GANUE Audio Rivet: Free FET Compressor Plugin

GANUE Audio has recently unveiled Rivet, a versatile and free FET-style compressor plugin available for both Windows and macOS users. This innovative plugin is built around a singular concept: consolidating five distinct generations of the classic FET compressor family into one powerful unit. Rivet distinguishes itself through its input-driven design, consequently eliminating a traditional threshold control. Instead, users drive the signal into the compressor using the INPUT knob and then adjust the output level with the OUTPUT control. This approach directly mirrors the behavior of its hardware inspirations; the harder the signal is pushed, the more significant the compression and character become.

The core of Rivet’s versatility lies in its REVISION selector. This feature allows producers to choose from five unique voicings, each meticulously modeled on a different era of the classic FET compressor lineage. For instance, “A” offers a gritty, early sound with an odd-harmonic bite and soft ratios. Meanwhile, “AE” provides a more colored sound, characterized by rich, refined even-harmonic warmth. “LN” delivers a warm and smooth tone with wide knees, while “F” offers a modern, tight compression that remains clean at rest. Finally, “H” serves as a clean and neutral reference voice, providing a balanced starting point. These distinct revisions enable a broad spectrum of tonal possibilities, making Rivet suitable for diverse mixing and mastering applications.

Input-Driven Dynamics and Tonal Flexibility

Rivet’s input-driven mechanism is a cornerstone of its design, offering an intuitive and musical way to achieve compression. By adjusting the INPUT gain, users can precisely control the amount of compression and the associated harmonic character. Pushing the input gently allows for a light touch on peaks, whereas driving it harder progressively builds both compression and character. Furthermore, the REVISION selector significantly enhances the plugin’s adaptability. Each revision alters the ratios, knee characteristics, harmonic profile, and detector behavior, ensuring that a chosen voicing travels seamlessly with your presets, thus preserving your creative intent across different projects.

The plugin leverages GANUE Audio’s proprietary Assay DSP Engine. This advanced technology involves meticulously measuring real hardware units and subsequently rebuilding their behavior from the ground up using original code. This process ensures authentic emulation without relying on samples, impulse responses, or cloned code, thereby providing a unique and high-quality sound. Moreover, Rivet is designed for accessibility, offered completely free of charge. It requires no iLok, no online activation, and features no locked functionalities, making it a truly open and user-friendly tool for music producers.

Comprehensive Features and Availability

Rivet boasts a comprehensive set of features, extending beyond its core compression capabilities. It includes fixed ratios such as ALL (all-buttons-in), 20, 12, 8, and 4, with specific variations for the AE revision. The attack and release times are fast and reversed, displayed in real-time for precise control. A notable addition is the DRIVE harmonic color stage, which is oversampled and anti-aliased to maintain audio fidelity. For further dynamic shaping, Rivet incorporates a GR LIMIT soft ceiling, capable of reaching an “AMP” mode that provides color only without gain reduction. Parallel MIX functionality is also included, allowing for subtle blending of compressed and uncompressed signals.

Features

• Five compressor revisions (A / AE / LN / F / H), saved with presets
• Input-driven compression: drive with INPUT, make up with OUTPUT (no threshold)
• Fixed ratios: ALL / 20 / 12 / 8 / 4 (AE: ALL / 20 / 8 / 4 / 2)
• Fast reversed ATTACK / RELEASE (approx. 0.1-17 ms / 71-573 ms)
• DRIVE harmonic colour stage (oversampled, anti-aliased)
• GR LIMIT soft ceiling, all the way to AMP (0 dB — colour only)
• Parallel MIX for blend control
• Sidechain: HPF + 4-band detector EQ with adjustable Q, internal or external, detector solo
• Look (detection): look-ahead / look-behind detector timing
• Oversampling up to 8x, separate realtime and offline settings
• Stereo modes: linked Stereo, Dual Mono, M/S
• Analog-style GR VU, IN/GR/OUT bar meters, Comp Curve / GR History / SC EQ displays
• UI scaling 100-200%
• 31 factory presets across various categories

The plugin also offers an advanced sidechain section featuring an HPF and a 4-band detector EQ with adjustable Q, supporting both internal and external sources, along with a detector solo function. Furthermore, users can benefit from look-ahead/look-behind detector timing and oversampling options up to 8x, with separate settings for real-time and offline processing. Rivet supports various stereo modes, including linked Stereo, Dual Mono, and M/S operation, enhancing its utility in diverse mixing scenarios. Visual feedback is provided through an analog-style GR VU meter, along with IN/GR/OUT bar meters and displays for the compression curve, gain reduction history, and sidechain EQ. The user interface is scalable from 100-200% for optimal viewing.

Price
Free (Pay what you want, starting at zero)

Rivet is available as a free download through Gumroad. To obtain the plugin, users are required to enter an email address. The download package includes a comprehensive PDF manual. Rivet is compatible with Windows 10 or later (64-bit VST3) and macOS 11.0 or later (VST3 and AU, Universal binary for Apple Silicon and Intel). This makes Rivet an accessible and powerful tool for electronic music producers and audio engineers seeking a versatile FET compressor with a rich sonic palette.

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More info: GANUE Audio | Rivet