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There has been so much happening with D4Dirty Records over the past few weeks that it's been hard to keep up! We have had some incredible new artists sign up, and one of our tracks is to be featured on a Japanese dance compilation for Sony, so we thought it was time to get new kick ass website! If you like it, don't feel shy, let us know!

This new site is just a glimpse of everything to come for this label, and slowly we will be adding functions to replace a lot of the manual tasks we had to do in order to get releases out. What does that mean? It means more great music coming out in a much faster pace and it also means we are going to need a lot more artists!

I can now confirm that we do in fact have a new exceptional artist to add to our ranks! Mikkel Christensen from the world famous Global Deejays has signed his next two tracks with D4Dirty Records!
We will soon be launching a MASSIVE remix competition for one of his tracks.

Stay tuned, previews of his tracks will be up soon! Welcome Mikkel!

Tweak your XP for music

Are you getting sick of your machine crashing on you when you just had a killer idea? Or your at a crucial moment between a mix and your machine crashes back to desktop for no reason? Or you have a absolute bitchen system that should handle so much more

This guide will have your laptop running how you always wished it would!

This is a list of tweaks I have taken from several sources (all listed below) that I thought should really be known by all. These are tweaks that actually make a huge noticeable difference to you're the all round speed and stability of your XP audio platform.

What we are going to do is apply a bunch of tweaks that will work on one of three ways:

System Tweaks

Rather then having your XP geared for Microsoft word, Outlook and those girly games your girlfriend likes to play, these tweaks are going to make XP perform better with audio applications in the standard way we use them.

Interface Tweaks

How your XP looks actually has is a big bottle neck on system resources. All those nice buttons and start menu effects are draining your power! Seriously! After were done it might look a little bland, but that's where your favourite DJ software comes in, I mean your not even looking at your start menu are you?

Background Services

This is where the magic happens. Why do you need windows to check to see if you have an internet connection while you are beat matching the next track? You don't, but windows still is and it is costing you speed! Where going to strip windows down to its bare minimum here.

Let's get started:

Add New User

Ok, first thing we want to do is add a new user to your machine. This means you can keep your slick eye candy interface when your not DJ-ing, and when you are you can simply log out of your regular user and log in as your DJ user.

You must have a computer administrator account to add a new user to the computer.

So lets get on with it...

* Open User Accounts in Control Panel
*

Under Pick a task, click Create a new account
*

Type a name for the new user account, and click Next
*

Click either Computer administrator or Limited, depending on the type of account you want to assign to the new user, and then click Create Account

If you see an account named Owner, rename that account with a user's name. The Owner account, with computer administrator privileges, is created during installation if no user accounts are set up at that time.


Restore Point

A System Restore point is a way of telling XP that were about to make some serious changes and we want it to set a point where it can come back to if one of these changes as an undesired affect. If you make a mistake, or something else goes wrong you can log back in and restore your computer to the exact state you are in right at this second if you set the restore point here.

OK, So Here's how...

* 1. Press your Start button and click on Help and Support.
* 2. In the Help and Support Centre, click 'Performance and Maintenance'.
* 3. Click 'Using System Restore to undo system changes' and then click 'Run the System Restore Wizard' under the 'Pick a Task' heading.
* 4. In the System Restore Wizard, click Create a Restore Point and follow the prompts to save your system state in a new restore point.
* 5. At any time, if you wish to return your computer to the state it was in when you created the Restore Point, follow steps 1-3 above to get to the System Restore Wizard. Then click 'Restore my computer to an earlier time', and select the date on which you created the restore point you wish to return to.

Ok, now log out of your current user and log back on as your new user for the rest of the tweaks.

System Tweaks

Disable automatic update

Periodically XP will connect to the internet to find updates automatically for you. This is completely unnecessary and annoying do this on your own time not while your playing. You can ditch it by going to Start > Settings > Control Panel > Performance and Maintenance > Automatic Updates and select "Turn off automatic updates".

Disable Error Reporting

You can use Error Reporting for troubleshooting, but we shouldn't be bloody trouble shooting while were dropping that monster floor filler should we? Go to "Control Panel" > "System" > "Advanced" and choose "Disable" to disable error reporting.

Disable Power Management

Power Management can be the worst thing that can possibly happen to you on stage. If you leave your keyboard for a while and the hard disk turns off there goes your set! You can disable it by going Start > Settings > Control Panel > Power Management. Set the Power Scheme to "Always On" and set "System Standby", "Turn off hard disks" and "Turn off monitor" to "Never".

