
SouthSIDE Glen
independentrecording.net
Laying it on as a last step will simply sound like a "too clean" digital master with a layer of distortion added to it. Yet another example where people think that everything is done in mastering. Most of the horses have left the barn by then. "Warmers" and "tape emulators" are the digital audio equivalent of spraying a moldy room with Glade potpourri air freshener to try and get it to smell better."Im cursed by my digital DAW and my lack of knowledge ....cause it sounds too clean and i want to thicken it up by emulating a analog tape sound."
Your best bet is get that sound AT THE SOURCE. Most of the "too clean" sound you hear has nothing to do with digital recording, but rather has to do with how you do your tracking. As far as the gear giving you that sound, that's far more a function of your mics, your preamps and the room in which they're used than it is of your converters or the recording medium.
For your next recording, throw away all of your plugs and work on getting the recordings to sound right, and you'll be MUCH happier with the results. But for this one, if you really want to spray some room freshener, the Vintage Warmer has a very potpourri smell to it. For something more along the lines of a sandalwood scented candle or incense, try using the saturation knob only on the Blowfish compressor from Digital Fishphones.
G.