Ever since I reviewed the Valhalla reverbs [Tape Op #111], I’ve continued to use these plug-ins on every session, especially Shimmer and VintageVerb. I was recently poking around on the Valhalla website and found SpaceModulator, which is free to download if you’ve purchased at least one plug-in from Valhalla and you complete a survey. SpaceModulator is a flanger plug-in, and it’s one of the best I’ve heard. I love phasers and flangers, and I own several cool analog units, like the vintage Eventide Instant Flanger and Instant Phaser, the Prophecy Pi-Phase (which emulates very nicely the Mu-Tron Bi-Phase), and after a lot of eBay patience, a Marshall Time Modulator, perhaps the greatest analog flanger ever made. I suspect SpaceModulator might be Valhalla DSP wiz Sean Costello’s take on the Marshall unit, as time and space are part of a classic equation of some sort, right? Anyway, SpaceModulator makes some crazy deep flanges that I’ve never quite heard before from a plug-in; its sonic capabilities are as impressive as some of my vintage analog gear. Like all Valhalla plug-ins, SpaceModulator is easy to use, with only five knob-based parameters and eleven different flanging algorithms. So, if you haven’t bought a Valhalla plug-in yet, now’s the time to do it; they’re only $50 each, and they all sound great. Factoring in that you get SpaceModulator for free with your purchase — if you purchase just one plug-in, that’s like getting two great plug-ins for $25 each. SpaceModulator is a bit hidden on the Valhalla site, so Google it, or use the link below.

Tape Op is a bi-monthly magazine devoted to the art of record making.

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