Audiomodern releases Panflow, a FREE creative panning modulator plugin for macOS, iOS, and Windows.
Panflow allows you to create simple or complex panning patterns to make any sound more interesting.
The bulk of the interface is taken up by the pattern editor that allows you to draw any pattern you like freehand. If you want to jump right in with a ready-made pattern, there’s a very handy Random button right above the editor.
Randomizers are always great for effects like this, not just so you can be lazy, but they often throw up things you’d never have found otherwise. The cool thing about this Random button is that it comes with an element of control, which sounds counter-intuitive, but it’s a good thing.
You’ll see three smaller buttons on either side of the Random button. To the left, you’ll find the pattern complexity types where you can choose from Simple, Medium, and Complex. To the right are the controls that determine how the points of your pattern are connected. You can select straight lines, curved lines, or stepped lines.
It’s nice to be able to randomize within set parameters so that you aren’t browsing unsuccessfully for hours.
Adding to the Random button is the Infinity button on the right-hand side. When the Infinity button is engaged, the pattern will randomize continuously every time a sequence passes.
You can adjust the Speed (graph timeline) from 1/16 – to 16 bars and adjust the grid division to suit your pattern/drawing.
Depending on how you play with the settings, you can create some very cool effects, from simple swells to glitchy sequences. The stepped lines approach is excellent for the more glitchy sound.
When you have sounds, like a synth pad or stab, that are good but not quite right, a plugin like Panflow can bring them to life. Adding a little movement is often a better choice than changing the core character of the sound.
Since we’re on the subject of panning, don’t forget Sound Particles Energy Panner is currently free with any purchase at ADSR Sounds.
Panflow is available in AU, VST, VST3, and AAX formats for macOS (10.12 upwards), iOS, and Windows (7 upwards).
Download: Panflow
More:
13 Comments
Wagzar
onThis is a great plugin!
Tomislav Zlatic
onAgreed 100%!
Konstantin Kobaltov
onTOMISLAV,
I’ve searched about Tonelib, found only one note here on BPB in 2019 about Tonelib GFX, which ceased to be freeware in the same year.
However, on May 15, 2022, ToneLib TubeWarmth and ToneLib BassDrive were discovered on the site. These are freeware! :)
Tomislav Zlatic
onThanks, Konstantin! I’m just publishing an article about it! https://bedroomproducersblog.com/2022/05/24/tonelib-tubewarmth/#comment-290392
MARTIN
onReminds me of Cableguys’ PanCake 2. Nice plugin.
cobo
onjames thanks
for highlighting all those cool vst plugins. with my small budget, king too rich, always when I look at BPB, there is something
that I didn’t know existed or that I could use
thanks you made my day again
James N
onHey, what a lovely comment!
Thank you very much for coming to BPB, and we’re glad it helps!
Panflow is very cool, enjoy it!
Cheers!
James
Numanoid
onA great addition to sit alongside Filterstep and Gatelab for sound mangling :-)
mx
onwhat these two plugins have in common is that they are both for panning but they are totally different tools.
energy panner is controlled by the amplitude of the signal, this here is basically a sequencer for panning.
i dont understand why you would compare them directly,
mx
on@jimmy: maybe a good starting point would be to understand what panning and stereo is technically (technical backgrounds like pan law, panning/balancing, mono/stereo, mid/side and all that stuff) and when and why you want to pan something. after you got that you will see yourself why you would prefer one of the two mentioned plugins for certain cases, or when to use automation in your daw for panning.
mx
onpanning with volume vs panning with time delay or combination of both is also part of that topic actually.
mx
onV the following comment should actually be a reply to this here V
Raven
onA little constructive criticism is in order no? Not ungreatful for all the awesome work everyone is doing. BUT all this crazy (yet super simple) panning… IDK… no real use in getting awesome sounds? beats manual panning automations? IDK… seems we need instead virtual surround (like back in creative EAX days),
and other PSYCHO ACOUSTIC type pannings with filters and reverbs (when audio is panned ultra wide, a little band passing and reverb is applied)
and micro delayed “shadows” (can make sound REALLY 3d!)
and dopplers, and loudness dependant width (for awesome width, lower volume to be wider and higher volume to be narrower) and combinations of all of these…
manually automating panning replaces today’s plugin easily, and simplifies workflow (since you have tons of automations anyway) but a plugin that can provide these advanced type of panning i have described, will be a serious upgrade to other panners. No?