Virtual Instruments have made totally authentic sounds a reality for composer, arranger, and engineer alike. Despite their increasing realism, there is still much room for some simple production moves to help really sell the sound. We show you three.

For those composing and arranging in the DAW, the virtual instrument revolution has delivered tools with sounds that frequently go unnoticed for all the right reasons. With some of the more dubious sounds of recent history no longer sticking out of the mix to spoil the party, composers, arrangers, and engineers are blessed with an arsenal of sounds that are increasingly becoming indiscernible from the Real Thing.

The drive for ‘perfection’ is everywhere, with the audio technology industry being no different. It could be argued that progress towards an imagined ideal can actually neglect some elements that define realism.

Some genres, of course, benefit greatly from the pristine, razor-sharp sounds from any number of tools. Others however might just need a little work to really sell the mix to the listener. Here are three simple moves that could be the icing on the cake for any production relying on virtual instruments that need an organic feel.

1 - Tame The Top

Occasionally some virtual instrument sounds can possess a larger-than-life character usually achieved with processing that will include a little top lift EQ. For the user who is trying to create perspective in the mix, a stack of gleamingly bright VI sounds will push every sound forward towards the listener. Rolling off the top slightly on those instruments that should appear further back can re-introduce the HF damping provided by good old fashioned fresh air.

2 - Create The Space

No sample library can know what the engineer is trying to achieve in terms of ambience, and as a result, VI sounds tend to be provided dry, often with on-board reverb or processing available. While these can sound great in isolation, nothing says “fake” more than an array of reverbs that feed the ear conflicting information. Across an entire arrangement, consider using drier sounds, unified with one appropriate, high-quality space to place your virtual band into.

3 - Embrace Imperfection

Many developers’ quests for the best have resulted in sounds recorded in highly controlled environments that do not always equate to those captured in the real world. Spontaneity still matters in any creative setting, and a well-timed captured moment is so much more involving to the listener than hearing the product of hours’ or days’ worth of forced ‘perfection’. This can lead to some technical compromises, but leaving these in, or even reproducing them can give the ear an impression of a real-world recording.

Creating Realism

Watch in the video as we employ three moves to inject some organic charm into an arrangement that would fall flat otherwise.

• We apply some light-touch EQ to get back to a more untouched aesthetic, followed by a look at the top end to ensure sources are not ‘in the face’ of the listener.

• Reverb is then selected and adjusted to place the virtual band in a genre-appropriate setting. On-board VI reverbs are avoided, with dedicated audio plugins employed instead.

• The listener experience is rounded off by introducing some ‘unwanted’ snare buzz both from the drums themselves and surrounding instruments.

Processing Less

Engineers and developers spend many months or even years perfecting virtual instrument collections sounds that sound great straight out of the box. In doing so, it is standard for sample libraries’ sounds to have experienced the ‘full treatment’ in terms of record production, with many coming out of the world’s finest studios, through the best gear, judged by the best ears. With their aim being to produce mix ready sounds, to further ‘produce’ those sounds again at the user’s end is, in many cases, simply unnecessary. Indeed, ‘un-producing’ sounds, and placing them in a virtual homogenised setting - with warts and all - might be just what the production needs.

Cover image photo by Dolo Iglesias on Unsplash