If you’re looking for a free Trackspacer alternative, DNA Track Purifier is a plugin worth checking out. It uses frequency-based ducking to reduce masking between tracks, allowing one sound to make room for another without simply turning down the entire signal.
I recently made a short video demonstrating DNA Track Purifier on a simple bass and kick drum pattern.
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What Is DNA Track Purifier?
DNA Track Purifier is designed to help solve frequency masking between two tracks. You can place it on one track and use another track as the sidechain source. The plugin then reduces competing frequencies when the sidechain signal is present.
A common example is bass and kick.
The kick drum and bass guitar often occupy some of the same low-frequency territory. Instead of simply compressing or lowering the bass every time the kick hits, frequency ducking can temporarily reduce the specific frequencies that are getting in the way.
The result can be a little more separation between the instruments while allowing the bass to remain present.
Using It With Bass and Kick
For my demonstration, I put DNA Track Purifier on a bass guitar track and sidechained it to the kick drum.
With the plugin bypassed, the kick and bass are competing for some of the same space. When DNA Track Purifier is activated, the kick triggers the plugin and the competing bass frequencies are reduced.
The important thing is that you don’t necessarily need a huge amount of processing.
In fact, a little can go a long way.
If you push the effect too far, the bass can almost disappear every time the kick hits. A more moderate setting can provide separation while keeping the bass sounding natural.
High-Pass and Low-Pass Controls
The free version also includes high-pass and low-pass filters. These provide some basic control over which frequency range is affected.
That can be useful when you don’t want the entire signal to be influenced by the sidechain.
For example, if you’re primarily trying to create space between a kick and bass, you may want to concentrate the effect on the lower frequencies rather than ducking frequencies throughout the entire bass signal.
What Else Can You Use It On?
The same concept can be useful beyond kick and bass.
You could experiment with vocals competing with guitars, synths competing with other instruments, or other combinations where two sounds are occupying similar frequency ranges.
The basic idea remains the same: identify the competing frequencies and use the sidechain signal to temporarily make room.
DNA Track Purifier also has a paid advanced version, but this demonstration focuses specifically on the free version.
If you already use Trackspacer, DNA Track Purifier is an interesting free option to experiment with when you want frequency-based sidechain ducking.
The plugin is available from Mike Sorrentino’s website, where you can select the free version alongside the paid version.
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