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Transient Designer plugins are really fun! You can instantly turn a boring and lifeless drum or percussion part into something that really bangs and create a dynamic and lively part that will give you the cutting edge you've been looking for. And there's no need to limit their use to percussion parts. I've had great success adding bite and punch to synth parts, and virtually any transient-based sample can benefit from this type of processing.
Basically, these effects work by giving the user separate control over the attack and decay parts of a transient. Plugins with more features add multiband capability or surgical FFT-based manipulation.
If you've failed to use a transient designer in the past, give one a try and I guarantee you'll love it. Then all you have to do is choose the one that suits your needs.
Below are some excellent options to consider (in no particular order).
1. kiloHearts Transient Shaper
Don't let the low price fool you, this is an extremely responsive and ultra-simple plugin with mouse-over help comments that will get you great results in seconds. It's part of Kiloheart's Snapin Eco-System, which I recently reviewedhere.Preis: $39
Introduction to Transient Shaper
Transient Designer plugins are really fun! You can instantly turn a boring and lifeless drum or percussion part into something that really bangs and create a dynamic and lively part that will give you the cutting edge you've been looking for. And there is no need to limit their use to percussion p
2. iZotope Transient Shaper (Neutron 2)
A powerful multi-band transient shaper with selectable response curves (sharp, medium, smooth), a summing function that monoizes the input, a reverse polarity button, and three different shaping algorithms:
PRECISE:Fastest recovery time to next transient. Most accurate and responsive when adding or removing attacks to a signal.
BALANCED:Middle ground of the three modes. Fairly fast attack and medium release time when recovering from one transient to the next.
LOSE:Slowest settling time for all material types. The best mode to add a lot of sustain.
An LFE bypass button appears when Neutron is loaded in either a 5.1 or 7.1 surround configuration. When activated, the LFE bypass ensures that all audio information in the LFE channel is passed unprocessed but with the correct latency compensation. In learn mode, the plugin looks for natural crossover cutoff points based on some criteria, including minima in the spectrum. Once Neutron finds a stable and transparent location for the cutoffs, the learn function is automatically disabled.Price: $299 (bundled with Neutron 2 Standard)
2 Minute Tips: Add Transient Power to Snares
Transient Designer plugins are really fun! You can instantly turn a boring and lifeless drum or percussion part into something that really bangs and create a dynamic and lively part that will give you the cutting edge you've been looking for. And there is no need to limit their use to percussion p
3. Ableton Live-Drum-Busse
This Ableton Live device offers a few simple sculpting controls. It has built-in overdrive to add some harmonic distortion, a fixed compression setting (on/off), controls for mid and high transient emphasis, and a low-end enhancer control. While not necessarily a dedicated transient shaper, it can still get you where you want to be. You can find it as a preset under Audio Effects -> Drum Buss -> Transient Shaping Enhance.Price: (included with Ableton Live)
Learn Live 10: Drum Buss
Transient Designer plugins are really fun! You can instantly turn a boring and lifeless drum or percussion part into something that really bangs and create a dynamic and lively part that will give you the cutting edge you've been looking for. And there is no need to limit their use to percussion p
4. Transient Master by Native Instruments
You won't find a simpler plugin than this one from NI. It has three controls: Attack, Sustain, and Gain, as well as Smooth and Limiting switches. The eight presets cover a surprising variety of effects. I have to admit I've never been disappointed with an NI plugin and this one is no exception.Preis: 99 $
TRANSIENT MASTERS | native instruments
Transient Designer plugins are really fun! You can instantly turn a boring and lifeless drum or percussion part into something that really bangs and create a dynamic and lively part that will give you the cutting edge you've been looking for. And there is no need to limit their use to percussion p
