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Description

Discover a revolutionary approach to audio processing with the Soundtheory Gullfoss plugin. This unique dynamic processor plugin is designed to intelligently analyze and adjust your audio in real-time, enhancing clarity and detail while maintaining the natural dynamics of your mix. Developed with cutting-edge technology, Gullfoss employs a groundbreaking auditory perception model that allows it to make informed decisions about which elements of your mix should be emphasized or suppressed.

Ideal for musicians and producers who seek an intuitive yet powerful tool, Gullfoss offers an effortless way to manage complex audio dynamics without the need for intricate manual adjustments. Its user-friendly interface displays a real-time graphical representation of the changes being made, providing valuable insight into the processing taking place. Whether you're working with a full mix or individual tracks, Gullfoss is your go-to solution for achieving a polished and professional sound.

Compatible with a wide range of DAWs, this plugin integrates seamlessly into your existing setup, making it a versatile addition to any studio toolkit. Experience the difference with Gullfoss and bring out the best in your music with clarity and precision.

Key Features:

  • Intelligent processing with real-time analysis
  • Groundbreaking auditory perception model for dynamic adjustments
  • User-friendly interface with real-time graphical feedback
  • Compatible with most major DAWs
  • Ideal for both full mixes and individual tracks
  • Enhances clarity and detail while preserving natural dynamics
SoundtheoryLtd

SoundtheoryLtd

Gullfoss as a Mastering EQ

Video thumbnail for Gullfoss as a Mastering EQ by SoundtheoryLtd

Gullfoss as a Mastering EQ

SoundtheoryLtd

SoundtheoryLtd

Video thumbnail for about gullfoss... by White Sea Studio

about gullfoss...

White Sea Studio

White Sea Studio

Video thumbnail for Using Gullfoss on the drum bus. by SoundtheoryLtd

Using Gullfoss on the drum bus.

SoundtheoryLtd

SoundtheoryLtd

Video thumbnail for Mastering with Gullfoss by SpectreSoundStudios

Mastering with Gullfoss

SpectreSoundStudios

SpectreSoundStudios

Video thumbnail for Gullfoss as a De-esser by SoundtheoryLtd

Gullfoss as a De-esser

SoundtheoryLtd

SoundtheoryLtd

Video thumbnail for Eddie explains some handy tips when using Gullfoss. by SoundtheoryLtd

Eddie explains some handy tips when using Gullfoss.

SoundtheoryLtd

SoundtheoryLtd

Video thumbnail for What is Gullfoss? by SoundtheoryLtd

What is Gullfoss?

SoundtheoryLtd

SoundtheoryLtd

Reviews

PROS

  • Enhances mixes with a three-dimensional quality

  • Simplifies workflow with easy parameter adjustments

  • Includes three versions: standard, master, and live

  • Standard version suitable for mix bus processing

  • Stable performance without frequent updates

  • Tightens bass for better sound definition

  • Highly effective for mixing and mastering

  • Reliable for pads and unpredictable sound sources

CONS

  • Master version consumes significant CPU resources

Owner Insights

We analyzed real musician discussions from forums and Reddit to find what players love, question, and tweak about Soundtheory Gullfoss.

Features and functionality

  • Gullfoss has a setting called 'Gullfoss Live' that processes transients less, addressing high-end processing concerns noted by some owners.

    Source
  • Gullfoss is described as a "magic wand" for audio work, reducing the workload for non-professional mixers by simplifying the mixing process.

    Source

Use cases and applications

  • The plugin excels at smoothing natural inconsistencies in live recordings, particularly for orchestras and guitar sub-mixes, but less so on synths, basses, or drums.

    Source
  • Gullfoss is highly effective for mixes, buses, and individual instruments, making it versatile for both amateur and professional mixers.

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Value and pricing

  • The $126.56 price with code FLASH873 is considered a historically low offer, with the regular retail price at $199.

    Source
  • Gullfoss has been seen on sale, though specific discounts vary; it's often compared in value to Wavesfactory's Spectre.

