Evertone Expander v2

Fully renewed generation — physics-engine-powered upward expander

1. Introduction

EVERTONE EXPANDER V2 is the second generation: it carries forward the physics-based dynamics processing of V1, while the internal DSP has been completely refactored. With oversampling up to X8 and a switchable precision mode (HiDEF), it offers an option that doesn't compromise on tone — not only for mixing and mastering, but on the recording floor and on stage as well.
An innovative upward expander built on the physical law F=ma (force = mass × acceleration). It lifts peak transients above the threshold even further, extending the dynamic range. The snap and attack often lost during recording can be recovered, shaping transients in a musical, natural way across any source material.

2. V2 Highlights

The principal evolution from V1 to V2 is a full refactor of the internal DSP, plus a new precision mode that makes the most of it.

HiDEF Mode — Physics Engine Precision

A new mode that opens up X8 oversampling and enables higher-precision gain-curve calculation in the physics engine. It is especially effective in mastering, where precision matters most, and works exceptionally well with DRY/WET operation.

OFF

Fully V1-compatible behaviour. Light CPU load — ideal for simple workflows.

ON

Smoother transient tracking with reduced perceived distortion.

Behaviour:

• On a new insert it defaults to ON — top-quality audio out of the box
• When opening a V1 session it switches OFF automatically — full backward compatibility
• Switchable only while playback is stopped

Oversampling X4 / X8

Suppresses the digital-style grain that can appear when you drive the expander hard, delivering a smooth and transparent sound. V2 supports up to X8, so it suits the most demanding mastering work.

X4

Available regardless of HiDEF state

Standard high-quality oversampling. A great balance between CPU and tonal quality.

X8

HiDEF ON only

The highest-precision mode. Becomes selectable once HiDEF is enabled.

Stability is preserved with only a very small amount of latency. The figure is reported accurately to your DAW's PDC, keeping phase alignment with the rest of your tracks.

3. The Physics Engine

The defining characteristic of this plugin is a physics-based engine grounded in the equation of motion F=ma. Audio signals are treated as mass; the acceleration component is applied to the conversion to electrical energy, producing an expansion effect that feels natural and musical in a way previously unavailable.

Technical Insight

By the very nature of microphone recording, a signal arrives with its original transient acceleration partly attenuated or even lost. A signal that has lost its acceleration cannot drive a speaker fully — leading to a flat sound image, peak-frequency build-ups, and masking.

EVERTONE EXPANDER V2 makes it possible to restore the transient acceleration that should have been there, naturally — substantially improving peak and masking issues in sound processing and making it easier to give transients the room they need to create depth.

4. Physics Mode

Four physics modes are provided, each with a different acceleration character:

Standard

Standard expansion behaviour.

F=ma Light

Delicate, restrained expansion driven by low acceleration.

F=ma Medium

A balanced, versatile setting using mid-range acceleration.

F=ma Heavy

Powerful, dynamic expansion driven by high acceleration.

5. Main Parameters

Core controls

THRESHOLD
-60.0 to 0.0 dB
Sets the level at which expansion begins. Expansion is applied to signals above this value.

RATIO
1.0 to 20.0:1
Determines the strength of expansion. Higher values mean stronger expansion and a longer hold at peak level.

Timing controls

ATTACK
0.1 to 100.0 ms
Controls how quickly the plugin responds when the signal crosses the threshold. Short values react instantly; long values respond more gradually.

RELEASE
10.0 to 5000.0 ms
Sets the recovery time once the signal falls back below the threshold. A key parameter for shaping musical decay.

HOLD
0.0 to 300.0 ms
A peak-hold function. Holding peak level for a defined time creates musical dynamic motion. Pull the slider all the way down to 0 to enable Hold Bypass.

Shape controls

KNEE
0.0 to 10.0 dB
Adjusts how smoothly the plugin acts around the threshold. Smaller values give a hard knee; larger values give a soft knee.

RANGE
0.0 to 20.0 dB
Limits the maximum amount of expansion. Prevents extreme behaviour and keeps operation in a practical range.

KNEE control guide

Counter-clockwise (lower values): harder knee — the onset toward peak becomes faster.

Clockwise (higher values): the onset toward peak becomes slower.

Used well, this gives you fine control over the front-to-back placement of any source — kick, snare, bass, vocals, percussion, piano, guitar, and beyond.

F=ma physics control

Highly natural expander behaviour grounded in physical laws — the signature mode aimed at "reviving, naturally, the dynamics that were lost during recording".
Recommended settings: FORCE 1.00, DAMPING 1, HOLD 0 deliver a purely physical-law-based response.

FORCE (force control)
0.1 to 20.0
Controls the magnitude of the "force" in the physics computation, letting you actively add the concept of acceleration to dynamics processing.

