Plug-ins

Old synths never die, they get reproduced as virtual instruments. So it is with Waldorf's Micro Q, which forms the heart of Terratec's impressive wavetable-based soft synth.

• WWYAM NWEQ Pro• Universal Audio Neve 1073 Equaliser

With their Vocal Bundle, Waves look to take voice processing and automatic pitch correction to a new level of sophistication.

Another batch of hot plug-ins get installed and tested.

Serato's Pitch 'n Time has carved out a reputation as one of the best time-stretching and pitch-shifting plug-ins out there, with special features including 'morphing' time-stretch and the ability to recreate varispeed effects.

Beefing up real drums with samples is routine practice these days, but the standard tool is looking pretty dated. Can TL Labs' new plug-in help us do it better?

The latest incarnation of Wave Arts' plug-in suite is a treat for the eyes and the ears.

The convolution revolution has left a gap in the market for a high-quality reverb based on more traditional room-modelling techniques. IK's suite of plug-ins looks to fill the void.

Eventide's range of high-quality Pro Tools plug-ins continues to grow, and the new Anthology II bundle collects together no fewer than 15 separate effects and processors.

IK have given their popular guitar amp emulator a radical makeover, with a huge range of new models and a sound that's more accurate than ever. Is it an improvement? Read on...

NI's Kore system promises to unify your library of software instruments and effects, creating the mother of all workstation synths or multi-effects units.

What could be more tempting than a sweet-sounding virtual analogue synth? How about that same synth bundled with a bunch of high-quality plug-ins targeted at music production?

Waves are tempting owners of Yamaha digital hardware with an updated DSP board and a new selection of additional plug-in processors.

General MIDI synths are rarely glamorous, but there's no reason why they should not sound as good as more professional alternatives — that, at least, is the thinking behind NI's Bandstand soft synth.

PSP's latest plug-in covers the spectrum from vintage tape-echo emulation to serious weirdness.

This innovative new plug-in allows Pro Tools users to record each other over the Internet, in real time.

The former Wave Mechanics team set out to create the ultimate classic echo unit emulator, and ended up with a plug-in that does much more.

If you need a new way of adapting the feel of a loop, or you want decent pitch-shifting and time-stretching on a budget, Psoft's inexpensive utility might be for you.

Most recent electric piano virtual instruments have been sample-based, but in Lounge Lizard, AAS continue to fly the flag for their physical modelling technology; version 3 offers an improved fork model, plus modelled electromagnetic and electrostatic pickups...

We test another group of hot plug-ins: Universal Audio Dimension D • Ugo Rez, Texture, String Theory & Motion • TC Electronic VSS3 Stereo Source Reverb.

With W2, Wizoo's aim is to combine the realism of convolution reverb with the flexibility of an algorithmic design.