
by fragments
deadly habit wrote:
Basic A wrote:On a serious note though, Antress Modern - free VST pack. you want all of it.
is that the legacy pack you have to find on torrent sites or file sharing?

http://antress.blogspot.com/ ?

Re: Best Analog/Tape Emulating Plugins

Posted: Fri May 04, 2012 2:59 am
by deadly_habit
ah not the ones i was thinking of

Re: Best Analog/Tape Emulating Plugins

Posted: Fri May 04, 2012 6:02 am
by nowaysj
wormcode wrote:Going UAD is pretty expensive though, and you might as well buy some hardware tape machines unless you want to remain ITB.
There is other stuff on UAD too though, man, it is tempting, and those tape machines put it over the edge, well almost over the edge. Is Magnetic really that good? Have to check it out...

Re: Best Analog/Tape Emulating Plugins

Posted: Fri May 04, 2012 6:34 am
by Beat Cube
Bounce track/sample to WAV, put it on a cassette tape, bounce it back to computer, do some smart EQing so I dont lose all the bass.

I have a crap ton of empty cassette tapes, and this is really the best use for them. Plugins are nice, but a cassette will give you a different sound every time. I still use plugins for when I am either too lazy to bounce back and forth, or need a specific sound. But for lo-fi goodness? Cassette tapes.

Re: Best Analog/Tape Emulating Plugins

Posted: Fri May 04, 2012 6:50 am
by komanderkin
a very good and affordable one has been released recently:

http://www.toneboosters.com/tb-reelbus/

it can range from high end tape machines to cheap boombox dirty sound.

+ it has very nice wow & flutter.

Re: Best Analog/Tape Emulating Plugins

Posted: Fri May 04, 2012 2:38 pm
by fragments
komanderkin wrote:a very good and affordable one has been released recently:

http://www.toneboosters.com/tb-reelbus/

it can range from high end tape machines to cheap boombox dirty sound.

+ it has very nice wow & flutter.

Nice one. Hadn't visited toneboosters in a minute. Will have to check this one out.

Re: Best Analog/Tape Emulating Plugins

Posted: Fri May 04, 2012 3:05 pm
by nowaysj
Thanks Komander (for the eighteen million time)

Re: Best Analog/Tape Emulating Plugins

Posted: Fri May 04, 2012 3:46 pm
by komanderkin
np, i used to go for FerricTDS all the time, but TB ReelBus is bloody awesome since it doesn't just emulate the "good stuff". i tried to tweak it to match my tape recorder and got very close (if not spot-on).

of course, 90% people will want to use it for the hi-end tape machine sort of thing, and i've seen a lot of good comments on KVR about it in that regard. never owned an expensive tape machine though, so i can't vouch.

another one that i've been hearing good things about is Roundtone, but i've never actually tested that one:

http://www.sknote.it/Roundtone.htm