I wish I had this plugin years ago - Soundtheory Kraftur Demo and Review

Soundtheory has finally released their second plugin, Kraftur. It is a unique mixing and mastering plugin that increases the power and density of your music. It is by far the best clipper I have ever used for increasing the loudness of mixes and I think I've used them all at this point. Ask me anything in the comments, I'm here to help!
Get a Free Trial of Kraftur here: www.soundtheory.com/kraftur
There is also a 30% OFF introductory sale until the 1st of September.
0:00 Intro
1:15 What is Kraftur?
1:50 Kraftur Overview (Drum bus processing)
5:18 Mix/Master processing
7:08 The secret to louder mixes (Clipping)
9:00 What I would change
9:50 Final thoughts
The team at Soundtheory have already told me that they might add read outs for the meters/gain reduction. I don't mind if they add them or not, but it's awesome that they already listened to the community!
Music by Kennedy Wilde (she's on all streaming platforms!)
📱 All my links: linktr.ee/inthemixlinks
If you enjoy my videos, you can support me here:
buymeacoffee.com/michael.inth...
📱 Instagram: @michael.inthemix
🌍 My Website / Contact / Hire me: michaelwynneaudio.com
🎧 My Sound Banks / Preset Packs: inthemix.store
🎧 My Plugin (Reviver) Free Trial:
www.blacksaltaudio.com/revive...
bit.ly/ReviverTrial
🎧 20% OFF SoundGym: bit.ly/ITMSoundGym20
💸 Releasing a song? Save money on DistroKid if you sign up through my custom link: distrokid.com/vip/inthemix

[@inthemix]

Let's make "Sandy" a new audio mixing term 3:00 The team at Soundtheory have already told me that they might add read outs for the meters/gain reduction. I don't mind if they add them or not, but it's awesome that they already listened to the community! 0:00 Intro 1:15 What is KRAFTUR? 1:50 Kraftur Overview (Drum bus processing) 5:18 Mix/Master processing 7:08 The secret to louder mixes (Clipping) 9:00 What I would change 9:50 Final Thoughts

[@chrisibbetson]

Finally! an Oxford Inflator replacement that's just what I need. Cheers for the video! 🙂

[@sebaa_cl]

I really hope they do, it would definitely be helpful!

[@sonidojamon]

Good to know!! As soon as they fix those things I will probably be buying! Cheers!

[@TheReal_E.IRIZARRY]

that's dope af. i look forward to the minor upgrade releases in future time.

[@Clature.]

Best cheekbones in the game

[@wavydane]

best hairline in the game

[@prodndn]

young william dafoe lol

[@AVDRE]

@@wavydane facts

[@RealHomeRecording]

​@@wavydanenope...my hairline is betterer

[@inthemix]

@@RealHomeRecording you’re right, just checked your page!

[@jackinvox]

I downloaded the demo, used it on two in-process mixes, and immediately made a purchase. Thanks for the heads up, Michael!

[@Asa-bh7zi]

Need a hair tutorial asap, looking crispy + clean

[@post-man23]

You need a better clipper obviously.

[@Mr_Kri]

​@@post-man23I'm here to present you with the "most underrated comment of the week" award 🏆 Your work did not go unnoticed 👊😄😄

[@BINOMOBB]

i like how you explained in depth of the plugin cant wait to see more reviews from you, cheers

[@RayTheProducer]

This is my plugin of 2024. A total gamechanger for volume and warmth. Excellent review and analysis.

[@trippi2595]

I've come across this plug in, thank you for showcasing it in such a great way! I'm going to try it out, cheers !

[@cdasteez]

I like how you didn't try to sell the bone conduction headphones as a new way to mix and master or something. Having now watched a whole video of you riding a bike: I respect your advertising ethics.

[@inthemix]

Thank you for the kind words. I had a lot of fun making that video despite being full of a cold and putting myself to the test physically. I'm always trying to be fair/ethical with my content and I'm glad it shows.

[@TheOfficalAndI]

That example mix sounds fire. And the plugin gives it a very pleasant subtle warm oompf, and high sheen.

[@PrincipalAudio]

It does seem like one of those plugins you wish you had all along. I love when I come across plugins like that. Definitely considering buying it, budget-permitting (if my car will stop breaking!) Thanks for the demo of the plugin. Appreciate it.

