It might be cold outside - it is here, anyway - but thanks to Arturia’s free Tape Mello-Fi plugin, there’s no reason not to get things toasty warm inside your DAW.
This is a vintage tape-emulation and lofi effect based on the sound and behaviour of the classic Mellotron (and, more specifically, Arturia’s Mellotron V emulation). Parameter knobs enable you to adjust the amount of Noise, Flutter, Wow, Wear and ‘Mechanics’, and you can also dial in subtle distortion and saturation.
The result is an effect that promises to apply lo-fi vibes to anything you stick it on - drum loops, vocals or even your entire mix.
Other features include an interactive tape wheel with tempo-synced Tape Stop feature and optional Instant Tape Catch-up, a 12dB low-pass and high-pass filter section, and a Stereo Width feature that introduces offsets to Wow and Flutter from left to right for an extra-wide sound.
A 25-preset library, meanwhile, gives you plenty of retro starting points.
Tape Mello-Fi runs as a VST/AU/AAX plugin on PC and Mac and is available as a free download until the end of 2021. Grab it now on the Arturia website.
