FXpansion Maul: distortion and tone-shaping plug-in

FXpansion has added to its effects portfolio with the launch of Maul, a multi-band distortion and tone-shaping plug-in that comes with "advanced" modulation capabilities. It's designed for subtle warming, loudness boosting, full-on distortion and more experimental effects.

Maul sports three separate drive stages, each of which can act on a different frequency range with any of 32 distortion types. Each of these drive stages also offers control over transient-shaping, saturation circuitry and additional post-process tone filtering.

The modulation system is known as TransMod and offers LFOs, an envelope follower and sample & hold devices. You can also modulate using external MIDI note input, giving Maul the capability to produce the likes of dynamic filter patterns, rhythmic gating effects, loudness and harmonic excitation effects and dynamic distortion.

FXpansion Maul is available now priced at £69.

FXpansion maul

FXpansion maul

FXpansion Maul specs

  • 3-band creative distortion and tone-shaping device
  • DCAM-modelled circuits, clippers, waveshapers, overdrive, bitcrushing and more
  • Additional per-band transient-shaping control
  • Saturation circuitry modelling
  • 2x oversampling with 4x Hi Def mode for extremely high quality
  • Advanced TransMod modulation and MIDI note control
  • Built-in MIDI Learn for plug-in controls
  • 32-bit and 64-bit support
  • VST, AU and RTAS plug-in formats on Windows 7 and Mac OSX 10.6.2 or higher
Ben Rogerson

I’m the Deputy Editor of MusicRadar, having worked on the site since its launch in 2007. I previously spent eight years working on our sister magazine, Computer Music. I’ve been playing the piano, gigging in bands and failing to finish tracks at home for more than 30 years, 24 of which I’ve also spent writing about music and the ever-changing technology used to make it.