Reels

What it does

A tape emulation modelled on a portable Japanese reel-to-reel, with a switch for Japanese, Italian and French reels that step down in fidelity, plus a tape speed control. The tape block holds flutter, wow, harshness and dropouts, there is crosstalk between the two heads, and separate hiss and motor noise that change with reel and speed. An envelope can duck that noise under the playing. A synced echo, speaker and microphone emulation, soft clip and mono fold sit on the output.

In the demo

Jade builds a piano loop with Piano Motifs and adds Reels to hear the shift on a clean source, then works through each control one at a time. She triggers the record and stop buttons for the tape start and stop effect, then runs presets on drums and a lo-fi sketch.

Worth knowing

The hiss and motor keep running when the music stops unless the envelope is on. Jade points at a whole mix as much as single tracks, so anyone wanting surgical tape on one channel may find it broad.