Processor Scheduling

Processor Scheduling for audio should be set to "background services" and not "programs". Since we won't have many services running this will help a lot. Change it by going to Start > Settings > Control Panel > System > Advanced > Performance Settings > Advanced Tab > Background Services.

Activate DMA on Hard Discs/CD ROMS

DMA will decrease the access times on your disks (A good thing!). Go to Start > Settings > Control Panel > System > Hardware > Device Manager > IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers.

Then Right-click Primary IDE channel and Secondary IDE channel > Properties > Advanced Settings Tab > Transfer Mode to "DMA if available" for both devices.

Disable Remote Assistance

Unless you really can't use a computer you really don't need this, and will never use it anyway. So if you haven't already, go to Start > Settings > Control Panel> System > Remote > Un-tick Allow remote assistance invitations to be sent from this computer.

Disable Remote Desktop

This is another case of won't use it. This feature is mostly used to remote connect into servers, and since your DJ ain't no server, go to Start > Settings > Control Panel > System > Remote
Un-tick "Allow users to connect remotely to this computer"

Disable Disc Indexing Service

This was Microsoft's answer to their useless search feature in windows. It's meant to make searches faster. I don't see a different, and you won't ever be using Microsoft's built in search while DJ-ing or producing so, Right Click Start > Explorer > Right Click Each Disc > Properties
Un-tick "Allow Indexing Service to index this disc for fast file searching" - this will lead to a message if the option should be applied to all directories. Choose "yes" and wait, until procedure is finished.

Do Not Map Through Soundcard

Mapping through the soundcard you want to use in your DJ-ing or production can sometimes cause unknown conflicts, so why risk it? Start > Settings > Control Panel > Sounds and Audio Devices

PSP Vintage Warmer Review

Did you ever wonder how your favourite producers get such a clean, clear and absolutely cranking sound out of just software? Well this Mac and PC compatible VST is one of our dirty little secrets.. Read on for my review of this awesome product.

What is the PSP Vintage Warmer?
Here's the scoop from PSP:

PSP Vintage Warmer is a high-quality digital simulation of an analogue-style, a single or multi band compressor/limiter. It combines warm analogue sound with a straightforward user interface, and comes with a rich library of presets. The plug-in processor is highly flexible and can be used for both single and multi-band compression, as well as brick-wall limiting. This makes it an essential tool for mixing and mastering engineers.

Careful attention has been paid to PSP Vintage Warmer's overload characteristics with the processor being capable of generating saturation effects typical of analogue tape recorders. PSP Vintage Warmer also incorporates professional VU and PPM metering together with accurate overload indicators thereby assuring professional quality results.

 
Here's what I think it is:

I work only with digital music, using Ableton Live and plenty of VST's. When I work in the Studio with my trusted engineer it is always a pleaser to run my tunes and recordings through a few of he's many vintage hardware units. I don't care what other producers say, but it is rare that a VST can sound as good as a hardware unit. A lot of them come close, but very few ever satisfy me.

That is where PSP Vintage Warmer is different. It looks like an old great sounding analogue compressor, and feels like one and most importantly it sounds like one! This plug in is not a nice to have compressor, I think it is absolutely essential.

The Interface

PSP Vintage Warmer features a brushed aluminum and wood interface with analog VU meters and several knobs and toggle switches. There is also a numeric display that shows the precise setting for each individual knob as you hold the mouse cursor over the knob.

Clicking on the PSP Vintage Warmer name displays the plug-in's "back panel", which lets you fine-tune the behavior of most controls. For example, you can adjust the ballistics of the VU meters or set the saturation ratios for the three frequency bands of the multi-band mode.

The largest knob on the front panel is the Drive knob, which controls the overall input level. When used in combination with the compressor section, you can achieve effects from slight tape saturation to full blown distortion. Add too much gain and you'll get harsh distortion, but adding a little can give a guitar track some extra bite.

The compressor/limiter section features controls that vary from the standard threshold/ratio/attack/release controls found on most modern compressors. Instead PSP Vintage Warmer has four controls named: knee, speed, release, and ceiling. Knee let you adjust the compression from hard knee (suitable for limiting) to soft knee (for more musical sounding compression.) It can also be used to simulate analog tape effects. The Speed knob is based on tape speed, and a slow setting represents a slow tape speed or a slow attack time in the compressor section. Fast settings do the opposite and give higher fidelity just as faster tape speed would. The Release knob adjusts the release setting for the compressor based on the Speed setting. The Ceiling knob functions like a Threshold control on a typical compressor.

