20 Best Plugins For Cubase 2025 (And 13 Free Plugins) (2025)

Designed to emulate the sound of a movie piano, Chroma is Sonuscore’s take on the instrument.

CHROMA is a representation of the timeless elegance of the piano. This recording was painstakingly made using a Yamaha C3 to ensure that it would preserve the full sonic vitality of the perfect piano sound. It is an exhaustive investigation of the instrument and faithful recreation of its acoustic properties.

CHROMA is more than just a piano; it’s the experience of playing the piano, from the depth of a single note to the expansive soundscapes made possible by mallets, pads, and even an e-bow.

Key Features:

Articulations
Engine

CHROMA gives you a lot of creative leeway by drawing from various recordings of the piano and its body and a set of powerful effects. However, CHROMA is more than just a piano; it’s also a potent tool for creating soundscapes, from novel and abstract compositions to realistic recreations of natural sounds like rain.

User Interface

Chroma’s controls are neatly separated into three tabs.

Mix Page

You may find faders and buttons to activate the four mic inputs on the MIX Page.

Presets

More than 90 different “presets” are at your disposal in the preset browser, all of which can be modified to suit your needs. In addition, the preset browser allows you to filter the presets you see and then scroll through the filtered results.

Compatibility:

The library is available forKontakt 5.7 or higher(NOTthe free Kontakt Player). Kontakt 5.7 is available forWindows 7 or higher 32-bit and 64-bitandmacOS 10.10 or higher 64-bit. It comes inVST 2,AU, andAAXformats.

2. Tracktion Novum By Dawesome (Granular Synth)

More Info & Download (Paid Version Available)

Beautiful visual elements and superb sounds come from this unique synth.

Novum is the kind of instrument that inspires you to achieve new soundscapes, always evolving and surprising you simultaneously. The main concept behind this Tracktion plugin lies in the way it handles sampling: it “breaks down” a sample into six different layers for enhanced access to the timbres inside your track.

Key Features:

Granular algorithm

The way Novum works is very straightforward: every sample is divided into six different layers with the help of a specific algorithm.

MPE support

“MPE” is an extension of a MIDI protocol, meaning “MIDI Polyphonic Expression.” It basically makes use of multiple MIDI values simultaneously, giving unprecedented control over the playability of your controller. If by any means your keyboard offers MPE support, you can use it to further explore Novum’s features.

Patches

Patches are parameter value bundlessaved automatically inside the software. You can save your patches, but there are also over 300 factory patches that fully represent a bit of what Novum can achieve in terms of sound crafting.

Drag and drop

The intuitive “drag and drop” movement is present inside Novum’s functionalities.

Compatibility:

This plugin is available for macOS 10.13 or higher (64-bit only) and Windows 10 or higher (64-bit only).It runs in VST3 and AUplugin formats.

Summary:

Nowadays, forward-thinkingprograms like Novum are useful in multiple situations. The hard work behind crafting interesting, new sounds from scratch is demanding, and sonic tools like this plugin should exist to help us out in that issue.

Sampling is the main process behind it, but the innovative ways you can manipulate that audio may be useful for varied projects.

Related Readings:

Top 13 Synth VST Plugins (And 5 FREE Synths Plugins)

3. Matt Tytel Vital (Wavetable Synth)

Vital’s synthesizer brings spectral oscillator warping to add new life to your wavetables.

Acting directly on a waveform’s harmonics, this technology can create drastically different tones and shapes from a signal source. Thanks to this simple tool that creates endless possibilities, what was already incredibly customizable became even more so.

If you want to import your samples to create a wavetable, Vital’s pitch-splice and vocode converter are two great and easy add-ons to get even more specific on your sound design.

You can also develop wavetables from scratch via the built-in wavetable generator or even directly from the text!

Key Features:

Excellent oscillators

These oscillators have a shallow low noise floor and a sharp cut-off at Nyquist for almost no aliasing, creating the cleanest sounds with the best quality possible.

Microtonality at its best

This synth can load .tun, .scl, and .kbd files –which can alter and configure how the tuning will perform – and play in a microtonal setting without any trouble.

Key-trackedLFOs

It’s possible to create key-tracked bass lines with this LFO setting, combining it with an audio-rate modulation and using your LFO as an oscillator modulation source. This enables you to instantly automate certain modulation parameters in relation to whatever notes are being played.

