Ju-X Frosting review

Very cool…

  • $36

MusicRadar Verdict

Despite a few gripes, Frosting remains a more than worthwhile purchase.

Pros

  • +

    Superb for live performance.

Cons

  • -

    Expensive.

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A clever little audio 'freezer' plugin 
(VST/AU/AAX) that grabs a one-beat long
 'microloop' when the big button at the top is 
pressed via the mouse or a keyboard 
shortcut, and lets you sequence its playback
 via an up-to-eight-step gate sequencer.

The
 tempo can be synced to host or tapped, and 
the speed of the sequencer (and thus the 
length of the loop) is manipulated in real
time, either synced using the two Duration
 fields or manually with the slider.

The 
second option is most fun, making it easy to 
create tearing glitch edits and odd timings.
 Frosting can run fully wet (so that only 
active steps are heard), mixed with the dry
 signal, or in Replace mode, where the dry 
signal comes through on inactive steps and the microloop plays on active ones; and you can kick the loop into reverse.

The Duration setting is confusing ('4th', for example, refers to a quarter of a beat, not a quarter-note); gate attack and release controls would be helpful for ironing out rough edges; and it's about $10 too expensive.

Nonetheless, Frosting is a fantastic live performance plugin that adventurous electronic producers will have a great time with.

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