• Low (0.1 – 2.0): delicate, natural behaviour
• Mid (2.0 – 10.0): active expansion
• High (10.0 – 20.0): large dynamic changes

DAMPING (damping control)
1 to 1000
Controls the damping characteristic of the physical system. 1 gives ordinary damping; 1000 produces an instantaneous cutoff. The extreme range opens the door to special dynamic effects that were previously hard to achieve.

6. AUTO Functions

A suite of automatic-adjustment functions that analyse the source and propose optimal parameter values, dramatically reducing the time spent on initial setup.

AUTO THRESHOLD
Automatically adjusts THRESHOLD so that the amount of gain change approaches the value set by RANGE. The flow continues through AUTO GAIN adjustment as a single sequence.

INTELLIGENCE AUTO
Automatically adjusts THRESHOLD so that the amount of gain change approaches the RANGE value, and adjusts RATIO too when needed. The flow continues through AUTO GAIN adjustment as a single sequence.

AUTO GAIN
Analyses input and output levels automatically and assists with level correction. It runs for about 5 seconds and tunes WET TRIM to its optimal value.
Because this plugin is intended for active dynamics design, correction is kept to a minimum.

KNEE Glow Light
Double-click the centre of the KNEE knob to pop it up as a push-pull control. When parameter settings fall within the range where KNEE works most effectively, an arc light indicates that you are in a sweet spot for KNEE control.

7. BPM Sync System

ASSIST

NORMAL / ADVANCED

Choose between two sets of recommended parameter values for the current BPM: NORMAL or ADVANCED. Selecting either snaps ATTACK, HOLD, and RELEASE to the corresponding recommendation — NORMAL (blue) or ADVANCED (red). This makes the workflow dramatically more effective and musical.

NOTE GRID

Even when BPM SYNC is off, EVERTONE EXPANDER V2 still tracks the DAW's BPM internally and shows it in the upper right of the UI. NOTE GRID switches the ATTACK, HOLD, and RELEASE sliders to a step-based control aligned to a note-value grid.

D (Dot)
Dotted-note grid units
T (Triplet)
Triplet grid units
Musical control
Intuitive timing decisions

TILT control

TILT
-100% to +100%
Controls the three timing parameters — ATTACK, HOLD, and RELEASE — as a single unit, with up to ±100% adjustment relative to the adjacent reference note grid.

BPM TRACKV1.3.6 NEW

BPM TRACK
Click the "BPM TRACK" text toggle in the header (just below the WELL-USED label) to enable automatic re-tracking of ATTACK / HOLD / RELEASE in response to DAW tempo changes. Amber (LED color) when ON, muted gray when OFF.

How it works: The plugin interprets the current parameter value as a musical note length (e.g. 1/16 note) at the previous BPM, then recomputes it as the same note length at the new BPM.
Concrete example (RELEASE): Set 300 ms (1/8 note) at BPM 100 → tempo changes to BPM 200 → release automatically becomes 150 ms (still 1/8 note at the new tempo). Manually set 75 ms (1/16 note) at BPM 200 → tempo returns to BPM 100 → release becomes 150 ms (1/16 note at the new tempo).

Pairs with NORMAL / ADVANCED: Apply a recipe with the NORMAL or ADVANCED button, fine-tune by ear, then turn BPM TRACK ON. The chosen note length is preserved across every subsequent tempo change.

Combined with TILT: When BPM TRACK is ON, the TILT note-shift effect is preserved at the new BPM — combining tempo automation with TILT enables more musically expressive dynamics control than was previously possible.

FREE mode workflow: Switch BPM to FREE mode and automate the internal BPM from your DAW. Combined with BPM TRACK, this unlocks a new class of dynamic parameter automation. Locating (jumping the playhead) into a different tempo zone also re-tracks correctly.

8. Visual Feedback

Processing results are visualised in real time, designed so you can grasp the relationship between your moves and the sound intuitively. Waveform display, curves, meters, and depth alerts let you learn while you look.

Real-time waveform display

Input waveform
Shown in yellow as the actual audio signal

Processed waveform
The result after processing is displayed

Real-time updates
Changes during playback are reflected instantly

Dynamics visualisation
See the intensity of the effect at a glance

Output curve visualisation: the actual output curve is drawn as a green line.

CLAMP / FREE: the curves are visually clamped to stay inside the bottom of the waveform window. In FREE mode the waveform may be drawn beyond the window. Choose whichever suits the task at hand.

DRY / WET output and effect curves: the output curve gives a graphical read of the waveform state, varying with the MIX value. You can see the transient and envelope curves at MIX 0% and MIX 100%. Each curve can be toggled on or off from the bottom right of the waveform window.

DEEP alert: when THRESHOLD goes below -30 dB, the slider knob displays "DEEP" with a yellow gradient indicating depth; below -45 dB the knob and slider turn red. For an upward expander especially, excessive depth can introduce a fade-in feel, so use the alert to recognise an overly deep THRESHOLD and either mix DRY back in or pull the THRESHOLD back.

