Saturation
V-Drive
Saturation that changes with the signal.
One-time purchase, no subscription. No account, no node-lock, no internet connection. Your license file is emailed the moment payment completes, or try it free for 14 days first.
Covered by Audio Plugin Guy
Overview
A saturation and drive plugin fitted to measurements of analog hardware, with a response that changes with level, six oversampling engines plus a zero-latency mode with none, and 65 samples of latency everywhere else.
Analog hardware sounds different at low level and driven hard. The amount of distortion changes, and so does the tone, so the dynamics of a performance change its texture.
V-Drive is built so its behavior changes with signal level. At one Drive setting, a quiet passage and a loud one come out with a different tone. The input level matters as much as the knob.
Its two channels run separate signal paths with their own filters, as the two sides of a hardware stereo unit differ slightly. The path also has crosstalk between channels, a high-pass at the input stage and mains hum. The XFMR stage adds the character of a transformer on top.
Features
Drive, 1 to 11
Output level barely changes across the whole knob. It changes the waveform.
Analog Texture
Opens up the top end, which Drive leaves alone. Set the tone with both.
65 samples, or none
Oversampling runs at 2×, 4× or 8×, on a minimum-phase or linear-phase filter. All six modes report the same 65 samples, so changing the factor, the phase or Bypass leaves the timing where it was. Pressing the lit button again turns oversampling off, and that mode reports zero latency for tracking.
XFMR
A modeled transformer stage: the top of the band gets airier and the bottom tightens up, and its hysteresis means the same level can hit it differently depending on where the signal was a moment before, with the harmonics that come out of that. Input Trim decides how hard it is driven; Drive does not touch it. Off by default, and independent of In.
In switch
With In switched off, the signal still passes through a line path of its own: high-pass, crosstalk and mains hum. Bypass is the true bypass, and it is a separate switch.
Level in, level out
Input and Output Trim sit outside the shaping section, so they move level without moving character. You can compare settings at the same level.
Presets live in your host
Nine controls and no preset browser of its own. Every format exposes the full parameter set to the host's preset and A/B system, so a saved setting lives in one place instead of two.
Resizable window and typed values
Drag the bottom-right corner to fit the window to your screen. Every readout takes a typed value on a double-click, the LED above each switch follows host automation, and the build you are running is printed under the meters.
14-day full-featured trial
One-time purchase, no subscription. The license is an offline .gbc file: no account, no node-lock, no telemetry, and no internet connection at any point.
Specifications
| Processing latency | 65 samples in every oversampling mode, either filter phase, and with Bypass engaged. Zero with oversampling off |
|---|---|
| Oversampling | Off, 2×, 4× or 8×, each with a minimum-phase or linear-phase filter. Off is the default and does not resample |
| Channel formats | Mono and stereo (input and output channel counts must match) |
| Sample rates | Whatever the host session is running |
| Format | macOS | Windows |
|---|---|---|
| VST3 | Yes | Yes |
| Audio Unit (AU) | Yes | — |
| CLAP | Yes | Yes |
| AAX Native | Yes | Yes |
The installer ships VST3, CLAP and AAX on both macOS and Windows. Audio Unit is macOS only.
| Requirements | macOS | Windows |
|---|---|---|
| OS version | macOS 10.15 Catalina or later (Intel) · macOS 11.0 or later (Apple Silicon) | Windows 10 version 1607 or later, 64-bit |
| CPU | Apple Silicon or Intel (Universal binary) | 64-bit Intel or AMD |
