Episode 591 - Inside Neural DSP’s Mantra Plugin with Francois Barrillon

In this episode of Bobby Owsinski’s Inner Circle podcast, I sit down with Francois Barrillon, Neural DSP’s plugins product manager and product lead for their new vocal plugin Mantra. Francois shares how he went from building guitar pedals in his spare time to leading development on one of the most innovative vocal tools available today. We talk about Neural DSP’s expansion beyond guitars, how Mantra was designed to be an all-in-one studio solution, and what it takes to create plugins that blend analog feel with digital power. In This Episode: • How Francois got into music tech through analog gear • Why Neural DSP made a vocal plugin • Mantra’s tracking mode and low-latency design • How Sculpt uses spectral EQ to fix vocals fast • Quad Cortex gear and crossover into non-metal markets • Francois’s journey from L’Oreal to Neural DSP • The company’s global team and HQ in Helsinki • Combining analog modeling with new DSP possibilities -- Additional Resources: To learn more about Mantra, visit https://neuraldsp.com  -- Key Takeaways: 00:00:00 - Coming up... 00:00:28 - Meet Francois Barrillon from Neural DSP 00:01:18 - Why a guitar company made a vocal plugin 00:02:08 - Expanding DSP tech beyond guitar 00:03:10 - Inside Mantra’s tracking and mixing modes 00:04:20 - Latency issues and performance design 00:05:08 - Real-time effects boost vocal confidence 00:06:34 - The full Mantra plugin vision 00:07:22 - Quad Cortex and gigging with compact gear 00:08:51 - Francois’s path from L’Oreal to music tech 00:10:15 - Why the vocal plugin was the next big move 00:13:19 - Who Mantra is built for 00:14:17 - Latency: myths vs. real-world use 00:17:47 - Why all-in-one design reduces latency 00:18:13 - Home studio users and smart EQ with Sculpt 00:21:02 - Sculpt’s compression, de-essing, and normalization 00:23:52 - Neural DSP’s team, HQ, and remote setup 00:25:05 - Francois’s non-metal roots at Neural DSP 00:26:20 - From metal plugins to mainstream expansion 00:27:08 - Mantra’s clean demo and audience feedback 00:28:08 - DIY gear nerd to product lead 00:30:07 - Modeling analog vs. creating new tools 00:31:57 - Final thoughts and wrap-up — In this podcast, music guru Bobby Owsinski shares his personal insights on the music industry, covering news, reviews, analysis, and tips, as well as offering amazing interviews with prominent industry movers and shakers. Thank you for tuning in to Bobby Owsinski’s Inner Circle, the podcast that takes you deep inside the music industry. Each week, Bobby shares insights, news, analysis, and conversations with the movers and shakers shaping today’s music world. 📌 Explore Bobby’s best-selling books: https://bobbyowsinski.com/best-selling-books/ 🎧 Discover more mixing and production courses: https://www.bobbyowsinskicourses.com/ 📲 Follow Bobby for more tips, insights, and updates: • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BobbyOwsinskiBiz/ • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bobbyo/ • Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bobbyowsinski/ • Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/bobbyowsinski.bsky.social 🎙️ New episodes release every Tuesday at 9AM Pacific on YouTube and your favorite podcast app. Music. Business. Creativity. Straight from the Inner Circle. Produced by APodcastGeek https://apodcastgeek.com/