Apologies for the delayed response. I dozed off and did not utilize any sidechain at all. Softube features a short release time, with a fast attack in comparison to others. Initially, I attributed the attack's behavior to the compression curve, but now I believe that the saturation it adds contributes to the punchiness without being overtly noticeable. Kiive delivered a satisfactory punch with excellent sustain, while UAD struck a good balance between the two. It is important to remember that Softube has implemented fixed attacks and releases, making it extremely challenging to achieve a perfect match, particularly considering its emulation of a different device.

When oversampling in Reaper, it is common for the sound to change. However, when the plugin is used above its accustomed 192 kHz frequency, the resolution improves. As a result, most of the aliasing caused by heavy compression is eliminated, leading to enhanced clarity.

An improved resolution doesn't necessarily mean a better sound or more clarity. In fact, sometimes oversampling leads to softer transients which might or not be a desirable thing for the user. There are very good things about oversampling but sometimes there are also artifacts doing more harm than good.

I advise everyone to test and try everything they read on the internet by themselves and not just go and fly blind because someone said this or that, or someone posted a few audio examples that might be flawed (not saying this is your case, not at all).

It is not my intention to dictate people's actions or impose restrictions on them. Individuals are at liberty to explore various possibilities in music, as there are no set rules. If a particular approach aligns with their musical style, they can pursue it. However, if it doesn't resonate, they can opt for an alternative plan. While I primarily rely on my auditory senses, I also conduct scientific tests to understand how the human brain perceives music. This is important because people's preferences can be influenced by what they desire to hear, leading to the placebo effect.

Agreed.

And just to add to the discussion at hand (sorry for the off-topic), I always try both the Softube Mike-E and the UAD Distressor and hear what suits better. In my opinion both plug-ins are excellent.

lol thanks for the reply and the chuckle, jams. I agree about the UAD -- can't really quite get that same envelope out of anything i have here. cheers


edit: after several hours, finally came up with an alternative that approximates the uad distressor: Drum Leveler for the compression, and airwindows spiral2 for the saturation. Punchy and a highly controlled envelope. Something I could not get out of any of my usual comps: drc2, kotelnikov, molot, or softube chandler. I had bought Drum Leveler ages ago for a project and never used it. Like the uad, it brings up the level of the hi hat without crushing the kick or causing the snare to overshoot.

I'm thrilled to have three excellent pieces of gear: Softube Mike-E, UAD Distressor, and EL Arouser. I love them so much.
Which hardware versions should I buy, and should I buy, any modifications?

So - I bought a Softube Mike-E. The tone/sound is nice. The compressor works well (but not like the original hardware device)

I'm amazed at one thing - how TERRIBLE the Dry/Wet function is in the Softube Mike-E plugin. It's just a nightmare!!!

Literally I have not encountered such terrible control/behavior with any other plugin. Even their S73 plugin does not have such problems.

No matter how I try, I cannot adequately compare the volumes of Dry and Wet.
If I make the output volume louder - to compensate for compression - then turning the knob all the way to “Dry” - I always get a higher volume!
Moreover, by turning the Drive/Wet knob, the volume literally “FAILS”! Some strange phase subtractions (or something similar). Simply disgusting.

As a result, it is impossible to work adequately with the Dry/Wet handle.

I will write a complaint to the company.

I was stoked to get the UAD Distressor plugin super cheap because of their sale + discount coupon this week. After years of wondering, I finally got my answer. The Arousor and Distressor are indeed different. The saturation acts differently. The effect of the compression on a drum transient is different. I like both. The Distressor has a thickness to it that the Arousor does not. The Arousor feels more “precise” and has more customization control.

I usually try 5-10 color plugins (or hardware), to compare the tone for the actual track, instead of comparing the emulations.

I agree, I have 4 of them, and use all
Steven Slate because its in the rack
Softube Mike-E Comp because of the distortion
UAD because its authentic (I believe)

No direct Distressor alternative, but a great option nonetheless especially for the price tag of just $16!

https://aberrantdsp.com/plugins/shapeshifter/

No.

I really love this plugin; but what in your opinion makes it even similar to a Distressor, as its basically the Noise Reduction - Algorithm based on SketchCassette and with that doing Upward / Downward compression?

I wasn't suggesting ShapeShifter is a direct alternative to the Distressor just that it's a great option for its price.

Sure thing.

Having picked up the UAD Distressor the other day, it's a lot less coloured than the SKNote disto, which tbh I think is more of a fatso than distressor.

They actually complement each other quite nicely.

If you want the Distressor in a plugin, grab the Softube or UAD version.

Otherwise, buy the real hardware version.

I'm not sure why people are recommending non Distressor related plugins compressors in a Distressor thread.

Because there is a relation between them ?

There is no 1:1 emulation. The circuit modeled compressors are all defective and alias internally horribly causing misfires. The arousor is a standard, aliased digital compressor with a wave shaping function. They all sound like defective compressors driven into clippers or saturators rather than a very flexible compressor you can set by ear and knowing what the controls do like the real Distressor.

Why not just get a functional compressor you can set by ear? Molot GE is that, especially on insane quality, you can control the slower envelope, and has adjustable distortion, limiting, and functional feedback with an iterative solver rather than just allowing a stupid overshoot? Digital isn’t very good normally at feedback compression and Molot GE is probably the best one along with Cytomic the Glue which of course is completely different.

Unisum can also be tweaked on pristine and you can defeat the envelope smoother, control how it reacts to transients, create non-linear timings for the lows, mids, and highs etc and can set it to get a very Distressor like sound if you want or something that fits your material even better.

PSP Impressor is very cool when you enable 16x sidechain oversampling and has the optional saturation, big soft knee, different ratios that sound like their titles etc.

The Goodhertz Faraday Limiter can smack super hard and is very controllable with optional distortion and frequency dependency through the color and warmth controls.

The Weiss DS1 and Kotelnikov GE can both operate extremely fast and smack very hard.

That relationship could potentially make for an interesting discussion - what do you find similar about this particular plugin and a Distressor?

Many compressors have ratio, attack, and release knobs.

Even "tone" knobs if you use them in that spirit.

So many plugins exist. Different people prefer different things. There is something for all of us. It's subjective.

I promise which plugins you use doesn't make much difference when making music.

I meant there are non distressor plugins that have similar tastes to what the distressor brings.

Like the Lindells to the API's etc.

Yes one need to define the purpose, some say many but for me the distressor only has one trick which is to add presence and low end in a convincing ways, like transistor (?) Fairchild.

In my experience, VCA compressors are probably the most difficult to emulate for some reasons. Not just the Distressor, but there aren't many decent VCA emulations out there. They tend to be overly dirty or too tight.

And distortion boxes

And Transformers.

After a number of weeks with the distressesor plugin. I pretty much use it on everything now. Sometimes subtly, sometimes smashing things. It’s my “make it sound better” plugin.

Which one do you mean?

An sorry. UAD’s native Distressor.