All-new American pro audio plug-in company Plugin Alliance LLC is proud to announce availability of the SPL De-Esser Collection — German analogue and digital audio processor designer/manufacturer SPL’s latest plug-in bundle — and noveltech CHARACTER — Finnish innovative high-quality audio technologies developer Noveltech Audio’s first plug-in developed in collaboration with Plugin Alliance — as of March 16, 2012.
• SPL DE-ESSER COLLECTION comprises two Analog Code® plug-ins, emulating the best analogue de-esser available — the SPL De-Esser, a highly-specialised audio tool for removing undesirable sibilant frequencies in a very simple and musical way, without compromising the timbre and natural character of a voice. Whereas traditional de-essers use compression techniques, resulting in undesirable side- effects, such as lisping and a nasal-sounding vocal, as processing compresses the entire selected frequency range, SPL’s Auto Dynamic De-Esser monitors the entire frequency spectrum and automatically detects the sibilant frequencies; the bandwidth is set so narrowly around the range of the sibilance that neighbouring frequencies remain unaffected, resulting in a neutral-sounding, inconspicuous, and extremely effective process. Even at high S-reduction values, the de-essing has a negligible affect on voice character and timbre, and users can even select the MALE/FEMALE front- panel switch to adjust for the vocal characteristics of male or female voices! While the classic SPL De- Esser is available immediately, Plugin Alliance is currently applying the finishing touches to the SPL Dual- Band De-Esser, ready to add it to the installer as a free upgrade to all existing users by April 1. There are some subtle but audible sonic differences between these two De-Essers, which is why Plugin Alliance decided to model both. For mastering purposes Plugin Alliance has added an M/S mode — not found in the original hardware, allowing users to de-ess a full mix, yet keep the high-frequency content of cymbals, guitars, or keyboards virtually untouched!
• NOVELTECH CHARACTER intelligently enhances relevant characteristics found in source material, automatically adjusting complex sets of parameters, rather than simply statically boosting one specific frequency region, for example. This revolutionary approach allows users to achieve their desired results much quicker — with almost instant gratification, requiring only several intuitive user parameters: INPUT — cuts/boosts input signal (-48 to +6dB); OUTPUT — cuts/boosts output signal (-48 to +6dB); CHARACTER — adjusts the amount of character signal being added to the boosted input signal (0 to 100%); TARGET — whereby the target scale of 0 to 100 does not represent absolute frequency, but rather represents the relative position in the full-frequency range of the input signal at the current moment in time; MODE 1 — optimised for percussive instruments and vocals; MODE 2 — optimised for guitars and synths; and MODE 3 — optimised for bass guitar and pads. To further ease usage, red LEDs start to illuminate when input/ output signals clip, while the CHARACTER meter measures the amount of characterisation. Rounding off this easy-to-use plug-in, there are 17 presets built into its main window — all are selectable, but not alterable (although new presets can be stored via the host DAW software), while users can compare different CHARACTER settings with the A/B switches. The CHARACTER algorithm is based on Noveltech Audio’s Intelligent Adaptive Filtering (IAF) technology. The processing affects both the frequency response and dynamic properties of the input material in a highly time-varying sense. CHARACTER intelligently identifies and enhances the characteristics in audio material that are pleasing to the human ear, such as the time-related attack and decay properties of the signal’s transients, for example. Such processing is non linear, and highly dependent on the source material’s original content, aiming to enhance the perceivably favoured characteristics of the original musical instrument or voice by automatically adjusting complex sets of parameters, rather than statically boosting only one specific frequency region, for instance. Remember: CHARACTER does not perform musical miracles; it can only emphasize existing characteristics present in the original source material!
Those wishing to learn more about Plugin Alliance’s precise modelling of the original SPL De-Esser should check out the latest ‘Tech Talk’ column with Michael Massenburg — responsible for analogue modelling at Brainworx and its partner companies — here: www.plugin-alliance.com/en/techtalk.html
Available in 64- and 32-bit versions, the SPL De-Esser Collection bundle can be purchased and downloaded (in all Mac OS X, Windows, and TDM/VENUE formats — VST 2.4, VST 2.3, RTAS, AU, AAX) for an introductory price of $149.00 USD (increasing to $199.00 USD from April 4 onwards) from here: www.plugin-alliance.com/en/plugins/detail/spl_de-esser.html
Available in 64- and 32-bit versions, the noveltech CHARACTER plug-in can be purchased and downloaded (in all Mac OS X, Windows, and TDM/VENUE formats — VST 2.4, VST 2.3, RTAS, AU, AAX) for an introductory price of $99.00 USD (increasing to $149.00 USD from April 4 onwards) from here: www.plugin-alliance.com/en/plugins/detail/noveltech_character.html
(Note: the noveltech CHARACTER plug-in was exclusively available for the TC PowerCore platform previously; Plugin Alliance is offering a 50% off list price ‘crossgrade’ deal for all such users — equalling a $24.00 USD refund on top of the introductory offer!)