Usage

Since PSP Vintage Warmer is a hybrid, it's controls are a little non-standard. Fortunately, it comes with a number of presets that cover a wide range of applications from individual tracks to whole mixes. It seems like a lot of care went into the presets as nearly all of them are useful, a lot of the time I am able to get the sound I am after without changing the presets around too much.

There are several mix and mastering presets. The generic "Mastering First Aid" setting can serve as a good starting point for most mixes. Especially helpful are four "Mix First Aid" settings, each of which concentrates on different frequencies, that can really help bring out certain elements of a mix. In addition, there are a number of presets for instruments like guitar, bass, and drums. There are also a number of multi-band compressor settings, and tape speed and saturation simulations. Using the presets is a great way to get a feel for how PSP Vintage Warmer works.

Sound Quality

I have used Vintage Warmer on a lot of my tracks. I find it most useful for getting some shattering kicks to come out of the mix without distorting or destroying the mix.

Basses, synths and vocals all sound amazing using this VST. It really is surprising how much vintage warmer can bring your elements out of you mix, and warm them up without distorting or noticeably changing them.

Overall

Overall, like I mentioned earlier this plug in is essential. I have never heard a VST plug in sound this good and I am looking forward to new PSP software in the future.

Unfortunately it is CPU hungry and that is the only reason I marked it down. It makes like a little hard to have to freeze tracks as soon as stick this beast on, but it is workable because it is more like a final touch anyway.

9.5/10

LennarDigital Sylenth1 VST Review

If you have been reading my reviews you would notice that all of the scores I have been giving out are rather high. There is a good reason for this! I really don't have time to sit here and write reviews for software or hardware that I don't think it, so everything that I review is software that I love and use everyday. Sylenth 1 no different! It is a VST still in it's infancy, but trust me, this is one synth that you really want to get on the bandwagon for and stop wasting your time! Read on to find out why...

What is Sylenth 1?
Here's what LennarDigital have to tell us

Sylenth1 is a polyphonic virtual analog synthesizer.

It has four unison oscillators which use an "innovate" synthesis technique that allows the generation of many simultaneous high-quality waveforms in real-time, using only minimal amounts of CPU resources. It also features two "analog sounding" filter sections, which can be taken way past the point of self-oscillation. These filters incorporate several non-linear saturation stages to produce harmonically rich sounds. Sylenth1's extensive modulation options offer possibilities to sculpture the sound, and it has a set of six built-in mastering sound-effects.

So what do I think it is?

I own a lot of synths, and I have tried nearly all of them at one stage or another. The synths I keep coming back to are Z3ta+, Vanguard, Massive, Pro 53 and Albino. While I do love all these synths as if they were real keyboards sitting in my studio, I realise that I love them all and not just one because they each have their own flaws.

Z3ta+ has great oscillators, but I find the filters annoying. Vanguard has a great soft electronic sound, but its low end just gets messy. Massive has some great features but has a constant digital sound.

Sylenth 1 is still in it's infancy and still have a lot of development happening so it lacks some of the nice to have features of the other big synths I have mentioned. However, even though it is still so young I have never heard the type of sound quality that Sylenth delivers in any other VST. Ever.

Sylenth rivals it's hardware brothers like the Virus or even the new Moogs. It sounds warm and analogue just as they promise and it is a synth not to be missed!

The Interface

Some may love it, but no one will hate it. I think it is quite nice, and it adds to the character of the Synth. When I was playing this instrument through my MIDI controller I felt like I was actually playing a real synth, which tells me that the interface is successful.

I think your going to see the interface improved quite a bit. It is quite big and I think they could hide a few areas with expandable buttons like on the Moog emulating VST.

Sound Quality

Sylenth is simply best analogue sound I've ever heard from a VST. I realise how a VST sounds is always going to be a subjective and contentious issue but I say this after comparing it with the best of today's analogue based VST's.

It doesn't have a huge amount of basic waveforms, and it doesn't have a huge amount of filters, envelopes or LFOs. It doesn't have a huge amount of modulation destinations. But - it has a huge, huge, huge amount of what you really want which is sound quality.

Take a look at some of the most successful hardware synths and you will see that it is not the complexity that make them great, it is their sound and how you can manipulate and sculpt that sound.

Filters are one of the main make or break features of any synth, and Sylenth's filters are just gorgeous sounding and overdriving beautifully. I've never found myself coming up against any frustrating limitations I have felt with other VST's. Sylenth, with it's simple and well laid out interface just invites you in to make fast and intuitive changes.

