Acustica Audio has released BASSTARD, a freeware Pultec-style equalizer effect in VST, AU, and AAX plugin formats for digital audio workstations on PC and Mac.
BASSTARD is one of the six audio effects included in Acustica Audio’s new Titanium3 product suite. Although the Titianium3 bundle is a paid product (currently on sale for €89), BASSTARD can be installed completely free of charge via the Aquarius license manager. Anyone who signs up for a free Acustica Audio user account can now download and install BASSTARD for free.
See also: VHL-3C Is A FREE Pultec Filter VST/AU Plugin By Black Rooster AudioBased on the low-end processing module of the legendary Pultec line of tube equalizers, BASSTARD is tailor-made for enhancing bass frequencies of a mix or a single audio track. The interface features the Boost and Attenuate control parameters seen in Pultec EQs and a 4-way switch for choosing the affected frequency band (30 Hz, 40 Hz, 60 Hz, or 100 Hz). The processing engine relies on Acustica Audio’s unique Acqua hardware sampling technology which records the behavior of analog gear by capturing “dynamic impulse responses”. The result is an emulation which highly resembles the sound qualities of the actual hardware unit, at the cost of somewhat higher CPU usage when compared to algorithm-based software.
Although the sound processing quality delivered by BASSTARD is quite good, it does indeed come at the cost of a performance hit, especially if multiple instances are used in a single project. Still, it’s worth a try if you don’t want to spend money on a paid software alternative or an expensive hardware clone of a Pultec equalizer.
To download your free copy of BASSTARD, register for a free Acustica Audio user account and then install the Aquarius license manager from the page linked below. Once installed, run the Aquarius application and log in with your user credentials. You should be able to access and install the BASSTARD plugin using Aquarius.
BASSTARD is available for free download via Acustica Audio (8.61 MB download size, ZIP archive containing EXE installer, 32-bit & 64-bit VST/AU/AAX plugin format for Windows & MacOS).
