Lunacy Audio Bismuth, a Virtual Riot collab, is a new, colorful resonator and the newest member of the BEAM multi-FX plugin ecosystem.
There are countless multi-effects plugins on the market. Most offer a huge arsenal of effects that can be combined at will. With luck, some even include modulation capabilities. Lunacy Audio takes a more original approach with its Beam multi-FX.
Instead of effects in mass, curated effects are released over time. The option to create multiple signal paths with a single instance, or also crafting feedback with Benn Jordan’s Portal expansion. Lunacy Audio has released Bismuth, a new next puzzle element in its growing BEAM multi-FX ecosystem.
Lunacy Audio Bismuth
Bismuth is the latest expansion for the Lunacy Audio BEAM multi-FX plugin. It can be used as a standalone FX plugin or as part of BEAM. You can use up to three Bismuth nodes, either in serial or in parallel, within BEAM.
Following Benn Jordan, they’ve brought another creative mind on board. Their latest expansion was created in collaboration with EDM producer Virtual Riot and, according to Lunacy Audio, is his first plugin.
Bismuth introduces an iridescent color resonator into the BEAM multi-FX realm. The new FX can transform raw sound into something tonal, melodic, and alive.
At its core are tunable resonant filters that form a resonator. They can be tuned to any chord or scale, letting you shape audio into harmonically saturated textures. Additionally, you can set the octave, spread, and root position of the voice.
Attack and decay parameters are available to shape the character of the shaping, from percussive to slow swelling. Then, in the block, you can find an arpeggiator that cycles through chord notes freely or tempo-sycled – great for melodic results.
Dive Into The Crystal
With the spacing block, you can dive deeper into the sparkling resonator and enter the spectral level. Warp, stretch, and compress the resonant frequencies to reach unusual sonic territories with three parameters.
Drift smears and blurs the resonance outward, while shift uses a unique frequency shifter to change the timbre. And, like every BEAM-enabled FX, Lunacy Audio also added motion to the new Bismuth processor.
In this case, the motion section route continuously applies amplitude modulation to the resonance that is tweakable with four parameters: rate, strength, shape, and unison.
Further, you have a filter section with which you can shape which frequencies Bismuth’s resonators act on. High and low cutoff sliders carve out any band from deep rolling low-end to bright, crystalline shimmer.
Q brings resonance at the cutoff points, Tilt shifts the spectral balance from dark to bright, and Scoop attenuates the resonating frequencies themselves
First Impression
It’s exciting to see a resonator added to the BEAM environment. I really enjoy using them, and since the iceGear synths, I’ve become a big fan. A bit underrated, but they bring an organic, original element to the sound.
In the linked demos, you can hear that Bismuth’s spectrum is very broad: from crystallized shimmering, lush textures to dirty distortion-like effects, it spans the whole range. A lovely addition to BEAM.
Lunacy Audio Bismuth is available now at an introductory price of $39, down from $59. Existing BEAM users receive a loyalty discount. Log in to your user account.
It runs as a VST, VST3, AU, and AAX plugin on macOS (native Apple Silicon + Intel) and Windows.
More information here: Lunacy Audio
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