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I'd like to create a set of freeware VST plugins which only have one simple knob (and possibly in/out gain). It is inspired by the Solid State Logic LMC-1 and in some ways the Blockfish.

The knob would change a number of parameters which are set to some aesthetic value. For example, the knob on the compressor would turn up the ratio, turn down the threshhold, and turn down the attack at some appropriate rate.

All the effects would be there:

Band pass: (rolls off unwanted low and high frequencies for head room)
Tone
Low shelf
High Shelf

Compressor
Limiter
Transient shaper
Gate
Envelope shaper

Delay
Reverb
Slapback

Distortion
Waveshaper

Chorus
Flanger
Phaser

Pitch shift
Fine tune

Stereo width
Bass monoiser

Synth
Sampler

+ whatver else


I haven't really spent time creating VSTs. I thought I would open this up for discussion and contributions (basically you making some ).

1 Knob is not really appropriate for most of these imo, I'm all for simplifying things but this seems too much.

Here's my thoughts on the proposed ones (bare in mind I'm still a newbie):

Band pass - I guess this could work if the knob controls the range but another knob for frequency would make it much more useful
Tone - unsure what this would do, change the pitch?
Low shelf - same as bandpass
High Shelf - same as bandpass

Compressor - I'm only just coming to grips with compression and I use very different setting on each type of sound, 1 knob would be useless to me
Limiter - Same as compression
Transient shaper - Haven't used one before but it doesn't seem like it would work with one knob
Gate - Havn't used, unsure
Envelope shaper - Would need at least 4 knobs

Delay - If you got the settings right you could probably have a really basic delay on one knob
Reverb - Same as above
Slapback - Isn't this just a different kind of delay?

Distortion - You could only really have one type of distortion per VST using 1 control and a dry/wet knob would be needed too I'd think
Waveshaper - Same as above

Chorus - same as delay
Flanger - same as delay
Phaser - same as delay

Pitch shift - I guess but extra controlls like time shift and resampling technique would be nice (like the controlls of FL's sampler)
Fine tune - Sure

Stereo width - A basic one yeah
Bass monoiser - Could be the same plugin as above, fully stereo one end and fully mono the other

Synth - No
Sampler - No

The Blockfish has at least 4 knobs that I can think of...what if you wanted to keep the ratio down whilst turning the threshold up?

Thanks for the replies.

Tone - unsure what this would do, change the pitch?

Make the sound darker or brighter. They're on guitars and old car stereos. They are actually one knob.

Delay - If you got the settings right you could probably have a really basic delay on one knob

This is really want I want to do with the rest of them. Basic is probably the word.

Distortion - You could only really have one type of distortion per VST using 1 control and a dry/wet knob would be needed too I'd think

It could me more dry and less distorted or more distorted and less dry. Like "hardly any distortion" versus "alot of distortion."

Stereo width - A basic one yeah
Bass monoiser - Could be the same plugin as above, fully stereo one end and fully mono the other

Yeah, that works. Monoising the bass, and controlling the stereo width of everything else.

what if you wanted to keep the ratio down whilst turning the threshold up?

You'd have to compromise or use a different compressor.

jonahmann wrote:

what if you wanted to keep the ratio down whilst turning the threshold up?

You'd have to compromise or use a different compressor.

As for the compressor, maybe you could one for each specific purpose, for ex. hard knee compression to make your drums sound punchy, gentle compression for overall compression, and so on. That could work, and would definitely be user-friendly to those trying to grasp the concept of how it effects sound. Sounds like a tough challenge! I know for one I'd like to be able to tweak my compression to the fullest, but if this gets the job done, then I might end up using it!

Radiant wrote:

jonahmann wrote:

what if you wanted to keep the ratio down whilst turning the threshold up?

You'd have to compromise or use a different compressor.

As for the compressor, maybe you could one for each specific purpose, for ex. hard knee compression to make your drums sound punchy, gentle compression for overall compression, and so on. That could work, and would definitely be user-friendly to those trying to grasp the concept of how it effects sound. Sounds like a tough challenge! I know for one I'd like to be able to tweak my compression to the fullest, but if this gets the job done, then I might end up using it!