5. Oeksound-Spiff
This is another impressive device from the developer ofcalm, which has been hugely successful since its release. Dubbed an "adaptive transient processor," this FFT-based device can achieve amazing detail and articulation not possible with other plugins. It's a full-featured plug with mid-side processing capability and a nice selection of presets. Because of the underlying FFT-based algorithms, you'll see controls not found in traditional shapers like sensitivity and sharpness. This is truly a novel approach to transient processing and another achievementoksound.Preis: $170
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oeksound Spiff: Adaptiver Transientenprozessor [Plugin Review]
Transient Designer plugins are really fun! You can instantly turn a boring and lifeless drum or percussion part into something that really bangs and create a dynamic and lively part that will give you the cutting edge you've been looking for. And there is no need to limit their use to percussion p
6. Sonic Entropy:EQ⁺
I recently reviewedSonibles smart:EQ 2and entropy:EQ⁺ is an earlier version intended to allow frequency-specific modifications of transient content. Affect frequencies with surgical specificity using an EQ graph and some global controls called entropy, strength, and smoothing.Preis: $146
7. Eventide/Newfangled Audio Punctuation
This plugin is part of theincrease bundlefrom Eventide/Newfangled Audio that ichecked last summer. Up to 26 frequency bands can be independently configured and manipulated. This plugin can achieve tight and transparent effects by using frequency bands derived from the critical bands of human perception.Price: (bundled with Elevate) – $146
Selective overview
Transient Designer plugins are really fun! You can instantly turn a boring and lifeless drum or percussion part into something that really bangs and create a dynamic and lively part that will give you the cutting edge you've been looking for. And there is no need to limit their use to percussion p
8. Synaptic Unchirp
This plugin is billed as a "transient fetch" processor that removes audio artifacts caused by FFT-based processing such as digital denoising and lossy file compression algorithms. Everyone in the audio industry has experienced those gurgling or warbling noises that come from overprocessing or heavy file compression, and Unchirp targets that nastiness pretty well. While not a transient designer in the traditional sense, I'm including it here because of its unique focus on transient events. Worth a visit especially for those who are busypost production work. Take a look toomy last review of Zynaptiq's Adaptiverb.Preis: $389
Zynaptiq UNCHIRP: audio plugin for codec artifact removal and transient retrieval
Transient Designer plugins are really fun! You can instantly turn a boring and lifeless drum or percussion part into something that really bangs and create a dynamic and lively part that will give you the cutting edge you've been looking for. And there is no need to limit their use to percussion p
9. MolecularBytes Atomic Transient
Billed as "the world's first multi-channel polyphonic transient designer that not only processes percussion and drums, but can also adjust detected notes from solo or polyphonic instruments such as guitar and piano recordings, or complete mixes (from sample loops or recordings) with filter effects." , shared dynamics, or an innovative new envelope overwrite.” This plugin has an extensive catalog of presets, a visually stunning GUI, and is definitely capable of some unique effects.Preis: $158
AtomicTransient preview trailer
Transient Designer plugins are really fun! You can instantly turn a boring and lifeless drum or percussion part into something that really bangs and create a dynamic and lively part that will give you the cutting edge you've been looking for. And there is no need to limit their use to percussion p
10. LVC-Audio-Transector
Transector manipulates the signal based on three "transient bands" - Attack, Release and Sustain. The developers explain: “The sustain band is an adjustable middle band between attack and release. By adding a third band of transients, you can use Transector to focus on different aspects of a track's sound or to smooth the transition between attack and release. Add body to the sound without overdoing the attack, or muffle a sound's decay without removing all of the tone.”
