- Often when electronic music producers reach for compression, they're not actually trying to compress, at least not in the traditional sense. MIDI-programmed kicks, for example, tend to have a static volume level but are more often than not compressed to increase punch or bring up the tail of the sound. This use of compression has some drawbacks, however: low frequencies can suffer, varying signal levels can dramatically influence the compressor's response, and each compressor can introduce its own character. Are they the best tool for the job?
Transient tools are an alternative. They increases the level of an attack or bring up the sound's tail in a more transparent way than compression allows. SPL's Transient Designer is the most renowned tool in this category, and there are many more on the market. Swedish plug-in powerhouse Softube's new Transient Shaper looks to take them on with some extra features. While it can be hard to get excited about what's essentially a utility, Softube's reputation for solidly coded and exquisite sounding plug-ins means that there's usually more than meets the eye. Transient Shaper's USP is a simple dual-band functionality, meaning that Punch and Sustain, its major parameters, can occur across the whole sound, or on high and low frequencies separately.
Drums are the obvious example when talking about transients. Before you get into the dual-band aspect, Transient Shaper works well as an envelope tool, allowing you to reduce the reverb of a snare sample, increase the snap of a kick or remove unwanted ringing from a tom, for example. With plus-or-minus 20 dB, the result is fairly extreme when the plug-in is pushed to the limit, and it's unlikely you'll ever want to do so unless it's for creative reasons.
What's a very welcome addition to the Transient Shaper is the change gain metering, which essentially displays how much the overall gain is being affected by your Sustain and Punch settings. This might seem trivial, but it allows for more accurate output level settings, helping you to avoid having to use a compressor post-plug-in to tame peaks—which could end up undoing your transient-shaping.
Elsewhere on the interface is the Clip switch, turning on or off Soft Clip at the output stage. Soft Clip rounds off peaks with (usually) pleasant distortion, and as Softube are known for their saturation skills, it's wise to keep this switched on, especially when dealing with loud punch settings and transient-heavy material. It adds a nice crunch to any sound that approaches 0 dB, and there's a Clip LED in the metering to let you know when it's active. It can also keep very short peaks from clicking. This is most obvious when A/B'd with SPL Transient Designer, which tends to overload much earlier. Soft Clip definitely offers a more natural response.
Though the dual-band functionality of Transient Shaper isn't new—Eiosis's discontinued Transienter offered it back in the day—it's a very welcome addition. You won't always want to increase the snap of the sound as a whole; by removing only the sustain of the low frequencies, you can, for example, take out the kick's boomy tail from a drum loop sample, without removing the airy space of the snare and clap reverb. Alternatively, a sibilant vocal can be reigned in by reducing only the punch of the higher frequencies. Acoustic guitar can be brought out in the mix by increasing the pluck shine, leaving the more muddy body unaffected. A crossover setting dictates which frequencies are treated.
While all those examples are fairly subtle uses, Transient Shaper and its dual-band functionality become much more powerful when used in parallel. Placing the plug-in on an auxiliary, driving the Punch hard on only the high frequencies and slowly bringing it up in the mix can make a drum buss come to life, adding air and bite. Similarly, a vocal whose low frequency sustain has been increased and high frequency punch brought down in parallel can thicken without adding plosives. This effect is essentially what mix engineers were doing with parallel compression in the 1970s. So if you're a big user of parallel processing, Transient Shaper is an extremely handy tool.
This isn't to say a dedicated transient tool is the only way to achieve envelope shaping. Compressors have proven themselves worth of the job, and their limitations can often be exactly what you're after. I A/B'd Transient Shaper with the Waves CLA-76 plug-in, emulating the Urei 1176 compressor known for its snappy envelopes. Matching the settings as best as I could to achieve a punchy attack and remove sustain, I was able to emulate the concept, but the sound was radically different as the compressor struggled to deal with such high volume reduction. Pumping, saturation and snappy clicks all occurred with the compressor; the Transient Shaper was more than happy to provide the same gain reduction and envelope shaping but with a transparent and consistent result.
Transient Shaper isn't going to change the way you make music, but it will become a go-to tool for sound shaping. Used alongside compression, it can give you the best of both worlds. The dual-band function can tackle mix problems as much as it can become a mix solution. And when used in parallel, it's a whole new creative tool for your productions.
Ratings:
Cost: 4.0
Versatility: 3.0
Sound: 4.2
Ease of use: 4.2