That destroys the whole idea, why would you want to have a bunch of simple 1 knob compressors that you have to use a different one for each job when you could just get one decent compressor, spend an hour or two learning it then just use it for it all and get a better result?

Compressor with one knob doesn't make sense to me.
1 knob delay is weird too, even more if you'd also want a 1 knob slapback. Because you can make everything from chorus to
slapback with a regular delay unit.
Wouldn't it be easier just to have patches for fx units?

most of the suggestions would be better off with two knobs. Like transient shapers, they are really basic, the whole shaping thing only uses two knobs, then you have gain. If you could make all of these effects into one VST, and all were like 2 knob effects, it'd be pretty cool.

A like the idea. But simply put... It sounds impractical to me

it's a great idea.


...one which waves developed a couple of years ago:

http://www.waves.com/content.aspx?id=11575

FWIW sonalksis also has some super-high-quality, almost-1-knob plugs that i use all the time. simplicity is a good thing.

^this.

Plus why a Knob?? You can design anything in software XD ,,, maybe X-Y controls via cam and traction software... or a 3-d rubiks cube 0__0 Also , fabfilters Knobs tend to a have a knob inside a knob (panning and so on)

I was suprised they have the same name and punctuation.

Maybe a bunch of two-parameter effects with (x, y) controllers is the way to go.

+1 on checking out those waves series.

I really like the oneknob style stuff. There are a lot of plugins that give you plenty of freedom to shape the sound and while that quality is useful sometimes, other times it's a hinderance. If I'm trying to lay a track down quickly I don't want to be tweaking setting after setting to dial in a tone for a sound that appears once in my song. I want to go right this sounds weak let's get the 'phatter' plugin or the 'bassier' plugin, whack it up, too much? okay back it off a bit and bam it's near enough there. Obviously these are mostly useless with higher end tasks like buss processing or mastering which need more attention to detail but again for simple tasks they work wonders at saving time that can be better spent elsewhere.

outbound wrote:+1 on checking out those waves series.

I really like the oneknob style stuff. There are a lot of plugins that give you plenty of freedom to shape the sound and while that quality is useful sometimes, other times it's a hinderance. If I'm trying to lay a track down quickly I don't want to be tweaking setting after setting to dial in a tone for a sound that appears once in my song. I want to go right this sounds weak let's get the 'phatter' plugin or the 'bassier' plugin, whack it up, too much? okay back it off a bit and bam it's near enough there. Obviously these are mostly useless with higher end tasks like buss processing or mastering which need more attention to detail but again for simple tasks they work wonders at saving time that can be better spent elsewhere.

Exactly, one knob plugins could potentially be great CPU savers, if they were made right. You could then save your CPU for FX on the bus channels.

sugar bytes turnado does this

Sharmaji wrote:it's a great idea.


...one which waves developed a couple of years ago:

http://www.waves.com/content.aspx?id=11575

FWIW sonalksis also has some super-high-quality, almost-1-knob plugs that i use all the time. simplicity is a good thing.

This, as soon as I read it I thought of the waves one knob series which I haven't used myself but have read/heard that they are very nice. Agreed o the sonalksis plugs, the tbk is such a nice filter.

You could have one knob, but have some parameters controlled by the input signal eg peak, freqeuncy spectrum/ volume.

Though I think you may need more knobs.

I wish I had more knobs that controlled different things and not just sex and piss.

I also wish that I could twist one of my knobs to change things in my life/tv channel.

Not free but...
The Sonalksis TBK and TBK2 offer single knob filters, compression, distortion, bitcrushing and odd effects. Very nice designs and very nice plugins. I recommend those. I really dislike Waves personally, but yeah they did that too.

For free check out The One Knob series
http://www.musicxart.co.uk/html/downloads.html

my idea would be to have 2 knobs in 1 knob bit like fabfilter stuff, but have the right mouse click button controlling the other parameter. how simple would that be for the user (although i use synthmaker i wouldnt know how to imply that with code)

what about instead of knobs it was pacman!
like a pacman game that controlled the effects xD