Sennheiser has released a public beta version of AMBEO Orbit, a free binaural plugin in VST, VST3, AU and AAX formats for DAW programs on PC and Mac.
AMBEO Orbit is a free panning utility developed by Sennheiser using the Neumann KU100 binaural microphone as a reference. The plugin is capable of stirring any mono and stereo track in a 3D field without negatively affecting the sound.
The user interface is conveniently placed, with the most important panning controls at the top, additional modulation rooms at the bottom. The horizontal positioning of the sound source can be adjusted, while the Elevation slider on the left controls the vertical position. The value of the Clarity control determines the amount of binaural coloring applied to the signal (lower values result in more obvious coloring), and the width control adjusts the volume of stereo audio.
— See also: PreSonus – Studio One 4 Prime (free) —
The plugin is also equipped with a simple room space module that simulates early reflections from various materials (glass, curtains, a brick wall and drywall). The reverb effect sounds great, though not very versatile. Even without modeling the room, 3D panning is very convincing!
There are several binaural plugins for Panner, in particular: Panagement and GFM Psypan, which is a fairly old and not supported tool. AMBEO Orbit seems to have the best sound among the three of them.
AMBEO Orbit is available for free on the website Sennheiser.
