Soundtoys SpaceBlender

New Soundtoys plug‑ins don’t come around that often, but when they do, they’re usually well worth checking out. SpaceBlender is no exception...

Both the algorithmic and convolution approaches to artificial reverb are now capable of incredibly convincing emulations of real spaces. But ‘real’ isn’t always what we want, is it? In fact, there are often occasions when we prefer to ‘boldly go where no‑one has gone before’, and to get you there, you’ll want to reach for a reverb that strives to be a little different. Popular examples include Zynaptiq’s Adaptiverb and Eventide’s Black Hole, for example, or perhaps you’d prefer a shimmer reverb or a Strymon Cloudburst? Well now there’s another option from Soundtoys, who’s excellent range of plug‑ins has proved enduringly popular. They’ve added to their portfolio a new plug‑in called SpaceBlender, which increases their repertoire of creative reverbs. Billed as an “imaginary room machine”, it supports all the usual plug‑in formats and, like the company’s other plug‑ins, is authorised using an iLok account.

Swarmatron Influence

While SpaceBlender is perfectly capable of delivering fairly conventional reverb sounds, this isn’t its raison d’être — after all, Soundtoys already offer more suitable options when it comes to ‘normal’ reverb, in the form of their Little Plate and SuperPlate plug‑ins. SpaceBlender goes far beyond that, in a way that should please many but absolutely delight sound designers and creators of ambient music, as it enables you to create intriguing imaginary spaces that can sound wonderful, but simply don’t exist in nature. Its clear and intuitive GUI can be resized in steps from 75 to 200 percent, and as is usual with Soundtoys plug‑ins the control layout is so simple that there’s virtually no learning curve to negotiate.

Most algorithmic reverbs combine delay networks with multiple feedback paths involving all‑pass filters and EQ to build a reverb tail that increases in density as it decays. But although SpaceBlender is indeed an algorithmic reverb, it is inspired by something known as swarm synthesis. This is a method of creating complex outcomes by combining multiple simpler units that follow basic rules, and that can interact with each other, the overall structure emerging from the combination of these interactions. If that all sounds a bit too theoretical to take in, it might be helpful to know that some other applications of this technique are inspired by the flocking patterns of birds: each bird flies independently, but it also reacts to the behaviours of neighbouring birds. Apparently the original inspiration for SpaceBlender came from Dewanatron’s Swarmatron, an interesting analogue synth we reviewed back in SOS June 2011.

Traditional algorithmic reverbs create a reverb tail that decays in a generally predictable manner, emulating a natural decay, whereas the shape of the reverb produced by SpaceBlender can be manipulated by the user to produce extraordinary results. There are no separately adjustable early reflections, as you’d find in most algorithmic reverbs, but at minimum density settings, the output does comprise a series of discrete delays. Examples include long reverbs with no significant decay, fairly abrupt reverb endings, very slow ‘blooming’ reverbs, reverse‑envelope reverbs, gated reverbs and so on. The maximum decay time can be adjusted from 100ms up to one minute and remains the same regardless of changes made to the reverb tail’s shape. As expected, there are several presets to get you started, and you can save your own.

Mission Control

Key to the operation of SpaceBlender is the interactive Visualizer display. This shows the ‘shape’ of the reverb in blue, and also a ghost image of the sound that’s being processed (purple), moving from left to right (see screenshot). Controlling the reverb shape is very straightforward, being linked to the pulsating cursor spot in the Visualizer. On the vertical axis, this controls whether the reverb is generated at a constant level, after which it rapidly fades, or whether it builds up to a maximum before decaying. The horizontal position determines the point at which the level is maximum so, by manipulating the cursor, the decay shape can be set to have a slow or fast attack, and a slow or fast decay; the straightforward grab‑and‑drag approach makes it extremely intuitive.

