When Dawesome released the original LOVE plugin in 2023, the idea behind it was quite simple: take almost any sound and quickly turn it into something spacious, textured, and atmospheric without forcing the user into complicated multi-page effect chains.

Interestingly, I have to admit that I somehow completely missed the first version. As a sound designer working with many creative plugins, I had never actually used LOVE 1 before. So LOVE 2 was my first real contact with the concept. After spending some time with it, the idea behind the plugin becomes very clear.

LOVE 2 is designed to transform ordinary sounds into something more alive and dimensional. Vocals gain presence, synths unfold, guitars shimmer, and even the simplest signals can suddenly feel like they are breathing in a larger sonic environment. It also becomes clear very quickly why the original version already had a strong following.

The Core Concept

At its heart, LOVE 2 combines two main elements: a musically tuned granular engine and a modular effects rack. The granular engine sits at the top of the interface and generates evolving particles from the incoming signal. It captures tiny fragments of audio and redistributes them in time and space, creating shimmering layers and moving textures.

LOVE 2 works as a standard insert effect that can be placed on virtually any track inside a DAW. This makes it easy to experiment with very different sources – from even percussion loops to synth lines and field recordings – and quickly transform them into evolving textures or ambient layers. I find it simply fantastic for refining padloops!

Three different granular modes are available:

• Swarm – floating grain clouds and wide ambient textures

• Chop – more rhythmic slicing and tempo-based fragments

• Robot – short, glitchy, robotic micro-grains

Parameters like grain duration, count, octave shifting, pitch randomization, reverse probability, and stereo jitter make it easy to experiment and quickly shape the character of the resulting texture. From a sound design perspective, the engine is not about surgical control but rather about creative exploration and fast atmospheric results. Even very simple sources can quickly evolve into wide ambient layers once the grains start interacting.

Modular Effects Architecture

One of the biggest improvements in LOVE 2 compared to the original plugin is the new modular architecture.

LOVE 1 used a fixed signal chain consisting of six effects:  filter → shimmer → delay → chorus → reverb → phaser.

While this worked well for quick results, of course, it could also become limiting. LOVE 2 removes this restriction completely. The plugin now offers more than 20 effect modules, and they can be arranged freely inside the signal chain using drag-and-drop routing. Up to six modules can be loaded at the same time.

Available processors include: reverbs (including clouds and shimmer), delays, filters, distortions, modulation effects, micro-looping processors, granular processors, and dynamics tools like OTT

Each module provides simple front-panel controls with dry/wet adjustment, while deeper parameters become visible via the Flip view, which reveals additional controls on the backside of the module. This keeps the interface simple and fast while still allowing deeper tweaking when needed.

Why Flexible Signal Flow Matters

From a sound designer’s perspective, the freely configurable signal flow is one of the most important improvements in LOVE 2. In the original plugin the effects were locked into a fixed order. That can work for quick inspiration, but it quickly becomes limiting when you want to shape a sound more deliberately. Being able to freely arrange the modules in LOVE 2 makes a huge difference and opens a much wider palette of sonic possibilities.

For example, placing distortion before a reverb produces a completely different result than placing it after the reverb. The same applies to delays, filters or modulation effects. Even small changes in the signal order can dramatically change the character of a sound.

With LOVE 2, effects can simply be dragged to a new position inside the chain. This allows much more intentional and targeted sound design, rather than stacking effects in a predefined order. For me personally, this flexibility is essential. It turns LOVE 2 from a purely inspirational ambient processor into a tool that can also be used for more controlled sound shaping.

Workflow and Creative Flow

LOVE 2 is clearly designed to encourage experimentation. Several features support this idea: sub-presets for individual modules, intelligent randomization, the ability to lock parameters such as input or output levels, and an improved preset browser with tagging.

Another aspect I really like is the clarity of the interface. Despite the powerful processing possibilities, the plugin never feels complicated or overwhelming. The layout is very intuitive and easy to understand, so you rarely get lost while exploring sounds. Because the granular engine and the effects modules can be combined freely, the plugin naturally encourages creative experimentation. Sounds can be reshaped, layered and modulated in ways that would normally require several separate plugins. This makes LOVE 2 feel more like a creative instrument rather than a technical effects processor.

One possible improvement for future versions could be the addition of basic modulation sources or even a small modulation matrix, which would allow parameters to be animated in more complex ways. However, the current design clearly prioritizes simplicity and fast creative results.

From Simple Sound to Atmosphere

One of the most impressive aspects of LOVE 2 is how easily it transforms simple material. During testing I tried it on extremely basic sources, including short samples, percussion loops and simple synth sequences. Within seconds these sounds expanded into wide ambient textures. Even relatively dry rhythmic material such as percussion loops can be turned into atmospheric layers once the granular engine and the effect modules start interacting. A dry sound that initially feels minimal can quickly evolve into something cinematic once the granular engine and the effects chain start interacting. Because the signal order is completely flexible, LOVE 2 can move from subtle spatial enhancement to much more extreme sound transformations.

And importantly, the granular engine can also be bypassed entirely. In that case LOVE 2 works purely as a creative effects processor, which makes it more versatile than it might initially appear. The plugin is obviously a fantastic tool for ambient and cinematic music, but it can also work very well in more subtle production scenarios. For example, adding LOVE 2 to a simple pad loop or atmospheric texture can introduce a surprising amount of movement and depth.

In my own work as a sound designer I often create atmospheric layers for my sample pack series, and many of those textures are based on field recordings. Recordings from real environments already contain interesting details and movement, and when processed with tools like LOVE 2 they can quickly turn into rich ambient beds.

In my experience, the combination of field recordings and LOVE 2 is extremely powerful. Even simple recordings can be transformed into evolving textures that feel organic, cinematic and full of depth. 

Presets and Compatibility

LOVE 2 ships with more than 100 new presets, and the preset browser has been improved with tagging and better navigation. The plugin also remains fully compatible with the previous version:

• LOVE 1 and LOVE 2 can run in parallel

• LOVE 2 can import presets and packs from LOVE 1

For existing users this makes the upgrade straightforward.

A Manual That Is Actually Worth Reading

One detail that deserves special mention is the manual. Plugin manuals are often either extremely dry or barely helpful. In the case of LOVE 2, the documentation is beautifully prepared and genuinely enjoyable to read. Everything is clearly structured and easy to follow, which makes it much easier to understand the philosophy behind the plugin. It’s a small detail, but good documentation can make a real difference when learning a new creative tool.

Verdict & Summary

With LOVE 2, Dawesome has evolved the original concept into a much more flexible and powerful creative processor. The combination of a musically tuned granular engine and a freely configurable effects rack makes it extremely easy to transform simple sounds into wide atmospheres and evolving textures.

From a sound designer’s perspective, the ability to freely arrange the effects is a major improvement. It allows much more intentional sound shaping instead of being limited to a fixed signal chain. Small changes in the signal order can already lead to very different sonic results, which makes the plugin far more versatile in real production scenarios.

At the same time, the interface remains very clear and approachable, so experimentation never feels complicated or technical. Instead, the plugin encourages fast creative exploration and often leads to inspiring results within seconds.

Considering its creative potential, flexible sound-design possibilities, intuitive workflow and very fair price, LOVE 2 delivers excellent value for producers and sound designers alike – earning the Sounds of Revolution Value Award.

Visit my BLOG for other vst recommendations, production tips and more!

Cheers,
Oliver Schmitt aka Sounds of Revolution (SOR)