Rating: ***** 5/5 Stars
Available for Windows and Mac, Solaris GTR is an inexpensive yet impressive‑sounding virtual instrument that uses sampled guitar sounds as sources before processing them to create a range of delicate, piano‑like textures that are a perfect fit for chillout or relaxation music. The 192kHz, 32‑bit samples were created using an Ibanez AS73G electric guitar and treated, so we are informed, using pedals and plug‑ins including the Empress Zoia, Hotone Ampero 2, Seymour Duncan Andromeda, Guitar Rig 6, and so on. After editing, the sounds were converted to 44.1kHz, 24‑bit WAV files and occupy roughly 2.3GB of space once installed.
Once installed you’ll find 35 presets where further adjustments can be made using the intuitive control set, which is divided into logical sections with just a handful of controls in each. For general shaping there’s an ADSR envelope shaper augmented by a selectable low‑pass or high‑pass filter with variable cutoff frequency. There’s an LFO modulation section with selectable source, destination and wave shape, which can be controlled by velocity, aftertouch or a mod wheel. The most obvious setup is to use the keyboard’s mod wheel to bring in vibrato. There are global volume, pan and tune controls as well as separate effects modules for reverb, chorus, delay, and distortion, each with their own bypass button. The distortion section includes a wet/dry mix control and a switchable cab emulation filter. Delay can be tempo‑sync’ed with different left and right channel settings.
Quiet Music have the knack of building simple instruments that create evocative, soothing sounds and personally I don’t think they get the attention they deserve, especially given the ludicrously low cost of their plug‑ins. And Solaris GTR? Needless to say, I really like it.
Whenever I’ve sampled clean guitars, they always end up sounding more like pianos when played via a keyboard, probably because the sound is too consistent. Quiet Music have turned this apparent limitation into a positive by creating a surprisingly wide range of sounds that somehow straddle the world of pianos, often hinting at electric pianos or music boxes, sometimes morphing into delicate pad‑like sustains. Some even seem to have a vocal quality. The processing that has been used gives most of the sounds a wonderfully relaxing feel, and if you’re into producing music for the lentils and crystals community, Solaris should be considered a must‑have. However the sounds also sit well in contemporary pop production, chillwave or ambient productions. Quiet Music have the knack of building simple instruments that create evocative, soothing sounds and personally I don’t think they get the attention they deserve, especially given the ludicrously low cost of their plug‑ins. And Solaris GTR? Needless to say, I really like it.
$30
$30