Cableguys - PanCake 2 | Free Dynamic Panning VST Plugin

Our pick for this month's best free VST plugin is Pancake 2 made by the Germany-based Cableguys. a wacky, customizable, over-the-top stereo panner.

Dynamic panning is a fantastic way to add life to your mix – as we have discussed over on our blog. The Cable Guys PanCake 2 is a “wacky, customizable, over-the-top stereo panner” – and it’s available for free.

PanCake 2 is incredibly flexible, offering more options than a number of similar plug-ins out there that will cost you cold, hard cash! PanCake 2 lets you construct your own modulation curves, which can be drawn using soft or hard control points. These will, in turn, produce gentle transitions or sharp bends, dynamic panning is a fantastic way to add life to your mix.

As you would expect, PanCake 2’s LFO can be beat-synced to your DAW – from 1/128th note modulation up to 32 bar modulation.This really is an excellent range, as many paid plug-ins only go from 1/64th up to either 8 or 16 bars. The LFO can also be set using frequency values and can be triggered by MIDI.

The plug-in can be used as a run of the mill auto-panner, as it comes with a variety of standard preset wave shapes.

It does this job well, but it really comes into it’s own as a more creative tool, letting you draw wild and crazy panning shapes into its interface!

That interface is nicely designed too – a precise display of channel left/right volume helps you to identify exactly how the plug-in is working.

PanCake 2 is available for Mac as a VST or an AU plug-in, and for Windows as a VST. It comes in both 32 and 64-bit versions, you can download your copy for free on their site.