iZotope Stutter Edit 2 review
The first version of Stutter Edit, which was released in 2011, saw iZotope collaborate with legendary US electronic music artist BT to design a plugin that made it simple to replicate the composer's recognisable, intricate, glitchy sounds. It wasn't the first “glitch” multi-effect available, and in the almost ten years after its release, several programs with a similar function have appeared. However, its popularity has persisted due to an impressive trade-off between capability and usability.
So is Stutter Edit 2 worth having a look at? This follow-up builds upon the original design rather than dramatically altering it. The Stutter and Buffer modules continue to be the foundation of Stutter Edit 2. Together, with a variety of options for adjusting the rhythm and timing of the effect, these regulate the parameters governing how the effect catches and triggers incoming audio. When the speed is turned up to its maximum, the results can include audio-rate effects, as well as hard, trap-like repeats and erratic glitches.
The plugin also provides several effect modules to further mutilate and manipulate sounds, in addition to these basic stutter features. The most significant changes to Stutter Edit 2 are made here. Reverb, chorus, comb filtering, and a limiter are among the additional four effect types that have been added to the original’s effect types. The comb filter and reverb are highlights of these modules, which are strong throughout and allow for fantastically strange pitched effects and sporadic spatial movement.
I think this plugin is awesome for warping samples into soundscapes and creating odd percussive lines. iZotope has incorporated a system of new “Time Variant Modifiers” across this effect section, which are essentially programmable low-frequency oscillators. There is also an expanded curve editor window used to shape modulation, giving users complete unique control over how effects develop throughout an edit.
The absence of preset curve shapes, which may be found in products comparable to Cableguys ShaperBox, is my only recommendation for improvement. As before, Stutter Edit continues to refer to overall operations as “Gestures.” Each gesture is essentially a preset for a single rhythmic effect. The concept is that these can be live-triggered via a controller or automated from a MIDI track. Therefore, they are stored in the library in banks, each spread out over a single MIDI note.
The new ‘auto mode’, which automatically loops gestures without having to be initiated, is a clever addition to version 2. The auditioning and editing of sounds are significantly sped up by doing this.
Stutter Edit 2 can, at its most basic level, seem like a kind of cheat button: by loading a gesture, you can quickly and easily build an intricate sound design.
The additional effects and modulators make this a very creative, if occasionally time-consuming, mangling tool for those who want to go deeper. Other multi-effects can rival or even surpass Stutter Edit, but it still has a rich, potent potential for sound creation. It is a plugin I have used on my own songs and I am keen to spend more time experimenting.
Top tip: wait for a sale, which happens frequently and keep an eye on plugin boutique.