Dyno
by Stillwell Audio · Transient Shaper · Graphic envelope editor
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Dyno is a threshold-driven envelope editor that reshapes the attack, sustain and decay of audio with drawn Bezier curves.
It runs in real time with low CPU use and costs $59.
Best for: Drums, Drum Bus, Bass, Guitars. Genres: all genres.
Keywords: CPU-light, bass, drums, snare, sound design, downward expansion, extreme, bus processing, corrective, cymbals, drum bus, mixing, perpetual licence, pumping, single-band.
What it does
Dyno is a threshold-driven dynamic envelope editor: you set a graphic detection circuit to catch transients and peaks, then draw curves for how those peaks should change. The developer describes it as a transient designer, compressor, expander and sound design tool in one. It first appeared in 2007 under the Schwa name.
- Graphic detection: an adjustable detection circuit captures transients and waveform peaks above the threshold you set.
- Bezier curves: high-order Bezier curves define how the detected peaks are reshaped.
- Transient designer: add attack and snap, for example to a snare, or sizzle to a cymbal.
- Compressor and expander: the same curves can pull peaks down or push them up, shaping attack, sustain and decay.
- Sound design: at extreme settings it can turn a bass line into "crazed pumping" effects.
- Light on CPU: real-time processing with very low CPU use.
A free evaluation copy is available, and updates are free with no subscription.
Source: Stillwell Audio product page
When to use it
Dyno is the pick for targeted dynamic fixes and shaping that only touch peaks above a level you choose. Compared with SPL Transient Designer Plus, it is slower to set up but gives far finer control over the response. Smack Attack also lets you draw envelope shapes, but Dyno's threshold means quieter material passes untouched. Oxford Envolution adds frequency-dependent shaping that Dyno lacks. Compared with Stillwell's own Sculpto, Dyno works from a detector and threshold, while Sculpto reshapes the waveform along a drawn curve.
- Best for: adding snap to snares, taming or lifting peaks and shaping the decay of drums and plucked parts.
- Genres: any; the extreme settings suit electronic music and sound design.
- Look elsewhere if: you want simple attack and sustain knobs (SPL Transient Designer Plus) or per-band transient control (Oxford Envolution).
Where to buy
- Stillwell Audio: $59
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