Elektron announcement of Analog Heat was met with rejoicing and some uncertainty. Timo Preece digs deep below the analog distortion and saturation for a clearer picture of what makes it so versatile.

Boost Saturate Overdrive

Warm It Up

Sine wave unprocessed
Saturated sine wave

Adding Movement 

How Much Do You Want? 

Shapeshifting 

In the Mix

Note: Be careful as Saturation can also make things sound duller and less defined. especially if you’re putting it across entire groups or the master bus. While saturation might sound great while designing individual sounds, it might also muddy up the mix if you’re using too much of it. 

Inserts Versus Returns?

Elektron Analog Heat rear view.
Note: Overbridge plugins do not support offline (non-real-time) rendering/freezing of the arrangement. Examples of DAWs that support real-time rendering well are Cubase and Renoise. Most other DAWs only support offline rendering. This is not a bug but a feature of its analog architecture.

Overbridge 1.15.0 

USB re-Plug
Note: There is a rather insightful Elektronauts forum where users share their experiences. If you’re concerned, check out: OB 1.15.0 Issues

Conclusion

Synthesis 101
The Filter
by Bob Moog Foundation

"Timo Preece (Certified Ableton Trainer, ProTools Expert) is an accomplished audio technologist, multi-media consultant, sound designer and electronic musician. He graduated with a degree in Ethnomusicology from UCLA and a Masters in Sound Design at the University of Edinburgh, UK. From conceptualizing and building cutting-edge setu..." Read More

Discussion

latency
Hi- Would you be willing to expand on the use the heat "routed as an insert" comment. I'm finding the latency unbearable in Ableton and am trying to figure out how to improve it. Not sure what it means to route it as an insert though. Thanks!!

Want to join the discussion?

Create an account or login to get started!