The mid/side processing capability and ridiculously low price make this device worth trying.Preis: $29
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11. eaReckon TransReckon
This is a simple device that allows you to get a punchy sound super fast. Two large buttons dominate the GUI and invite experimentation, which was quickly rewarded with a tactile response that is immediately enjoyable.Preis: $67
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eaReckon TransReckon – presentation and tutorial
Transient Designer plugins are really fun! You can instantly turn a boring and lifeless drum or percussion part into something that really bangs and create a dynamic and lively part that will give you the cutting edge you've been looking for. And there is no need to limit their use to percussion p
12. Sonnox-TransMod
TransMod allows you to soften or harden attacks with a few simple controls, add harmonic distortion with its overdrive function, and reduce the impact of ambient noise. The effect can be transparent yet powerful.Price: $130 (local)
Transient Modulator Tutorial (TransMod)
Transient Designer plugins are really fun! You can instantly turn a boring and lifeless drum or percussion part into something that really bangs and create a dynamic and lively part that will give you the cutting edge you've been looking for. And there is no need to limit their use to percussion p
13. Sonnox development
Envolution is more advanced than TransMod and gives you a nice graphic that visualizes the results of the processing. The two main sections are for transients and sustain, each with separate envelope settings and controls for frequency-specific processing. A very responsive plugin with 38 well thought out presets. An interesting feature called DIFF allows you to hear and/or extract only the transient events, which could be useful as a sidechain input on another track.Price: $193 (local)
Oxford Development (Overview)
Transient Designer plugins are really fun! You can instantly turn a boring and lifeless drum or percussion part into something that really bangs and create a dynamic and lively part that will give you the cutting edge you've been looking for. And there is no need to limit their use to percussion p
14. Wave Strike Attack
This Wave's transient shaper is simple and effective, and the attractive user interface provides excellent visual feedback on processing. Attack and Sustain have Contour settings, Duration, Level and Sensitivity controls.Preis: 49 $
How to get punchier drums and percussive sounds - Smack Attack Transient Shaper
Transient Designer plugins are really fun! You can instantly turn a boring and lifeless drum or percussion part into something that really bangs and create a dynamic and lively part that will give you the cutting edge you've been looking for. And there is no need to limit their use to percussion p
15. Joey Sturgis Transforming tones
This device separates the transient signal into four frequency bands (bass, low-mid, mid, treble) with adjustable cutoff points. The attack and sustain controls can be subtle and transparent or over the top depending on your needs.Preis: $65
Transify - Reveal; JST transient processor
Transient Designer plugins are really fun! You can instantly turn a boring and lifeless drum or percussion part into something that really bangs and create a dynamic and lively part that will give you the cutting edge you've been looking for. And there is no need to limit their use to percussion p
Others
While I have personally used all of the above products, there are many others not mentioned here, and I encourage readers to provide feedback if there are those with particular favorites. Below is a list of others on the market not listed above:
- SPL Transient Designer Plus – Plugin-Allianz
- Transient Shaper by Schaack Audio
- Transient Shaper von Softube
- Transgressor by Boz Digital Labs
- DS-10 Drum Shaper by XLN Audio
- MH TransientControl von Metric Halo
- Orbit Transient Designer von Sound Spot
- Helper transients by W.A. Production
- TS-1 Transient Shaper by Audiority
- TransGainer by Voxengo
- MTransientMB by MeldaProductions
- Beatformer by Accusonus
- Couture von Auburn Sounds
Conclusions
I've tried to present a variety of plugins that use different approaches to transient design and feature sets, ranging from the exhaustive to the extremely simple. As with most processing categories, certain plugins have unique strengths and the transient shaping process is definitely context specific. While M/S processing and multi-band capabilities are great features, you may not need them in every situation. Sometimes two buttons are better than ten, and sometimes not. Aside from adding punch and snap, transient designers can be addressed like aSounddesign-Tool, capable of unusual results unattainable with other types of processing. And don't hesitate to use these effects for things other than drums and rhythm parts, you might be surprised by their versatility.
Check out my othersArticles, reviews, interviewsand my video tutorial series,Synthesis 101Available exclusively on The Pro Audio Files.
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Synthesis 101: More than 4 hours of intensive synthesizer training
Transient Designer plugins are really fun! You can instantly turn a boring and lifeless drum or percussion part into something that really bangs and create a dynamic and lively part that will give you the cutting edge you've been looking for. And there is no need to limit their use to percussion p
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Philipp Mantione
Philip Mantione is a composer, synthesizer, guitarist, educator and sound artist active in LA's experimental music scene. His music has been presented at festivals, museums and galleries around the world. His current project is TriAngular Bent, an electro-acoustic trio featuring Don Preston (founding member of Frank Zappa's Mothers of Invention) and circuit bending virtuoso Jeff Boynton. Details belowphilipmantione.com
FAQs
What is the difference between transient shaper and transient designer? ›
Transient shapers (also called 'designers') can increase or decrease the attack, and lengthen or shorten the sustain. Transient designers can sharpen a signal's punch, and even minimize mic bleed or room tone.
Do I need a transient shaper? ›As a rule of thumb, use a transient shaper when you're trying to shape the character of a dynamic signal's transients during their attack and release phases.
