I could write 10,000 words about plate reverbs, modifications, reasons I feel these physical reverb units are unique sounding, and why I love the EMT [Elektro-Mess-Technik] 140 that I own. But the...
Hey, look! Unique low-latency plug-ins from Apogee Digital, the same folks that have brought us such stellar hardware interfaces over the years. Though it may strike some as a late entry into a...
Iowa-based Sioux Guitars has been making very cool, very colorful, and very rock ‘n’ roll guitars, amps, and pedals since 2007. I have long admired their stuff from a distance –...
The Michelangelo is a discrete, Class A, all tube, full-stereo equalizer with Jensen input and output transformers. Each unit is hand-made in Texas on a first-come-first-served basis. Go ahead and...
As an engineer in my mid-40s, Eventide is one of those iconic companies I grew up with. First seeing gear ads in magazines and studio shots, and then hearing stories about Brian Eno [Tape Op #85] or...
Arcade is a new cloud-based software instrument from Output that offers an ever-expanding subscription-based loop synthesizer, while also allowing you to use your own loops. The plug-in can be used...
What!? Another Universal Audio 1176 clone? Well, not exactly. Black Lion Audio has been modifying entry-level gear [Tape Op #48], into top-notch studio grade equipment, while building outboard gear -...
I think I first heard about Soothe from mastering engineer Brad Boatright. "Just try it!" I did, and a day later I bought it. Note: never demo a plug-in you're not ready to buy. Soothe is a "dynamic...
I love electro-mechanical reverbs. I've owned several plate reverbs and currently have a Hamptone-customized EMT 140 along with two different Demeter Real Reverb units [Tape Op #21, #109]. I use these...
I had a blast reviewing Meris' Ottobit Jr. Bitcrusher and Mercury7 Reverb pedals [Tape Op #123]. The three-person company (steered by inventive folks formerly of Line 6 and Strymon) has been turning...
I didn't realize Auto-Tune was 20 years old this year, and I'm sort of in shock. I remember renting the ATR-1 hardware version from a local studio back then and trying to tune some poorly pitched...
I've been using Line 6 gear since the company's inception, from the original POD, to the rackmount POD Pro [Tape Op #22], to the later-generation POD XT Live pedalboard, which I...
