Neural DSP Mantra: A Complete Vocal Production Plugin
Neural DSP’s move into vocal processing offers a flexible set of features.
With Neural DSP Mantra, you get a comprehensive vocal processing chain for tracking and mixing in your DAW in one straightforward plugin.
Up until now, Neural DSP has been known for its guitar processing solutions, so Mantra represents the Finnish company’s first foray into the realm of vocal processing.
Neural DSP Mantra
The Mantra plugin combines a whole range of different processors, including vocal tuning, harmonization, noise gate, de-essing, EQ, compression, saturation, limiting, reverb, delay, chorus, modulation, and a signal-dependent Sculpt processor. While this sounds like an overwhelming amount of processing to keep track of in a single plugin, the interface has been cleverly designed.
This means that each processing module provides only the controls needed, which is often a single-knob interface. Mantra works in both mono and stereo, and there are two main operating modes for tracking and mixing. For a variety of dynamics processing characteristics, the compressor and saturation modules have three different modes.
In the compressor module, there are Tube, Stress, and Multi modes for more natural, aggressive, or modern-sounding compression. Likewise, in the saturation module, you can select Tape, Tube, and Digital modes to add warmth, boost harmonics, or add digital grit. With Mantra running in Mixing mode, the Sculpt module allows dynamic resonance suppression, giving your vocals a smoother, more pleasing tone.
In addition, there are four delay settings (Analog, Tape, Stereo, and Dual) with a built-in ducker, and three reverb types (Hall, Plate, and Ambience). What’s more, there are Chorus, Flanger, and Phaser effects, and a doubler effect for thickening backing vocals. Overall, Mantra promises to be an exciting prospect for music producers.
Pricing and Availability:
Neural DSP Mantra is currently available as a purchased download, priced at 169.