Audio professionals looking for a professional loop editor that provides compatibility with most DAWs will be thrilled with Propellerhead Software ReCycle, an audio tool for manipulating rhythmic loops or any material that has a distinctive and repeating pulse. The software analyzes the loop and then cuts up the individual events into slices according to the user's preference as to how big or small the slices should be.
ReCycle is great a tool for quickly editing sampled parts, chopping up riffs, remixing, and doing mashups. Once the sampled material has been analyzed, it's possible to alter the tempo or replace sounds and process them individually. Additionally, none of the processing sounds unnatural because rather than stretching individual samples in a loop to make it slower, the software changes the space between the events without introducing any choppiness.
Slices can be moved, auditioned or deleted, using on-screen tools and controls. Other tools allow for setting the length, attack, and decay of the slices. Slicing a loop also provides individual control over both the sound of the slices and the timing. Rearrange the loop, change the feel of it, replace parts of the loop with other samples, pitch it, and much more.
Signal processing includes compression, EQ, and a Transient Designer for imparting some punch and distinction, all of which can be applied to the loop non-destructively, and saved as a new file. The resulting REX files can be imported into any music software that supports the format, which basically includes all the major music software titles.
- ReCycle finds all the transients in your sampled material and slices your loop up, while also keeping the timing information, so you can play it back at any tempo without losing its feel or with the artifacts that come from time stretch.
Tweak
- Sculpt your sound with ReCycle’s built-in effects: Transient Shaper, EQ, Envelope, and a stretch feature that stretches the tail end of each slice in the loop.
Create
- Save your loops as REX files, and let the creative part begin. With ReCycled audio, your loops can be arranged, rearranged, have their timing altered, or even be used as a groove template for your song.
- Like the sounds of your loop, but the feel isn’t right for your song? ReCycled loops can be quantized in your sequencer to fit with any groove
- Or, maybe you feel of your loop, but the snare isn’t right? Simply replace the snare while keeping the tempo
- Create a more living performance by rearranging the loop’s slices in your sequencer to create fills and variations
- Use your sequencer’s groove quantize to set the ReCycled loop as your groove template and have the whole track swinging to your loop
These are the apps that support the REX technology today:
- Ableton Live
- Steinberg Cubase
- MOTU Digital Performer
- Image-Line FL Studio
- Apple Logic
- Steinberg Nuendo
- Avid Pro Tools
- Cockos Reaper
- Reason Studios Reason
- Renoise
- Cakewalk Sonar
- Presonus Studio One
- Native Instruments Kontakt
- Native Instruments Maschine
- MOTU MachFive
- Steinberg HALion
- Spectrasonics Stylus RMX
- SonomaWireWorks RiffWorks
- SonomaWireWorks DrumCore
- Toontrack Beatstation
- Avid Transfuser
- fxpansion Geist
- And more