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Joined: Apr 2017
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A bit of a surprized from Isotope. But it is relatievely cheap (~$50) and you can download and use for free for 10days. Let us know who gives it a try first and what you find.... $49 unless you qualify for a $39 Loyalty Upgrade after logging into your iZotope account. or buying from Sweetwater. I'm going to pass. iZotope nickels and dimes us in between major releases, often for functionality we've already purchased in other tools. In this case, I suspect that Velvet is actually this module from Nectar 4 and since I already have that… De-esser
Tame sibilant vocal sounds in seconds with Nectar’s new De-esser module. A good de-esser allows inexpensive microphones to be viable in today's studios. The high end anomalies in many mics are particularly cruel to sibilants—not an issue with my ribbons and my go-to Neumanns but otherwise indispensable. $49/$39 for Velvet is an excellent bargain if it a) performs as advertised and b) you don't already have something as good. That said, I'm of the opinion that very few de-essers perform as advertised. This one, however, is a major exception and I'm quite glad to have picked it up at an introductory price — lot more expensive now. eiosis e²DEESSERNext time I have the need, I'll run an A/B comparison between the two.
BIAB 2025 Audiophile Mac
24Core/60CoreGPU M2 MacStudioUltra/8TB/192GB Sequoia, M1 MBAir, 2012 MBP
Digital Performer11, LogicPro, Finale27/Dorico/Encore/SmartScorePro64/Notion6 /Overture5
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re de essers.
i would check out some freebies and test.
i would be surprised if anyone didnt find one they liked.
eg....
https://midination.com/vst/free-vst-plugins/free-de-esser-vst/#:~:text=Kicking%20off%20this%20list
Also loadsof plugins tested on you tube.
note ive posted in tips n tricks loads of fx etc plugins that should be checked out imho. ive found some amazeing stuff
eg airwindows plugins as one example of many people doing some higly interesting dsp plugins.
amongst their huge variety of plugins is a de esser.
just an idea. hope this helps someone...
om
Last edited by justanoldmuso; 05/07/25 11:40 AM.
my songs....mixed for good earbuds...(fyi..my vocs on all songs..) https://soundcloud.com/alfsongs(90 songs created useing bb/rb) (lots of tips of mine in pg tips forum.)
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7 free deesser plugins Most of these have been around a long time I recognise those I've tried and forgotten. The "information" is copied and pasted from the developers; no actual reviews on that page. I don't believe that any are adaptive. As it turns out, that's the trick that makes the good ones worth having. If you can hear them working, you're listening to unwelcome artifacts—no thanks. Yes, they're free and worth every penny.
BIAB 2025 Audiophile Mac
24Core/60CoreGPU M2 MacStudioUltra/8TB/192GB Sequoia, M1 MBAir, 2012 MBP
Digital Performer11, LogicPro, Finale27/Dorico/Encore/SmartScorePro64/Notion6 /Overture5
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I recently spent $59.60 to upgrade to Nectar 4 so $50 sounds steep for one feature that Nectar 4 already has. I'd love to hear an A-B between Nectar 4 and Velvet if anyone has both.
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Mike.
ive used many paid and free plugins over the years.
as always there are nice ones in each category ive found.
go on gearspace.com where tons of studios large and small hang out and ask what their favorite paid and free plugins are.
for example the free airwindows plugins have a impressive rep on GS if one peruses the threads.
as with any product 'the proof of the pudding is in the eating'.
best bet is, as always listen to others and ones own tests.
ive had great steak at high end diners and lousy steak....lol.
i can remember years ago showing big studios for example what the pg powertracks could do for hamburger money.
i was laughed at and derided initially when i mentioned it until i demoed it in detail and its extensive features.
the reaction always 'for how much money ?'
'amazeing'.
same with free or nearly free plugins...just gotta find the groovy ones.
given the state the music biz is in and the fact that even if one has a great song... and one is lucky to get 100 net plays a year its difficult for many musos to justify expenditures.
so one soldiers on doing the best one can with what one has.
the crazy thing is ive done some songs in big studios with the greatest gear but 'the man in the street' preferred the rough demo i did at home useing pg and non pg free plugins.
i put it down to us studio types are often super critical and analytical re our songs whereas the 'man in the street' has a very different viewpoint often.
ive said many times on these fora that if all martin/the abbey/the beatwells had for software gear is bb and rb...they would still churn out great songs imho.
haveing said the above the nectar products are obviously impressive imho.
but would the 'man in the street' notice a diff if one used free plugins instead ?. frankly i often tame sibs etc with pg plugins and eq.
the free audacity has various tools re improveing audio includeing de esser if i remember.
happiness.
om
Last edited by justanoldmuso; 05/08/25 06:26 AM.
my songs....mixed for good earbuds...(fyi..my vocs on all songs..) https://soundcloud.com/alfsongs(90 songs created useing bb/rb) (lots of tips of mine in pg tips forum.)
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Joined: Apr 2017
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I recently spent $59.60 to upgrade to Nectar 4 so $50 sounds steep for one feature that Nectar 4 already has. I'd love to hear an A-B between Nectar 4 and Velvet if anyone has both. The word I've received is that Velvet is the new Deesser module from Nectar 4. There is no reason to have both. I tried it today on some 30 year old band tracks. The only copies I have are on cassette and I don't know how many generations my copies are. A couple of the members have passed away and the original tapes were wiped three decades ago. Anyway, the Deesser module is quite impressive and very easy to use with a nice visual indicator of when it's working. I figured that some of the distortion on this tape would never go away but setting the threshold down to -13.9dB did the trick. It's a worthy competitor to eiosis and 1/3 the price. The best deesser plugs don't let you hear 'em working.
BIAB 2025 Audiophile Mac
24Core/60CoreGPU M2 MacStudioUltra/8TB/192GB Sequoia, M1 MBAir, 2012 MBP
Digital Performer11, LogicPro, Finale27/Dorico/Encore/SmartScorePro64/Notion6 /Overture5
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Having finished that project, I had to use eiosis on a couple of tracks as the Deesser module in Nectar 4 just wasn't up to the task. These tape are in bad shape and I had to make the choice between spots of noise or noticeable pumping but still intelligible words — yikes! Oh well, my colleague shouldn't have taped over the Masters 30 years ago. Such is life.
Anyway, Nectar 4's Deesser module / Velvet is all most of us need — uses dynamic eq and not simple filtering like any of the freeware I've ever used. It can't perform miracles, however (neither can eiosis but it can handle tasks overwhelm Velvet).
BIAB 2025 Audiophile Mac
24Core/60CoreGPU M2 MacStudioUltra/8TB/192GB Sequoia, M1 MBAir, 2012 MBP
Digital Performer11, LogicPro, Finale27/Dorico/Encore/SmartScorePro64/Notion6 /Overture5
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