Scanner Vibrato

Name: Scanner Vibrato
Price: 49 USD
Author: Martinic

by Martinic · Modulation · Tonewheel organ scanner vibrato

Not rated yet

Scanner Vibrato recreates the scanner vibrato and chorus effect from tonewheel organs as a standalone plugin.

It works on organs, guitars, synths and other sources, with rate, depth and stereo width controls, for $49.

Best for: Keys & Synths, Guitars. Genres: Rock & Indie, Jazz, Acoustic & Classical, R&B & Soul.

Keywords: keys, vibrato, electric guitar, wide, chorus, synths, spacious, vocals, samples & loops, subtle, warm, vintage, classic, clean, hardware emulation, heavy, mixing, piano, simple, skeuomorphic, tempo-synced.

What it does

Scanner Vibrato is Martinic's model of the scanner vibrato and chorus circuit from the classic tonewheel organ. It aims to keep "the same features (and flaws)" as the original, but works as a standalone effect on any track.

Six settings: V-1, V-2 and V-3 for vibrato and C-1, C-2 and C-3 for chorus, at light, medium and heavy intensity, as on the organ.
Dual rate: two rate controls from 0 to 15 Hz that can be linked or set independently for each channel; the original ran at a fixed 6.9 Hz.
Depth: sets the intensity of the effect beyond the stock settings.
Mix: dry/wet balance, so it also works as a send effect.
Width: moves the result from mono to a wide stereo image.
Output and presets: a master volume from -36 dB to +2 dB, tempo sync and 16 factory presets based on the original settings.

The current version is 1.4.4.

Source: Martinic product page

When to use it

Scanner Vibrato is the pick when you want the organ's own vibrato and chorus as a separate effect. Organ instruments such as Arturia B-3 V2 build the scanner vibrato in, but only for their own sound; this plugin puts it on recorded organ, samples, guitars or synths. Compared with general modulation tools like MicroShift or ShaperBox 3 it is narrow and vintage-minded, with six fixed organ settings rather than open-ended shaping. It is also a different effect from a rotary speaker plugin: a gentle pitch shimmer rather than spinning horn and drum.

Best for: organ recordings and samples, clean arpeggiated guitars, electric pianos, and adding subtle width to vocals and mono synths.
Genres: rock, jazz, soul, gospel and vintage-style pop.
Look elsewhere if: you want a rotary speaker effect (Arturia Rotary CLS-222) or modern stereo widening and detune (MicroShift).
Tip: unlink the two rate controls and set them slightly apart for a wider stereo effect; C-2 suits subtle movement on vocals.

What producers say

Reviewers rate it as a faithful, warm recreation of the organ circuit that works on far more than organ.

Producer Spot called it "a very faithful recreation" with a simple, vintage-style interface, and found it worked on guitars, keys, drums and vocals.
Cigilovic gave it 4.5 out of 5, praising the warm, analogue-like character and the depth of controls.
KVR users rate it 5 out of 5, from a single review.
Criticisms: a niche tool for guitarists rather than an everyday effect, and sold only through Martinic and KVR's marketplace rather than major retailers.

Where to buy

Best Service: $49
Martinic: $49 (Price from the KVR Audio product listing)
PluginFox: $49
AudioDeluxe: $49

Tutorials and reviews

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