Reverb is a very versatile tool. It can be used to simulate a room, to add a sense of space, to soften a track. It's also relatively simple to use, but there are a few basic rules to follow to improve the result. When it comes to reverbs, an important consideration is the algorithm used to create the music. Most reverbs can give a metallic effect at longer decay values, or sound chunky when a snare drum is hit. Valhalla is highly adjustable to eliminate this effect, but in this case you need to use the extra features in addition to the basic ones. If the reverb plug-in is rattling, that doesn't mean it's bad. The Waves TrueVerb, for example, is a very good jukebox, even if you can hear that metallic sound with the longer decay time.

The decay value is the length of time it takes to play. The predelay lets you set the delay before the reverb sounds. In almost all cases, you will get a better effect with a delayed reverb than with an instantaneous one. High cut cuts the high frequency. Depth adjusts the ratio between the early reflection and the later reflection of the sound from the imaginary wall. How should you use these functions?

The reverb setting depends on the type of sound. If you have a timbre with larger transients, you may want to use the delay/predelay, function to delay the start of the track so that the transient is not washed out. If the timbre you want to play has a strong bass presence, you may want to use a low cut filter to cut the low frequencies of the music. If there is no such function inside the Reverb plug-in, you should do this on the track itself, or switch to software that can do it. Don't choose too long a playing time if the song is fast-paced, as the music may be washed out by the reverb sound or cause dissonance! If you do, use a low-cut filter to cut the low and mid frequencies, because in this case the dissonance is less pronounced.

When playing bass, set an extra short decay value! Few people dare to use a reverb on bass tracks, because many people think that spreading the bass is unnecessary. Detecting low frequencies in space is harder for the human brain, which is why bass spacing is said to be unnecessary. But the truth is that the brain can perceive it too, just not as specifically as other frequency ranges. The other problem with bass spacing is that the left and right signals can cause phase shifting if you listen to the song in mono compatibility. This is indeed a problem with almost most equalization solutions. However, reverb is one of the less problematic types of equalization software. If you cut the lowest frequencies around 20-40 Hz but leave the ones above that, using the reverb plug-in function, you should have no problem with phase shifting for natural-sounding bass tones. This is the case with properly played bass guitars. If the bass sound is artificial and mostly sinusoidal, reverb can be a problem.

A low-cut filter is a useful feature for reverb. If you're matching a reverb to the voice of a singer with a deeper tone, it's almost mandatory.

The reverb should not be loud in the final product! Rather, it should be noticeable in the complex music, but never clearly audible. Only override this statement when you are sure of what you are doing, but beginners are better off following this principle. Of course, when testing or fine-tuning other features, the playing may be louder, but the volume of the playing should never ultimately be so loud that the listener can clearly detect its existence. Only deviate from this concept if the reverb is not just used for softening, but is sound design!

So-called convolution reverbs give a more natural effect. These can also use a so-called impulse response sound file. In a pop music environment this feature is of no use, but it comes in handy for film mixing. In a film location, say a cathedral, a very short snapping sound is played back and recorded by a recorder. The snapping sound will be played in the cathedral as music. When this recorded sound is fed into the convolution reverb software, the software detects the parameters of the recorded snapping sound. How long was the decay, how stereo is the music playing, how loud is it relative to the snapping, etc. Then the reverb adjusts itself according to the detected parameters. This way, in post-production, we can imitate the characteristic music of the cathedral. The reverb can also be used as a special sound effect. You are given a vocal track where the singer starts singing after a pause. Cut the first syllable that is played. Silence the rest, reverse the first syllable you cut. Throw a reverb on the syllable. Render it with the fade-out. Then reverse the rendered track. This makes the reverb appear out of nowhere before the singer starts singing.