over the top nomad factory BBE maximizer demo

[kensuguro]

http://www.youtube.com/user/NomadFactor ... ALByzyNzMM

wow, is it normal to use BBE maximizer on channel and ALSO on master? seems over the top. I mean, I get it's demo and all, but seems double harmonic enhancing can screw things up. Or is it signature for super hot funk tunes.

also, anyone had good luck with Nomad's Magnetic? I'm always on the watch for good tape saturators that can go from subtle to... well, crazy.

[dawman]

Lot's of folks rave about Waves plug in, but I haven't heard it.
But if the Reels spin and the Tubes glow it's gotta sound good.

There's also the Zaolla Silver Cable Cable 75 Ohm VST that can be used
on the end of the cummalative chain, that brings that old dated analog
emulation back to digital again for even further conversions/emulations...

Ankyu..

[valis]

Not really a fan of BBE's process anyway, too many small PA's use it to 'enhance' the crappy speakers that were invested in. Then again I'm not really a fan of the Aphex unit that preceded it adding distortion to the entire output of anything just to make it more audible on lowend playback systems or 'exciting' on decent ones.

As for tape sims & etc, there are a few interesting things out right now.

First off is 'console emulation':
Sonimus Satson is to be used on each channel and then a bus form to strap across busses or master bus. This is NOT tape sim, but can be used in combination with it on the master bus or w/e you want. The eq is a free download...

Slate VCC is similar to Satson above, seems to maybe be capable of slightly more 'extreme' settings.


Tape sim:
SKnote Roundtone is comparable to Waves MPX but cheaper and no need for an iLok. Both of these are capable of much more extreme settings than the 'console emulations' above, for obvious reasons. Not to mention they should be (in theory) entirely different effects anyway.

[erminardi]

I like the Digital Audio Soft "Digital Analog Sound", it's free

[garyb]

it's funny, but everyone uses the bbe process for what it's not. even bbe(well, they want to stay in business and the product won't support the numbers needed any other way).

normally, we hear higher frequencies earlier than lower frequencies, but the normal loudspeakers we use generate lows first. this makes the system sound muddy and potentially it leads to an unfocused sound. the bbe process is basically a 3 band crossover and micro delays on low and mid frequencies in order to realign high mid and lows, thus making it easier for your brain to make sense of the sounds. or that's the super dumbed down version anyway.

in a bad reverberant room, the bbe process makes the sound more intelligible. in a good space, the effect is minimized. it certainly does NOT belong on individual sounds in the mix, or even printed to the mix itself. it's just a correction for the actual listening environment and system being nused at the moment. that's harder to sell than guitar pedals and plugins, because when the bbe effect is useed properly, it shouldn't sound like anything.

everyone thinks it should act like an eq, and so they get terrible results or are just disappointed. only extreme settings do anything and what extreme settings do is crappify a sound no matter how great it seems at the time, a listen on fresh ears will show the truth of how bad it is.

adding distortion to an individual track is a really good, time tested way to add body and cut to a sound, though.

[valis]

You're right gary, the bbe works like the SPL rather than like the Aphex unit that uses distortion for enhancement (which is also the unit that behringer copied iirc). My particular dislike is when I see them used on small PA's as pushing drivers to their limits creates distortion already! Ie, people tend to use them to get 'more bass' and 'better treble'... Though psytrance & hard 'techno' guys probably don't notice the ill effects as much as I do with anything that's heavily percussive/breakbeat oriented (dubstep,drum&bass,downtempo etc). I also agree that all of the sonic maximizers are too frequently used where not needed or where a bit of proper eq etc would achieve more, but the only time I see that is with the software version and most people don't seem to have that anymore (cracks not as widely circulated now perhaps).

[kensuguro]

ah, interesting. I always thought BBE was the one using distortion to create upper harmonics. So it's the aphex one. Interesting to hear about how the BBE one works. And ya, if that's how it works, the using them in serial will seriously mangle the signal. I do like the sound of the BBE better than distortion based ones tho, less harsh on the ears.

[erminardi]

You're right gary, the bbe works like the SPL...

So the Sonic|Core PSY Q works like SPL and BBE?
I'm just curisous...


From S|C site:

PSY Q is a powerful but easy to use tool for sound optimization. Behind the unassuming surface lurks a professional psychoacoustic equalizer with an integrated stereo expander, a bass compressor and a SoftClip unit. The components are finely tuned to one another and function as an "intelligent" ensemble: that is, the PSY Q continually analyzes the incoming signal and reacts to it by performing complex phase and frequency response manipulations.
The result: the sound material is altered in a way which is pleasing for the human ear. Bass tones are given additional impact and loudness, high frequencies have increased shimmer and "airiness" and the complete mix becomes more transparent and defined. PSY Q simply makes things sound good.

[valis]

I believe so, iirc it was initially developed with SPL along with the Transient Designer (which didn't have the SPL 'look' until the current v5 update (of transient designer).