Stillwell Audio
Moderator: James Steele
Forum rules
This forum is for most discussion related to the use and optimization of Digital Performer [MacOS] and plug-ins as well as tips and techniques. It is NOT for troubleshooting technical issues, complaints, feature requests, or "Comparative DAW 101."
This forum is for most discussion related to the use and optimization of Digital Performer [MacOS] and plug-ins as well as tips and techniques. It is NOT for troubleshooting technical issues, complaints, feature requests, or "Comparative DAW 101."
- Rick Cornish
- Posts: 1261
- Joined: Sun Feb 17, 2013 9:07 pm
- Primary DAW OS: MacOS
- Location: Ely, MN USA
- Contact:
Stillwell Audio
Has anyone bought any of the plug-ins from Stillwell Audio?
http://www.stillwellaudio.com
I stumbled across their site the other day. Some interesting-looking stuff, beautifully designed UI and reasonably priced. Wonder if they sound as good as they look.
http://www.stillwellaudio.com
I stumbled across their site the other day. Some interesting-looking stuff, beautifully designed UI and reasonably priced. Wonder if they sound as good as they look.
Rick Cornish
DP 11 on M2 Mac Studio (64gB mem. + 2tB int. SSD + two 2tB ext. SSDs). VIs from MOTU, Spectrasonics, NI, UVI, 8dio, Soniccouture, East West, Spitfire, Heavyocity, Vir2, and more; plus Waves 14, Brainworx, iZotope, Wavesfactory, Oeksound, Final Mix, JST, SPL, PSP, UVI, Valhalla DSP, and other FX plugs, Roland A-88, Apogee Quartet, iCON Platform Nano, Genelec 1032a and Westlake BBSM4 monitors, Gibson HR Fusion III. rickcornish.net
DP 11 on M2 Mac Studio (64gB mem. + 2tB int. SSD + two 2tB ext. SSDs). VIs from MOTU, Spectrasonics, NI, UVI, 8dio, Soniccouture, East West, Spitfire, Heavyocity, Vir2, and more; plus Waves 14, Brainworx, iZotope, Wavesfactory, Oeksound, Final Mix, JST, SPL, PSP, UVI, Valhalla DSP, and other FX plugs, Roland A-88, Apogee Quartet, iCON Platform Nano, Genelec 1032a and Westlake BBSM4 monitors, Gibson HR Fusion III. rickcornish.net
- mikehalloran
- Posts: 16176
- Joined: Sun Jan 25, 2009 5:08 pm
- Primary DAW OS: MacOS
- Location: Sillie Con Valley
Re: Stillwell Audio
I own a couple. Unless things have changed, you can try them for free before you buy.
DP 11.34; 828mkII FW, micro lite, M4, MTP/AV USB Firmware 2.0.1
2023 Mac Studio M2 8TB, 192GB RAM, OS Sequoia 15.4, USB4 8TB externals, Neumann MT48, M-Audio AIR 192|14, Mackie ProFxv3, Zoom F3 & UAC 232 32bit float recorder & interface; 2012 MBPs (x2) Catalina, Mojave
IK-NI-Izotope-PSP-Garritan-Antares, LogicPro X, Finale 27.4, Dorico 5, Notion 6, Overture 5, TwistedWave, DSP-Q 5, SmartScore64 NE Pro, Toast 20 Pro
2023 Mac Studio M2 8TB, 192GB RAM, OS Sequoia 15.4, USB4 8TB externals, Neumann MT48, M-Audio AIR 192|14, Mackie ProFxv3, Zoom F3 & UAC 232 32bit float recorder & interface; 2012 MBPs (x2) Catalina, Mojave
IK-NI-Izotope-PSP-Garritan-Antares, LogicPro X, Finale 27.4, Dorico 5, Notion 6, Overture 5, TwistedWave, DSP-Q 5, SmartScore64 NE Pro, Toast 20 Pro
- BKK-OZ
- Posts: 1977
- Joined: Sat Jan 22, 2005 10:01 pm
- Primary DAW OS: MacOS
- Location: Oztrailia
- Contact:
Re: Stillwell Audio
Yes, AFAIK, demos are available.
Stillwell are AOK in my book.
I am a big fan of The Rocket.
In fact, when they finally got around to making it 64 bit, I paid for it again, even though they offered it as a free upgrade. I tried a couple of their other plugs but never bought anything. The Rocket is the bomb though, I use it on kicks, or anything else percussive before I try any other compressor and I rarely even tweak it - I just grab one of the presets and go.
