Call me an AI pessimist, but my initial reaction was lukewarm when I considered trying out theVocal Reverbplug-in from Antares Audio Technologies. Havenāt I already got enough reverbs? How is this new one going to win me over? Once I dove into it, I realized it was challenging me unexpectedly, and now I've changed my tune.Vocal Reverbis more than just another reverb; itās a futuristic ambience channel strip.
At its core, weāve got three top-notch algorithms: Hall, Plate, and Room. All three sound excellent, and can hold their own against any other plug-in I have access to. While thatās abareminimum requirement for use on any of my mixes, itās not enough to remain on my shortlist. What makesVocal Reverbtruly special are the pre and post-reverb effects. There's a healthy selection of well-tuned tools to quickly shape those reverbs in creative ways. In particular, the Pre-Verb section includes a top of its class Pitch and Throat (formant shifter) effects. This is Antares showing us how to use some of their bread-and-butter algorithm Auto-Tune [Tape Op#126] tools in some of the most creative ways. Sure, I could insert Auto-Tuneās Throat plug-in before any reverb, but when itās already built-in it becomes available for use in presets. By exploringVocal Reverb'spresets for examples of how to put all this to use, itās inspiring to find patches designed around these Pre-Verb effects. In addition to Pitch and Throat, thereās Tube (saturation), and a wonderful-sounding Reverse tool. Post-Verb effects include a Tone Shaper, Width, Compressor, and Gate, plus an Auto-EQ that actually uses Auto-Tuneās pitch tracking to adjust the EQ in real-time. All this can be a lot to navigate if you just need a simple, quick reverb. However, this is whereVocal Reverb'sAI Assist tool has its shining moment.
When first opening the plug-in, you select the Input Type: Soprano, Alto/Tenor, Low Male, Instrument, or Bass Inst. This helps set the pitch detection to the ideal range for your source. Next, while feeding in your intended signal, click Assist and the AI Reverb Assist panel pops up. After analyzing the input for about five seconds, it gives you a few quick prompts and then quickly throws together a starting patch. The result often surprised me in interesting ways! For example, with bold use of Pitch or post compression but with the Auto-EQ set just right, it always helps the reverb sit perfectly. Similar to when I used presets, after using the Reverb Assist feature I usually made only a couple of tweaks before being fully satisfied with the results. In practice, this built-in AI tool is still faster than searching through long lists of presets with goofy names ā I really love it! This got me thinking, when preset digging, that I find it challenging to get past my own biases for what type of settings are appropriate in whatever genre/style Iām working in. Sometimes, Iāll even avoid auditioning presets just because I think the preset name is tacky! The AI doesnāt care what I think; it asks me some questions, analyzes the input, and gives me a fun, creative starting point. Itās shocking how often I hear a dark reverb pop up, and I love how it sounds before noticing that itās just casually pitching the input down an octave. This is a wonderfully deep reverb from Antares thatās surprisingly simple to use. It turns out that I actually enjoy having an AI collaborator throw ideas at me when Iām setting up a reverb!
($129 direct, $24.99 as part of a subscription bundle;antarestech.com) -Scott McDowell fadersolo.com