Does Studio One have a transient shaper? ›Studio One doesn't have a transient shaper plug-in…in theory. In practice, there's a zero-latency, artifact-free transient shaper that's ideal for emphasizing the attack in drum parts (and other percussive sounds as well, from bass to funky rhythm guitar). Here's how to do it.
Is a transient designer a compressor? ›Technically, a transient shaper is a dynamics processor like a compressor, except that it's not affected by incoming signal level. In more practical terms, it allows you to independently accentuate or reduce the attack and sustain portions of a sound, which can be really handy.
When would you use a transient processor? ›Where to use Transient Processor? Use it with high Attack settings to give extra snap or punch to drum sounds or with high Release settings to increase the apparent loudness or weight of percussion, vocals or any other sound where you would normally use a compressor.
How long do transients last? ›Transients might disappear one second after you set them, or 24 hours, but they will never be around after the expiration time.
Should I remove expired transient options? ›Clearing out expired transients can also help to optimize your WordPress database and give you better performance.
Is it safe to delete transients? ›It can cause performance issues over-time and cause the options database table to group. So ideally you would want to delete expired transients on any of the MainWP Child Sites you manage to improve performance.
Why is Studio One Better? ›Undoubtedly the strong point of STUDIO ONE is its ease of use without losing functionality, its user interface is very well planned allowing each function to be just a CLICK of the mouse away. Many tasks can also be carried out with the drag and drop command, which greatly simplifies its use.
What is transient in mastering? ›Transients are non-tonal material at the onset of a sound. The Attack control emphasizes or de-emphasizes transients, making a sound more or less lively without affecting the overall level.
What are transient shapers for? ›
A transient shaper is a tool that shapes the attack and sustain of a sound—how long it takes for a sound to reach its maximum amplitude and how long it remains at its maximum amplitude before decaying.
What is transient vs sustain? ›Most transient shapers, like Smack Attack, provide an Attack and Sustain control. The Attack control lets you boost or attenuate the transient portion of a sound, while the Sustain control allows you to adjust the level of trailing audio content.
What is the simplest compressor design? ›Reciprocating Compressor. A reciprocating compressor is the simplest type of compressor in wide use today. The refrigerant gas is compressed through positive displacement using a piston. The piston becomes the compressor's main point of failure because of the intense mechanical pressures it must endure during operation ...
What are the 4 different types of audio compressors? ›FET, VCA, Optical, and Variable-Mu are four classifications of audio compressors. Each has different characteristics due to how its gain reduction circuits react to the signal being passed through them.
What is a Bambi compressor? ›The BAMBI PT Range of Air Compressors offer Oil Free air with ultra low running noise of just 54 dB(A) and an improved duty cycle of 65%. PT Compressors from Bambi deliver a compact, low maintenance solution to ultra-quiet oil free compressed air requirements. BAMBI is a UK company established for over 30 years.
What are transients Daw? ›Transients are the short burst of energy that you hear at the start of any sound. The loudest of transients are things like drum hits where the crack of the stick on a drumhead sends a loud sound wave out to the microphone.
Why do we need transient response? ›Transient response is a measure of how well a DC supply, such as the Sorensen SG Series, copes with changes in current demand or how well the supply follows load impedance changes. This is an important specification in many applications, such as mobile phone testing and testing automotive relays and fuses.
Why do transients occur? ›Transients in electric circuits occur due to the presence of energy storage elements (i.e., inductors and capacitors). Transients in electric circuits can be excited by initial conditions, by sources, or by both.
How can I improve my transients? ›Transients can be adjusted using volume automation, EQ, compression/expansion, limiting, clipping and envelope shaping.
What is difference between surge and transient? ›Transient overvoltages are short duration, high magnitude voltages peaks with fast rising edges, commonly referred to as surges. Often described as a “spike”, transient voltages can reach up to 6000 V on a low-voltage consumer network, with no more than millisecond duration.
How do you soften transients? ›
Set the attack just slow enough to let the transients pass. Use a fast/medium-fast release so that the processor recovers quickly. Set the threshold so that the EQ only works when it's supposed to. Use a high enough ratio to fix the problem, but low enough for it to be as transparent as it can.