Although it took them awhile to go from 32 to 64 bits, in every other way I have always found them to be responsive and helpful. For example, when using 32 Lives as a bridge, I had a problem with presets not saving properly. I contacted Stillwell, and Scott offered to write a special script just for me to solve the problem. I told him to just work on the 64 bit thing and I would be a happy user.
And I am.
Stillwell are AOK in my book.
I am a big fan of The Rocket.
In fact, when they finally got around to making it 64 bit, I paid for it again, even though they offered it as a free upgrade. I tried a couple of their other plugs but never bought anything. The Rocket is the bomb though, I use it on kicks, or anything else percussive before I try any other compressor and I rarely even tweak it - I just grab one of the presets and go.
Although it took them awhile to go from 32 to 64 bits, in every other way I have always found them to be responsive and helpful. For example, when using 32 Lives as a bridge, I had a problem with presets not saving properly. I contacted Stillwell, and Scott offered to write a special script just for me to solve the problem. I told him to just work on the 64 bit thing and I would be a happy user.
And I am.
Cheers,
BK
…string theory says that all subatomic particles of the universe are nothing but musical notes. A, B-flat, C-sharp, correspond to electrons, neutrinos, quarks, and what have you. Therefore, physics is nothing but the laws of harmony of these strings. Chemistry is nothing but the melodies we can play on these strings. The universe is a symphony of strings and the mind of God… it is cosmic music resonating through 11 dimensional hyperspace.
- M Kaku
BK
…string theory says that all subatomic particles of the universe are nothing but musical notes. A, B-flat, C-sharp, correspond to electrons, neutrinos, quarks, and what have you. Therefore, physics is nothing but the laws of harmony of these strings. Chemistry is nothing but the melodies we can play on these strings. The universe is a symphony of strings and the mind of God… it is cosmic music resonating through 11 dimensional hyperspace.
- M Kaku
- Rick Cornish
- Posts: 1261
- Joined: Sun Feb 17, 2013 9:07 pm
- Primary DAW OS: MacOS
- Location: Ely, MN USA
- Contact:
Re: Stillwell Audio
Thanks, BK—great info. I am definitely going to give Rocket a try. That's the one I was most interested in, so it's great to hear you find it useful in your music.
As Mike mentioned, they do offer fully-functional demos (very generous). I generally shy away from putting stuff on my system just to try out—especially if it's from a developer I've never heard of—but since at least a couple folks here have their products, I'm going to give them a try.
Thanks again!
As Mike mentioned, they do offer fully-functional demos (very generous). I generally shy away from putting stuff on my system just to try out—especially if it's from a developer I've never heard of—but since at least a couple folks here have their products, I'm going to give them a try.
Thanks again!
Rick Cornish
DP 11 on M2 Mac Studio (64gB mem. + 2tB int. SSD + two 2tB ext. SSDs). VIs from MOTU, Spectrasonics, NI, UVI, 8dio, Soniccouture, East West, Spitfire, Heavyocity, Vir2, and more; plus Waves 14, Brainworx, iZotope, Wavesfactory, Oeksound, Final Mix, JST, SPL, PSP, UVI, Valhalla DSP, and other FX plugs, Roland A-88, Apogee Quartet, iCON Platform Nano, Genelec 1032a and Westlake BBSM4 monitors, Gibson HR Fusion III. rickcornish.net
DP 11 on M2 Mac Studio (64gB mem. + 2tB int. SSD + two 2tB ext. SSDs). VIs from MOTU, Spectrasonics, NI, UVI, 8dio, Soniccouture, East West, Spitfire, Heavyocity, Vir2, and more; plus Waves 14, Brainworx, iZotope, Wavesfactory, Oeksound, Final Mix, JST, SPL, PSP, UVI, Valhalla DSP, and other FX plugs, Roland A-88, Apogee Quartet, iCON Platform Nano, Genelec 1032a and Westlake BBSM4 monitors, Gibson HR Fusion III. rickcornish.net
Re: Stillwell Audio
I use Major Tom the most.
Doug Williams
Electromagnetic Radiation Recorders
The Martha Bassett Show broadcast mixer
Tape Op issue 73
DP 11.34
Studio M1 Max OS12.7.6
MOTU 16A and Monitor 8
M1 Pro MBP for remotes and editing
Electromagnetic Radiation Recorders
The Martha Bassett Show broadcast mixer
Tape Op issue 73
DP 11.34
Studio M1 Max OS12.7.6
MOTU 16A and Monitor 8
M1 Pro MBP for remotes and editing
- mikehalloran
- Posts: 16176
- Joined: Sun Jan 25, 2009 5:08 pm
- Primary DAW OS: MacOS
- Location: Sillie Con Valley
Re: Stillwell Audio
Stillwell has been around since 2006. The Schwa plugins used to be listed separately.