Overall

A newcomer to the market, and already is a top contender. If you buy one synth this year, make it Sylenth. If you only have one synth, make it Sylenth. If you can't afford a virus, buy Sylenth. You will not be disappointed at my new favourite synth.

8.5/10

 

M-Audio Torq Xponent Review
M-Audio has just released Torq Xponent which is a new integrated hardware/software DJ and production system. The Torq Xponent system brings traditional CD DJ-style control and mixing to the vastly expanding world of computer-based DJing.

Torq Xponent is a hardware/software system that can be used as an advanced MIDI control surface for Torq DJ software, and a four-output USB audio interface.

The Xponent's controls enables DJs to perform a variety of tasks from a single surface, eliminating the need to adjust most onscreen parameters with a touchpad or keyboard. The unit's mixer section allows users to deliver a dynamic DJ performance with the same feel and response as a standard hardware mixer. As you can see from above, it is super stylish, taking the look and feel of some of the most popular DJ CD players, and Mixers.

The Torq DJ software works for both Mac and PC and was disigned to be fully compatible with Xponent. Every single Xponent control is mapped to its corresponding Torq function by default as soon as you take it out of the box.

Xponent includes two touch-sensitive scratch wheels for scratching, speeding up and slowing down the playback of digital files. For in-depth control over Torq, Xponent adds 64 assignable backlit buttons (including Play, Cue, Seek, Loop, Key and Sync controls), two volume sliders, eight assignable knobs for effect control and two 100mm pitch sliders. The built-in touchpad is a X/Y controller that gives users command over the mouse or the effects in Torq, so they never need to take their hands off the unit in the middle of a performance. Level and progress LED meters round out all the pro features that DJs expect.

Torq Xponent also has built in VST effect compatibility and easily assignable hardware controls make it easy to turn plug-ins into expressive live performance tools. Throw in a flanger or a phaser, crunch it out with Camel Audio's Camel Phat3 or add some spice with Camel Space... you get the idea.

M-Audio Torq Conectiv Review
M-Audio is well known for affordable and pro-quality audio gear, Trigger Finger and Xponent come to mind as two great M-Audio products. M-Audio have been moving more and more into the DJ spotlight and have teamed up with SynchroScient to bring out Torq. So how does it fare compared to the other DJ and time coded vinyl solutions on the market?

M-Audio are now competing directly with Serato and Stanton, the two biggest Time Coded Vinyl solutions out there, Just like the other solutions, Torq Conectiv is really two products designed together: Torq is the DJ software package like Traktor, and Conectiv is the USB hardware interface pretty much like a FinalScratch ScratchAmp, or more simply a USB soundcard. They must be used together as a complete package.

Hardware

The Conectiv interface is a USB powered audio device that has two RCA inputs and outputs (thats one for each vinyl or CD deck), a headphone input and a mic input. The most prominent feature on the face are a pair or big knobs, these are used to either switch from time coded vinyls or acutal vinyls, or according to M-Audio can be used as some kind of effects wet/dry knobs. Conectiv can be used as between turntables or CD players and Torq with special control vinyl or CDs that are included. You can also use Conectiv as a soundcard, It is even compatible with the M-Powered Pro Tools but I doubt you will find it useful as it's latency for audio application makes it pretty much useless for anything but DJing. It is clearly designed to be cheap but well built. It's not going to win any beauty contests, but it does the job. It is simple, minimal and very strong.

 

 

Software

 

Torq is similar to programs like Traktor, as it has two DJ decks and all the regular trimmings, as well as a track database and playlist. But Torq also has some great new unique features like, VST plug-in support, an iTunes integration, Can be run as a ReWire slave and also has a 16 cell sampler and the. Torq also easliy runs with any MIDI controller (and also has auto-detect with M-Audio's controllers).

Interface

The interface is very basic in design. It looks like a lot of thought has clearly gone into its features, but I still felt that Torq feels like it should be in beta. It lacks the finished feel of Traktor or Deckadance. I do like the skinning options and the colours used are good for use in the dark.

I also like the MIDI learn functions which means I can plug in a Midi controller, hold down the SHIFT key and quickie teach Torq which control I want to use for a specific command.

Having set everything up, and put a track into one of the decks and a vinyl on a real deck it does however play very nicely. The Vinyl is responsive to the MP3 and the wav images move smoothly and correctly to the vinyl I am playing. It certainly doesn't feel cheap and runs very well.