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Comparisons

  • Some owners prefer Voxengo Teote over Gullfoss for more control and a default sound closer to their desired tonal balance.

    Source
  • For vocal production, Izotope's Nectar 3 Plus combined with RX is recommended over Gullfoss, offering comprehensive vocal strip duties and noise reduction.

    Source
  • McDSP Channel G is suggested as an alternative for vocal processing, indicating its suitability for voice-focused applications.

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User experience

  • Users often find that Gullfoss makes mixes too bright by default, suggesting adjustments to the Brighten control for a flatter response.

    Source

Critic Reviews

Soundtheory: Gullfoss EQ Plug-In | Tape Op Magazine | Longform candid interviews with music producers and audio engineers covering mixing, mastering, recording and music production.

tapeop.com

Gullfoss by Soundtheory is a transformative tool in audio equalization, impressing even the most skeptical with its intelligent, automatic adjustments. Its minimalistic interface may initially confuse, but the results speak volumes once you dive in. The five main controls, including Recover and Tame, effectively balance and clarify mixes, while the Brighten function, though powerful, requires careful handling. Despite a lack of presets, its intuitive nature allowed quick adaptation, and its compatibility across platforms is a plus. Gullfoss has swiftly become a staple in mixing workflows, heralding a promising future in audio processing.

positive

Soundtheory Gullfoss

soundonsound.com

Soundtheory's Gullfoss plug-in delivers a remarkable clarity to mixes with its intuitive interface and advanced auditory perception model. Despite having only five parameters, it skillfully enhances audio without sounding artificial. Users will appreciate its ability to improve focus and polish, especially in complex mixes. However, its addictive nature may lead to overuse, and it’s currently available only for Mac. Overall, Gullfoss impresses with its subtle yet impactful performance, making it a valuable tool for achieving a balanced mix.

positive

Review: Soundtheory Gullfoss plugin

mixdownmag.com.au

Soundtheory's Gullfoss plugin proves itself as an insightful addition to the EQ landscape, offering impressive capabilities in managing frequency masking and polishing mixes. Designed for discerning users, it excels in balancing complex busses and ensembles with its "recover" and "tame" functions, making it invaluable for both mastering and mixing engineers. While some might be skeptical of "intelligent" plugins, Gullfoss stands apart with its interactive controls and nuanced processing, adding depth without over-processing. The plugin's CPU efficiency is another plus, providing significant functionality without heavy resource demand. Overall, Gullfoss is a sophisticated tool that enhances mixes with clarity and dimension, avoiding the pitfalls of oversimplification common in similar products.

positive

Review: Soundtheory Gullfoss EQ - Everything Recording

everythingrecording.com

Gullfoss by Soundtheory impresses with its intelligent EQ capabilities, providing real-time adjustments that enhance clarity and balance. Despite its bold claims, the plugin lives up to the hype, offering noticeable improvements without phase issues or harshness. The intuitive controls, including Recover and Tame, allow for precise manipulation, making it a valuable tool for both mixing and insight. However, the necessity for an iLok and automatic installation of unused components on Mac could be minor inconveniences. Overall, Gullfoss is a game-changer for producers seeking efficient sound enhancement.

positive

Gullfoss EQ Plugin Review | Smart Software at Its Best - Produce Like A Pro

producelikeapro.com

Soundtheory's Gullfoss EQ plugin is a revolutionary tool for mixing and mastering, with its adaptive EQ technology offering a fresh approach to balancing audio. Its user-friendly interface belies the complex mathematical and quantum physics-based algorithms that work behind the scenes, making real-time adjustments to enhance clarity and balance. The plugin excels at bringing out the best in mixes, comparable to other 'better-maker' plugins but with its unique charm. While skepticism is natural when faced with such ambitious claims, Gullfoss stands out by delivering on its promises without introducing artifacts. Overall, it's a standout choice for engineers seeking a smarter EQ solution.

