3D PANNER FOR SOUND DESIGN
3D sound design on your headphones.
Designing sounds that move through space usually means a surround setup and a treated room. 3D Panner puts that space on your headphones: position, distance and height, with motion you draw or pick from a list.
Why left and right isn't enough
A stereo pan only moves a sound along one line between two speakers. Real sounds come from behind you, above you, and from far away. On headphones, HRTF binaural rendering is what gets you those positions, because it adds the cues your ears use to judge direction and height.
Where 3D sound effects make the difference
Movement is half of what makes a sound effect believable. A whoosh that only sweeps left to right sounds like a pan. The same whoosh coming from behind, passing overhead and fading into the distance sounds like something actually flew by.
That matters most in trailer and cinematic sound design, transition effects for video, UI sounds for apps and games, and ambience that surrounds the listener instead of sitting flat in front of them.
What you can do with it
- Fly-bys and whooshes that travel past the listener instead of across the stereo field.
- Transition sound effects that rise from behind and land in front, timed to the cut.
- Orbiting drones and textures, driven by one of eight built-in LFOs or a shape you draw on the XY pad.
- Distance as a design tool: push an element far away, then bring it right up close.
- Split a sound into up to eight frequency bands, each with its own limiter, to keep the low end and the highs in check while things move.
- Choose from up to 20 different HRTF measurements to find the one that sounds most real to you.
How to sound design a 3D fly-by with 3D Panner
- Load 3D Panner on your whoosh or pass-by sound.
- Start the source far away and to one side.
- Automate it toward the listener, past them, and away on the other side. Or draw that path on the XY pad and let an LFO drive it.
- For a Doppler feel, add a small pitch drop with your usual pitch tool at the moment the sound passes the listener.
- Set the speed to match the sound's length, then check it on headphones.
QUESTIONS
Do I need a surround or Atmos setup?
No. 3D Panner renders binaurally for headphones, so a normal pair of headphones is all you need to hear the positions.
Can the motion follow my project tempo?
Yes. The LFOs can free-run at their own rate or sync to your host tempo.
What formats does it come in?
VST3, AU and AAX plugins plus a standalone app, on macOS and Windows.
Can I use it on sound effects I already have?
Yes. Load it on any sound effect or library sample, including free whoosh and cinematic packs, and place or move it around the listener.
3D PANNER
Hear it in 3D.
One-time $29.99. Every update included, no subscription.