 

 

Song Database

 

Torq has its own database of MP3 files (also support wav's) which is accessible through the browser interface on the lower portion of the screen, which unfortunatly can't be moved or controlled by MIDI yet. When you load a track into one of Torq's decks for the first time, it will be analysed by Torq to generate the waveform display and calculate the BPM. This process can be a little slow and sometimes can result in stuttering playback while the analysis runs. You can analyse them all at once, but i found that following the guid on my website to increase your laptop proformance can make a huge difference. You can find that here. Once your tracks are in the Torq database, you can search or sort them by the usual colums, Name, Artist etc. You can create playlists as well.

Torq's also tightly integrates with iTunes and lets you browse your iTunes library natively in Torq.

DJ Effects

The effects features in Torq are impressive. Each deck has a dedicated effects rack located just beneath the waveform display. You can add up to three Torq effects and one VST effect. The Torq effects include basic delay, flanger, phaser, filter, distortion, strobe, reverb, reverse and brakes. They are quite basic, but they are all you need and they sound impressive too. You can also add in your expensive VST's. After telling Torq where your VST plug-in folder is located you can select a VST plug-in from a drop-down list.. You can then tweak the settings as you would in any other VST host.

However be warned, if you have a bunch of killer VST's that are based on syncing with the tempo of the host, or are time/delay based effect they might crash the software!

Overall

Some might find the interface a little cluttered, or amateur looking. Some might like that aspect. I personally think the interface needs a lot of work, as does the VST compatibility issues.

There were several times when I have been using Torq and it has crashed on me for no reason. I spent time in the support forums seeking to fix it, but mostly the only responses I got where that it worked fine for most people. Great! But it doesn't work for me! It seems like a lot of the folk over at the Torq forums love the software because even the slightest negative comment of how it might be Torqs fault that it crashes on my system is a quick way to get flamed.

I think the software has a lot of potential but even if it only crashes on the rare occasion that is too much to be used seriously.

Score
6/10

reFX NeXus VST Review
Nexus is a self titled Next Generation VST. The interface was designed by Vanguards reFX, and the sound sets where personally hand crafted by the highly respected Vengeance. With names as big as those two, Nexus should absolutely grand. I have had a chance to get my hands on Nexus so let's see if truly be the Next Generation VST...

 
What reFX say about NeXus

NEXUS is a next generation rom synthesizer of highest quality that will make your dreams come true. Forget about the usual bread & butter ROM synthesizers whose sounds are boring, stale and lacking punch.

NEXUS explores new territory and delivers complex, ultra-fat and up-to-date soundstorms that could not sound any better from the most expensive and best hardware - all at the tip of your fingers.

NEXUS provides you with everything you need to create the new hit. Do you need the most powerful dance leadsounds to become famous in your club or a Gregorian choir to create the atmosphere of the next trance hit? Whatever you need, NEXUS will supply you with what you have always been longing for.

Features like the freely programmable arpeggiator, the versatile trancegate or the factory-library optimized for the most popular genres make this the best ROM synthesizer on the market.

Even though the sound is first rate, your CPU is spared. You can expand NEXUS with new sounds by installing genre-specific expansion packs or customize the look of the GUI with our themed skins.

Are you ready? You better be.

After placing your order, you will receive an email with a license-file attachment. You will also receive a DVD in the mail a few days later which you need in order to install NEXUS. On that DVD is a PDF with installation instructions

At a Glance

So lets get things straight first. reFX Nexus is not really a synth, it is a Rom Synthesizer. Every single patch has been hand crafted by Vengeance yes, but you won't be able to change any of these sounds except for a filter and a few built in effects.

The Interface

The interface is quite pretty, and the downloadable skins can make it even prettier. My personal favourite skin is the Kill Bill. The interface is clean, uncluttered and simple, I like the digital screen in the middle because it adds a nice feel of a modern day real synth.

There are two things I don't like about the interface however, one is the knobs which just don't feel tight, new or comfortable. It feels like they are on a strange angle and they are a little annoying to use with the mouse.

The second thing I don't like is that it can be a little difficult to navigate around the middle digital screen to figure out how to load in banks, set up arps ect.

Is the interface Next Gen? sorry reFX, as much as I love your synths there is nothing Next Gen about this interface. It is good, but it not quite what I would class as Next Generation material.

 
Patches

The sounds a synth makes are much more important then how it looks and feels. Vengeance is my absolute favourite sound designer so I was expecting big things from he's NeXus sound set, and he delivered in a big way!

You can tell from the built in standard soundest packs that Vengeance has taken a lot of time to produce these on some serious hardware. Each sound has been carefully crafted and recorded note by note.

