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Description
Step into the vibrant soundscape of the 60s with the SoundToys Little Radiator, an ingenious distortion plugin that breathes life into your tracks with vintage warmth and character. Modeled after the iconic Altec 1566A preamp, this plugin is your ticket to rich harmonic distortion and dynamic sound shaping. Whether you're working with bass, guitar, drums, or vocals, Little Radiator infuses your recordings with a lush, saturated tone reminiscent of the Motown era, making it a go-to tool for musicians and producers seeking that authentic analog vibe.
Dive deeper into sonic exploration with the unique Bias switch, which lets you craft a choppier, lo-fi sound, adding a gritty edge to your drum tracks or a raw texture to your vocal lines. With the option to emulate the original preamp noise, this plugin offers an unparalleled palette of tonal possibilities that truly stand out. Little Radiator is not just about distortion; it's about transforming your sound with a touch of nostalgic charm, perfect for those who want to inject personality into their digital recordings. Unleash the full spectrum of vintage warmth and redefine your music production with Little Radiator.
Key Features:
- Modeled after the Altec 1566A tube preamp for authentic 60s warmth
- Rich harmonic distortion that enhances bass, guitar, drums, and vocals
- Bias switch for creating choppy, lo-fi textures
- Option to recreate the noise of the original preamp
- Ideal for adding character and color to digital recordings
Product specs
| Plugin Format | AU, VST |
| Downloadable | free |
FAQs
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What is SoundToys Little Radiator modeled after?
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SoundToys Little Radiator is modeled after the Altec 1566A pre-amp, known for its classic 60's Motown sound, adding warmth and character to audio tracks.
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Can SoundToys Little Radiator be used to add grit to vocals?
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Yes, SoundToys Little Radiator is designed to add character and grit to vocals, as well as bass, electric piano, and drums, enhancing them with rich harmonic distortion.
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What is the purpose of the Bias switch on SoundToys Little Radiator?
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The Bias switch on SoundToys Little Radiator allows you to achieve choppy, lo-fi sounds, perfect for adding a unique texture to your tracks.
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Does SoundToys Little Radiator introduce line noise to audio tracks?
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Yes, SoundToys Little Radiator can add subtle line noise, providing an authentic, vintage feel to your audio productions.
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Is SoundToys Little Radiator suitable for use on drums?
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SoundToys Little Radiator is well-suited for use on drums, offering the ability to add lo-fi grit and warmth to drum tracks, enhancing their overall character.
Videos
soundtoys
Radiator & Little Radiator: Introduction
Reviews
PROS
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Adds authentic tube-like clipping and compression for a warm sound
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Quick pad control for managing hot signals efficiently
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Blend feature excels on drum busses and subgroups
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Smooth distortion that complements vocals without darkening
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Versatile placement in signal chain for varied effects
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Effective for subtle overdrive on drums and basses
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Fast, musical, and user-friendly for quick results
CONS
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Sound is not tweakable; limited control over tone adjustments
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Lacks advanced features found in the larger version
Owner Insights
We analyzed real musician discussions from forums and Reddit to find what players love, question, and tweak about SoundToys Little Radiator.
Use cases and applications
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Radiator is praised for subtly enhancing double bass in jazz, adding clarity and finger sound without muddiness, beyond basic EQ adjustments.
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Using Radiator on a drum bus or vocal bus provides consistent results, adding warmth and cohesion to these elements in a mix.
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Radiator excels at adding grit to bass, transforming sine waves into more complex waveforms, thus improving presence on smaller speakers.
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Little Radiator adds a rough edge to synth lines in melodic techno, enhancing high-end presence and mix prominence.
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Features and functionality
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The input and output knobs on Radiator provide different distortion types, allowing for nuanced sound sculpting.
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Users mention the optional white noise feature and internal clipping for analog-style distortion, providing a unique texture not found in all distortion plugins.
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The full version of Radiator includes additional controls such as tone, mix, and output gain, which are absent in the Little Radiator version.
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Software and compatibility
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Users in Reaper benefit from a plugin output knob, mitigating the lack of an output control in the free version of Radiator, unlike Logic users.
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FL Studio users can create a workaround for the lack of Gain Out control by using Patcher, allowing more flexibility in managing output levels.
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Comparisons
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Radiator is noted to have a warmer, cozier vibe than Decapitator, offering a more subtle saturation suitable for tracks lacking body.
