Modulation section really
shines to my ears with
wide and warm Chorus,
cascading Flangers and
chewy Phasers available.
Each one has a choice of
Analog, Digital, Watery
and Character settings,
which all sound so
beautiful as the Spread
is slid into panoramic
perspective. The Echo
section is classic tape all
the way and features all
the multi-tap heads, wow,
intensity and real-time
repeat characteristics one
might expect from a tape
emulation, but the detail
of the oscillation artifacts
is heads and shoulders
above most I’ve messed
with. The Reverse is one
of the most syrupy and
natural I’ve heard as well.
Simply stunning.
DROP INTO THE
DEEP TRIP WITH
DIFFUSE
Diffuse, while
complimentary to
Modnetic, is something
completely different in
the realm of ambience.
Utilising a digital delay
line feedback network
cleverly combined with
an analog-modeled delay
engine, one can spread
and smear the signal
source into pumping,
rich pools of pillowy
propulsion. Cycling
through the meticulously
designed presets, I
was privy to a host of
apparitional aural delights
that melted, twisted and
turned my guitars and
synths into a storm cloud
sonisphere of unearthly
delight. If I closed my
eyes, I could fool myself
into thinking I was playing
through an Echorec
jacked into an old Keith
Barr-designed Midiverb
Bloom patch—without all
the hiss, noise and signal
loss of course. Standout
presets include Endless
Plateau, Echo Phase Delay
and FX Boomerang. The
latter would make Ed
Wood Jr. flip his wig with
paper-plate UFO gusto.
WHAT WE LIKE
This is easily the
coolest retro-futuristic
ambient plugin sound-
suite I have messed
with since Echoboy.
Both programs are rich,
immersive and ultra-
wide in soundscape. The
controls are thoughtfully
set out, intuitive and
super quick to dial in.
The idiosyncratic tape
artefacts and reel-time
playback shifting is some
of the most realistic
I’ve heard since the El
Capistan came out many
moons ago and if one
is after a faithful 501
emulator, I can’t think of
one that will beat this, but
it is so, so much more.
Modnetic and Diffuse
sound beautiful and
complement each other
like no other ambient pair.
Get them now.
CONCERNS
If this were a pedal, the
love affair would go live
instantly. My only other
concern was doing Dub
Machines justice in a
short review. I hope I got
enough gas pumping to
at least get everyone to
download the demo.
ToneReport.com
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