MPE support

If you have a ROLI keyboard, a Linnstrument, or other MPE-compatible gear, Vital offers full support and control. This way, you can add more expression to your sound and use dynamics as you’re used to.

Audio-rate modulation

The audio modulator kicks in when you have an audio signal or a parameter being varied and brings much more personality to your tones. The variations can be tracked down and edited in the most creative ways possible. The signal whose waveform is used to trigger is modulated accordingly, with extreme precision and character.

Compatibility:

The plugin is available for mac OS 10.12 or higher,Windows 10 or higher, and Ubuntu Linux 18.04 or higher. All 64-bit only, with OpenGL 3 or higher. It comes in VST, AU, and LV2 plugin formats.

4. Ample Sound – Ample Guitar M III (Acoustic Guitar)

If you want to have a legendary Martin guitar as a virtual instrument, the following plugin is just what you need. It is the Ample Guitar M III from Ample Sound.

Ample Sound is a well-known Chinese company that constantly surprises its fans with excellent virtual instruments. They have everything from ethno instruments to bass and electric guitars. Acoustic is no exception here. Among them is a beautiful plugin that gives you the sound of some of the highest quality American guitars of the Martin brand.

The Ample Guitar M III plugin will give you fantastic sound quality and a bunch of parameters and settings, and unique features on top of that. It includes everything you need for guitar performance: strummer, fingerpicking, and riffing, in addition to a first-rate effects suite and plenty of presets.

Key Features:

Performance

Its different parameters, like the body and ambiance ones, surely give youmuch control over your sound. You can use Sustain, Hammer On & Pull Off, Legato Slide, Slide in & out, Palm Mute, Pop, Natural Harmonic, and Legato at random length & pitch & poly.

Authenticity

Ample Guitar M III undoubtedly did an excellent jobmimicking what an acoustic guitar would sound likewhen recorded in a professional music studio. Thanks to extensive sampling, you get a high-quality and rich acoustic guitar sound.

You will be able to influence your sound thanks to the 8-band EQ. Also available here is the 2-Line Compressor with support of soft knee, auto release, and auto makeup. In addition, there is a 6-Tap Echo and IR Reverb with options such as Room, Studio, Hall, and Larger Hall and 3D visualization of the IR spectrum.

Compatibility:

The plugin is available forWindows 7 or higherandmacOS 10.9 or higher,both 64-bit only. It comes inVST2/3,AU, AAX formats, and as a standalone host.

5. Ample Guitar L (Classical Guitar)

This Kontakt library brings the notorious sound found on classical Alhambra guitars right into your DAW.

Alhambra Guitars has been a well-established company since 1965 and is present in over 70 countries. Alhambra is the perfect union between the handmade work’s tradition and modern woodworking techniques with an outstanding dedication to building the best handmade classical, flamenco, and steel-string guitars,

With such a high standard in mind, Ample Sound unveils this exciting new Kontakt library based on such instruments. You can expect the same warm tones with the distinct color of the nylon strings, but in a friendly package that fits within your preferred workstation and all your projects.

Aside from that, the articulations are vast and can help “humanize” the playability with different strum and picking patterns.

Key Features:

Sampling

Featuring almost 4GB of samples, Ample Guitar L contains very diverse and rich sounds. Aside from the excellent quality, they all feature the imperative dynamics for instruments such as this.

Riffer

This is an awesome feature to help expand your creativity even further. With the “String Roll Editor,” you can alter eight-note attributes: “Pitch,” “Velocity,” “Length,” “Off Velocity,” “Articulation,” “Legato,” “Vibrato,” and “Bend.”

FXs

There are also some good FXs that can be helpful when dealing with a classical guitar.

Here, you’ll find an 8-band EQ with frequency response and the possibility of soloing a single band, a 2-line compressor with two detections modes (RMS and Peak), soft knee, auto release, and auto makeup, a tape echo that allows you to tweak six parameters of the effect individually (feedback, pan, volume, etc.), and an IR reverb with “Room,” “Studio,” “Hall,” and “Larger Hall” types.

Tab Reader

A Tab Player can load and play several guitar tablaturesin different formats. The user can load, play, and display any specific track inside a tab while also exporting it in an audio file when used inside a DAW. This is a helpful feature for transcribing songs in a heartbeat and in practice sessions.

Compatibility:

This library runs in macOS 10.9 or higher (64-bit only) and Windows 7 or higher (64-bit only). It comes in VST2, VST3, AU, and AAX plugin formats and standalone host.