How do I clean all transient options? ›You can do this by going to Tools > Transients. On this page, you'll see all of the active transients on your site. You can search for specific transients or filter them by type. To delete a transient, simply click on the Delete link next to it.
What is the difference between transient and cache in WordPress? ›Transients are a way of caching data for a set amount of time in WordPress. Unlike storing data in the object cache, transient data is stored only temporarily, with the expectation that it is updated periodically. Transients are always created with a set maximum lifetime, after which they expire and are deleted.
What expired transients? ›According to Codex, transients are: a simple and standardized way of storing cached data in the database temporarily by giving it a custom name and a timeframe after which it will expire and be deleted. NB: by default they are stored in the database, but if you have an object cache like memcached they won't be.
Should I remove plugins? ›There's no reason to keep plugins around if you've decided you're not going to use them. Not only do they clutter up your dashboard, but they can also impact your website in tangible ways, such as: Slowing loading times down due to database bloat. Adding points of vulnerability to your website.
What happens if I delete a plugin? ›In most cases, deleting a plugin will delete all of the files and completely remove it, but there are cases where the plugin leaves files behind. This is especially common in plugins that deal with media and storage. These extra files will be stored in your wp-content folder and are quite easy to locate.
Does deactivating plugin delete data? ›No. If you deactivate or remove the plugin from your web, you won't lose any data. There's more than one way to deactivate and/or remove a plugin from WordPress. Usually, you log into your WordPress Dashboard and go to Plugins, look for the plugin you want to deactivate, and use the available actions for doing so.
Is PreSonus a Chinese company? ›PreSonus Audio Electronics, Inc.
(often known and styled as PreSonus) is an American manufacturer of professional audio equipment and software, used to create, record, mix, and master music and other audio.
- Apple GarageBand. Logic's little brother and the best beginner DAW overall. ...
- Ableton Live 11 Intro. ...
- Image Line FL Studio Fruity Edition. ...
- Steinberg Cubase Elements 11. ...
- Bitwig Studio 16-track. ...
- Presonus Studio One 5 Artist. ...
- Cockos Reaper 6. ...
- Acoustica Mixcraft 9 Recording Studio.
- The Skatalites.
- The Ethiopians.
- Bob Marley and the Wailers.
- Lee "Scratch" Perry.
- Burning Spear.
- Toots & the Maytals.
- John Holt.
Why do professionals use Pro Tools? ›
Professionals use Pro Tools for simple recording, mixing, film scoring, music editing, film/television audio post-production…the list goes on and on. It offers lots of additional features, including a huge amount of automation, digital processing, and even surround sound mixing.
Can you still buy Pro Tools perpetual license? ›As of April 2022 (Pro Tools 2022.4), Avid is no longer offering the purchase of new perpetual licenses. However, existing customers can easily upgrade their perpetual license and get back on a current Software Updates + Support Plan.
Does Pro Tools perpetual license expire? ›A. A “perpetual license” is a license that does not expire—you own the software. You get a perpetual license when you purchase a new Pro Tools or Pro Tools | HD system or Pro Tools software. New Pro Tools software purchases come with a one-year annual upgrade and support plan.
Can you make a beat on Studio One? ›If you're looking to just test the waters of music production, you should be able to create your first track for absolutely no cost using the free trials of Studio One 5 and Splice Sounds. A pair of headphones will also be helpful for when we get to mixing all of our different ideas into a cohesive piece of music.
Is there an autotune in Studio One? ›There are few ways to do so in Studio One. The simplest way to do this is to press and hold down the “Option / Alt” key and then click and drag the VST3 version of Auto-Tune Pro from Studio One's “Effects” menu onto an audio event.
Are grace notes and ghost notes the same? ›Grace notes immediately precede another note and are written smaller. Ghost notes don't necessarily precede another note and are written in brackets. A flam is a single grace note immediately preceding a note (rL lR). A drag is two grace notes immediately preceding a note and played as a double (rrL llR).
Is Step response the same as transient? ›The transient response is not necessarily tied to abrupt events but to any event that affects the equilibrium of the system. The impulse response and step response are transient responses to a specific input (an impulse and a step, respectively).
What do transients sound like? ›A transient is a short burst of sound at the beginning of an audio sample. It is the percussive click, pop, or snap we hear when a Kick or Snare drum plays through the speakers, or is hit by a stick, for instance. Transients are in everything from vocals, to guitar string plucks, and even piano key clacks.
