DAW LP $40

Web www.klevgrand.se Format PC/Mac/iPad, VST/AU/AAX The sibling plugin to Klevgrand’s DAW Cassette tape deck emulator, DAW LP is a vinyl emulation effect that models the record itself, as well as the needle playing it, the RIAA preamp and even the specific cable that connects the RIAA to the external amplifier.

The four knobs along the top adjust the quality of the preamp and needle pickup, from totally knackered to positively sparkling; the number of vinyl scratch clicks and pops generated per second; and the amount by which those scratches duck the input signal. The sliders below adjust the levels of four selfgenerated noise sources, which are processed by the Amp and Needle Quality circuits. Amp controls high-frequency RIAA preamp noise; Vinyl is low-frequency vinyl/needle noise; Scratches governs the aforementioned clicks and pops; and Hum is mains hum, which can be set to 50 or 60Hz and interacts wonderfully with the Amp Quality parameter.

The funky Cable knob is actually the one that does the most sonic damage, though, decimating the sound (and panning it to the right somewhat, which we assume is a bug at the time of writing) as it heads towards its anticlockwise extreme. I/O Gain, and Mix controls handle levelling and dry/wet balancing, and the plugin can be set to output constantly or only when the host DAW is playing.

Surprisingly, DAW LP stops short of applying mechanical wobble to the turntable speed and warping the virtual record, but the vinyl and electrical noises it does add to your digitally pristine tracks are utterly convincing. With iZotope’s Vinyl offering a similar proposition – albeit with a very different interface and approach – for free, Klevgrand’s alternative has its work cut out. We actually prefer the sounds it makes (particularly Scratches and Amp), though, and so have no hesitation in recommending it to lo-fi producers and anyone else looking to imbue their tracks with that authentic turntable vibe. n9/ 10n