positive

Soundtheory Gullfoss review | MusicRadar

musicradar.com

Soundtheory's Gullfoss EQ plugin is a futuristic marvel that impresses with its ability to enhance clarity and balance in audio signals seemingly by magic. Its automatic adjustments, based on advanced auditory perception models, provide transparency and objective balancing without artifacts. The plugin features intuitive controls like Tame and Recover, which manage dominant and masked elements in a mix. However, its lack of traditional frequency selection might unsettle users initially, and it requires careful handling to avoid odd results. Despite the learning curve, Gullfoss is a revolutionary tool that delivers on its promise, making it a valuable asset for mixing and mastering.

positive

Review: Gullfoss from Soundtheory | Audio Plugin Guy

audiopluginguy.com
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4.5 out of 5

Based on 4 Reviews and 12 Ratings

5 star
4 star
3 star
2 star
1 star
larslentz

EQ Heaven

This EQ takes my mix and adjusts it so that it has an almost three-dimensional quality to it. I can adjust the parameters to get close to what I need in very few steps, so I like it for how it simplifies my workflow and makes my tracks sound amazing.

The plugin comes with three different plugins: standard, master, and live. Master is a bit more controlled and polished, but I don't use it often as I use the standard one on my mix bus before going into my master to get the EQ almost correct before my master processing (compressors, etc.).

The plugin is very stable and does not require constant updating. The master version eats up a lot of CPU, as you would expect, but the standard one is acceptable for most situations for me. I do not use the live version, so I cannot comment on that one.

Preferred Settings + Usage:

I set my standard Gullfoss at an initial level of 30% recover, 30% tame, 30% bias, 30% brighten, and 3.0 dB boost, and put it on my mix bus before my master bus.

erynn

Great plugin, when you pair it up Soothe 2.

I do music production as a music producer, and a mixing engineer.

And as I said in the title, it's a great plugin, it definitely makes my mixes sound better and it makes the bass tighter sounding.

7/10 would use on the master channel.

sakurauchi

best dynamic restoration plugin

amazing !! this is the best plugin for mixing & mastering

polarity

Best way to balance dynamic sounds

I use this nearly on all pads or unpredictable sound sources (modular instruments).

Artist usage

Add artist
See how Mike Shinoda uses Soundtheory Gullfoss

Mike Shinoda

Singer, Guitarist

Linkin Park

...
Verified via YouTube

In a livestream on April 7, 2020, titled "Making a 'Reanimation' themed song LIVE," Mike Shinoda uses the Soundtheory Gullfoss plugin, as seen on the Shinoda Livestreams YouTube channel.

See how Andrew Huang uses Soundtheory Gullfoss

Andrew Huang

Singer, Guitarist

First Of October

...
Verified via YouTube

One of five plugins featured in this July 20, 2020 video, at 0:46.

So I'm going to start by talking about my latest obsession. I just discovered this plugin a few months ago and I've been putting it on everything: Gullfoss by Soundtheory. This is, like, just a magical plugin; it brings out a lot of clarity and detail, it tames things that are too harsh... So let me play a quick example. (...) Gullfoss is on the master channel by the way. (...) I find this almost every time I use Gullfoss. I feel like I've got a mix pretty good mix going and then I throw it on the 2 buss and it's like "wow! That's way better."

See how Tobu uses Soundtheory Gullfoss

Tobu

Composer, Music Producer

...
Verified via Twitter

You can see it open on his monitor.

See how Sigala uses Soundtheory Gullfoss

Sigala

Music Producer, DJ

...
Verified via YouTube

In this video at 23:16 Bruce shows Gullfoss EQ

See how Derpcat uses Soundtheory Gullfoss

Derpcat

Composer, Music Producer

...
Verified via YouTube

At 4:44, you can see him using Gullfoss

See how Burna Boy uses Soundtheory Gullfoss

Burna Boy

Singer

...
Verified via Soundonsound

Used for vocals on Twice as Tall, including lead vocals on "Time Flies", as stated by mix engineer Jesse Ray Ernster in this June 2021 Sound on Sound interview.

“The song already felt great after a few minutes of mixing,” Ernster continues. “The reference mix felt good, the beat was solid too. As I mentioned earlier, after that it was a matter of getting the vocals to shine. Dialling in the vocals took quite a bit of time on this song, because there were so many of them. This song was all about the backing vocals, getting them to sit in a place where they can shine and sparkle and just sit perfectly.

