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Transpanner 2 is a FREE 3D Audio Panning Plugin by Artists in DSP

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Artists in DSP’s Transpanner 2 is a FREE 3D Audio Panning Plugin

Developer Artists in DSP has made available Transpanner 2, a free 3D audio panning plugin for Windows and macOS.

The developer released the plugin under the “pay what you want” price model, and it’s available in VST3 and AU formats.

Artists in DSP describe Transpanner 2 as a psychoacoustic panning algorithm with a super simple user interface. 

YouTube video

The developer explains that psychoacoustic panning expands typical panning abilities up to 360 degrees. 

The plugin creates a 3D audio effect that tricks your brain into perceiving the sound as coming from various directions, including from behind you, on a stereo setup. 

Transpanner 2 follows on from Artists in DSP’s original Transpanner plugin release, which BPB covered last year. 

Transpanner 2 has a polar pad interface, which allows you to choose the angle and distance of your panning. 

The polar pad has concentric circles that animate as you move the virtual thumb. 

This design allows users to command precise control over the sound direction and select any angle from 0 to 360 degrees. 

The interface behaves like a tunnel, where the centre position moves the sound further away while dragging the thumb to the edge brings sounds closer. 

Artists in DSP state that this interface provides an intuitive and tactile method of 3D audio manipulation that enhances user interaction in stereo mixing.

The developer states that the plugin “redefines what a spatial audio tool can be.” 

Now, pretty much every developer makes this kind of claim about their product, but in this case, it seems that the Transpanner 2 does bring a fresh take on spatial audio mixing, at least from what I’ve seen in the market.  

If you want to get your hands on this bad boy, you can pick it up at the Artists in DSP Gumroad page. 

You’ll need to complete the checkout process on Gumroad, which requires only an email address.

At that point, you can checkout with $0 or more if you’d like to support Artists in DSP’s work. 

After completing the checkout, I was redirected to a download page, which hosted links to the macOS and Windows installers.

The downloads are nice and lightweight, 1.7 MB and 5.3 MB for the Windows and macOS releases, respectively. 

The Windows version is a 64-bit exclusive for Windows 10 and newer in VST3 only. 

When it comes to the macOS (Intel/M1/M2) release, it is a universal release for macOS 10.11 and newer in AU and VST3.

Download: Transpanner 2 (FREE / Name-your-price – email required)

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Stephen is a musician and journalist who hails from Melbourne, Australia. He learned everything he knows about production from Google and used that vast knowledge to create a series of records you definitely haven’t heard of.

17 Comments

  1. Ants

     on

    It’s only 2D : front back right left is a plane, not a volume, it would need up and down to be 3D ;)
    just nitpicking haha, thanks for the posts about cool free stuff ;)

    Reply
    • Avatar photo

      Stephen Charlton

       on

      That did occur to me as I was writing this haha. But that’s what the developer called it so yeah I was just reporting their terminology. Cheers.

      Reply

    • mrg

       on

      The plugin is literally showing coordinates in 2D polar. Angle (horizontal) and distance. To be 3D you’d need either a height (for cylindrical) or an azimuthal angle (for spherical, but then distance would be radial). Oh my, maths, at this hour… -_-;

      Reply

    • Markov

       on

      Transpanner really shines with loudspeakers, unlike the usual 3D stuff that’s just for headphones. Stands out big time on stereo monitors

      Reply

        • noxiouzz

           on

          Yes. It certainly will work fully if the human chip recipient continues to use their biological ears together with the chip, but even if the ears will be permanently removed, most evolutionary “hardwired” binaural features like azimuth will work, although depth perception resolution (which depends on learning and reinforcement) might degrade over years, but that’s debatable. That is, unless the chip is installed right after birth, but still I’d bet high chance the algorithm will rather work than not.

          Reply

      • Raven

         on

        I have been waiting for something like this. My first creative soundblaster (im old!!) had endless demos of 3d panning and psycho acoustic spacial modelling.

        Reply

  4. JEP1928

     on

    I don’t think that dolby atmos essentials could offer beyond capabilities than binaural and it is actually free since months it was announced.

    Reply
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