TONSTURM - Traveler

Company: TONSTURM

Product: Traveler

Price: $179 (Usually $229)

Our Rating: 4.8/5

Tonsturm are known in the Audio Post Production community for their Sound libraries, and for their groundbreaking plugin Whoosh which was their answer to generating whoosh effects with an automated process within Reaktor. Recently they updated the engine with version 1.5 which included Reaktor 6 support, an updated sample/preset library and other new features. Now they are back with a solution to solve an age old problem; the recreation of the Doppler effect. Their new plugin offers a superior processing engine than many of it’s predecessors, who’s plugins date back many years and often have outdated interfaces with less than ideal results for the modern Sound Designer.  

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Moving With The Time

Not only does Traveler allow you to create Doppler effects either in real time, by processing imported audio, or by way of audiosuite processing, but the user can plot movement graphs in the GUI and use LFOs to provide additional modulation.

There is an included sample library, which includes 76 effects for whooshing and whipping. These are of a high quality, more than sufficient for use within this plugin, but you will want to import your own sounds to create more original effects. The sound of the processing is rather nice, and doesn’t have the artefacts that you may expect from heavy processing. It has a level of control missed in it’s competitors engines.

We used it on a recent project to simulate wind movement, and it was a really nice base layer for further design. Frustration with other doppler plugins has often left us relying on automated pitch shifters and sound effects to pick up the slack, which is less than ideal. It is nice to know that problem is now resolved with the use of Traveler.

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Moving On

There really aren't many negatives to point out with Traveler. The ease of use, preset and sound library, AAX format without Reaktor are all massive plus points. The price currently sits at that of a premium plugin level, but pretty similar to comparable plugins from other vendors. This may be out of the hands of hobbyists, but the again it is a serious workflow tool for professionals.

The Bottom Line

Any Sound Designer worth their salt uses doppler/movement effects, from whatever source that may be. If you also have found the older plugins a little outdated, this is your answer and it sounds great!

Get Traveler Here

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