Saturation/distortion 2021

[dubdub]

What is everyone using these days?

For new stuff, I'm really liking Tone Projects Kelvin and Goodhertz Tupe. Both are incredibly flexible with automatic pre/post emphasis circuits and a variety of saturation models. Kelvin is more hifi but can get quiet meaty. Tupe just gets absolutely insane if you push the resonant ladder filter into it.

Gainstation from Acustica is really fat.

For pedal stuff I'm still liking the Audiority pedals. Good sound, great functionality.

Still using old favorites like WaveArts Tubesaturator, Soundtoys Radiator and Black Rooster Audio Vpre-73.

Otherwise I'm back to using Decapitator. Not the most sophisticated but when it works ...

[Divjak]

Enceladus EQ from mr. joaCHIP is incredible, sounds amazing and is useful in different situation since it is eq. Also its free
Otherwise I use shattered glass audio and 112 db Jaws alot.

[over9000]

Spectre is really nice imo
Rather subtle though
Thx for the inputs

[mindstuff]

I like Kush Audio Omega plugins, Sly-Fi's Kaya (for sure for low end), and AirWindows has a great plugin called Mackity. Of course there is always Decapatator. Recorded content either goes through the Analog heat or RNLA7239.

[dubdub]

Spectre is really nice imo
Rather subtle though
Thx for the inputs

Oh yes, I forgot about that. Amazing tool! It can get pretty gritty, too, if you chose Diode mode and push it.

[Belka]

Using different Stuff from Airwindows Mackity or Drumslam, SDRR, Bitwigs 8 Bit Dist, Saturn, Camel Crusher, Repros and Serums build-ins, D16 Frontier, Sketch Casettes Input and Comp, even DMGs Swell Clipper in Limitles.
A few friends of mine a raving about Rift by minimal.audio actually.
Sometimes i bite my ass because i didnt pulled the trigger on the Elektron Analog Drive when it was on Sale for some 80 bucks before it vansihed from the market~
Im totally ITB but i played at a friend with this thing and i really liked it on Drums.
Still looking for some one Knob or simple Pedal Emulations where i dont need to fizzle around for hours to nail some nais distortion, Berserk and Saturn are terrible in that way, would prefer more different simple Distortions, slap on and see if it works.

[Plyphon]

quite like IVGI2 from those fellas at Klanghelm. Think its free from memory too.

[mervv]

quite like IVGI2 from those fellas at Klanghelm. Think its free from memory too.

Thanks for the tip! I love MJUC and somehow missed this one. I'll be trying it later.

[mervv]

It's a bit less sophisticated than many of these, but Airwindows Mackity is really satisfying to use. Also free.

[Bradley1602]

Tritik krush
maschine saturator
ableton saturato
I always forget about mackity....

[zhluq]

I've been having loads of fun with Noise Engineering's Ruina (free!) https://noiseengineering.us/products/ruina
It can achieve sounds like that of old DOD pedals like the Buzz Box.

[td3l]

Soundtoys stuff: Radiator, Decapitator, Devil-Loc

OTB: Erica Acidbox III saturates real nice. Have that permanently on a group insert of my mixer.

[Val Endrada]

For subtle saturation, Ableton's "Saturator" works really well, but the way it distorts at more extreme settings is mostly too harsh/digital for my taste. The "SMP drive circuit" option on Ableton's samplers and on the "Auto Filter", on the other hand, is very useful, even at extreme settings. In fact, it's arguably one of the best built in effects in Ableton.

OTB I often use different pieces of old hardware for drive/saturation. I remember seeing Mr. Voidloss dissing the old-fashioned use of old analogue mixers for saturation somewhere recently, - but I'll take the chance and mention over-driving the mic inputs on my old Tapco/Mackie 6306 mini-mixer

ART Tube MP mic preamps can sound great with the tube driven into distortion territory, but individual units can sound quite different from each other. Old analogue pedals can sound great driven hard, of course, although you need to be able to accept the noise as part of the deal. Driving "bucket brigade" delay pedals can result in some great bitcrunch style squashing, but it might also simply cause it to break down/malfunction.

Vermona's "Lancet" filter/distortion boxes are very good as well.

[Bradley1602]

I get that mackity is a driven mackie console, but don't you guys think it's quite difficult to get that plugin to sound nice?

[Lost to the Void]

I remember seeing Mr. Voidloss dissing the old-fashioned use of old analogue mixers for saturation somewhere recently,

Only because it`s not saturation, it`s clipping/distortion, and even then, only when it is mackies.
There`s nowt wrong with pushing an old Stratos or TC valve desk.

[Val Endrada]

Only because it`s not saturation, it`s clipping/distortion.

hmm..

From a scientific point of view, all kinds of saturation processes would have to be defined as distortion, since they change (distort) the original wave shape of the signal. I tend to use the terms about different types of sound, I suppose, but your comment made me wonder where I draw the line.

..and it turns out it's a pretty blurry line for me: If it sounds nice, it's saturation - if it sounds gnarly, it's distortion

Is it even possible to come up with a clearer definition of what separates the two?

[speen]

I get that mackity is a driven mackie console, but don't you guys think it's quite difficult to get that plugin to sound nice?

It works well as an insert on a send channel, especially when you send more than one channel to it.

there is now also an updated version with eq and a dry/wet, which should make it easier to control the mess but I haven't tried it yet

[Lost to the Void]

Only because it`s not saturation, it`s clipping/distortion.

hmm..

From a scientific point of view, all kinds of saturation processes would have to be defined as distortion, since they change (distort) the original wave shape of the signal. I tend to use the terms about different types of sound, I suppose, but your comment made me wonder where I draw the line.

..and it turns out it's a pretty blurry line for me: If it sounds nice, it's saturation - if it sounds gnarly, it's distortion

Is it even possible to come up with a clearer definition of what separates the two?

Well saturation is considered traditionally to be something where harmonics are added, either odd or even, via tubes, so it is additive distortion.

And distortion, traditionally, is clipping germanium or silicon transistors. So it is subtractive distortion.

Obviously the terms are woolly now.

I like both, obviously. I wouldnt have built my murder box and slaughter machine fx units were it not for my distortion obsession.

[Val Endrada]

I like both, obviously. I wouldnt have built my murder box and slaughter machine fx units were it not for my distortion obsession.

Tried searching the forum for these boxes you mention, which brought up some interesting old threads. There really is a lot of brilliant ideas on here if you dig for a bit! Like, I had totally forgotten about "no input mixing board" techniques. Thanks.

[Lost to the Void]

I like both, obviously. I wouldnt have built my murder box and slaughter machine fx units were it not for my distortion obsession.

Tried searching the forum for these boxes you mention, which brought up some interesting old threads. There really is a lot of brilliant ideas on here if you dig for a bit! Like, I had totally forgotten about "no input mixing board" techniques. Thanks.

I`ve actually massively modified my Slaughter Machine box now.
I added a separate daughter board that introduces a whole lot more unpredictability.
It exploits the weaknesses of certain components, and there is a lot more play with voltage starving fighting with unloading capacitors.
You get this weird strangling of the sound which "bursts" through when you hit a threshold. So you can go from a really broken up fuzz overtone sound to a really full and broad big distortion dynamically.
I might make a few more next year and sell them.
I don`t fully understand what is happening, but they work.