Bomb Factory moogerfooger Lowpass Filter and Ring Modulator Plug-ins
Finally, authentic Moog technology made available in virtual form.
by Markkus Rovito
October 3, 2000
Summing it Up
Capturing all the analog warmth of the hardware moogerfooger boxes in a software plug-in is not fully possible, but these are very successful replicas. You get the extraordinary sound and ridiculous ease of use of the originals, plus full automation of all controls. At US $399 for the pair, they're not cheap, but they'll save you some cash off the hardware versions. Serious computer musicians should find these mofos a worthy investment.
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With his invention of the modular synthesizer in the '60s and then "the world's first affordable synthesizer," the Minimoog, Dr. Robert Moog helped spark the electronic music revolution and changed the course of popular music. Now it's the proliferation of software that's shaking the foundations of music creation. These two movements converge with the Bomb Factory moogerfooger Lowpass Filter and Ring Modulator plug-ins for TDM, RTAS, AudioSuite, and MAS formats.
With the help of Bomb Factory's award-winning engineers, Bob Moog's latest analog efforts have been impressively converted to zeros and ones. The two plug-ins combine the controls of the moogerfooger boxes with the immediacy and versatility of software. Unlike the hardware, the plug-ins can be routed to as many tracks as your CPU can handle, and allow you to save settings and automate all the controls.
Installation and setup was absolutely painless. I tested the plug-ins on an Apple 400mHz G4 with 192MB of RAM, which is no longer top of the line but still pretty formidable. The moogerfoogers seemed a little CPU-intensive. With 75 percent of my CPU dedicated to Pro Tools LE, the system started to choke up with only about a half dozen audio tracks being routed to one moogerfooger each. The controls responded to mouse input smoothly and with no latency. Each plug-in has a bypass button and compare button for checking your edits against the original preset. Occasionally, clicking these buttons yielded unwanted pops and clicks. Bomb Factory reports that the clicking with the Compare button results from their accuracy in modeling the hardware, and that the clicks could not be filtered out without losing some automation properties.
Lowpass Filter
The nine presets on the Lowpass Filter offer suggestions for filtering drums, bass, and guitar. From there, it's a breeze to dial up your own funky fresh filters. The plug-in is based on two vintage Moog modules, the Lowpass Filter and Envelope Follower. The four-pole Lowpass Filter is just like the one Bob Moog patented in 1968. There is a switch to go from a two- to four-pole filter, as well as Cutoff and Resonance knobs. The Envelope Follower responds to the dynamics of the input and raises the cutoff frequency as the incoming sound gets louder. The Amount knob controls how much the envelope changes the filter, and the Smooth/Fast switch controls how dramatic those changes are. Of the remaining controls, Drive adjusts input gain and Mix balances the wet and dry signals.
The Lowpass Filter is capable of incredible, self-oscillating shrieks and blunted lo-fi madness, but sometimes audio effects can take after visual effects: They work better when you don't realize they're there. Taking the time to use this plug-in for subtle sweetening and enhancing effects can really pay off.
The moogerfooger Lowpass Filter is the spitting image of its hardware predecessor (click for larger image). |
Ring Modulator
Also based on early Moog technology, the Ring Modulator simulates three Moog modules: a Low Frequency Oscillator (LFO), a Carrier Oscillator, and a Ring Modulator. The LFO modulates the Carrier Oscillator, and the Ring Modulator outputs the sum of and the difference between the carrier and the input signal. The LFO Amount knob determines how much the LFO will modulate the carrier, from no modulation to three octaves. LFO speed, from one cycle per ten seconds to 25 cycles per second, is controlled by the Rate knob. The LFO's shape can be either square or sine wave. The Lo/Hi switch alters the values of the Frequency knob, which sets the frequency of the Carrier Oscillator. As with the Lowpass Filter, the Drive knob adjusts input gain and Mix balances the wet and dry signals.
Eight Ring Modulator presets provide nice starting points, including tremolo and rotary speaker settings. You can get as crazy as you want with the effect, but one advantage is that the Ring Modulator can be used for just the LFO effect, with little or no ring mod to it. If you put an LFO in the signal path before the Lowpass Filter, you can get a nice auto wah effect (see Sonic Preview).
The moogerfooger Ring Modulator is the software incarnation of Moog modular technology (click for larger image). |
| In November 2000, Bomb Factory will release a moogerfooger plug-in bundle that will add two additional moogerfoogers: the 12-Stage Phaser and the Analog Delay. A special upgrade price will apply to registered users of the two original moogerfooger plug-ins. Bomb Factory will also release BF V.2, a free update for registered users, in November. They report that this update can as much as triple the number of simultaneous moogerfooger plug-ins a CPU can handle. |
Next Page: System Requirements & Supported Plug-In Platforms; Sonic Preview....
Markkus Rovito is an assistant editor for Harmony Central. He was formerly assistant editor at Keyboard.
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