I've not been to the site in a long time. There are a couple I'm looking at including Spectro but won't make a decision until I see what DP9 has to offer.
I've not been to the site in a long time. There are a couple I'm looking at including Spectro but won't make a decision until I see what DP9 has to offer.
DP 11.34; 828mkII FW, micro lite, M4, MTP/AV USB Firmware 2.0.1
2023 Mac Studio M2 8TB, 192GB RAM, OS Sequoia 15.4, USB4 8TB externals, Neumann MT48, M-Audio AIR 192|14, Mackie ProFxv3, Zoom F3 & UAC 232 32bit float recorder & interface; 2012 MBPs (x2) Catalina, Mojave
IK-NI-Izotope-PSP-Garritan-Antares, LogicPro X, Finale 27.4, Dorico 5, Notion 6, Overture 5, TwistedWave, DSP-Q 5, SmartScore64 NE Pro, Toast 20 Pro
2023 Mac Studio M2 8TB, 192GB RAM, OS Sequoia 15.4, USB4 8TB externals, Neumann MT48, M-Audio AIR 192|14, Mackie ProFxv3, Zoom F3 & UAC 232 32bit float recorder & interface; 2012 MBPs (x2) Catalina, Mojave
IK-NI-Izotope-PSP-Garritan-Antares, LogicPro X, Finale 27.4, Dorico 5, Notion 6, Overture 5, TwistedWave, DSP-Q 5, SmartScore64 NE Pro, Toast 20 Pro
- philbrown
- Posts: 2366
- Joined: Fri Nov 05, 2004 10:01 pm
- Primary DAW OS: MacOS
- Location: Almost Mexico
Re: Stillwell Audio
CMX Microshifter - does the micro-pitched short-delay stereo-spread thing very well.
Verbiage - good for tight ambience/thickening
Major Tom - DBX type comp, takes some tweaking but it's cool and different than other comps
The Rocket - 1176-ish, but more than that and it's FAST (or it can be)
Vibe EQ - nice character EQ
Bombardier Buss Comp - cool but kind of over my head feature-wise
Stillwell is exactly the kind of plug developer I like to support.
His demos are free with no strings attached, but if you like it, BUY IT.
Verbiage - good for tight ambience/thickening
Major Tom - DBX type comp, takes some tweaking but it's cool and different than other comps
The Rocket - 1176-ish, but more than that and it's FAST (or it can be)
Vibe EQ - nice character EQ
Bombardier Buss Comp - cool but kind of over my head feature-wise
Stillwell is exactly the kind of plug developer I like to support.
His demos are free with no strings attached, but if you like it, BUY IT.
2020 iMac 27" 3.6GHz 10 core i9 • Mac OS 12.2.1 • DP 11.04 • UAD-8 Octo card • Midas M32R
Plugs: UAD•Slate•Scuffham•Flux IRCAM•NI Komplete•Klanghelm•Waves•Spectrasonics•Arturia•Soundtoys•Nomad Factory•PSP•Stillwell•Cytomic•Korg•Five12•GForce
Plugs: UAD•Slate•Scuffham•Flux IRCAM•NI Komplete•Klanghelm•Waves•Spectrasonics•Arturia•Soundtoys•Nomad Factory•PSP•Stillwell•Cytomic•Korg•Five12•GForce
- mikehalloran
- Posts: 16176
- Joined: Sun Jan 25, 2009 5:08 pm
- Primary DAW OS: MacOS
- Location: Sillie Con Valley
Re: Stillwell Audio
I really like CMX. Very useful when you want instant doubling and don't want to twiddle with it.philbrown wrote:CMX Microshifter - does the micro-pitched short-delay stereo-spread thing very well.
Verbiage - good for tight ambience/thickening
Major Tom - DBX type comp, takes some tweaking but it's cool and different than other comps
The Rocket - 1176-ish, but more than that and it's FAST (or it can be)
Vibe EQ - nice character EQ
Bombardier Buss Comp - cool but kind of over my head feature-wise
Stillwell is exactly the kind of plug developer I like to support.
His demos are free with no strings attached, but if you like it, BUY IT.
Agreed on the paying for what you use.
