Cyberdrive

Name: Cyberdrive
Price: 65.81 USD
Author: United Plugins

by United Plugins · Distortion · Multi-stage multi-effect distortion

Not rated yet

Cyberdrive from JMG Sound (sold by United Plugins) is a distortion with up to three drive modules, 64 distortion types in eight families and a rack of extra effects.

Modules can be reordered and randomized, from subtle warmth to extreme sound design; $89.

Best for: Sound Design, Keys & Synths, Bass, Drums, Guitars, Vocals. Genres: Electronic & EDM, Hip-Hop & Trap, Metal, Rock & Indie.

Keywords: randomize, sound design, extreme, bass, bus processing, drums, multi-band, vocals, analog-sounding, auto-gain, futuristic, heavy, mix bus, synths, warm, aggressive, bitcrush, chorus, classic, flanger, glitchy, gritty, mixing, rectifying, resizable UI, ring mod, spectral, subtle, tremolo, wavefolding.

What it does

Cyberdrive is a multi-stage distortion by JMG Sound, sold by United Plugins, which the developer pitches as "the final word in distortion". It stacks up to three distortion modules with a feedback delay and a rack of effects, in an order you choose.

Dist modules: up to three, each with a Control knob, gain-compensated Drive, Mix and a filter system with high-pass, low-pass and multiband crossovers.
64 distortion types: in eight categories: Classic (analog gear), Pedal, Amp, Modern (dynamic distortion, wave-folding, multiband companders), Pixel (bit-crushing, rate reduction, glitch), Shape (rectify, asymmetric clipping), Doom (eight extreme custom types) and Freak (ring mod, FM, spectral).
Feed module: a feedback delay in synced, millisecond or pitched modes.
FX modules: Dynamics (compression, gating, transient shaping), Tone (EQ and filters), Motion (chorus, flanger, tremolo), Profile (cabinets, metalizers) and Space (reverb, delay, diffusion).
Order and random: drag-and-drop signal-chain order, dice randomisation of single parameters or the whole patch, and automatic gain compensation.
Interface: a resizable GUI with GPU acceleration and a preset library.

The current version is 2.5. The licence includes the lighter Cyberdrive Core for when you don't need the full feature set. Updates are free for life, and a free 15-day trial runs with no saving or feature limits.

Source: United Plugins product page

When to use it

Cyberdrive is the better pick for heavy, layered distortion and sound design in one window. Compared with Saturn 2, which is built around multiband saturation and modulation, it leans further into extreme types (Pixel, Doom, Freak) and adds a feedback delay and a full effects rack. It is closer to Trash in spirit, with stacked drive stages and filters, plus reorderable modules for dynamics, motion and space. Compared with Decapitator it is far broader but slower to dial in for simple analog warmth.

Best for: aggressive, layered distortion and sound design on synths, bass, drums and vocals, plus grit on the mix bus.
Genres: electronic, hip-hop, metal and rock.
Look elsewhere if: you want subtle analog warmth only; a simpler saturator such as Decapitator is quicker. For multiband saturation with deep modulation, Saturn 2 is stronger.
Tip: randomise only the parameters you want to explore, keeping the settings you like; if the first sound doesn't sit, adjust the Dynamics and Tone modules first.

What producers say

Reviewers and users like its range and look, with no real complaints found.

KVR users rate it 5.0 out of 5 from 2 reviews; one said "I give it full marks", another that it "sets itself apart" from other multi-distortions.
rekkerd.org praised the "gorgeous GUI that looks amazing at any scale", the quick layout, analog-sounding filters, the dice randomisation and how well it worked on the master bus, and saw it as a worthy addition rather than a replacement for existing tools.

Where to buy

Tutorials and reviews

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