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AIR Music Technology has announced the release of Sprite, a multi-effects plugin that’s said to be inspired by the ‘studio hardware staples’ of the ’80s and ’90s.

Before software did almost everything, producers relied on chunky, rackmount multi-effects processors like the Eventide H3000 to apply effects like reverb, chorus and delay. Sprite is reportedly a ‘modern take’ on machines like these. AIR Music Technology says the plugin does things ‘not possible in a hardware unit’.

Sprite features an array of effects under its virtual hood including a reverb with eight room characters, a BPM-syncable stereo delay and a comprehensive distortion section with nine distinct distortion models.

There’s a raft of modulation options, offering chorus, phaser, flanger, flutter, wow, tremolo and auto-pan, and an onboard pitch-shifter too. The compressor section will help you shape the signal’s dynamics while the EQ can finesse the plugin’s output without having to open up another window.

An interesting addition to Sprite that we don’t see in every effects plugin out there is an envelope follower; this will scan incoming audio, using the signal’s level to generate an envelope that modulates parameters like delay feedback and reverb amount. This means you can create responsive effects that evolve rhythmically in time with the sound that they’re processing; imagine a delay that amps up the feedback on every hit of a drum beat and dies down in between hits, for example.

On first glance, Sprite’s interface shares a simplicity with the increasing number of stripped-down, easy-to-use plugins that we’ve seen pop up in recent years; there are five large dials that control five effects, and a few faders for shaping the overall mix. However, Sprite promises to give you the best of both worlds, as those hoping for more control over their effects can thankfully open up a separate window (pictured above) that contains deeper controls for advanced sound-shaping.

Sprite Walkthrough Video:


Features

• Distortion section featuring nine distortion models with smoothing, hi/lo pass filtering and mix control.
• Two modulation slots with eight classic modulation types. Choose between Flutter, Wow, Tremolo and Auto-pan in one slot, with rate, drift, stereo and depth controls as appropriate.
• In the second slot, choose between Chorus, Multi-chorus, Phaser and Flanger with rate, depth, feedback, depth and mix controls as appropriate.
• Dedicated and incredibly powerful delay and reverb section.
• BPM syncable delay engine with Single, Dual and Cross modes, independent left and right time controls, feedback level and 24 feedback setups, width and mix control.
• Reverb with eight distinct room characters, pre-delay, damp, time and volume controls.
• Pitch-shifter with adjustable depth, assignable mix target, interval and algorithm.
• EQ section with high and low cut and shelving controls.
• Compressor section with assignable routing, attack, release and depth controls.
• Width and balance controls.
• Dedicated output EQ section featuring 31 character presets, plus a manual mode for detailed shaping of low, mid and high frequency content.
• Envelope follower to automatically control delay feedback and delay & reverb mix based on incoming audio levels.
• Final width, gain and limiter controls.

AIR Sprite is available for Mac and Windows in AU/VST/VST3/AAX formats. It’ll set you back $39.99 until 14th August, when the price goes up to $79.99.

Find out more or download a 10-day demo on AIR Music Technology website.

Granular synthesis is great. Anything that involves smashing something up and then making something new out of it is fantastic, like Lego as something that brings out the inner child of joy from within us.

Imagiro has introduced Autochroma granular synth plugin but aims to change that…

Imagiro knows that granular synths can be overwhelming but claims Autochroma is like ‘having a day off’, and the plugin does appear to be an inviting and quite inspiring plugin.

You essentially get a buffer of sound coming into the plugin, shown over the top half of the UI, and three different ways to apply your granular processing. You can use a Locked Mode where the processing follows the play head, a Velocity mode where the processing applies to the length of the audio at defined speeds, and finally a Position Mode where it just processes certain parts of the audio.

All easy so far, but there are more detailed controls should you need them. You can change the grain offset and rate to change the level of granulising, and a set of ‘Lifetime’ parameters defines how the effect takes place over time.

And really, this is as deep as you need to go, because the best bit is how it sounds. A demo:

The Autochroma is easy to use and capable of a wide range of effects.

The plugin cost just $40. Find out more info from the Imagiro website.

As the tools for music composition get more and more capable, so they can also get harder to use. But this latest update to Quadral, SoundIron’s big Kontakt-hosted synth engine, aims to do the opposite and make the kinds of complex and evolving soundscapes used in film and game soundtracks accessible to everyone.

The concept behind Quadral 3 has to be reasonably simple to understand, and luckily it is.

Layer your quadrants, mix your samples, automate your parameters and you might end up being the next Secret Invasion or Zelda composer.

You get four layers of samples to mix with and a kind of virtual joystick to do the mixing. The X-Y pad in the middle of the screen enables you to move between the four quadrants that are situated around it.

Each of the quadrants can have a sample loaded in – and one of the updates to v3 allows you to load in your own sounds here – and you choose these by sample type, or mood. Then as you move the X-Y pad, the sample’s relative levels adjust accordingly.

However, you can also use the X-Y pad to automate parameters and add rhythmic modulation effects, and the X-Y pad can also be assigned to MIDI CC values so you can control or automate its positions using your DAW or hardware controller.

Watch the video below, as Soundiron’s Craig Peters demonstrates the UI from around 3 minutes onwards.

Quadral 3 ships with more than 300 presets spread over six categories: ARP, leads, pads, bass, effects and plucks. From what we have seen, it really is just a case of using these – and heaps of automation to create lots of movement – or mixing and matching the supplied samples, or even your own imported ones, to create more of your own preset sounds.

A set of macros enables you to set up sweeping changes across several parameters simultaneously, additionally, Quadral 3 features its own cutomisable effects rack (below) for even more sonic flexibility.

Soundiron says: “Quadral 3 is a powerful sampled synthesis engine, ideal for film and game composers who need a fast workflow while maintaining their creative spark. Dive in to tweak and automate every parameter with total control, or just click Randomize to generate a virtually endless universe of fresh ideas.”

Find out more information on the Soundiron website.