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The main program I’ve been using is an open source application called QUCS (Quiet Universal Circuit Simulator). Most of it’s on Windows and there are some free ones. Finally, you need some circuit simulation software.
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When you plug into different parts of the circuit they need to be buffered so that you’re not leeching current and affecting how things sound. An input, kind of like a microphone preamp - something with high impedance. They provided me with a hardware unit to A/B against (an SSL X-Logic G series compressor) and with a bit of help from Antti, we got going.Īndrew Bencina: How do you start? What are the tools you need to make a good analogue model?ĪS: So, apart from having the physical circuit and an oscilloscope, you need an audio interface so you can listen to and record the circuit.
#Qucs simulation stuck how to#
All of a sudden that was my job and I had to learn how to model. Secondly, FXPansion wanted a model of a bus compressor for BFD 2. He actually went through breaking down the circuit in a practical way that opened the door to me, thinking this stuff can be done. Firstly, Antti Huovilainen wrote a prominent paper on the non-linear modelling of a Moog low-pass filter.
#Qucs simulation stuck code#
I just managed to code stuff by ear that sounded reasonable and used some interesting ideas. It’s rapidly closing in on 20 years since his debut Vellocet VReorder plug-in first garnered international interest, but it was Simper’s time at FXPansion that has proved to be most influential on a career now dominated by the analysis, emulation and modification of classic analogue audio gear.Īndrew Simper: When I arrived at FXPansion I still didn’t own an engineering textbook. A recent well-publicised collaboration with Ableton has seen The Glue’s rebirth as a native Live device and the contribution of a new linear state variable filter (SVF) algorithm for EQ8. His Cytomic plug-ins - The Glue and The Drop - continue to feel like well kept secrets in spite of their popularity.
#Qucs simulation stuck software#
But what’s it all about? Does my software interface need to look like a wall-o’-rack at Ocean Way? And are the tones I’m hearing capturing the musical mojo or just the myth? It’s time to call circuit whisperer Andrew Simper and get some answers.īased in Perth, Andrew has spent the last decade etching his own path through the intricate field of component-level modelling of analogue audio circuits. I’m certain, for many newcomers, adolescent gear lust first takes root via these virtual d’ vices. In the 15 or so years since, ever more developers have chosen to brandish the ‘Analogue Modelled’ standard as a universal indicator of quality and authenticity.
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Still, I was entranced by its direct connection to the studio world I yearned to experience. At the time, I would have struggled to recognise the legendary compressor on which it was modelled let alone describe its sound. I can still remember the first time I saw Bomb Factory’s BF76 plug-in.
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