AUD · Audio tools

Audio Vibrato

Vibrato reads the signal from a delay line whose length is being modulated by an LFO. As the read head moves closer to the write head the audio arrives slightly early, which raises its pitch, and as it moves away the pitch falls.

Rate

Rate covers 0.1 to 12 Hz on a log scale, so most of the travel sits in the musical range under 8 Hz.

Slow settings under 1 Hz drift rather than wobble, which is closer to tape flutter than to a performance. 4 to 6 Hz is where instrumental vibrato usually lands.

Depth

Depth is how far the delay swings, from 0 to 8 ms. The resulting pitch change depends on rate as well as depth, because pitch follows how quickly the delay is changing rather than how long it is.

At 1 ms and 5 Hz the shift is subtle enough to pass as playing. Past 4 ms it is an obvious seasick effect, which is the point on a synth line and a problem on a vocal.

Stereo phase

Stereo phase offsets the modulation between channels by up to 180 degrees.

At 0 both sides bend together and the pitch moves as one. At 180 they bend in opposition, which widens the image because the two channels are never at the same pitch at the same moment.

Mix

Mix blends the modulated path against the original, from 0 to 100%.

Vibrato is normally used fully wet. Bringing the mix down to around 50% puts the original pitch back alongside the moving one, and the beating between them turns the effect into a chorus.

Example: a synth lead

Rate 5.5 Hz, depth 1.5 ms, stereo phase 30 degrees, mix 100%.

The line gains the movement of a played instrument, and the small phase offset keeps it from sounding like one static source.

Frequently Asked Questions

It moves the pitch up and down at a set rate by reading the signal from a delay line whose length keeps changing. It reads WAV, MP3, M4A, AAC, Ogg, Opus, FLAC, AIFF, and WebM audio, and exports in the format the source arrived in.

No. Vibrato modulates pitch, tremolo modulates level. Guitar amplifiers have had the two labels swapped for decades, which is where most of the confusion comes from.

The pitch change comes from a delay line whose length is being modulated, so depth is the size of that swing. How much pitch that produces also depends on the rate: the same 2 ms at 8 Hz bends further than at 1 Hz, because the delay has to change faster.

Chorus mixes the modulated copy under the original, so you hear both pitches at once and the result is thickness. Vibrato at 100% mix replaces the original, so you hear only the moving pitch.

Around 5 to 6 Hz with 0.6 to 1 ms of depth is close to a singer's own vibrato. Anything past 3 ms reads as an effect rather than as performance.

Explore Our Tools

Browse all tools