Effects

Making your own pedals can be a lot cheaper than buying them — and with many of the self‑build kits now available, you won’t even need a deep knowledge of electronics.

Parallel processing while mixing is a common technique — so why not try it with your pedals when recording?

Why let guitarists have all the fun? Stompboxes can be inspirational mixing tools.

Guitar-synth stompboxes open up a world of sonic possibilities — but getting the most out of them takes a little forward planning...

Take Sonar back to the ’60s with this vintage-style tape-flanging effect!

Whether you're a beginner or a seasoned pro, there's always something to learn about adding colour to your mix.

Get the most from your computer's CPU by learning how to put your effects plug-ins where they really count. Plus, find out how to increase your mixing power by incorporating hardware effects units into your software mixdown.

Do you use a software studio with plug-in effects but crave the effects quality that your favourite hardware processor used to provide? Well, you can have the best of both worlds... as this article explains.

Modern digital effects units always include emulations of analogue effects such as tape delay and flanging — but none of them ever seem quite like the real thing. Paul White explains how these vintage effects worked, and offers insight into how our modern attempts could be made more accurate.

In the final part of his short series on pushing back the boundaries of effects processing, Paul White explores many different applications of audio filters, as well as exploring the possibilities of granular synthesis.

Most people are familiar with basic reverb, delay and modulation effects, but what lies beyond? In the first part of a new series, Paul White explores the twilight zone of effects processing.

In Part 1, we saw how manufacturers realised that putting DSP effects on synths made for great sales. Subsequently, they twigged that it was also a good idea to let us take them off again (selectively), and route and adjust them ourselves.

Chorus, phasing and flanging are very common processes, but they don't always achieve the effect you hoped for. Paul White offers a few tips.

Paul White concludes his series with an exhortation to unleash your creativity...

Paul White looks at how MIDI can be used to turn static effects into dynamic ones.

Having looked at the various types of effects available, Paul White explains the importance of the order in which these effects are applied.

Modern multi-effects units provide all sorts of useful processors in addition to the more usual reverb and delay-based effects. Paul White discusses the extras you might find inside your effects box and how best to use them.

To start off this short series on multi-effects programming, Paul White explores the key building blocks found in today's versatile units.

The roles of the various signal processors and effects used in audio production are pretty well understood by most musicians, but it's not always obvious where they should be patched into the signal chain to give the best results.