[@rambo953-rv6gl]

GOOD TUTORIAL MAN BEST SO FAR ON KZbin LOOKIN TO BUY IT AFTER THIS REVIEW

[@davidasher22]

I picked up the demo when it came out but I really couldn’t wrap my head around it so I kinda forgot about it. I’m sure glad I decided to watch your review! You explained it much better than whatever video I watched before. 😂. I was basically just staring at the colors the first time around wondering why it was called Kraftur. So thanks!

[@cyberlxve]

twin EVERYone needs this song! asap! good good work man

[@tapiwasnite6524]

You good at explaining, I appreciate that

[@nerdexproject]

Wow! Very interesting plugin! Thank you!

[@jeffthompson6162]

Gulfoss is a staple for me on mixbus now. Love it. Can't wait to try this out. Soundtheory rules.

[@JLVprod]

Thanks for the great video! Going to check this out

[@briankingart]

Awesome, Michael! TYVM!

[@inthemix]

Hey Brian, I hope you're doing better now!

[@umbralphase]

100% buying this!

[@emmalynepairing3111]

Wow . ..It sounds so good .

[@PrashantVermaMusic]

Thanks for sharing this 🤩

[@inthemix]

You're welcome Prashant

[@hakangurdol]

Amazing for just bass tone sturation, this keeps track clean with only bass sat. 🙏🏽

[@AL-qj9yh]

Thank you for everything you taught me 😉🙏

[@MantaAudio]

finally a GOOD review of a plugin and not a dude telling you the plugin is amazing because the signal is 5 dB louder. Thx! I tested it a lot on my master and unfortunately it messes a LOT with the phase, because of the Multi-Band filtering ofc. Weirdly it also messes with the phase in the "single"/single-band mode. Could work well on busses and individual tracks though.

[@Meddy360]

Thanks brother @In The Mix From Tanzania

[@tmpltmusic6754]

One of the Best I tested in the last year!

[@BartekEVH]

Omg, it is fantastic!!!!!

[@Du.Play.D]

Awesome tool. Replaced the Oxford Inflator in my mastering chain 👍

[@ozspierer4732]

Dude i love you❤

[@Bthelick]

oh this does behave well doesn't it! no aliased fizz that you normally hear in these types of processors I'm impressed.

[@maomallows]

I see new In The Mix video... Instant like.

[@MartinvonBargen]

Great video and I'll be checking Kraftur out next payday. Have you tried KClip 3 into Pro-L 2? I've been very satisfied with the results.

[@sonidojamon]

9:15 I totally agree!! Never quite got the hang of Ozone's Exciter. Too many options, too many controls. I like the simplicity of this one (and its pedigree, Gulfoss...). But we need to know how much we are shaving when clipping!! Let's hope they add those visual cues!

[@ferromontanino]

This was such a great video on this plugin, thank you so much sincerely. And this is a comment out of love and goodwill : it would have been really useful if you A/B'd the horrible Limiter version (pre Kraftur) vs the Kraftur'd version, with the same settings like you did. Learning the relationship between how Kraftur helps your Limiter do less, is the key to using that plugin I believe. Anyways great video thank you!

[@bassface84]

That's pretty kool.

[@_davelv]

Thanks 👍🏼

[@Mstupp2184]

😍 looks cool. Love Gulfoss.

[@inthemix]

We waited a long time for a follow up plugin, I think it really shows how much they care.

[@garudasomanna]

Thanks for this hot video delivered in such a cool fashion! I loved to see the colourful displays: looks so very attractive and lively. Evidently Soundtheory needs to be renamed as sight-theory! BTW, Michael, does this plugin work in GarageBand, version 10.4.1?

[@musicbySTIX]

Even though I know it's a different product, would I get anything more out of this plugin if I already own Saturn 2? Especially for the master bus? 🤔

[@murat_buyuk]

Thanks for the review. Seems like a good plugin. But man, I'm so happy to work around -14dBLUFS for my stuff. -6 sounds so crushed.

[@MarcoLehmannMusic]

this reminds me a bit of KClip3 by Kazrog. Interesting plugin!

[@ILOVEDRAGO]

Is the clipper a soft clipper? must be, but wanted to ask. one of the best clippers is SIMPLEClip - it has "Soft Clipper Pro", a feature none others have. I am very split between Kraftur and Simple Clip "Soft Clipper Pro" mode.

[@KreativeDevices]

🔥

[@oreoluwadavid]

I love this and want this 😢

[@inthemix]

I dropped a link to the free trial if you want to try it out. Luckily it's one of those trials that is fully functional, it just expires after 14 days.