“Pretty much every background vocal on the song has the CLA Mix Hub channel strip, doing some high‑pass filtering, some EQ, and compression. I approached this mix a bit like a console mix, and dialling in every background vocal with the Mix Hub got them where I wanted them to be. I did not need 10 plug‑ins to make the background vocals sound good. This plug‑in just lit them up.

“One interesting moment with the backing vocals is in the bridge of the song. Diddy had a vision that these ‘welelel’ vocals would not only be wide but would also be wrapping around, with the panning going from left to right. So I put on the Waves S1 Shuffler, turned up the width knob and then automated the panning. It was a bold Diddy move that really paid off. It became a special moment, and is one of my favourite spots in the song.

“Underneath the ‘welelel’ track are nine backing vocal aux effect tracks, which are a ModDelay 3; 16th‑note, eighth‑note, quarter‑note and half‑note delays (all the Valhalla Delay); a ping‑pong delay (Waves H‑Delay); and all those tracks have sends to a Valhalla Vintage Verb plate and the FabFilfter Pro‑R. And all those feed the BGV FX bus. I was just moving these effects all around until they felt right.

“Burna’s main lead vocal is in red. One technique I learned from my dad is to ride the fader on vocals, so you don’t get the anomalies that you can get when compression is applied to a recorded voice. As I don’t have a fader, I chopped up the vocal and then adjusted the Clip Gain for each phrase. As for processing, I added the Gullfoss EQ, that kind of rides the frequencies, and which I love. I used it on Burna’s voice on most of the album. There’s also a Pro‑Q 3 to notch out some frequencies, and the Acustica Amber 3 EQ, which adds the most gorgeous top end.

“There’s a send on the main lead vocal to an aux with the Soundtoys Devil‑Loc, adding parallel distortion. It’s a bus I try once in a while. If the vocal is sitting where I want it to sit in the mix volume‑wise, but it needs a little bit more glue, body and warmth, I’ll go for the Devil‑Loc. It brings the vocal straight up into your face. If you want a pop vocal that is right on top of everything, this is it.

“I also have other vocal aux effect tracks, ie. different delays, reverbs, pitch‑shifts. I generally do not use reverbs on the lead vocal, but only delays, because they take up less space. Then I’ll have a delay to feed a reverb that can sit in the background. The pre‑delay creates this ocean of ambience that does not take away from the intimacy and upfront nature of the lead vocal.

“There are a couple of tracks called ‘Throw’, and I create those by dragging duplicate audio to a separate track, and then putting an effect on with the mix at 100 percent, in this case Valhalla Delays. I don’t really like using automation on sends and muting and so on, as it’s a really slow workflow. It takes one second to drag down some audio, add a delay and done.

“Below the ‘Throw’ tracks are two Time Adjuster aux tracks and a Valhalla Space Modulator aux track. Together they recreate the Eventide H3000 wide vocal effect. The Time Adjuster plug‑in delays the left and right channels a bit, and one channel has the CLA MixHub to add some distortion and the other channel has the lo‑fi. The Valhalla Space Modulator is followed by a Cranesong Phoenix II, driving really hard in Dark Essence mode. These three go to an aux called ‘SHIFT M’, and it turns a mono vocal into a wide, enveloping, beautiful vocal. Also, there’s a ‘Lead Vocal All FX’ aux with the Pro‑Q 3 EQ that takes out all top and bottom, which you don’t need on vocal effects.”

See how YMIR uses Soundtheory Gullfoss

YMIR

Singer, Composer

...
Verified via YouTube

At 2:32 into the video, YMIR is shown to be using the Gullfoss VST

Album Usage

The Soundtheory Gullfoss has been featured on the following albums:

Genre Usage

Based on how artists on Equipboard use this gear, it is most commonly found in the following genres.

Used With

Based on how musicians on Equipboard use Soundtheory Gullfoss, it is most commonly used with the following gear.

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