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It’s noted that many other free amp/saturation plugins offer in/out trims, which can be a deciding factor for users when choosing alternatives.
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Some users prefer Little Radiator over Decapitator for its unique analog distortion tone when pushed hard.
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4.5 out of 5
Based on 3 Reviews and 19 Ratings
41029
tube drive/compression
this guy adds tube-like clipping and compression.... heat is gain and mix is self explanatory. The pad is handy for hot signals when you can't get subtle enough even with the heat way down although in most DAWs you will have a trim control hiding out somewhere before the effects chain if you know your software, still the fixed pad is a quick way to jack it down a fixed amount fast and you can trim up or down from there.... and the blend is great for sub group use. I like it on drum busses especially where there's a lot of synth and drum machine and not much in the ay of loops or real drum samples. Cool on some vocals too because its a smooth distortion that's not dark. With vocals its like different effects depending where you fit it in the chain. If tis first the dirt slies one place and then gets compressed (although if the esses are hissy I would de-ess and THEN use this, for real) and then sandwiched between compression and EQ you get another thing, and then driven by EQ? yet another. Try it on an echo send after your delay or on a reverb send before and/or after the verb.... try putting it before that delay but after an expander set pretty extreme so only the attack is overtly crunchy and that can just trail into space. What can't the little radiator do? well, it ahs a sound that's not tweakable. Wanna get some control? spring for the big version, but this is fast and musical so I am fine without the fancier one.
1539
love SoundToys stuff.
Haven't had much time with this yet, but I love SoundToys stuff.
Artist usage
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In the Sound on Sound article "Inside Track: The Weeknd," it is noted that The Weeknd uses the SoundToys Little Radiator plugin to add tube pre-amp effects and EQ to his music.
In this article Illangelo says he used Soundtoys Lilttle Radiator on The Weeknd's vocal for his song "The Hills"
Used for Minaj's feature on Doja Cat's "Say So" remix, as stated by mix engineer Clint Gibbs in this July 2020 Sound on Sound interview.
"The Nicki Minaj remix happened very last minute. I got a text from her engineer, Aubry 'Big Juice' Delaine, saying, 'Here's a link for Nicki's vocals.' I opened it up and realised they were for 'Say So'. So I hit up the label and they confirmed that we were doing a remix. As I was mixing, I was getting updated versions of the vocals, verses, and so on. We did the mix, got it mastered, it was all approved, and the day before the remix was supposed to come out, someone wanted to change the beat underneath her vocals. All of a sudden there was an emergency!
"I got an email from Tyson Trax, saying: 'Here are the new beat stems for Nicki.' Among other things they contained some heavy 808s. I had an hour to mix in these new beat stems, because the remix was supposed to be released in Australia a few hours later. I pasted these new beats in just above the vocal VCA of the original session, and in Nicki Minaj's first verse I deactivated the clips from the original beat files for this section. But because the original did not have 808s, they killed my mix bus. I had to automate a new limiter during this part of the remix.
"I put Nicki's vocal at the bottom of the session, and just needed to pair them with the track. I added all plug‑ins on her vocals that you see in the session, but I did not need to do much, because the processed stems Big Juice sent me sounded great! The SoundToys Little Radiator adds a little warmth, and the Metric Halo Channel Strip boosts some top end while also cutting some low end. There are two Waves C6 plug‑ins dynamically suppressing 177Hz and 700Hz, with a -6dB range. There was some build-up in those frequencies that didn't work with the mix. On the inserts of the individual vocal tracks there also is a Waves Q8 doing two sharp 4-6 dB cuts at 10kHz and 11kHz, which was to tame some 's' harshness.
"One of the 808 audio tracks has the FabFilter Pro‑Q 2, with a high pass at 20Hz and a cut around 40Hz, and the Oeksound Soothe on a 'melodic bass control' setting. On the 808s aux bus and 808 parallel bus I have the FabFilter Saturn, Timeless, and the Waves F6. These 808 buses obviously were added for the remix. My approach with them was similar to that of the bass aux. The Saturn is only active on the parallel track, and is a bit dirtier on the 808 than on the bass. The F6 is side-chained to the vocal to suppress the mids of the 808 while Nicki is rapping. The Timeless also is only active on the parallel track, and adds a light chorus that spreads the 808 out slightly."
Album Usage
The SoundToys Little Radiator 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 SoundToys Little Radiator, it is most commonly used with the following gear.
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