Like anything, IF you know how to use it, it's great. I am constantly handed recordings for mixing - and this box does something positive to them. You can achieve very similar effects by complex parallel patching and compression/expansion, but no need here.

Most people will over use it. Whenever possible I find the setting I like and then reduce that a little. It sounds good, not unbelievable, but better purity than most outboard dynamics processors people love (like 1176, dBX and Fairchild).

I find it very good on some bass tracks actually.

Love the Transient Designer. It kills me the the TD2 is unbalanced and personally, I wish all the "pro gear" would just go with XLR! Leave 1/4" to gutiars and synths, please.

Unbalanced? Why?

What do you guys use to put this in your system?

-a

it's a great unit...i used it for years. still, after i discovered waves transx plugin i never used the hardware again. i just get much better results from the software.

Great box, I tend to use it on toms.

www.bluethumbproductions.com

Holy shit!!!

I just tried the TD on some room tracks [never thought to give them a go on that source before]... yet another remarkable use for the product.

Took a room where I was having a bit of "wash" problems... pulled out a bit of 350Hz, added some "whack" pulled out close to damn near all the sustain with the TD... and voila, the snare drum now explodes through the track and the cymbals aren't a wash of "shshshshshsh" throughout the song!!

Thank you VERY much for that little tip... I think I'm about to get this bitch after my 4th try at getting a mix that didn't make me want to call Earl in Europe on the white porcelain courtesy phone [a Northeast Americanism for puking your guts out].

Theoretically unbalanced gear can be cleaner since it doesn't have to go through balancing transformers (once the signal is in unit, it's unbalanced anyway). If you have short cable runs and no RF problems, then there is no real need for balanced runs.

This is the reason many (most?) mastering houses run their set up unbalanced if possible. Since the TD2 is a 2 channel, it would fit right in with a mastering house...or a home studio.

I was just going to ask about WAVES TRANS-X which I just got to try last night. I have never heard or worked with the SPL TD, but can anyone answer me if the Waves thingy is really good? I see the one person is saying it's good...anyone else.

I tried the waves trans x last night like I said and I wont say it made my problem snare track work any better, but it did seem to tame the overheads, which were recored nasty.

forgive me for potentially sound ignorant on this but can't you achieve similar results as the spl box with logic's enveloper or sony's tranient plug in???

i've read most of the post here and it seems that most here are using the td box to add or soften attacks on kicks and snares. to me logic's eveloper is wonderful for that and a heck of a lot cheaper (i also have the tdm version).

am i missing something here?

ej

I have 2 TD4s and I think they are great. But , they are also very easily abused as many have said here. Sometimes you'll get a huuuuuuuge snare with extreme settings , but after a while, the effect is all you hear, kind of like autotune, . It's best to use it in a subtle way. If you do that it is just great. It's also great when you have a drummer, that hits as if he were worried about hurting his snare drum... a little extra attack ( not too much though ) and he sounds tough. I use it mostly with a compressor after it in the chain, something warm, that'll take the sharp sound out of the TD4 ( I'm not sure how to describe this but once you hear it you'll probably see what I mean)

I have to agree, this thing can sound awesome on bass.

Got a Designer via UPS today........It rocks....it is an awesome product period. For the stuff I do it rocks....I'm in love. Thanks for all the responses.
Tim

I just merged a bunch of TD threads into this one very large thread..

(go back and read it all from page one!)

And here is an informative 'tutorial'

http://www.soundperformancelab.com/T...utorial_e.html

SPL has the development kit now and will be doing a Tonelux Vrack Transient Designer Module.

More news to follow...

I suppose that one can get a compressor to behave like a TD, but then we all know that not all compressors behave the same so how can all compressors perform like a TD. In my hands the TD is a very simple, one of a kind tool. The TD is totally analog, but ironically the closest thing to it is the Enveloper plugin in Logic Pro.

i love it. use it all the time

actually selling one from the llot of little big room studios chek the for sale topic that i have there

m

WOW!!! That KICKS ASS!!

I know it is too early to say but any idea on when it would show up? Any idea on what it will street for? This is something I would be really interested in..... well after your now comps that is.

thumbsup thumbsup thumbsup thumbsup thumbsup

Gimme four,


at least

Nice


I would like a 500 module for my new empty lunchbox.

I have briefly played with Logic's enveloper and the SPL box - and I own Sony's TransMod - and from what I have heard the SPL hardware sounds quite a bit better than the plugs.

YMMV

I like to think of it as my vertical squishysquasher that complements my horizntal squishysquashers in the mix. But then again I'm a conceptual tinkerer and have absolutely no faaking clue what the electrical engineering drama of this thing's innards is. Moreover, I couldn't give a flying faak either. So IMNTLBFHO as an audio tinkerer thingy dude persona and not an electical engineer designer persona ... if it works ... then let it be written ... and let it be so ... done!

~skygod~

And the peasants shall be given cake ...
and they will have a feast and shall rejoice greatly ...
Then cake it is ....
Let them have .... CAKE!

I've only just noticed this. Paul, will it have the volume control, like the new SPL-rack design? 16 of these with the volume control in a 3U rack space would be awesome.

I have a lot of plugs and am pretty comfortable with most of them (even Kantos?!)
but I've yet to hear a plug in sound as robust as the hardware.
I usually follow the SPL with some outboard compression to tame the smack.
The attack can get a little crazy on those but they are invaluable.
I keep one in the house in case my wife or daughter come hunting bear.
I just dial down the 'attack' and pull out some 'sustain'. Kinda balances things out for those of us who swim in a sea of estrogen (not a bad thing).

try it.

chap

I just picked one up from Mercenary and wanted to give it a test drive on a Album I am putting some finishing touches on. Didnt know whether I would keep it or not...

I am very impressed. I dont like to put anything on a snare (reverb or delay) unless it truly calls for it(song- arrangement, etc..) I feel that it really kills the attack..

The snare on this project needed some heft and more body and the TD came through big time. It retains all that goodness (unlike reverb or delay)...

It really gave the snare the final touch in my book.. It went from sounding good to Wow!!, what did you do? Its not a loudness thing either, just made the snare come alive and sit in the mix properly!!

Cant wait to try this on all sorts of things... I am screwed... My wallet is doomed.

I still cant use this thing right.

It seems everytime I try the TD that when i hit bypass whatever was being processed sounds better.

I can hear some kind of mess / distort whenever I start turning those knobs. Just me I guess.

unless you're going for an effected sound, you need to use it sparingly.

Also, as posted, a compresser to follow will help make the attack sound more normal.


it takes some practice.

chap

SPL TD4 = Life Saver

nope you're not alone - I hear the same, but I live in Switzerland
I know you can make it work for your tracks but I hate working around the limitations of gear.


Jo

I love it...just got the TD4 a couple of days ago for this album I'm mixing. EASY TO ABUSE. First song i started mixing, i got carried away and had to back it off

Resurrection of an old thread in continued praise for Transient Designer.

Been using the Plugin for some time and just got a good deal on the two channel unit.
This really is an essential mixing tool for me.