[treewhispers]

hello there,

to my surprise the intern effects of the E-MU 1212m PCI-Soundcard sound better then any plug-in.... I really wonder why in every review about the 1212m the intern effects are refered to as rubbish and not better then plug-ins.

I compared the 1212m effects with many plug-ins. I really know what good plug-ins sound like but compared by the intern effects of the 1212m all plug-ins (even very expensive) sound like crap. the 1212m effects make the sound of the source better. suddenly the music starts to breath again and the muddy sound goes away. the EQs and compressor in the 1212m doesn`t try to emulate a vintage sound, sound rather in a neutral way but they sound more like real hardware. for example the reverb-effect ist better then any plug-in-reverb or IR I know.
In almost every review people say the effects were not good. that´s why I`ve never used them and always tried plug-ins for years. today I used them by chance and was totally blown away from their clear and fresh sound. the first time ever I used plug-ins and had the feeling that it sounds right and improves the mix and takes away this out of the box-sound.
I really wonder why my other plug-ins doesn`t reach this level.

it`s not up to my daw. I use samplitude and recently used reaper that has a very good sound that makes everything sound better but the problem with the plug-ins is the same here..

so that`s wrong with the ears of the reviewers or maybe my ears, because I can`t hear the bad things I`ve read about the 1212m-effects...!
maybe people didn`t A/B them much?
maybe people don`t give this effects a chance because they feel overextended with the routing of the card?
maybe people didn`t use them because the processor doesn`t allow the use of so many instances?
maybe people couldn`t imagine that intern effects of a not so pricey soundcard could be really good and tend to see it as a gimmick like in the most hifi-soundcards... or because the design of the plug-in doesn`t look so expensive?
so I really don`t get it what the hell annoys people on the intern E-MU-effects. if you got one try the effects and compare it to your best plug-ins and then tell me if I`m really wrong.

this whole topic brings my to the idea if other plug-in based systems like powercore etc. could be as just as good or even better. bevore I`ve always was in doubt if plug-ins could ever be a good deal. today I really had to change my mind.

best wishes

tree whispers