GLOW button: pressing the GLOW button inside the waveform window brightens the backplate for better waveform visibility.

Tips
Click the waveform display to pause it and inspect the curves. Use the MIX knob to compare DRY / WET or to observe the transition step by step. Use it for reliable monitoring during transient design.

Bonus
Scroll the mouse wheel over the waveform window to move the Y axis of the green line. It moves even off-screen like an oscilloscope — useful for calibrating to see the edges of the waveform more clearly.
* Double-click the green line to return to the default position.

Meters

Input Meter (left)

• INPUT readout: the current input level in real time
• Value: numeric readout in decibels (dB)
• Peak hold: holds instantaneous peaks (click the numeric box to toggle)
• Headroom check: see how it sits against the THRESHOLD parameter

Gain Meter (right)

• GAIN readout: real-time gain-change amount in dB
• Expansion visualisation: the gain increase from upward expansion
• Dynamic display: gain changes are shown instantly as the signal changes
• Effect confirmation: gauge the strength of the expansion at a glance

9. Sidechain & Stabilisation

Controls that let you trigger on what you want, and rein in unruly behaviour.

HPF — Sidechain High-Pass Filter
0 to 300 Hz
Sidechain high-pass filter, sweepable up to 300 Hz.
Avoid triggering from heavy low-end energy while still firing the expander on the intended hits — useful for preventing unwanted re-triggering when lowering the threshold deeply.

STB — Stability Control
0 to 100
When you want an aggressive sound, correcting unruly behaviour with tiny individual parameter tweaks is neither efficient nor creative.
Use Stability Control to rein it in: a one-knob control over multiple parameters that supports stability. Within 0 – 100 it provides increasing damping support.
Safety
0 to 100%
Prevents the fade-in feel or clipping from sudden gain shifts. Automatically detects gain changes and suppresses unnatural level jumps. A setting of 0 disables it.

10. Latency Control

A look-ahead feature that broadens the range of processing character.
LOOKAHEAD
The look-ahead engine enables more natural processing. With LOOKAHEAD on, the plugin reports its latency; with it off, latency is zero.
Even at hard settings, you can choose between a rock-leaning "processed" feel and a modern, natural sound character.

11. UI Modes

Switch between a well-worn vintage-gear vibe and a calm look that's friendlier on long sessions.

WELL-USED / CLEAN UP

A UI that carries a sense of real use. The areas you actually touch most are visibly worn — let that guide your hand as you work.

The CLEAN UP button at the top-left of the header wipes away the wear and returns the UI to factory condition. Once cleaned, the label switches to WELL-USED; click again to bring back the well-used look.

CALM mode

A calmer display mode so the meters don't get in your way during long sessions. While in CALM mode, clicking a meter switches it to a peak-hold readout.

LIVE modeV2 NEW

A lightweight UI mode designed for live-venue operation. Toggle between LIVE / STUDIO from the header. Audio processing (including LOOKAHEAD) is identical to STUDIO — only the UI rendering is reduced.

• LIVE: Reduced visual effects for a clearer, easier-to-read UI. Ideal for stage, live streaming, or lower-spec machines.
• STUDIO (default): Full expressive UI. The standard for DAW work.

12. Gain & Output Control

A group of controls for adjusting the entire signal flow and shaping the final output.

INPUT / OUTPUT / MAKEUP GAIN
-20 to +20 dB
Adjust the level at each stage of the signal flow. When the output clips, the output knob changes colour to let you know.

MIX
0 to 100%
Sets the balance between the dry and wet signals — from active design through to subtle reinforcement, dial in the result you want.

DELTAV2 NEW
On / Off
A monitor button placed to the right of the MIX knob. When ON, it lets you monitor only the WET signal — handy when you've shaped an extreme WET signal and want to blend it back in.

OVERSAMPLINGV2 EXTENDED
Off / X4 / X8
V2 supports oversampling up to X8. X8 can only be selected with HiDEF ON. See "V2 Highlights" for details.

BYPASS
Disable the effect instantly.

RANGE LINK
Links an increase in RANGE with a decrease in OUTPUT.

13. For V1 Users — Upgrade NotesV2 NEW

V1 sessions open as-is
The identifying keys (pluginCode / WCGUID / bundleIdentifier) are kept the same as V1. In Pro Tools / Logic / Cubase and others, your V1 instances are automatically replaced by V2.

Audio compatibility with V1
When you open a V1 session, HiDEF turns off automatically — existing mixes are fully preserved.

A V2-only serial is required
Licensing is a separate lineage from V1. You can request a V2 serial from your V1 serial via the upgrade site.

Generation separation
V1 serials do not authorise V2. A separate procedure is required.
Note: the final V1 version can also be launched with a V2 serial.