The basses, pads and synths impressed me a lot, they sound thick and fat and crunchy, especially on the really low end of the keyboard which is often hard to get sounding right when you are just using soft synths.

I really enjoyed the new Electro styled soundest available on the NeXus site, and the other sound sets I like are the minimal house and Perpetual Motion. These are some seriously pro sounds!

I do have two small issues with the sound sets, the first being their size, each one from 400- 700 meg each. I know that a lot of data is kept in them, but for each sound that is brilliant there is a sound that could have been left out. For most people space is not an issue, but personally I really enjoy working on my notebook sometimes and my sample library is starting to get really taxing!

The second problem I have is the loading times for each soundest which can sometimes be a little annoying. We all know how many presets we need to go through to find that right sound, and while it is very easy to navigate through Nexus, waiting for each path to load in is quite annoying.

Built in Effects and Filters

One of the main selling points for Nexus is that its "Next Gen" statement. It was designed to be the perfect mix of a sample player and a synth. To achieve this, reFX have given the player a Filter, delay, reverb and an amp mod.

The amp mod, Reverb and Delay all work exceptionally. I really like the sound of the Reverb, it is bright, clean and simple. The Filter however is the weakest point, especially for electro producers.

Electro bass relies on the filter for its squelch, ripping sound but in my opinion the NeXus filter is too weak for this and not flexible enough. A couple of LFO's would be great too!

Overall

NeXus is not the Next Generation of VST's, not even close. It is however an exception sampler, with an exceptional sound library.

If they truly wanted to make it a Next Gen VST, I personally would like to see more FX, a matrix to assign filters and mods to the sound, morphing and a much stronger filter.

However, even though it falls short in the VST department the sounds are so well designed that I would use them anyway and I truly looking forward to each Vengeance update.

Review OHMForce Ohmicide: Melohman Distortion VST

There have been so many great plug-ins coming out of late and not enough time to review all of them, but when I tried the new Ohmicide: Melohman I couldn't resist reporting on how good it was. Read on to find out why.

 

About Ohmicide: Melohman
It's commercial common knowledge that "people always want more distortions" and this is exactly what Ohmicide: Melohman is delivering. In one death blow.

Based on Predatohm design, Ohmicide:Melohman is organized around up to four frequency bands, each of them coming with their own Noise Gate, Dynamics, Distortion, Feedback Generator and all mixing abilities with just a twist of pre- and post-processing (distortion input, high shelf output...).

The DSP is 100% different from Predatohm: compressor/expander works differently to fit well with both the very sharp Noise Gate we've included and the huge amount of new distortions. Those are at the core of Ohmicide. They're designed to offer pretty much everything you can think of next to a lot of things you can't think of. Some, like the tasty "Porridge" distortion sounds deliciously analogue, while the "Fractal" one is harsh and digital as hell. Or you've got the very dense "Accumulator" that can add low harmonics instead of high.

All those distortions are mainly new breeds - yet the classics are also covered. They all are declined in three variations: normal, ampsim and odd. The "Odd" one is terribly exciting as it gives you control on the harmonics frequency and allows for slightly detuned distortion. Last but not least, we've added a disto type that was missing from Predatohm... No distortion. It was an absolute need, considering how many things can be done just by using the multiband dynamics and/or the filter!

 
First Impressions

This is maybe the strangest and most rewarding distortion plug-in I have ever used. If you are after a solid state amp modelling VST then you might as well forget about it right here because Ohmicide: Melohman might not be your best choice. However, if you are after the beefiest, most bone crunching, yet smooth distortion/sound mangler/weapon of mass destruction then this is definitely the distortion unit for you.

 

 

On first impressions this unit looks like a brand new slick piece of equipment right out of an expensive studio, if it was Marilyn Manson's studio and you were recording somewhere in Hell. Complete with blood splatters and all. The knobs and sliders look new and fresh, and the screens look authentic. All up the interface is amongst the most impressive I have seen in a VST.

The only problem I have with the interface is that it is not inherently obvious at first, how to load and save your presets.

How does it sound?

I threw this synth on top of a synth bass to see what it could do. For its first use I just threw it on all default settings and played around with the gain levels for each level. My first impression was simply wow. This thing sounds amazing. I never thought I would hear a distortion like this, so full, fat, crunchy and unique.

After scrolling through all the available distortion algorithms I was even more impressed. They have a distortion type for any mood your in, from subtle to completely vaporised. The noise gate, shape and gain alone give you almost unlimited capabilities on the sound let alone the rest of the options.

