Above the reverb time dial are three controls, Width, Color, and Clarity. So with these controls alone you can obtain a great range of reverb effects that relate, theoretically, to the size and reflectivity of a room. This can create some very different reverb effects. Likewise the spread and density graphs can also be adjusted over time (first clicking the Spread or Density titles). This graphic display is not just a display – you can grab one of the handles and move it to change the height and slope, changing the instantaneous decay rate anywhere within the reverb time.

This graph shows characteristics of the reverb time (and density and spread) over the width of the graph, marked off with 15 grid lines which marks off the total reverb time. But you’ll notice in the screen-shot above there is both a Reverb Time dial and to its right, a graph (called the Temporal Shaper graph). There are several controls similar to other such reverbs: reverb time (often termed decay time), pre-delay, spread and density. Smart:reverb is an algorithmic design with a unique approach. Both types can provide excellent “spaces”. Convolution reverbs use actual sound samples of a real space or mathematically modeled space, and impose those sound characteristics on the signal you provide. While both algorithmic and convolution reverbs use a lot of maths, the former compute the reverb effect based on summations of many, many delayed repeats with the characteristics changing over the repeats according to some mathematical relationship. This is a mathematically “computed” algorithmic reverb rather than a convolution reverb. Let’s start with the basic reverberation engine. But when Learning was finally fully implemented, it added some really unique abilities. I was a beta tester of smart:reverb before the Learning mode was fully functional, and I was impressed with what it could accomplish without even using that function. Smart:reverb (SR) is an algorithmic reverberation plug-in that has some unique parameters, even without considering its Learning mode. Now they have applied their methods to a reverb unit. Then they surprised with a smart compressor (smart:comp) that took the idea of trying to analyze dynamic sounds to new places. I found a significantly different approach to other such EQs. When I first tried out their smart:EQ 2 I expected another spectral matching plug-in similar to several I already had. Austrian company sonible have created some fascinating audio plug-ins that are “different” from most.

Sonible smart eq no sound