{"id":11374,"date":"2013-08-20T15:24:30","date_gmt":"2013-08-20T19:24:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/noelborthwick.com\/cakewalk\/?p=11374"},"modified":"2013-08-20T15:24:30","modified_gmt":"2013-08-20T19:24:30","slug":"blue-cat-audio-plugins-worth-a-closer-look","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/noelborthwick.com\/cakewalk\/2013\/08\/20\/blue-cat-audio-plugins-worth-a-closer-look\/","title":{"rendered":"Blue Cat Audio Analysis Plugins – Worth A Closer Look"},"content":{"rendered":"

The highly flexible, unique Blue Cat Audio plugins are now available at the Cakewalk Store. Find out how these critically-acclaimed plugins make comparing your audio tracks to reference material and to each other a breeze and how nearly any component\u2014peaks, RMS, crest factor, even isolated frequency bands\u2014can become a key signal for advanced sidechaining.<\/p>\n

Blue Cat’s\u00a0Analysis Pack<\/strong>
\nAt first glance, the plugins in the Blue Cat Analysis Pack<\/a> seems fairly self-explanatory: Blue Cat\u2019s DP Meter Pro is a digital peak meter, Blue Cat\u2019s FreqAnalyst Multi and Blue Cat\u2019s FreqAnalyst Pro are spectrum analyzers, Blue Cat\u2019s Oscilloscope Multi renders waveforms and Blue Cat\u2019s StereoScope Multi and Blue Cat\u2019s StereoScope Pro are stereo image visualizers. Their included histograms, 3D and 2D spectrograms, envelope graphs, XY and different views may be no surprise, either. However, what their names do not make clear is their capability to generate control data from the dynamics and spectra of your audio. Use them with a dynamics processor to get nearly infinite sidechaining possibilities.<\/p>\n

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Image \u00a9 Blue Cat Audio<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

You may be wondering what the difference is between the \u201cPro\u201d and the \u201cMulti\u201d editions. Pro editions are high resolution flexible plugins that visualize the audio on a single track. Multi editions visualize audio from multiple tracks but they display frequency curves, scopes, and meters from up to 16 channels inside a single plugin window! Being able to compare multiple analyses in real-time is one of the features that truly sets Blue Cat Audio\u2019s software apart.<\/p>\n

Compare Blue Cat\u2019s FreqAnalyst Pro…<\/p>\n

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…to Blue Cat\u2019s FreqAnalyst Multi:<\/p>\n

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Blue Cat\u2019s Liny EQ<\/strong>
\nAn 8-band, linear-phase equalizer with less than 3 ms of latency. Notable features are its wide gain range (\u00b140dB) spectrum analyzer and spectrogram views, linked or independent left\/right channel settings, and mid\/side mode and wet\/dry mix knob. It\u2019s suited for mastering, mixing, stereo widening or narrowing and, of course, low latency spectral correction without phase distortion.<\/p>\n

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Blue Cat\u2019s MB-5 Dynamix<\/strong>
\nThis module is a very flexible multiband dynamics processor. Capable of being a multiband limiter, compressor (upward and downward), gate, expander, waveshaper or all five combined at once on any part of the spectrum. What\u2019s especially interesting is its internal side-chaining: one band can trigger the dynamics response on another. Like most Blue Cat Audio plugins, it has advanced stereo features including mid\/side processing, independent channel activation, and MIDI and automation output for advanced sidechaining. Use it for multiband dynamics correction, mastering, loudness maximizing, dynamic equalization, de-essing, and pop removal. Lastly, you can even use it with other Blue Cat Audio plugins for spectrum-based sidechain effects.<\/p>\n

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Blue Cat\u2019s MB-7 Mixer<\/strong>
\nPerhaps the most interesting and unique plugin of all that Blue Cat Audio has to offer is this one. It divides one audio signal into a maximum of seven frequency bands and lets you control them like channel strips on a mixer. Easily adjust the volume, change the panning, and mute\/solo any band; it\u2019s even possible to group the MB-7 Mixer\u2019s faders together. It\u2019s useful for mastering, multiband levels correction, spectral enhancement, multiband stereo widening, multiband stereo placement, frequency isolation, EQ, and spectrum inspection. Make spectrum-based sidechain effects with other Blue Cat Audio plugins, like Blue Cat\u2019s MB-5 Dynamix above.<\/p>\n

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All Blue Cat Audio plugins are available in the following formats in both<\/strong> 64- and 32-bit architectures:<\/p>\n