ValhallaUberMod: The Preset Menu

ValhallaÜberMod has a cross-platform preset format, allowing users to use the same presets for all plugin types (RTAS/VST/AU, for both OSX and Windows). The preset format is based around XML, which allows presets to be copied and pasted into emails, forums, or any other place that can accept text.

To access the presets, simply click the name of the active preset, to the right of the PRESET: text in the lower right side of the GUI (the plugin will display “Default” when first opened):

The Preset Menu will display when the current preset name is clicked:

To select a preset, simply mouse over the given preset name, and release the mouse button. Mouse over a given preset folder name (the ones with the triangle to the right) to view and select presets within that folder.

To save a preset, simply select “Save as…” from the menu. This will allow you to name your preset, and choose the folder to save the preset to, or to create a new folder for your preset.

If you wish to copy a preset from a forum or blog post, simply select the text with your mouse (including the < and > closing tags), and copy the text (Command+C on OSX, CTRL+C on Windows). Then, select the “Paste from Clipboard” option from the preset menu.

If you want to share a preset with someone, select the “Copy To Clipboard” option, then simply paste the text (Command+V on OSX, CTRL+V on Windows) into the document/email/forum where you want the preset to be.

Special thanks to Randy Jones of Madrona Labs for developing the original text-based preset code that I ported over to ValhallaRoom and ValhallaÜberMod.

ValhallaUberMod: The WARP Parameters

When I was working on ValhallaÜberMod, one of the goals was to come up with a list of parameters that could be placed into logical categories. Most of the parameters fell into line – all the modulation parameters fit into MOD, the overdrive parameters fit into DRIVE, and so on. A few of the parameters just wouldn’t fit into the other categories. I decided to create the WARP tab for these misfit parameters, as they all shared the characteristics of warping the sound. That, and “WARP” looked cooler in the button text than “MISC.”

The WARP Parameters:

• WARP Speed: Controls the recording/playback speed of the internal buffer in ÜberMod. This also controls the internal sampling rate of ÜberMod.
  • When WARP Speed is 1X, the delay will play back at the normal sampling rate, and the longest output delay will correspond to the setting of the DELAY slider.
  • When WARP Speed is 1/2X, the delay will play back at 1/2 the sampling rate, and the longest output delay will correspond to 2X the setting of the DELAY slider.
  • Changing the speed will also change the playback rate of any sounds currently in the delay buffer. For example, if the delay is 1 second, and the WARP Speed is changed from 1X to 1/2X, the sound will drop in pitch by an octave, which will last for 2 seconds before things go back to the original pitch.
  • Setting WARP Speed to 1/2X will result in a “darker” sound than 1X Speed, as all frequencies above 1/4 the sampling rate will be filtered out.
• WARP fbMix: Controls the routing of the feedback paths between left and right delays. By changing the fbMix control, ÜberMod can be smoothly varied from two mono delays, to cross-coupled delays, to a “figure-8″ loop that is useful for reverbs and ping pong delays.
  • When WARP fbMix is set to 0%, the left delay output feeds back into the left delay input, and the right delay output feeds back into the right delay input. This is essentially using ÜberMod as two mono delay lines in parallel.
  • Setting WARP fbMix to settings greater than 0% will cause some of output of the left delay line to be mixed into the right delay line input, and vice versa.
  • A WARP fbMix of 50% results in equal amounts of the left and right delay outputs to be sent to the left and right delay inputs.
  • Setting WARP fbMix to 100% results in the left delay output being routed exclusively to the right delay iput, and vice versa. This will create ping pong echos if the WARP InputPan control is set to Left or Right.
• WARP Smoothing controls the smoothing time of the entire plugin, in milliseconds. Changes to the delay tap positions (that occur when adjusting DELAY, or altering the TAPS controls), and changes to the modulation depths, will be “slewed” or smoothed out, in order to avoid clicks. The Smoothing control allows the time constant for the slewing to be adjusted.
  • A WARP Smoothing setting of 10-50 msec should be enough to avoid clicks, while still having fast transitions between the old and new delay tap settings. Around 50 msec, you can get a chirping sound that is pretty cool.
  • WARP Smoothing settings >100 msec will result in longer slewing times for delay transitions, similar to what is found in tape and BBD echoes.
• WARP InputPan: Controls how the input signal is sent to the delay lines. This control was added to ValhallaÜberMod, and is intended to allow for various ping-pong and reversed stereo effects.
  • The default setting of WARP InputPan is Stereo. The left input is sent to the left delay, and the right input is sent to the right delay.
  • When WARP InputPan is set to ReverseStereo, the left input is sent to the right delay, and the right input is sent to the left delay. This can create a wider stereo image.
  • Setting WARP InputPan to Mono results in the left and right inputs being summed together before being sent to the left and right delay inputs. This can be useful for stronger flanging effects, as the left and right delays will contain the same signal (creating stronger reinforcement/cancellations of harmonics).
  • With WARP InputPan set to Left, the left and right inputs will be summed, and then sent to the left delay input only. This is useful for creating ping pong effects that start from the left (be sure to set WARP fbMix to 100% to create proper ping ponging).
  • With WARP InputPan set to Right, the left and right inputs will be summed, and then sent to the right delay input only. This is useful for creating ping pong effects that start from the right (be sure to set WARP fbMix to 100% to create proper ping ponging).

ValhallaUberMod: The DRIVE Parameters

The original idea behind ValhallaÜberMod was to create a powerful chorus/multitap delay plugin, that stayed “pristine” at all feedback settings. Fortunately, my early beta testers convinced me that I needed to put some filth into ÜberMod, and so the DRIVE section was born.

The goal of the DRIVE section is to allow the user to dial in the amount of overdrive and noise they want, from subtle colorations to high amounts of grit, and to be able to switch the drive off as needed to return to the original “pristine” algorithms. The DRIVE section uses a highly optimized soft saturation algorithm, which is oversampled to reduce aliasing.

The DRIVE Controls:

• DRIVE On/Off: Selects whether the DRIVE is enabled or disabled. When the DRIVE is Off, the calculations are bypassed, reducing the CPU load.
• DRIVE InGain: The input gain for the overdrive section, in dB. Higher values result in more distortion
• DRIVE OutGain: The output gain for the overdrive section, in dB.
  • By setting DRIVE OutGain to be the opposite (i.e. same numeric value, but with opposite sign) of the input gain, the feedback gain for low level signals will be the same. This means that the FEEDBACK slider will work in the same way.
  • If the DRIVE OutGain is set higher than the opposite of the input gain (i.e. InGain = 12 dB, OutGain = -6 dB), then the feedback gain for low level signals will be higher, and the feedback signal becomes more likely to break into oscillation.
• DRIVE NoiseGain: Controls the gain of noise that is added to the signal, post-saturation. This is useful for emulating worn tape echos, or BBD delays. Turn the DRIVE NoiseGain all the way down if you want a less noisy delay.
• DRIVE Pre/Post: Controls whether the overdrive happens before the outputs are taken (Pre) or after the outputs are taken (Post).
  • If DRIVE Pre/Post is set to POST, the first delay repeats that reach the outputs will be clean. The overdrive will only be heard on the feedback signal.