What impressed me most about this synth was how it handles the extreme low ends and the extreme high ends. It mangles the sound, but unexpectedly each algorithm adds a certain sweetness to the sound.

 

Overall

This is my new tool of choice for distortion. This is without a doubt the best over all distortion package out there. It handles anything form subtle to oblivion and sounds incredible no matter how much you destroy your sound. For $99 this software is an absolute steal.

In my opinion there are only two things that could be done to improve this unit. One would be to make the preset loading and saving a little easier, and the second would be to add in a filter, or an assignable LFO to throw some automation in. Those are just nice to have features, and even without them I rate this as the top contender for VST distortion.

Tutorial How to Use a Compressor
For a long time the compressor was a complete mystery to me. All I knew was that is was something that everyone said I should use, so I did. I threw it on my VST's and to me everything sounded just the same as before. Is a compressor an essential tool for electronic music? Hell yes, and or anyone who doesn't quite get what a compressor does like I once did read on and I'll shed some light on this dark art!

 
What Is a Compressor?

A Compressor is one of those effects that unless you know what to listen for you really can't expect to hear what it is doing. It's not like a phaser, or flanger that you can throw on and turn the knobs until you hear something you like. It can also be very intimidating if you are only guessing what it is doing. Those knobs, Thresholds and Outputs can be plain confusing.

It will probably come a lot of you as a surprise, but what the compressor does is really really simple, and as soon as you hear this things will start to make a lot more sense. When you put any audio into a compressor, all it really does is make the loud parts softer. That's it! That's all it does!

 
So Why Would I Want to Use a Compressor?

I heard a great analogy of a compressor once and I like to think of it this way now.

A compressor is like a little man who sits there with a remote control for the volume. Every time he hears the sound is too loud he turns the volume down until it's quieter and then he turns it back up.

What this is going to do is reduce the fluctuation on the volume when it is loud so it doesn't spike into the red and distort your sound, so that you can turn the volume of the audio up and get a much louder overall sound. With the correct settings, a compressor can really help to bring out some of the sounds hiding away in your tracks, and without compression your tracks can sound dull and lifeless compared to other tracks.

There is a drawback however, over compression can lead to a noticeable loss in your audio's dynamic range. There are times when you want to have your piano or guitar play notes quieter to have more feeling.

 
Types of Compression

There are some effect units that are called something else but really are just a type of compression these are:

1.Limiter
A limiter adjusts the audio signal with a higher compression ratio to attempt to keep the audio within the limits set by the user. A Brickwall limiter is a much stricter type of limiter which will not let any audio at all past the limits. It does this by using a very high ratio, usually 50:1 or above.

2.Maximiser
A maximiser makes the mixes sound louder with the punch and is so often required in contemporary productions.

3.Dynamics Processor
This is a kind of compressor used a lot with synths or with vocalists. Sometimes called a multi band compressor. It enables you to not only make the loud bits quieter but also specify what frequency to start working. If a singer makes a terrible shhhhh sound every time they say an "S" you can tell the compressor to make the higher frequencies that make up the "S" sound to be really quiet.

 
How to use a compressor

Ok, so lets get into what the knobs and switches to on a compressor. If the compressor you are using doesn't have these features don't fret, at the end of the day anything other then a threshold and a ratio are not absolutely essential. They will however make your life a lot easier.

Before you start to play with the controls of the compressor, first have a brief think about how loud you want the sound coming out to at its loudest point and its quietest point. For things like heavy ripping basses you would probably want it be fairly compressed, but for acoustic guitar parts you might only want a slight compression to keep the dynamics of the acoustic strings.

Ratio

The ratio setting tells the compressor how much balls you want to give it. When you set it to 1:1 (it's absolute lowest setting) it wont do anything. When you set it to its maximum (varies, but can be infinite) it will squash the entire audio so it never gets past your threshold in the slightest even for a millisecond.

The Threshold

The Threshold control is on all types of compressors, and it simply sets the volume level that the compressor will start to work at. Anything louder or above the level you set is when the compressor start turning things down. If you set the threshold to the maximum the compressor won't do anything at all because the level coming though is quieter then the level you want it to turn on at.

