After doing a demo for Valve Exciter's Audio Thing, waiting for a full review, we decided to do a little test comparing this plug-in with other Exciters, also called Harmonic Enhancer or Aural Exciter.
The four plug-ins in comparison are therefore the following:
AudioThing Valve Exciter
Waves Aphex Vintage Aural Exciter
Nomad Factory Cosmos
P&M Clarisonix
It must be said that the following plug-ins, although belonging to the same type of effect, have potentially different purposes and therefore also different specifications. Such as Aphex Vintage Aural Exciter does not have a section for controlling the low frequencies. However, we tried to equalize, where possible, the various parameters on the different plug-ins, focusing more on the Exciter effect than on the Bottom / Low end.
Let's listen to the two demos, the first with battery e Rhodes plan, the second with electric guitars.
We used Scarbee Vintage Keys for the Rhodes, Logic Pro X drummer and a sampled Epiphone for a custom library.
[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/159256584″ params=”color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false” width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=” true” /]
[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/159257944″ params=”color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false” width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=” true” /]
In both demos we immediately notice how Cosmos and Clarisonix sound more or less similar, very sharp and bright. Probably a bit excessive for drums but certainly more interesting for Rhodes and electric guitar. A distinctly different sound instead we listen to it with Valve Exciter and Aphex Vintage Exciter. The first is more "warm" but less open, excellent on the snare but a little less on the Rhodes, while the second is decidedly more marked on the highs, highlighting the guitar.
This comparison is not meant to be a ranking, but only a demonstration of the various plug-ins. We are of the opinion that it is advisable to have at least two or more for different needs. Not to mention the difference in price and specifications of the various products. In fact Valve Exciter also has a section inside tube emulation with distortion, while Cosmos seems to have more parameters for the tuning of the various sections.
The plug-in data is detailed below.
AudioThing Valve Exciter
Website: http://www.audiothing.net/effects/valve-exciter/
Cost: € 45 / $ 49
Waves Aphex Vintage Aural Exciter
Website: http://www.waves.com/plugins/aphex-vintage-aural-exciter
Cost: $ 299
Nomad Factory Cosmos
Website: http://www.nomadfactory.com/products/cosmos/
Cost: $ 149
P&M Clarisonix
Website: http://www.plugandmix.com/clarisonix-53/
Cost: $59 $49
Antonio Campeglia
After making the Valve Exciter demo for Audio Thing, waiting to write a full review, we decided to do a small test comparing it with other Exciter plug-ins, also called Harmonic Enhancers or Aural Exciters.
So we tested the following four plug-ins:
AudioThing Valve Exciter
Waves Aphex Vintage Aural Exciter
Nomad Factory Cosmos
P&M Clarisonix
We have to say that, even if all of them are Exciters, they have different targets and of course different specifications. For example Aphex Vintage Aural Exciter has no controls for the low-end. We tried to match the different parameters, where possible, trying to focus on the Exciting effect rather than the bottom/low-end.
Let's listen to the two demos, the first one with Drums and Fender Rhodes, the second one with electric guitars.
We used Scarbee Vintage Keys for the Rhodes, Logic Pro X Drummer and an Epiphone sampled for a custom sample library.
[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/159256584″ params=”color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false” width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=” true” /]
[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/159257944″ params=”color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false” width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=” true” /]
In both demos Cosmos and Clarisonix sound quite similar to each other, clear and bright. Probably a little bit too much for drums but really interesting for Rhodes and electric guitars. We have a completely different sound, instead, with Valve Exciter and Aphex Vintage Exciter. The first seems “warmer” but less open, very good on the snare but less on the Rhodes, while the second seems definitely more open and bright, highlighting the guitar.
This test won't be a rank or competition, but just a demonstration of these plug-ins. We think that it's useful to have at least two or more of them to cover more tasks. Another significant point is the difference in price and specifications of them. For example Valve Exciter has a section for valve emulation with overdrive, while Cosmos has more controls for tuning the different sections.
Here are some more details about the plug-ins.
AudioThing Valve Exciter
Website: http://www.audiothing.net/effects/valve-exciter/
Price: €45/$49
Waves Aphex Vintage Aural Exciter
Website: http://www.waves.com/plugins/aphex-vintage-aural-exciter
Price: $299 USD
Nomad Factory Cosmos
Website: http://www.nomadfactory.com/products/cosmos/
Price: $149 USD
P&M Clarisonix
Website: http://www.plugandmix.com/clarisonix-53/
Price: $59 $49
