Clew
Key Features
- Models the long two-spring tank common to guitar amplifiers by calculating coil behavior rather than replaying an impulse response
- Uses DECAY as a tank-style damper control, shortening the ring while retaining the drips and chirp of the spring character
- Places a pre-tank LIMIT stage before the modeled springs to catch sharp incoming transients
- Adds DRIVE modeled after vintage rack input stages, from subtle grit through harder distortion
- Offers MONO with one tank and STEREO with two slightly detuned tanks for image-preserving stereo processing or wider mono sources
- Shows a live visualization of the wet reverb tail generated from the incoming material
- Includes factory presets, an offline-checked license, no activation limit, and free updates
Description
Clew is a physically modeled spring reverb for macOS and Windows that simulates the long two-spring tank found in many guitar amplifiers. Rather than replaying an impulse response, it calculates the coil behavior directly, giving sends and inserts a responsive, metallic ring with the drips and chirps associated with a real spring tank.
DECAY acts like the damper in a physical tank, shortening the tail while keeping its spring character intact. The pre-tank LIMIT control catches transients before they hit the modeled springs, while DRIVE adds an input-stage range from gentle grit to more forceful distortion.
Choose MONO for one tank or STEREO for two slightly different tanks, which preserves a stereo source's image and can widen a mono source. A live display follows the wet tail from the incoming audio, making it easier to see how the reverb is responding as you adjust it.
Clew includes factory presets and an offline-checked license with no activation limit or always-on server requirement. It is a focused choice for guitar amp-style splash, dub accents, resonant snare and percussion sends, or giving clean synth and keyboard parts some deliberately mechanical space.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Clew use convolution impulse responses?
No. Fruitless Research describes Clew as a direct physical model of the coil and transducers in a long two-spring tank, rather than a playback engine for a recorded impulse response. That means the modeled tank responds to the signal being fed into it.
What does the DECAY control change?
DECAY works like a damper on a physical spring tank. It shortens the reverb ring without changing the characteristic drips and chirps in the same way a conventional decay control might.
How does Clew's stereo mode work?
MONO uses one modeled tank. STEREO runs two slightly different tanks, one for each side, so it can retain the image of a stereo source while giving a mono source a wider returned signal.
Does Clew require an online activation server?
No. The developer says the license is checked offline within the plug-in, with no server dependency, dongle, or activation-limit requirement. The license is emailed after checkout.
