There's a new plug-in developer in town called Reverb Foundry who have just released their first ever plug-in - A reverb plug-in called HD•CART. Npm install for mac.

Reverb Foundry say HD•CART is a high-density reverb plug-in modelled after one of the most sought after and expensive reverb units of all time - insert popular 1980's reverb here.

Reverb Foundry’s M7 Link Plug-in expands hardware control of existing Bricasti reverbs with full program recall, pre-delay tempo sync and whole system management for multiple M7M’s and M7’s. M7 Link also allows new M7M owners control right out of the box with an existing, compatible midi set-up and DAW. Reverb Plug-in with Input EQ, Early Reflection/Tail Filters, Pre-delay and Reverb Delay with Tempo Control, Warp Function, and 3D Surround Support - Mac/PC AAX Native, VST 2, VST 3, AU $ 499.00 Or $14 /month § for 36 months.

Authentic Controls

For those familiar with the original reverb unit Reverb Foundry are alluding will be pleased to know that the full complement of controls on the original unit has been recreated in HD•CART.

• Spread: For powerful room re-dimensioning
• Diffusion: Control room reflectivity for convincing small rooms to lush cathedrals and chambers
• Size & Time: With pin-point accuracy model the size and character of a room
• Modulation: Control the classic spin and wander of this heritage algorithm
• Frequency Dependent Decay: From sizzling highs to tight lows, the tone of the room can be controlled with ease
• Early Reflections: Control the tone and timing of a series of modulated early reflections

Modern Enhancements

Along with the inclusion of authentic controls are a set of modern enhancements that were not present in the original device. These enhancements are claimed to provide much wider, more spacious reverb than was ever possible with the original hardware.

Advanced Stereo and Surround Modes

One of the first ever surround algorithms ever to consider the effect of early and late reflections in a quadraphonic field, this pushed the dual-board design of the original hardware to the limit. Included in this recreation is its high-density stereo mode, quadraphonic and special 5.0 routing configurations.

In stereo modes, the reverb can be pushed towards the front, left in the centre for highest reflection density, or moved towards the rear of the simulated space.

Pricing & Availability

Reverb Foundry say HD•CART is the first in a series of plug-ins and is available to purchase for $199 in AU, VST 2.4, VST3 and AAX formats on Mac and PC.

Visit the Reverb Foundry website for more information

There are quite a few emulations of the classic Lexicon 480 hardware reverb that was used on so many recordings in the 1980s, but not all of them model the optional Surround Cart that greatly extended its capabilities. HD Cart from Reverb Foundry is intended to fill that gap, recreating the cartridge and thus “the only algorithm to ever fully take advantage of its considerable dual-board processing capabilities”.

As its name suggests, one of the features that the expansion in question added to the 480 was surround capability: the two engines could be split to give quadraphonic configurations, with a 5.0 routing option that created a centre channel from the left and right surrounds mixed to mono. Alternatively, both engines could be combined to create high-density stereo reverbs not available on the standard 480. In stereo modes the reverb can be moved to the front, centre or rear of the emulated space.

The plug-in has five control groups called Master, Character, Low Control, Advanced and Reflections, which are accessed using tabs below the meters and select different aspects of the reverb for editing. Master oversees the filtering and the relative levels of the various reverb components, while Character adjusts the behaviour of the virtual room in which the reverb is taking place. Low Control addresses the room’s behaviour at low frequencies, while Reflections relates to the timing and tone of the front and rear early reflections.

A large Reverb Time knob is always accessible, as is the wet/dry mix balance, while the smaller knobs address different functions according to which tab is open. All the expected parameters such as pre-delay, diffusion, stereo spread, filtering, modulation and so on are available, while the Advanced tab includes more unusual controls that affect the high-frequency decay, Recirculation (which circulates the front and rear reverb synthesis separately or feeds them into each other), front/rear Balance and Wander (modulation amount). Current values for the controls are displayed below them, and there are separate meters for input level, early reflections and reverb tail.

Though you have the option to use a faithful recreation of the original algorithm, the developers have also added a little magic of their own to extend its capabilities, including ‘enhanced recirculation’, which is designed to create a more spacious reverb, and additional filtering control for the early reflections.

When loading one of the factory presets, there’s the option to turn enhanced recirculation off if you want to get closer to the sound of the original at the expense of some reverb ‘richness’. There’s also a choice of front, rear or mid placement and whether or not the mix control is active or the reverb is 100 percent wet.

When it comes to signal routing, the mono option generates a mono output by summing all four outputs from both reverb engines, while the stereo-out modes sum the left and right outputs of each processor and the quad-output mode uses one engine to provide the front signal in stereo and the other the rear. Routing options provide for quad and 5.0 inputs as well as mono and stereo though, as noted earlier, the 5.0 mix is really a ‘trick’ mix of quad with an additional synthesized mid signal. Most users will probably use the stereo-out mode, and the refined algorithms that combine both engines sound particularly good. The tweaks the designers have added to the algorithm certainly do something very positive to the reverb as can be heard by comparing with the authentic ‘untweaked’ settings.

Even though the Lexicon 480 is positively ancient by digital processing standards, it definitely had a certain something and that is well represented here. Turn on the algorithm tweaks and the reverb quality stands comparison with far more modern reverb units, and though it might not be the best choice for emulating a specific acoustic space, HD Cart sits perfectly in a music mix. Whether or not you think it worth the outlay depends on what reverbs you already own, but if you revere the original 480 sound, you won’t be disappointed.

$199