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Lo-Fi Emulation

  • Tape modulation effects (Wow, Flutter, Crinkle, Dropouts) carefully modeled after spectral and waveform data collected from all kinds of different tape players.
  • Dedicated dry/wet mix knob to dial in complex vibrato and chorus sounds.
  • 24dB/octave four-pole virtual analog low-pass and high-pass filters, modeled after the filter of a classic 1970’s synthesizer.
  • Compression inspired by a vinyl simulator found in a famous sampler from the early 2000’s.
    • Option to swap Compression parameter for Saturation.
  • Static hiss and clicks & pops.

Reverb

  • A beautiful stereo reverb designed from scratch, with controls for dry/wet mix, decay time, and where the reverb goes in your signal chain (before or after the other effects).
  • Capable of infinite sustain.

Touch Modes

  • 6 playful modes that can be activated momentarily or latched, and interact with all of the tape effects:
    • Magnetic Dance – Creates a drone of sound using a micro-loop. Tune it to chords; play it forward or backwards.
    • Tape Stop – Slows down and bends the pitch of your audio in real-time, then picks it back up, with separate controls for stop and start times up to 10 seconds.
    • Broken Machine – Makes a garbled mess of your incoming audio. Use it subtly for some added tape modulation or at extreme settings for rewind effects.
    • Repeater – Captures a small slice of audio and divides into tiny subdivisions for glitchy effects. Synchronizable via MIDI clock. Includes a resampling option that can sample new audio by detecting transients.
    • Crushed Cassette – Provides continuously variable sample rate reduction as well as bit depth reduction down to 4 bits with µ-law companding.
    • Disintegration Loop – A looper with controls for loop decay, speed, and direction. Each time your loop repeats, it gets re-run through all of the tape effects.

Four-Track Looper

  • Allows up to 4 separate stereo loops.
    • Length per loop: 40 seconds at 0.5x speed, 20 seconds at 1x speed, 10 seconds at 2x speed.
  • Each loop has separate controls for: playback direction (forward or backwards), playback speed (continuously variable from 0.5x to 2x), track volume, and track speed scale (quantization).
  • Overdub infinitely on any track.
  • Overdubbing possible at any speed.
  • Looped sounds can be processed by the tape effects.
  • Synchronizable via MIDI clock.

Presets, MIDI Control, CV

  • Use 8 onboard preset slots to save your settings, or queue them up using a preset device.
  • All parameters are fully controllable via MIDI, CV, or an expression pedal.
  • Directly compatible with all of your favorite MIDI controllers – no external MIDI box required.
    • Internal jumpers available to switch between TRS MIDI A (standard), B, or CBA.
  • CV control up to 500Hz.
  • Download our Max for Live devices to control Ribbons with MIDI using Ableton.

Four-Voice Sine Wave Synthesizer

  • Connect to a MIDI keyboard and start playing.
  • +/- 5 semitone pitch bending.
  • Includes controls for attack and release.
  • Synth voices can be modified by the tape effects and used with the four-track looper.

Specs

  • DSP: 480Mhz ARM processor
  • Processing: 32-bit floating point
  • Ultra low-noise audio codec: 24 bit, 48kHz, >110dB dynamic range
  • Max Input Level: +2dBu
  • Max Output Level: +5dBu
  • Latency: 1 msec
  • Power: +9VDC, 2.1mm, negative tip PSU
  • Power Supply Protection:
    • Reverse polarity protection down to -20VDC
    • Over voltage protection up to +20VDC
  • Current Draw: 160mA
  • Frequency Response: 24Hz to 20kHz

  • Input Impedance: 400 kOhm
  • Output Impedance: 1.5 kOhm
  • PCB: 6-layer PCB with two ground planes
  • Bypass Options:
    • Stereo true bypass (using relay)
    • Stereo buffered bypass
    • Stereo buffered bypass (with trails)
  • Dimensions: 121 mm x 66 mm x 62 mm
  • Manufacturing:
    • 100% lead-free
    • Circuit boards fabricated in China
    • Circuit boards assembled in Minneapolis, MN
    • Enclosures drilled, painted, and printed in the USA
    • Final assembly and testing performed in Minneapolis, MN

Firmware Updates

Firmware update files can be found on the Ribbons Development Blog. The current firmware for Ribbons is version 1.3, which we released in April 2023.

If you are on an earlier version please update to the latest and greatest.

User Manual

Extras

Download our Max For Live devices to control Ribbons with MIDI using Ableton.

Tape Effects and Touch Mode Controller:

Four-Track Looper Controller: