The circuit simulation technology is extremely CPU intensive, and hence we are only able to simulate very simple circuits at this time. A fast computer is highly recommended to run the plug-in. Tube Saturator is in fact a basic circuit consisting of a Baxandall type three-band EQ feeding two 12AX7 triode preamp stages. It’s similar to preamp stages you’d find in a guitar amp, but it is by no means a complete guitar amplifier model— that would be way too expensive to simulate even with today’s fast CPUs. However, it is extremely accurate, and hence you can get the same distortion and tonal characteristics that you’d expect from a real tube preamp.

Use Tube Saturator to add a bit of analog warmth to recordings, or increase the drive for some distortion. You can use it as a saturating peak limiter too.

Increasing the Drive control increases the (digital) input gain while decreasing the (digital) output gain, so you can easily adjust distortion levels. The FAT switch changes the bias circuit of the first preamp stage to increase gain.