I made sure to start this plug-in delay's review without touching a single preset. Despite the feature-filled control panel, I understood and utilized most functions without reading any manuals and ignoring the tool tips. Right away, creating stereo delay lines was simple, and setting up times and regeneration was easy. Via the filter section (see below), I got some analog tape-like sounds, and was proud of myself for thinking I'd sorted the PSP 285 out.
The filter section might look daunting at first, but for those of us with patchbay experience, it's a dream come true. Every filter can be inserted at different parts of the delay chain, such as before or after the delay, or in the wet/dry path, applied to the reverb, and more. Filter 1 hosts a drive that can subtly add dirt to a signal or go into flat-out fuzz, enabling delays to pop out of a mix at low volume. Filter 2 affects EQ and can add some wonderfully overt darkness or lack of body when needed, something I usually add a second plug-in to obtain (since this feature on other delay plug-ins can be too subtle for me most of the time). The band-pass filter setting was especially useful for dialing in quick tape-like effects. I maxed out the delay line time (max time depends on the sample rate you're at) and got some Frippertronics-like loops going for fun, and the Filters were awesome for tailoring the tone of the long signal regenerations.
There's so much modulation and interconnectivity in this plug-in that describing it all would take up many pages. Mid/Side modes offer more sonic control, and there's even a Gate so one can set wild regenerations that cut off clean before tailing out; something I do in the analog world as well. The Ducker is also helpful for effects control – magic fader hands that pull effects down when signal is present and let it rise up when not – and it was easier to use than many I have come across.
If all of this doesn't sound like enough processing, there's also a very nice reverb unit in this delay. It's not some grainy add-on, but a lush and usable effect that I found sat correctly in mixes immediately.
When I finally did check out the extensive (almost 400!) presets, I was shocked. I was happy using the PSP 285 as a simple delay or reverb unit, but seeing how others had created filtering and morphing cool effects made my own settings seem pedestrian. As always in the plug-in world, many of these would be good starting points for adapting effects into a mix. There were flanger and chorus sounds I didn't manage to create on my own, and many other presets I'll be returning to on my next mix job.
Yes, this is a deep, multifaceted delay unit, with far more controls than I generally prefer on most plug-ins, but, as I said, I worked up perfect sounds right away and found it easy to understand, and the presets are inspiring. A lot of work went into PSP 285, and it shows. Try a 30-day demo to see what I mean. Wow.
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