DP 11.34; 828mkII FW, micro lite, M4, MTP/AV USB Firmware 2.0.1
2023 Mac Studio M2 8TB, 192GB RAM, OS Sequoia 15.4, USB4 8TB externals, Neumann MT48, M-Audio AIR 192|14, Mackie ProFxv3, Zoom F3 & UAC 232 32bit float recorder & interface; 2012 MBPs (x2) Catalina, Mojave
IK-NI-Izotope-PSP-Garritan-Antares, LogicPro X, Finale 27.4, Dorico 5, Notion 6, Overture 5, TwistedWave, DSP-Q 5, SmartScore64 NE Pro, Toast 20 Pro
2023 Mac Studio M2 8TB, 192GB RAM, OS Sequoia 15.4, USB4 8TB externals, Neumann MT48, M-Audio AIR 192|14, Mackie ProFxv3, Zoom F3 & UAC 232 32bit float recorder & interface; 2012 MBPs (x2) Catalina, Mojave
IK-NI-Izotope-PSP-Garritan-Antares, LogicPro X, Finale 27.4, Dorico 5, Notion 6, Overture 5, TwistedWave, DSP-Q 5, SmartScore64 NE Pro, Toast 20 Pro
Re: Stillwell Audio
Major Tom is maybe the only plugin I’ve used that does the DBX thing convincingly. If you like that, and I do, it’s definitely worth it.
Bombardier is nice too.
Bombardier is nice too.
- bolla
- Posts: 323
- Joined: Wed Feb 23, 2005 10:01 pm
- Primary DAW OS: MacOS
- Location: Sydney Australia
- Contact:
Re: Stillwell Audio
Major Tom is great and it feels good when you get the welcome screen that says "Thank You for buying etc"
Cheers, AB
Cheers, AB
8 Core 2.8 10.11.1 DP 8.07 | Dual 2.5 G5 VEP Slave | PC i7 920 VEP Slave | UAD Sat Quad | MiniMoog
- Rick Cornish
- Posts: 1261
- Joined: Sun Feb 17, 2013 9:07 pm
- Primary DAW OS: MacOS
- Location: Ely, MN USA
- Contact:
Re: Stillwell Audio
Thanks Mike, bongo and boll for sharing you experience. Major Tom is going on my list.
Rick Cornish
DP 11 on M2 Mac Studio (64gB mem. + 2tB int. SSD + two 2tB ext. SSDs). VIs from MOTU, Spectrasonics, NI, UVI, 8dio, Soniccouture, East West, Spitfire, Heavyocity, Vir2, and more; plus Waves 14, Brainworx, iZotope, Wavesfactory, Oeksound, Final Mix, JST, SPL, PSP, UVI, Valhalla DSP, and other FX plugs, Roland A-88, Apogee Quartet, iCON Platform Nano, Genelec 1032a and Westlake BBSM4 monitors, Gibson HR Fusion III. rickcornish.net
DP 11 on M2 Mac Studio (64gB mem. + 2tB int. SSD + two 2tB ext. SSDs). VIs from MOTU, Spectrasonics, NI, UVI, 8dio, Soniccouture, East West, Spitfire, Heavyocity, Vir2, and more; plus Waves 14, Brainworx, iZotope, Wavesfactory, Oeksound, Final Mix, JST, SPL, PSP, UVI, Valhalla DSP, and other FX plugs, Roland A-88, Apogee Quartet, iCON Platform Nano, Genelec 1032a and Westlake BBSM4 monitors, Gibson HR Fusion III. rickcornish.net
- corbo-billy
- Posts: 1041
- Joined: Fri Nov 11, 2005 1:33 am
- Primary DAW OS: MacOS
- Location: France
Re: Stillwell Audio
And don't forget the OLGA synthetizer: a vityual condensed Oscar and Polyvoks ! 

Imac M4 24" under Sequoia 15.3.1 & Kontakt 8.2. _ Fireface800 X 2 _ FilterBank2 Sherman & Gibson Explorer Pro _ Virus C Desktop _ Adrenalinn III & Voyager Moog _ SpeakerPhone 2 _ PolyEvolver Keyboard _ Tempest _ D.P. 11.34 _
- monkey man
- Posts: 14072
- Joined: Fri Apr 22, 2005 10:01 pm
- Primary DAW OS: MacOS
- Location: Melbourne, Australia
Re: Stillwell Audio
Uh oh... time for me to run a mile....
Shoosh, they're talking about Svetlana's friend Olga. Could mean Svetta's back in town, so, er, I'll leave you to her!
Shoosh, they're talking about Svetlana's friend Olga. Could mean Svetta's back in town, so, er, I'll leave you to her!

Mac 2012 12C Cheese Grater, OSX 10.13.6
MOTU DP8.07, MachFive 3.2.1, MIDI Express XT, 24I/O
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