Related Reading:

Top 7 Acoustic Guitar Plugins (And 4 Best Kontakt Libraries)

6. UJAM Virtual Guitarist IRON 2 (Electric Guitar)

As usual, UJAM delivers the most straightforward solutions—this time, for creating rock rhythms and riffs the quickest way.

Iron 2 is a virtual guitarist best for playing rhythms for rock, metal, and similar genres. It features over 350 sampled phrases in 30 styles played by a studio session guitarist. The interface lets you customize the guitar itself and the amp/effect processors.

You can switch through patterns and chords using key switches.

Similarly, you can also use Iron 2 as a playable instrument. You can hold chords, strum or play individual strings, and play melodic riffs. It features several articulations for riff performance too.

Key Features:

Player Mode

In the Player mode, Iron 2 plays pre-recorded strums and phrases. It’s an excellent way to get realistic rhythm tracks, even if you have no idea how to play the guitar. The keyboard will have three sections of key switches: Common Phrases, Style Phrases, and Play Range.

Instrument Mode

This mode allows you to play Iron 2 as a standard guitar instrument. You can hold chords with one hand and strum/arpeggiate with your other hand, just like a real guitarist. Or, you can play leads and riffs.

Trigger And Latch

In the Instrument mode, you can disable Trigger so that you can hold chords with your hand without it sounding until you use a strumming/picking key with your other hand. Similarly, Latch mode lets you hold chords without having to hold them manually. These two features are handy for playing live with a MIDI controller.

Guitar Sound

Iron 2 lets you blend between the neck and the bridge pickup—it will change the tone of your guitar. Furthermore, you can change the character of your pickups from warm humbuckers to sharp Telecaster single-coils using the Character selector.

Guitar Amp

Next, you can choose from five kinds of guitar amp and cabinet simulations. They include clean, crisp, cream, crunch, and metal. If you’d rather use a dedicated guitar amp simulation software, you can set Iron 2’s amp option to Direct.

StompBox

The last step of customizing your guitar sound is using effect processors. Iron 2 features a Stomp Box dropdown menu where you can select from 30 effects that create classic guitar sounds. They include simple effects like chorus and tremolo to rotary and reverse.

Finisher

The Finisher section lets you add even more effect processors with built-in combinations of no less than 20 effect plugins per preset. It has over sixty effect chain presets built-in, and you can control the mix level.

Compatibility:

Iron 2 is available for Windows 7 or higher and macOS 10.14 or higher, both 64-bit only. It comes in VST 2, AU, and AAX formats.

7. Native Instruments: Session Bassist Prime Bass (Bass Guitar – Kontakt Library)

Prime bass emulates the single could electric bass guitar from the 70s.

The library/instrument provides great flexibility and ease of use for various bass guitar tones and playing styles. It makes programming realistic and groovy basslines extremely simplified. You need a good amount of time to explore the depth of the plugin, but once you do, you will realize the immense potential it offers to music producers and sound designers.

Key Features:

Sounds

Prime bass has some great factory presets categorized as direct, hi gain, experiment, amped, and more. In addition, Song Browser lets you browse through categories like Rock, RnB, Reggae, Blues, FX/Perc, Funk, Disco, Electro, Latin, etc., which has a collection of 81 songs presets.

Amps and effects

The plugin consists of amps and effects of a huge variety, such as Cat, Distortion, Skreamer, and Lo-Fi in the distortion category, choral, flair, phasis, and rotator in the Modulation category, compressors like super char, solid comp, fast comp, limiter, and tape, and many more such plugins in the categories EQ & Filter, Reverb & Delays, and Amps and Cabinets.

Customizable Performance

Sample libraries usually take a lot of work, especially for creating realistic grooves, articulations, and playing styles. But Prime bass allows you to customize your performances with controllers like humanize, swing, feel, and timings. In addition, you can adjust latch mode, pattern sync, default mode, and tempo.

Additional Features

The plugin has a massive loop library of over 8,000 loops and phrases that lets you pick up realistic and human-played basslines. These are arranged in 355 patterns presets, under categories like open, muted, plec, finger, and slap.

Compatibility:

Prime bass requires a minimum of 10 GB of hard disk space and the Kontakt 6.7 version or higher, but it’s also compatible with the free version of Kontakt.

8. Heavyocity Symphonic Destruction (Orchestral Instrument – Kontakt Library)

A deconstructed orchestra library, ready to push your inspiration up to its limits.

