FabFilter makes unique and innovative plug-ins with focus on easy-to-use, well-designed interface aimed at providing unsurpassed workflow. We picked four of their more common plug-ins to give you an introduction to their perspective, design and sound quality.
Pro-MB is an intuitive multiband dynamics processer that lets you create new bands at the frequency range you want to work with as apposed to the conventional cross-over point splitting. Pro-MB has three selectable processing modes – a unique transparent Dynamic Phase mode, Linear Phase or a traditional Minimum Phase mode.
Pro-Q 2 is a linear phase operating equalizer with zero latency, a unique Natural Phase modes, Mid/Side processing, and variable stereo placement of EQ bands. It has a large interactive EQ display that aids in creating bands where you need them and you can select and edit multiple bands at once.
Pro-L 2 is a true peak limiter with extensive loudness metering with support for the EBU R128, ITU-R BS.1770-4 and ATSC A/85 standards. It includes linear-phase oversampling, professional dithering, noise shaping and surround support.
Saturn is a distortion/saturation plug-in with multiple distortion styles – smudge, stretch, crush, rectify and clip, letting you manipulate your sounds in weird and unexpected ways. Using XLFOs, EGs, XY controllers, envelope followers and MIDI sources you also get practically unlimited modulation possibilities.
This video shows a quick run-through of these 4 popular plug-ins – Pro-MB, Saturn, Pro-Q 2 and Pro-L 2.
Pro-MB
Instead of conventionally splitting the entire spectrum with crossovers, Pro-MB enables you to directly create a new band at the frequency range you want to work on. Think bands, not crossovers.
Features:
- Up to six processing bands, freely placed anywhere in the spectrum
- Bands can be easily snapped together to form a traditional crossover system
- Handles any form of dynamics processing, from highly transparent compression, limiting and expansion to pumping upward compression and punchy gating
- Unique Dynamic Phase processing mode featuring zero latency, no static phase changes and no pre-ringing artifacts
- Excellent Linear Phase processing mode, eliminating audible artifacts when quickly changing crossover frequencies
- Minimum Phase processing mode
- Up to four times linear-phase oversampling to reduce aliasing
- Fully customizable per band
- Steepness of each crossover slope can be freely adjusted between 6 dB/oct and 48 dB/oct
- Intelligent, highly program- and frequency-dependent attack and release curves adjust depending on presets and compression type
- Global dry/wet mix from 0% (no wet signal) to 200% (double the wet signal) to easily scale the total effect of the plug-in
- Beautiful Retina interface with unique interactive multiband display, designed for an optimal workflow
- Accurate and smooth real-time frequency analyzer with pre- and post-processing options and ‘freeze’ feature
- High-quality audio processing algorithms with 64-bit internal processing where needed
- Band solo/mute and bypass options
- Precise output metering
Pro-Q 2
Pro-Q 2 offers everything that a demanding engineer could wish for: top quality linear phase operation in addition to the zero latency and unique Natural Phase modes, Mid/Side processing, variable stereo placement of EQ bands, an intelligent solo feature, optional Auto Gain and a built-in, fully customizable spectrum analyzer.
Features
- Full Screen Mode allows for more precise adjustments
- Phase modes – choose from the newly-improved Linear-phase mode, the brand new Natural phase Mode, and the standard Zero Latency mode
- Spectrum Grab lets you use the output frequency spectrum to easily select peaking frequency, facilitating easy adjustments
- New EQ shapes with universal slope support for each
- Auto-gain mode automatically adjusts gain to compensate for frequency boosts or cuts
- Gain scale feature allows for gain adjustment on all EQ bands simultaneously
- EQ match mode allows you to see the frequency response of a different track, allowing you to EQ accordingly
- Replace frequency scale with Piano Display, using keys as markers to match EQ band to specific notes
- Phase-Invert option
- Improved CPU optimization – now more than twice as efficient!
- Improvements in Analog Magnitude matching, spectrum analysis, interface sizing, and output level metering
- Best possible overall sound quality
- Large interface with visual display, recreating entire frequency spectrum
- Use up to 24 EQ bands
- Band Solo Mode for isolating frequencies
- Stereo or mid-side processing
- Multi-band selection and editing
- Different display ranges for different uses, i.e. mastering or mixing
- MIDI learn functionality
- Undo/redo and A/B comparison controls
- Great selection of presets
Pro-L 2
Pro-L 2 features precise true peak level meters and extensive loudness metering with support for the EBU R128, ITU-R BS.1770-4 and ATSC A/85 standards. Combined with its unique real-time level display, you have all the information you need to achieve the best possible results.
Features
- Four New Limiting Algorithms (in addition to the original four)
- Surround Sound Support (up to 7.1.2 Dolby Atmos)
- New Metering and display modes with customizable scale and target levels
- Up to 32x Oversampling (compared to the original’s 4x)
- DC offset filtering (optional)
- Sidechain triggering (optional)
- Unity Gain option
- Audition Limiting option (listen to gain change only)
- Analyze audio (in Audiosuite) without rendering
- Real-Time Level Display
- Adjustable lookahead, attack, release, and gain settings
- Separate channel link settings for transients and release
- Dithering with three different noise shape settings
- K-System metering with real-time limiting display
- Inter-Sample Peak (ISP) Detection
- MIDI Learn allows for adjusting parameters with a MIDI controller
Saturn
Saturn offers a range of different high quality distortion models, inspired by the vintage sound of tubes, tape and guitar amps.
By applying subtle modulation to crossover frequencies, dynamics, band levels or tone controls, great warmth and definition can be achieved.
Features:
- Distortion and Saturation plug-in with multiband processing and modulation
- Sixteen different distortion styles – clean and warm tube amps, multiple tape saturation settings, heavy guitar amps, smearing effects and bit crushing
- Multiband processing (up to 6 bands) lets you create customized saturation and distortion signals for each frequency band – prevents smearing and keeps saturation limited to specific frequencies
- Optional HQ mode (8x oversampling) prevents any artifacts or aliasing
- Mono and Stereo plug-ins available
- Mid/side processing lets you add saturation to either the middle or sides of your stereo signal, adding another way of preserving clarity
- Interactive multiband display makes it easy to set frequency bands
- Easy-to-use interface, using FabFilter’s innovative what-you-use-is-what-you-see concept
- Add modulation to your saturated signals with endless options; use 16-step XLFOs, XY controllers, envelope generators, envelope followers and MIDI sources to add another dimension to your effects
- GPU-powered graphics acceleration
- Normal and wide interface layouts, with an option to show or hide the modulation section at the bottom
- Modulation source signal visualization; 50-slot modulation matrix makes it easy to drag-and-drop modulation sources to the entire signal, or specific frequency bands
- Over 150 presets for dialing in specific distortion or saturation tones
- Interactive MIDI Learn lets you assign parameter controls to your MIDI Controller
- Unique per-component presets for every feature of the plug-in, from distortion and saturation to modulation
- Smart Parameter Interpolation
- Extensive help file with interactive help hints