[@brianwynn10]

I demo this plugins and it brought the sound out but not really as much as I liked ,maybe I have to play around with it some

[@anm0758]

I was just watching your gullfoss video

[@TheReal_E.IRIZARRY]

Best William DaFoe cheekbones in the game.

[@JostSchwider]

Thanx a lot! 👍💚

[@beatzguy]

You can definitely do something similar with a regular 3 band EQ and a saturation plugin before in the chain, right? I've been doing that for years on my mixes.

[@STAR0SS]

Note you can do very similar stuff with FL's maximus, it's not very well explained but there's also multiple band disto in there.

[@2024style]

Thanks fl is great I was about to ask if we had a plugin like that 😂

[@ILOVEDRAGO]

Soundgoodizer? duuh FL using i dooo 🥴

[@julufaded]

You remind me of the Twilight guy, but good video gonna check out that VST seems legit

[@inthemix]

I get mistaken for Jacob all the time!

[@user-df6lp8zw4g]

KA CHIIIIING!

[@MohammedMehdiTBER]

I use L2 and sometimes It only decreases the dynamic by 0.1 LA. I still wonder why people are afraid of limiters while clippers can be even more aggressive as well.

[@HeartleaderMusic]

What is the difference compared to a Multiband Saturator e.g. Saturn2 with a Clipper e.g. KClip afterwards? Is it the same logic just different algorythmen programmed what sounds different but is doing the sam thing? I like how easy it is but just want to understand the difference.

[@hcl8836]

There is none. After all you need to know your tools and what you are doing with the source material. There is no magic 😊

[@user-tw6rr3wi6q]

what diffence it maskes when compare to maximus in fl studio?

[@JazzyFizzleDrummers]

I wish both this and gullfoss had a delta monitoring button.

[@wardach]

Can someone help me understand the point of this plugin? What if i already have a multiband saturator (Saturn 2) and clipper (Kclip)? What would this add?

[@SorinPricop]

Where should I put in the chain , at beginning or end ?

[@inthemix]

You could put it anywhere on any stem or your final mix bus. I prefer to run this as the second to last plugin on my master chain, before my final limiter which will have more detailed controls. On individual stems, I would run this first to get the tone dialled in before wasting time with EQ and compression. Does that make sense?

[@kresimirsokre6536]

I would really like to hear this man's opinion on Creamware Scope synths emulations.

[@jshstuff]

@PolarityMusic gonna remake this in Bitwig in 10 seconds

[@kinetickaraokes6481]

Could you please let us know what's the song in that example ? It sounds amazing !

[@inthemix]

It is "Gonna name a record after you" by Kennedy Wilde. It's such a cool track by a very talented artist and it's going to be released soon! You can find her on all music streaming platforms.

[@kinetickaraokes6481]

@@inthemix thank you very much !♥️

[@raztube90]

@@inthemixwhen when is the release day

[@drewremembers645]

@@inthemix Yeah Kennedy Wilde... a name to remember, now following. Thanks Michael - you're awesome. As usual ...

[@ChuckSilva]

I like that drum groove! Source? ❤️🙏

[@ashishnoah3856]

Hi.. I recently got an issue in fl studio.. For every 5 or 10 seconds, I hear a noise similar to a white noise.. Even if I render the mix, the white noise is also in the mix. Can you help with a solution for this?

[@lilwombat]

i really like it but i wish it had oversampling using a work around it sounds so much better it feels weird to not have in a distortion plugin

[@inthemix]

I believe it does have oversampling.

[@KultureUK]

How do you think it compares to Kazrog KClip? It's a much cheaper plugin

[@doubleaceprod]

How does this compare to using Maximus with the time knobs off? I would love to see a comparison, and if you can somehow get close to the results you'd get with Kraftur

[@inthemix]

I could try to do a comparison but I am not a big fan of Maximus. I find it quite tricky to adjust and sensitive to changes in the input level. However, for a free plugin included in FL studio, it’s great!

[@doubleaceprod]

​@@inthemix Agreed. I've been using it mainly as my soft clipper because of the Multiband option. Fruity wave shaper and fruity soft clipper are simple but a little limited for the whole mix bus. I hear that KClip 3 is Multiband too 🤔. Might have to wait for a sale and get both Kraftur and KClip to see if they will overthrow the Maximus x Fruity limiter combo😂😂😂

[@sinan.100]

Maximous ?! Doesn’t do the same thing ? With more features too

[@PaulEubanks]

Pretty sure you can do all this with KClip3, no? Doesn’t appear cheaper either, what’s the draw?

