BRUT
BRUTALIST
SATURATORS
SOMETIMES YOU WANT IT CLEAN. BUT MOST OFTEN, YOU DON’T.
Brut is a saturation plugin like no other. Discover an eclectic collection of the best-sounding studio and test equipment, cherry-picked for their distortion characteristics and meticulously modeled using custom cutting-edge technology. From subtle fattening to extreme out-of-control blow-ups and whining feedback —Brut has you covered.
overview
Experience the authentic sound of tubes and transformers pushed to their limit. And when you feel like exploring, engage the bandpass filter to push your sounds into experimental territory—with raging feedback and unexpected resonances. Making everything sound bigger, meaner, and more real has never been easier.
Vintage studio gear wasn't built to saturate—the designers were aiming for the best possible tone, and engineers were trained to get the most out of it. And yet, for decades, producers have been exploring the beautiful realm of gear working at the verge of breakup. Somehow, using the best equipment "wrong" sounds very much right.
the story
The plugin was loosely inspired by the Rohde & Schwarz UBM—an iconic measurement device combining a high-gain amplifier and filter, used at the early electronic music studios of the 1950s. Brut vastly expands on this concept, offering an eclectic collection of studio gear not tied to a single era or aesthetic. It's a plugin that rewards exploration and pushing things to their limit—what that means exactly depends only on how far you want to push it.
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Click on the underlined text to save custom presets.
INTERFACE
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Add a touch of analogue warmth or push your sounds into oblivion by driving the preamps harder.
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Explore new colours and textures by choosing from six deeply sampled preamp models.
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A clean output trim.
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Engage the feedback knob and push the distortion into even more extreme territories.
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Get creative with two characterful filters, modeled after some of the most colorful gear you can find.
TEST EQUIPMENT AND STUDIO KIT PUSHED TO the LIMIT
An iconic RCA OP-6 tube preamplifier from the 1950s, praised for its larger-than-life sound and euphonic tube glow. This particular unit was previously owned by Nils Frahm and used on his recordings. Your new go-to for all tracks that require some extra sparkle.
The Rohde & Schwarz UBM is an experimental studio legend—embraced by visionaries like Karlheinz Stockhausen and the boldest techno producers alike. Its tube preamp section provides some of the most brutal, compressed, and filthy tone you'll ever find. Beautiful.
This Dutch NRU portable tube mixer from the 1940s has been a secret weapon for all things that need to sound old, dark and hairy. When the BBC explored the custom microphones NRU made for local broadcast, they discovered these mics output a very low level—which explains the crazy amount of gain available on this mixer. And yes, you know what this means.
The Radiometer Copenhagen BKF6 is a tube-based distortion measurement device used in laboratories back in the '50s. That doesn't stop it from being a perfectly fine distortion generator if you abuse it. And you wouldn't want to do that, would you?
Don't let the size fool you—this portable 1960s French broadcast mixer, based on germanium transistors, packs a huge punch! Even without pushing the drive too much, this model delivers a beautifully vintage tone that works wonders on synths, drums, and everything you throw at it.
The Polivoks is a legendary Soviet synthesizer, known for its gritty and angry sound. A huge part of that is due to its amplifier design—perfectly modeled for everyone who likes things a little bit filthy. Run your soft synths through this model to make them sound real.
A SONIC PLAYGROUND
A combination of a high-gain amplifier and a bandpass filter is an experimental studio staple. Explore the unique response of the UBM filter, full of unexpected resonances. Combine it with the UBM preamp for that iconic Rohde & Schwarz tube crunch.
Want to get more abstract? Switch to the 2nd filter, meticulously modeled after the Polivoks bandpass, with all its non-linearities and imperfections. Combine it with feedback for resonant bell-like tones and unexpected tonal effects.
Keeping in the experimental studio tradition, Brut includes a feedback knob, which allows you to feed the audio back into the input. This trick was used throughout electronic music history—from the earliest days to the Minimoog. The resulting tones range from unstable crunch to pure whining chaos.
Playing with feedback loops can result in extreme distortion and high signal levels. Approach with caution!
Quickly shape the overall balance of the sound with a tilt section, deeply sampled from the iconic Klangfilm RZ062a tube mastering equalizer from the 1950s.
DON’T LOSE YOUR HEAD,
IT’S SATURATION!
