creative time effects
Time-manipulation forms such an integral part of our production toolset that it’s easy to ignore how powerful, flexible and impressive it is. In this feature, we’re focusing on some of the more sonically interesting routes. Even so, it’s worth defining exactly what we mean by ‘time-manipulation’, the sort of processes that it includes and the sort of effects it delivers.
Expect delays
It may not seem impressive, but the humble delay has a lot to answer for, particularly in time-shaping terms. So whether you’re in a retro mindset, trying to recreate a tape-style slapback echo or tweaking the early reflections of your top-end chamber reverb plugin, in both cases you’re working with delays. In fact, let’s just list a few examples; solid-state BBD delay (capacitor-based adjustable delay line), digital delay (sampling-based modulated delay with feedback), flanger (delay plus dry signal), chorus (modulated delay plus dry signal) and digital reverb (multiple delays with feedback). Indeed, if you factor in some of the more esoteric hardware options, such as the oil-can echo, delay has played a vital part in music production for decades. What’s more, if we bring things right up-to-date and get into the effects possible using contemporary plugins such as (this issue’s free gift) Cableguys’ TimeShaper 3, we’re still essentially talking about delay, albeit with powerful graphic control over the delay time and