[@mattiasboden2329]

Someone have a comparison between this and ursadsp boost? 😅

[@mygoogle1525]

Isn't it like Waves L3 Limiter?

[@raztube90]

What is the song to title exactly?

[@NacksiNack]

I'm sorry for asking you this, I've no money yet to buy fl studio, so i'm using the crack version, the question is? does all the plugins that i run unto it, will works perfectly or not, i see when ppl using pitch corection(autotune) it's really worked, but crack version not, So i'm confusing to paid for it cox in my place need more money to transfer to the owner of fl studio, can u tell me does all the plugins will never works perfectly when using crack version plz answer

[@blakecasimir]

It's a nice plug. But L 2 clips like a boss already.

[@CaptainChu]

8:55 I wonder how much of it is the clipper compared to the multiband saturation.... Saturation reduces peak to average ratio, so it really helps to do it before limiting (assuming not too much saturation already anyway). I actually do what you're doing in the video quite a lot already, but just using a multiband saturation without the clipper. What you're saying about usually using 2 limiters and ushing pro L2 too hard also made me think.... since L2 is actually 2 limiters already, 1 for peaks and the second for the general gain reduction job. But that's not really what you'd do with 2 limiters right.... I wonder if it's good to think about the average to valley ratio as well for limiting. Either way if it sounds good it's good, probably gonna test it out, but not positive I'll get it. The only thing I feel that this is better than my current setup is the volume matching. Surprised that they can actually do it well... haven't seen any multiband distortion with volume matching before

[@ILOVEDRAGO]

I think we could turn off the clipper in Kraftur and use our favourite clipper instead.

[@nickjdt]

I know this is a sponsored video, but could you compare Kraftur to Saturn by FabFilter?

[@Dontworrybih]

“You know I’m something of a producer myself” 💀😂

[@currentcontentco]

Be honest w me plz: this or wavesfactory spectre?

[@nashse7en]

Bro PLEASE HELP ME, Fl Studio is Consolidating and exporting my tracks and vocals with a few Ms of delay even without any plugins. It's almost unnoticeable and it happens only in certain parts of the audio. It's not the whole track that is delayed equally but the beginning of the track is ok and as you go forward a take a look to the next words some of the words begin and end with a few (ms) of delay from the original. And if I put Autotune the delay gets 5X worse. My buffer size is 64, my Cpu is ok, theres NO plugins loaded. and the PDC delay compensation is turned ON. No matter if i export or consolidate track the delay is the same. Doesn't matter if i choose from song start or from track start. I'm on FL 21.

[@jonautry]

Hate when my midrange gets sandy.

[@ahmedyadam7240]

What's it different from Saturn plugin ?! Unless it's a better coded algorithms under the hood 😮

[@cekirdekci32]

actually saturn came out better.

[@ahmedyadam7240]

@@cekirdekci32 yes indeed I tried both

[@RokSivante]

Saturn’s JUST saturation, very customizable with different types. This got (one type of) saturation + clipping in one… and intended purpose different - Saturn offering more versatility for all kinds of saturation on all kinds of material vs. mix bus / mastering loudness. Would obviously have more control over customing the saturation with Saturn - and might potentially be able get similar results with it + clipper afterwards. Though, this DOES seem to work well for its intended purpose of loudness boosting - and sometimes less is more. Gulfoss was fantastic, so would expect them to have put in some proper effort with very deliberate reasons for how they’ve built this - and potentially worth it for the niche intention & its effectiveness. Could be interesting to see/hear comparisons tho…

[@ThePickledOnions]

what's the latency?

[@fridjon]

Hello im from iceland, these plugins names are icelandic i wonder if the developer is icelandic. Does anyone know?

[@citizenworld8094]

Is it true in Iceland that women are the real men?

[@000aleph]

@@citizenworld8094 Not just in Iceland 😅

[@inthemix]

The names are inspired by Iceland. 🇮🇸 I believe the company is Scottish but I am not sure where the developers and staff are.

[@metalhead3ecr]

@@inthemixour small team is a bit scattered all over world! USA, Germany, England, Australia...but no one from Iceland yet

[@fridjon]

@@citizenworld8094 If you ask the women, your answer is probably yes 🙂

[@meru_lpz]

Is the multi-band splitting linear phase? Or does it produce phase-shifts at the crossover frequencies?

[@inthemix]

Did you hear any phase shifts on the examples I shared?

