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A master's thesis from Aalborg University
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The Velvet Cloud - Infinite Sustain and Reverberation using velvet noise

Author

Term

3. Term

Publication year

2020

Submitted on

Pages

125

Abstract

Dette projekt præsenterer to digitale lydeffekt-plugins (VST’er) udviklet til at skabe automatisk uendelig sustain og fyldig rumklang. (VST’er er plugin-effekter, der kører i digitalt lydsoftware.) Sustain-effekten bygger på konvolution med velvet-støj, mens rumklangen er baseret på et moduleret Velvet Feedback Delay Network. Brug af velvet-støj giver en hurtig opbygning af tidlige refleksioner sammenlignet med standard Feedback Delay Networks, og modulationen tilfører små mikrovariationer, som skaber dybe, psykedeliske klangrum og modellerer uvirkelige rum. De to plugins er tænkt til at fungere sammen, og brugeren kan placere dem i valgfri rækkefølge (f.eks. sustain ind i rumklang). Vi evaluerede plugins med tekniske tests—impulsrespons, respons på hvid Gaussisk støj og T60 (efterklangstid)—på tværs af forskellige kombinationer. Derudover gennemførte vi en Two-Alternative Forced-Choice-lytningstest og en spørgeskemaundersøgelse for at få subjektive vurderinger. Resultaterne peger på, at Velvet Cloud-plugins har en unik karakter: de skaber dyb, psykedelisk rumklang med mikrovariationer fra modulationen, lagt oven på en baggrund af uendelig sustain, som musikere kan spille melodier over.

This project presents two digital audio effect plugins (VSTs) designed to create automatic infinite sustain and rich reverberation. (VSTs are plugin effects that run in digital audio software.) The sustain effect uses convolution with velvet noise, while the reverb is built on a Modulated Velvet Feedback Delay Network. Using velvet noise helps the reverb build early reflections quickly compared with standard Feedback Delay Networks, and the added modulation introduces subtle micro-variations that yield deep, psychedelic textures and evoke unreal spaces. The two plugins are intended to work together, and users can place them in any order (for example, sustain into reverb). We evaluated the plugins with technical tests—impulse responses, responses to white Gaussian noise, and T60 (reverberation time)—across different plugin combinations. We also ran a Two-Alternative Forced-Choice listening test and a user survey to gather subjective impressions. The results indicate that the Velvet Cloud plugins have a unique character: they produce deep, psychedelic reverberation with micro-variations from modulation, layered over a background of infinite sustain that musicians can play melodies on top of.

[This summary has been rewritten with the help of AI based on the project's original abstract]