Tape echo is an essential effect in any music producer's toolkit, with one such effects unit, the Roland RE-201 Space Echo, having become a ubiquitous influence in modern recording since its release in 1974. But a more recent emulation of the Space Echo has become a go-to plugin for many producers.
Sound designer Carlo Castellano started AudioThing in 2011 with the desire to create plugins that he wanted to use. Fast forward a few years, and Castellano can call Andrew Scheps, Brian Eno, Martin Gore, and many others avid fans of AudioThing's creative effects processors and libraries.
Developing an emulation of the iconic hardware unit was no easy feat. Roland founder Ikutaro Kakehashi's Space Echo is infamous for its idiosyncrasies. From its flutter to its ballistic control, noise floor, and inconsistent frequency response, the original hardware is a temperamental piece of engineering.
AudioThing released Outer Space in early 2017 and it has become, in this short amount of time, the definitive RE-201 emulation. Extremely robust in its feature offerings, Outer Space models three different kinds of tape: the original RT-1L, a more modern replacement, and an older worn-out tape. Every feature from the original unit was faithfully developed and, in many cases, expanded upon to take advantage of the limitless nature that digital signal processing has to offer.
I personally love this plugin for its reliability factor. For times when I need an echo effect quickly and don't have the time to tinker with a bunch of settings to get there, this has become a go-to device. I know that Outer Space will get me that authentic, saturated multitap sound without much effort, preset digging, or settings surfing.
For this feature, I composed an original piece of music, "Cosmic Orbit," exploring the Outer Space plugin on almost every track. Included in this audio demo are those stems, as well as even more instrumental examples illustrating the large variety of spatial processing this tape echo can handle.
Listen to the audio demos to hear some of the features in action. And you can download the free AudioThing Outer Space Reverb Exclusive Presets I made to use in your next project. Click here to buy Outer Space on Reverb now.