Native Instruments
Phasis
Animates audio with a variable-stage phaser whose notch position, spacing and stereo modulation can be shaped independently, including audio-rate effects in ULTRA mode.
GUI Screenshot
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The Overview
A movable spectral pattern
PHASIS combines all-pass filters to create a pattern of peaks and notches. Center moves that pattern through the spectrum, while Spread changes the spacing between its features. Because modulation can move either or both parameters, the result extends beyond a uniform phaser sweep into vowel-like filtering and shifting spectral textures.
Classic sweeps to audio-rate coloration
The number of notches and feedback set the complexity and sharpness of the response. Stereo modulation offsets add movement without requiring the source to begin in mono. ULTRA broadens the operating ranges of Center and Rate, enabling audio-rate modulation that introduces additional harmonic content. For a controlled starting point, choose a modest notch count and low feedback, establish the desired motion with Amount and Mod Mix, then increase the resonance or switch to ULTRA for more radical processing.
Source: Manual, “PHASIS / Overview of PHASIS,” pp. 14–17.
The Controls
Spectral shape
Center shifts the all-pass filters' frequencies together, moving the peaks and notches. Spread changes their spacing: left packs them together, right spreads them apart. Notches sets how many pairs are produced. Feedback increases resonance and makes the spectral pattern more pronounced. Establish these controls with Amount low when you want to hear the underlying filter shape before adding movement.
Modulation
Rate sets modulation speed; LFO Sync replaces it with host-synchronized timing controls. Set the numerator, denominator and straight/dotted/triplet subdivision to determine the cycle. Amount controls overall modulation depth.
Mod Mix distributes modulation between Center and Spread. Left emphasizes Center, right emphasizes Spread, and the middle supplies equal amounts to both. Spread Modulation Polarity reverses the Spread motion relative to Center, creating a different relationship between the moving center and spacing. This is a useful alternative to simply increasing depth when a sweep needs more complexity.
Stereo, intensity and output
Stereo creates a phase offset between the modulation in the two channels. Its center leaves the stereo image unchanged; either direction creates a different apparent movement. It has no effect when Amount is zero.
ULTRA extends Rate and Center ranges. Audio-rate modulation can create new harmonic material, so treat this as a sound-design mode rather than merely a faster conventional phaser. Invert reverses the effect signal and swaps the spectral peak/notch relationship. Mix blends it with the original using an equal-power crossfade. The Display visualizes notch count, center, spacing and modulation so you can compare the moving pattern with what you hear.
Source: Manual, “Overview of PHASIS,” pp. 14–17.