[@meru_lpz]

​@@inthemix Not really, i can't really hear phase shifts alone - i usually have to do A/B on an oscilloscope or make a null test. However phase shifts from plug-ins that do minimum-phase splits with 12db/oct filters or steeper (e.g. Kilohearts Multipass) sometimes end up changing the headroom, or affecting the tone if you insert them before a saturation effect. Sometimes i use those side effects deliberately, sometimes i avoid them with gentle 6db/oct slopes or linear phase filters. So i asked more from a place of curiosity, rather than implying that i heard anything. The plugin sounded very good and transparent on the examples 🙂

[@DNA_STUDIO_SL]

5:28 I love this song but i can't find it 😭 Please help me 🙏

[@inthemix]

It’s coming out soon. The artist is mentioned in the description. Her name is Kennedy Wilde.

[@legacybge]

@@inthemix I legit thought it was taylor swift! sounds a LOOOOT like her style and voice

[@DNA_STUDIO_SL]

@@inthemix Thank you for letting me know.I'm waiting ❤🎼

[@tinyshadowmusic]

Any dent in the CPU? Thanks for sharing this plugin.

[@inthemix]

Great question. It varies by DAW and system but on my M1 Mac: FL Studio: It uses the same or slightly less processing power/threads than an instance of Pro L2 with 4x oversampling engaged. Wavelab Pro: It uses around half of the processing power of an instance of Pro L2 with 4x oversampling engaged. I think it is a fair amount of usage for what it does and seems to balance CPU optimisation with performance. Maybe having a "lite" mode with no oversampling would be a cool feature to add for some mixing situations though! I will send them a message and suggest it. Thank you!

[@tinyshadowmusic]

@@inthemix Perfect! I appreciate it. Thanks again.

[@ARTOFMYTH]

This is very specific : but have you come across any plugins that can turn a sharp sound release into a soft fadeout or something such?

[@inthemix]

That is something I have not come across. Something that partially synthesises a longer end to a sound to help fade out?

[@ARTOFMYTH]

​@@inthemix Were I to do it manually - it's a reverb tail for each instance where I want a very soft but natural fadeout on a midi orchestral instrument since midi can be abrupt, but during normal play this level of reverb is too much - so it's just a lot of manual work that I'm looking to simplify. And there are also many instruments for which the reverse slow fade in would also be useful. Like adjusting transients but with a much larger time window.

[@meldmagic]

🤠 Single-tap delay?

[@jonl.b7168]

@@ARTOFMYTH Just gotta sidechain the reverb to the signal, so that the reverb is cut every time the instrument plays.

[@ARTOFMYTH]

@@jonl.b7168 Thanks, this I'll give try

[@Nucrise]

Best jawline in the game

[@okmog-sx5il]

Personally, I didn't get the point of Kraftur, since the full multiband mode is the only good sounding mode and there are already a lot of other multiband saturators on the market.

[@tomallonsmusicalcreation1111]

Oversampling ?

[@glennfordsolinap8606]

i know this is going off topic but...can we get a hair tutorial?😂😂

[@234hmc]

seeing micheal swear in the thumbnail is new

[@inthemix]

When I tried the clipper section, there really was only one way to describe it. It's wild how good it is.

[@brettmaddan3255]

@@inthemix Michael the kind of guy to apologise to himself for swearing! haha you are wholseome though bro :)

[@ChandlerPaulis]

What daw are you in? Is the daw the one providing the analyzers in the top part of your screen, they look really nice ?

[@inthemix]

The DAW is WaveLab Pro and is relatively obscure. It is a specific DAW for mastering from Steinberg. They also make another, much more popular software called Cubase which is more suited for production and mixing. I think it still has all the same metering and analysers!

[@owenbryce5429]

What is the difference between kraftur and Saturn ?

[@inthemix]

Saturn is a great plugin but it is more specialised in selecting specific distortion and saturation types. I don’t believe it features a loudness enhancing clipper.

[@GreyMostly]

unable to find the song you have used in the video!!!!

[@inthemix]

It’s not yet released! Follow the artist so you don’t miss it though, it’s in the description.

[@GreyMostly]

@@inthemix haha. Sure . I was cursing Shazam and google assuming they were not working properly.

[@iguigutea1001]

😌check☕

[@andriealinsangao613]

$69? NICE.

[@user-xj8yl2dh4p]

Are your mixes sounding flat and sandy 😅

[@likejesushere]

Maximus’ cousin.

[@turbomatraka]

TRUE

[@tasenova2717]

Isn''t this maximus?

[@shopifypro]

Who's the artist?