One of the biggest culprits in a boring song is a static instrument that falls flat in a mix and creates uninspiring dynamic movement. But throw on a granular synthesis engine like PORTAL by Output and you only need a single plugin to transform a melody. Let’s explore some of our favorite presets in PORTAL and see what the engine can do.
In this video, we whipped up a melody with a mellow synth pad and ran it through our favorite presets in granular synthesis engine PORTAL.
We start with the Arp O Matic preset, which places emphasis on a few notes in the melody without altering the original rhythm. Then, we switch to Forever Delay to make a stutter effect. This outlines the chords and sets the stage for a one-of-a-kind ambient sound. Cloud Spray then takes our mellow melody and chills it out to the max. Listen to the way it mutes some of the chord tones and creates a distant feeling. This sound would be a perfect bed to lay down vocals or a transition to a bridge section of a track.
Finally, the Pitch Jumper and Flutter Octaves presets pull hidden pitches out of the melody and use them to build up more variety in the phrase; use these to create an intro to your track, or layer this on top of the original audio to create texture.
Don’t let this video fool you, PORTAL works its magic on drums, bass, guitar, and especially vocals. We’ve only shown off five presets in PORTAL, but there are hundreds more available to you in the engine. And best of all, every single preset is customizable with macro and micro edits. If you like the sparkly effect that one preset brings to the table, add more space to recreate the reverb effect of another. Get the best of both worlds!
Download PORTAL today and discover everything a granular synthesis VST has to offer.