The Time control adjusts the total length of the reverberant effect, either in milliseconds or, if Sync is engaged, beats (from one to 32). Some useful features that don’t clutter the GUI include right‑clicking any knob to replace its name with a percentage value readout, and holding Shift while adjusting a knob to engage fine‑tune mode. Also, Ctrl+Opt (on a Mac) or Ctrl+Alt (for Windows) locks a knob, so that its value stays fixed when you switch presets — not a unique feature, but a useful one that I’d like to see more widely adopted.

When Warp is active, you hear quite drastic tape‑style pitch changes as the Time parameter is adjusted. When it’s switched off, the pitch remains unaffected and the level drops as Time is being adjusted. Color essentially gives you control over the tonality of the reverb, with anticlockwise turns darkening the sound as it decays, and clockwise turns causing the sound to become brighter and thinner during the decay. Texture adjusts the reverb density: when fully anticlockwise you see what’s essentially a multi‑tap delay, albeit with a lot of irregularly spaced taps. Fully clockwise, it produces maximum density, and these changes can clearly be seen in the Visualizer.

I believe it was Lexicon who pioneered the use of pitch/time modulation within their reverb algorithms (Spin and Wander) to smooth out resonances, and this tactic is used here, with the Mod knob adding a chorus‑like effect to the reverb tail. This can sound effective if used sparingly on vocals, but heavier applications can work well on other sources, including some guitar and synth sounds. Mix controls the wet/dry balance, just as you’d expect.

Soundtoys have also added a Freeze button that captures and sustains the reverb sound by looping the input to the reverb engine, rather than by the more common methodology of recirculating the reverb tail. This allows frozen sounds to be manipulated by using the Visualizer cursor or other controls, which opens up some interesting possibilities for using DAW automation to create shifting beds of sound. The sound being recirculated is also shown in the Visualizer display and the output when using long time settings is a good way to produce an evolving ambient wash or pad until Freeze mode is released.

I knew almost instantly that this reverb was something special, as I found myself playing through the default preset for several minutes before setting off to explore the other options.

Gold Blend?

When describing the actual sound of SpaceBlender, it’s difficult knowing exactly where to start! But I knew almost instantly that this reverb was something special, as I found myself playing through the default preset for several minutes before setting off to explore the other options. Depending on the Texture setting, which is essentially a density control, the sound moves from a dense cluster of discrete delays to a very smooth and dense reverb with lots of useful options in between. Key to the sound of SpaceBlender is that the reverb tail doesn’t start to sound ‘ringy’ or metallic at long decay times. I tried to replicate its effects using Logic Pro’s ChromaVerb (which can generate very long reverbs and has a variable attack time) but it sounded very different and somewhat metallic by comparison.

Much of the sonic variety available from SpaceBlender comes about due to the ability to directly manipulate the shape of the reverb using the Visualizer cursor. By setting a very slow attack time, it is possible to create reverb effects that bloom and evolve or even sneak up on you several bars later in the song. Or you can push the cursor fully upwards, dial in a long reverb time and look forward to a solid wall of sound. For a plug‑in with so few controls, there’s a lot to explore here, though if I put on my ‘Mr Picky’ hat, I’d have liked to see some shimmer type options built‑in, to further extend the range of available effects. Having said that, you can always combine it with other plug‑ins to expand its capabilities, pitch‑shifters and granular delays being particularly useful in that context.

As I’m writing this part of the review, I’m listening to a short piano phrase being processed by SpaceBlender in Freeze mode, and with the Mix setting at 100 percent wet, it sounds like a cross between a ghostly string section and distant choirs — I can’t hear any trace of a piano in there anywhere. This is great: bounce that down, and I’ll have the start of my next ambient track!

Verdict

SpaceBlender excels at ethereal reverb effects, so I suspect that sound designers, music for picture composers and those into ambient or chillout music (like me) will be the most appreciative of its abilities. But there’s plenty here for others to investigate too. I love the immediacy of its controls, and in reality there’s almost no way to coax a bad sound out of it — SpaceBlender delivers instant gratification all the way, and can create effects that will take your compositions in new directions. It will certainly make a very welcome addition to my reverb arsenal — with its imaginary spaces, it might well become my new best imaginary friend!