What is the best dynamic range for mastering? ›A good setting would be from -9 to -13 LUFS with the dynamic range reading on LEVELS not exceeding 8DR. This preset is get your track sounding great when played back through large sound systems.
Is a transient shaper the same as a compressor? ›The main difference between transient shapers and compressors is that transient shapers are threshold-independent, while compressors are threshold-dependent. This means that transient shapers are meant for input signals that are dynamic, such as the snare recording of a Jazz drummer.
Is drum buss a transient shaper? ›
Drum Buss is a compressor, saturator, transient shaper, and resonator all in one. Calling it a drum processing tool” is an understatement. While it sounds great on drums, it can work on so much more.
What are the types of transient? ›According to a definition provided by the IEEE 1159-2019 standard, there are two types of transients: impulsive and oscillatory. A sudden and non-power frequency change in the voltage or current or both, which is unidirectional in polarity, is classified as an impulsive transient is called Impulsive.
What is an audio envelope? ›In sound and music, an envelope describes how a sound changes over time. It may relate to elements such as amplitude (volume), frequencies (with the use of filters) or pitch. For example, a piano key, when struck and held, creates a near-immediate initial sound which gradually decreases in volume to zero.
What is the difference between sustain and reverb? ›Reverb is basically the sound bouncing around within a space (echoing). It's usually not something you want to cut off suddenly in the middle of a musical section. The sustain pedal lifts the damper off the piano strings and allows notes to ring. Typically you only allow the strings for a short while and cut them off.
What is the difference between transit and transient? ›Transit time of groundwater is the time it takes to groundwater to travel between two different locations. A transient flow regime of groundwater means that the flow regime is not steady and changes over time.
What is a transient in sound design? ›A transient is the initial peak of a sound—the first spikes in the waveform, as it were. Visual of transients in a waveform. We can think of transients as innately rhythmic, even in a sound we don't closely associate with rhythm, like a long sustained note.
What does a transient processor do? ›Transient Processor is a dynamics processing plugin. Use it with high Attack settings to give extra snap or punch to drum sounds or with high Release settings to increase the apparent loudness or weight of percussion, vocals or any other sound where you would normally use a compressor.
Do compression shapers work? ›Essentially, yes. arm shaper sleeves work in a way that helps you burn more calories and minimize the sagginess of your arms. Plus, by providing compression, this type of arm shapewear offers many benefits such as reduced fatigue, increased blood circulation and improved muscle tone.
What is the difference between sustain and transient compressor? ›Most transient shapers, like Smack Attack, provide an Attack and Sustain control. The Attack control lets you boost or attenuate the transient portion of a sound, while the Sustain control allows you to adjust the level of trailing audio content.
What is an example of transient? ›lasting for only a short time; temporary: A glass of whiskey has only a transient warming effect. The city has a large transient population (= many people who are living in it only temporarily). shortHe received a short jail sentence.
What is a better word for transient? ›
Some common synonyms of transient are ephemeral, evanescent, fleeting, fugitive, momentary, and transitory. While all these words mean "lasting or staying only a short time," transient applies to what is actually short in its duration or stay.
What are examples of transient sounds? ›A linguistic example of transients is the initial CONSONANT in words such as: till, pill, kill, bill. The lack of intelligibility of speech in spaces with long REVERBERATION times (see DIFFUSE SOUND FIELD) is mainly due to the MASKing of such transients by reflected sound.
What is the difference between harmonics and transient? ›Both harmonic and transient regimes are considered. In harmonic response, natural frequencies and loss factors are studied, while in transient response, where the external force is an impact, displacement and acoustic pressure are analyzed.
What are examples of transient music? ›A non-repeating waveform, usually of much higher level than the surrounding sounds or average level. Good examples of transients include the attack of many percussion instruments, the “pluck” or attack part of a guitar note, consonants in human speech (i.e. “T”), and so on.
Should I delete transients? ›Over the span of months and years, these expired-but-not-deleted transients living inside the wp_options table of the database can begin to slow things down and impede site performance. For this reason, we should remove expired transients to improve WordPress site performance.