The Riser
by AIR Music Technology · Synth · Riser and transition synth
Not rated yet
The Riser is a synth built for transitions: rises, falls, swells and fades.
It uses sweep, noise and chord oscillators with three LFOs, and has 300 presets; it costs $99.
Best for: Sound Design. Genres: Electronic & EDM, Pop, Ambient & Cinematic.
Keywords: risers & hits, randomize, textures, preset-driven, tempo-synced, cinematic, musical, sidechain input, sound design, steep learning curve.
What it does
The Riser is a dedicated synth for build-ups, downlifters and transitions, so you do not have to automate them by hand in a general synth. You play a note, and its oscillators, filters and modulation move together over the length of the rise.
- Sweep oscillator: sets the direction and movement of the rise, with volume, frequency and shape controls.
- Noise oscillator: adds white-noise style texture, with volume, shape and pitch controls.
- Chord oscillator: adds musical content that you can match to the song's key and blend in.
- Filters: over 20 types, including low-pass, high-pass, band-pass, multi-pole combinations, band reject and phase shift.
- Three LFOs: one tempo-synced to the host, one free-running, and a Pumper for sidechain-style ducking with time divisions and depth.
- Effects: tempo-synced delay, four adjustable reverb types, and panning and width for stereo placement.
- Presets and tools: 300 editable presets, a randomizer, an Invert mode that turns a rise into a fall, and a Swap button.
KVR lists version 1.2.0.
Source: AIR Music Technology product page
When to use it
The Riser takes a different route from Serum 2 and Vital, which can make any riser you like but leave you to build the automation yourself, and Transit 2, which turns existing audio from your track into transitions. It generates the sweep, noise and chords from MIDI, and the 300 presets cover most common build-up styles. That makes it quicker than a full synth for a single job, and easy for less technical producers. The trade-off is scope, since it is tied to host tempo and does not go far beyond risers, falls and pulsing textures.
- Best for: rises, downlifters, sweeps and noise swells for build-ups and drops.
- Genres: EDM, house, trance, pop and trailer music.
- Look elsewhere if: you want transitions made from your own track's audio (Transit 2), or a general synth that can also do risers (Serum 2 or Vital).
- Tip: MusicTech suggests slowing transitions right down for ethereal, pulsing textures, and mapping controls to hardware with MIDI learn.
What producers say
Reviewers at launch saw it as a quick, good-value way to make EDM transitions, while noting it is not as flexible as a full synth.
- MusicTech (Hollin Jones, 2014) gave it Innovation and Choice awards, saying "the learning curve is quite gentle" and praising the presets, the randomizer, Invert mode and the time it saves.
- Computer Music (via MusicRadar, 2015) found making EDM effects "more or less quick and painless" and liked the one-screen layout, drag-to-shape envelopes and the effects.
- Criticisms: Computer Music found the interface confusing at first, and noted it is hard-tied to host tempo, LFOs stop at 30 Hz, and the upper range can alias.
- KVR users: 4 out of 5 from 1 review.
Where to buy
- Best Service: $99
- KVR Audio: $99
- PluginFox: $99
- AudioDeluxe: $99
- Plugin Boutique: $99
Tutorials and reviews
- The Riser by AIR Music Technology
- The Riser Tutorial - Designing Transitions
- The Riser by Air Music Tech - Synth-based Transition Designer
- The Riser FX Generator From Air Music Technology - Overview…
- The Riser by Air Music - First Look and Review
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