AIR Music Tech's new Tape Effects Collection brings three analogue-modelled plug-ins – Tape Saturator, Tape Echo and Tape Double Track – to MPC and DAW productions.
Tape machines shaped the sound of recorded music for decades, and AIR Music Tech is bringing that character into modern productions seamlessly. The company has launched the Tape Effects Collection, a bundle of three analogue-modelled plug-ins designed to recreate the warmth, movement and imperfection of classic tape processing.
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The collection comprises Tape Saturator, Tape Echo and Tape Double Track, each handling a different part of the tape sound. All three are compatible with MPC Standalone, MPC Desktop and all major DAWs, available in VST, AU and AAX formats.
Tape Saturator is built for mixing and mastering, offering four saturation models alongside a tape condition control that ranges from mint to heavily aged. Controls for wow, flutter, dropout and noise are also on board – the kind of detail that separates a serious tape emulation from a simple harmonic exciter.
Tape Echo is modelled on the Roland RE-501 Chorus Echo, which gives it a clear reference point for anyone familiar with vintage tape delay. A preamp section offers Dirty, Clean and Warm character modes, and BPM sync comes with natural variation so repeats don’t feel locked in place. Three spring reverb sizes, a joggable playhead, motor drift, dropout and tape noise round out the controls.
Tape Double Track handles the 1960s automatic double tracking (ADT) technique, producing natural width and movement without layered recordings. Randomised head positioning and varispeed control sit alongside modulation shape options – Sine, Triangle and Random – plus a warp parameter and independent source and double track channels with pan, drive, mute, phase and level controls.
“These effects capture what made tape so essential to the sound of recorded music: the warmth, the movement, the imperfection that makes audio feel alive,” said Neal Gustafson, Software Marketing Manager at AIR Music Tech. “With the Tape Effects Collection, producers get that same character with the precision and flexibility of a modern plug-in, whether they’re working on MPC or in a DAW.”
Each plug-in is also available individually. A 10-day free trial is available here.