All devices captured for Brut sound radically different. This means you'll find one that sounds just right in no time. There are no right or wrong choices. Ever wondered how that vocal would sound when run through the Polivoks' input? Or that orchestra processed through the UBM's raging tube amplifier?
Approaching the plugin with open ears and an exploratory attitude will reward you with countless happy discoveries you might have never arrived at when using a conventional plugin. And—sound apart—that's one of the things that makes Brut special.
HOW TO APPROACH IT
Crank the Drive knob to push more gain into the ultra-colorful preamp section.
Explore different saturation characteristics by flicking through the model buttons—you'll find a huge range of tones there, and your intuition will help you find the ones that work best for the track.
Quickly find the right tonal balance with the Tilt control—moving it left will attenuate the top end while boosting the bottom. Push it right for the opposite effect.
Activate the filter and experiment with the Feedback knob for instant 1950s experimental studio vibes. If you like tight bass, pick the UBM filter and focus it on the low end, then start pushing the feedback until your windows start to rattle.
THE SOUND FRONT AND CENTER
the ORIGIN
Brut is the result of a passion for analog sound and two years of work developing a new technology where real-life hardware is first multi-sampled like an instrument, then reassembled to recreate the sound of the original device. This plugin delivers a sound that was previously impossible to achieve outside of hardware—until now.
Pictured: Tomek, the creator of Felt Instruments at his studio. Hi!
TRY IT OUT
Download the free trial and experience Brut at your own studio.
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Windows (10 or newer) and Mac (10.11 or newer). 8GB of RAM and an i5 or better CPU required. 64-bit only.
The plugin works in every major DAW that supports VST3, Audio Unit or AAX plugins, like Ableton Live 10 or newer, Logic, Pro Tools, Cubase, FL Studio, Studio One, Reason 12, Reaper etc.
Due to the incredible sound, a modern CPU is recommended - especially if you intend to use multiple plugin instances without freezing your tracks.
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You can find the online manual here.
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With great power comes great responsibility. Due to its cutting-edge sound (no pun intended!), the plugin is CPU intensive. Download the demo to try it out before committing to a purchase.
If you’re using the plugin at 44.1 or 48KHZ, you can disable the HQ mode at the top of the interface. This wil use simpler models and no oversampling, significantly reducing CPU use. The non-HQ mode sounds great, and unless you’re pushing the preamps really hard, or using a lot of feedback, you can easily use it on most tracks.
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The plugin supports sample rates up to 96K. If your DAW gives you an option to force oversampling on a plugin, DON’T use it on Brut as it messes with the sample rate detection engine, and will result in some funky response.
When adjusting some controls, like the preamp model selector, a brief period of silence is introduced. This is intentional - the plugin needs to dynamically load and unload samples based on your selection.
Input gain is empirically compensated for you - this means it was measured by ear on variatey of sources, but on some sounds, it may not be perfect. The reason for that is that while your traditional algorithmic simply generates a series of harmonics based on a specified formula, Brut behaves like real hardware - the preamps are not just about saturation, but also dynamics and subtle compression. Using automated processes to compensate for the gain loss defies the point of modeling the preamp in such a detail. I know it’s a compromise, but I believe the sonics are worth a little fader adjustment, here or there.
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This plugin uses cutting-edge machine learning to accurately recreate the saturation characteristics of sampled devices. The model comes completely pre-trained and will never use your music for training, analysis, copying your style or other evil business. This plugin is here to help you sound better. Period.
The training was performed using a custom technique centered around a selection of test tones, custom-recorded for this purpose. Felt Instruments will never use your music for training purposes.
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Brut is using intelligent auto-oversampling technology to make sure you’re always processing your signal at the best quality.
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Sorry! I believe that cutting trees to make a plugin isn’t that good of an idea.
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There are no sales at Felt because I don’t think they’re fair to people who got the plugins earlier on. And those are the people who I want to support the most, which is why I offer loyalty pricing.
In a nutshell, purchasing the plugins gives you access to bundle upgrades and sweet discounts on new releases.
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I offer a 25% edu discount on individual products to students and educators. The discount will be valid for a year since it’s issued and will not work on the bundles as they’re already discounted. If you’re interested in edu pricing, please, send me a copy of your Student or Staff ID or a different proof of your enrolment and I’ll set you up.
Please, allow a few days for a response - Felt is a one-man company and support needs to get the priority treatment.