Gain/Output

So far the controls have only really turned the sound down. The gain/output is used to turn the overall compressed sound back up to a level you choose. Some compressors have a nifty switch called an Auto Gain switch with does the same thing

Attack/Release

When you use a compressor you can sometimes hear a distinct pumping sound. This is the compressor turning on and turning off very quickly. For some styles of music you might want this (think Eric Prydz) but for other styles you might want something a little smoother. Setting the attack higher simply tells the compressor take slowly start to work, to slowly move the volume down and not jerk it down like a mad pumping DJ. The same for release, only in reverse, it tells the compressor to return to normal slowly.

Soft Knee

Some compressors have a few extra controls to make life easier. Sometimes too quiet or way too loud and a normal compressor doesn't quite take the edge off them. The soft knee allows you to set the ratio a lot higher, and then takes it's time (a time set by you) at reaching the maximum ratio level. So in effect it slows down the time the ratio moves into gear. This works like saying, I want the ratio at 2:1 but if the sound gets really loud, I want you to compress it to 5:1

Peak/RMS/Automatic

Sometimes you might see a switch marked as either Peak, RMS or Automatic. Sounds impressive but all it really does is attempts to manage your attack and release for you as best as the programmer/circuit designer has coded/built it to do. When you have this turned on, your attack and release switches do nothing at all.

In/Out

This is a very under appreciated switch that turns the compressor off. Use it to hear the difference you are making as you tweak!

SideChain

Most analogue compressors will have a Side-chain somewhere on them. The compressor works by listening to the input and turning the volume down. What you do with the SideChain is actually tell the compressor to listen to the kick drums, but to turn down the bass channel. This is some producers get really pumping bass sounds, and let the kick come through the bass without sacrificing either of them.

Sidechain also lets you insert other effects like graphic equalisers immediately before the compressors control system. You wont' really hear the effect as it is not in the main audio path and doesn't affect the sound. It just changes the way the compressor responds. This system lets you over emphasise a certain frequency that you want the compressor to listen out for.

 
Real World Examples

Using Compression to Add Bite to a Sound

This is a great tip for bass or percussions. Sometimes when you are mixing down your channels the bass or the percussion sounds just don't break through the mix, and just don't leave an impact. This might be a time where you could employ a compressor. We all now know that what a compressor is really doing is turning the volume down when the audio gets too loud, or peaks but by using this you can actually make your entire percussions have more bite!

What you want to do to bring out the punch of an audio track is to let some of the loud sounds gain volume slightly so they peak where they didn't peak before. To do this, set your ratio really high, if not the maximum and start with your attack and release set to a fairly slow speed (which is really a high setting on the dials), and turn off any soft knee settings.

Turn the threshold down slowly. You will hear everything get quieter, but if you listen really carefully you will notice that everything is starting to peak at the simular levels. When you happy with the levels, crank up the Output control on your compressor and you will have some crispy crunchy audio with bite. Now play with attack and release until you get a pumping sensation you are happy with, and play with the threshold over some of the quieter parts of the track to make sure you happy.

Compressing The Mixdown

One of the things that I do when finalising a track is to mix down groups of audio together. I will mixdown all the drums and FX together and compress them. Then mix that with the bass and bassy synths and compress that etc. I do this so that my final mixdown sounds clean and crisp, punchy and loud. I should also note though that on the very final mix, compression is a bad idea if you are going to pay for someone to master your track. Let them do that!

When I am trying to achieve a good final mixdown I would use a plugin generally geared as a mastering compressor, or a limiter. See the end of the tute for a list of great compressors to use.

Start with the Automatic/PEAK/RMS switched turned on. What we are doing here is instructing the compressor to listen ahead to our music and judge wether or not to turn on fast or slow (it automates the attack and release remember!).

For now, set the threshold to the highest so we can slowly bring it down later. For mixdown compression we want to be subtle, so a ratio of around 3:1 is a good start. I wouldn't go much more then that, this really is just for cleaning up and if the compressor doesn't help that then you have much bigger issues with your mix then a compressor will help with.

Now turn the threshold down, and adjust the output as you do this until you are happy with the punchyness of the mix.

De-Esser

Sometimes when you mix a particular vocalist with a particular mic, or words you end up recording really harsh sounding ‘SH' or ‘Te' sounds whenever they sing a word with S or T in it. Don't worry, this is a common problem and is easily fixed with a compressor. Use a fast Attack and a Fast release and about a 3:1 ratio. Please an Equalizer in the side chain and get rid of the bottom end, and the mid section and boost the highs (anything above 3-6 Khz).

Now the Threshold will control the volume of your S or T sounds. Congratulations you have now built yourself a cheap De-Esser.

While this is a great technique, you are probably better off purchasing an actual compressor unit focused on De-Essing but this is the theory behind it.

 

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