Heavyocity’s Symphonic Destruction delivers innovative results to hybrid orchestral scoring by blending traditional combinations, ingrained sound design, and profound braams in one single library. As a result, all sounds will be fresh and revamped, as this collection aims to deconstruct the orchestra ensemble as we know it.

A massive collection of cinematic elements – from full orchestral portatos to detuned staccatos – allow you to create infinite soundscapes, all worthy of much energy and vigorwhile maintaining the characteristic huge sound aspect that only an orchestra can provide. So be ready to unleash your most audacious and wild ideas instantly.

Key Features:

Three different instrument types

Symphonic Destruction provides you with three different instrument types: “Performers,” which consists of instruments that can have key switches to alternate between different sounds, “SD Designer,” tailored for deep sound designing, and “SD Loop and Braam Designers,” a variation of the previous type but designed to playback and layer any loops or braam noises.

Spaced out

A distinctive “Space” section contains two cherished effects on one single page. Here you’ll find a delay and reverb that can help you instill the proper ambiance and sense of acoustic.

Three microphone positions

Every sample was recorded with three different microphone positions, so you can expect to alter these in any way you want to. Including “Main,” “Hall,” and “Rev FX” positions, the mixer allows you to set each value accordingly through specific faders. You also have “Mute,” “Solo,” and “Pan” options in each position.

Modulators

There are two modulators: “Gate” and “Dynamics.” Each can create a different approach to your instruments, either by modulating the output volume (“Gate”) or by controlling the dynamics level of the instrument (“Dynamics”) over time to create rhythmic effects. You can set the “Rate,” “Steps,” and “Range” in each section to instantly achieve new sounds and textures.

Compatibility:

The library is available for macOS 10.14, 10.15, 11, or 12 (latest update) and Windows 10 (64-bit only).It comes in VST, VST3, AAX, and AU plugin formats.

Summary:

This is a feast for sound designers. With Symphonic Destruction, it’s easier than ever to develop authentic cinematic sounds worthy of great productions with as few mouse clicks as possible.

9. Arturia B-3 V2 (Organ)

B-3 V2 by Arturia offers a highly creative environment with realistic tonewheel organ sounds and a carefully made rotary speaker add-on.

With many modulation options for the sound, the B-3 V2 plugin features all the textures most organs have. With great attention to detail, the B-3 V2 will work on an elite quality physical modeling technology.

With advanced controls to optimize the instrument, the plugin also features a realistic interface with two keyboards and a swell pedal, along with percussion settings.

Key Features:

Effects

The B-3 V2 will give any producer a complete experience. The Arturia plugin features twelve pedals with different effects: Chorus, Flanger, Compressor, Delay, Distortion, Phaser, Equalizer, Reverb, Stereo Pan, Analog Delay, and Tape Echo.

Drawbars

The Organ VST by Arturia gives an automation option to the movement of drawbars using envelopes, LFOs, and step sequencers. The highly customizable Drawbars feature possesses ten modulator slots that can individually hold one LFO, multi-point envelope, or step sequencer.

Rotary Speaker

The amount of work that went through B-3 V2’s rotary speaker is incredible. You can produce subtle variations on the sound with the different cabinet models that you can switch between at any time. These models are Closed, Open, 122 Closed, 122 Open, and 147 Open.

Compatibility:

This plugin is available forWindows 7 or higherandmacOS 10.11 or higher,both 64-bit only. It comes inVST 2/3,AU,AAX, andRTASformats.

Related Reading:

Top 14 Arturia Plugins For Musicians

10. UAD Minimoog (Analog Synth – Moog Emulation)

UAD launched their virtual version of the legendary Minimoog synth with UAD Spark in collaboration with Moog Music.

The plugin has been created with plenty of research to emulate the classic circuitry and rigorous modeling to precisely capture the module-to-module coupling and impedance, to re-create the authentic analog sound of the original Minimoog as a soft-synth.

It has three oscillators, each with six different basic analog waveforms to choose from, along with a volume knob in the mixer window. Overall, the interface and the signal flow, like the hardware, are simple and easy to use.

Key Features:

Analog filters

The plugin allows you to set the cutoff frequency, filter emphasis (resonance), and contour amount (mix) of the filter, and the filter sound warm, vintage, and analog. It’s modeled from a VCF (Voltage Controlled Filter) and the filter response has been programmed accordingly.

Software additions

UAD has added flexible velocity sensitivity and additional modulation features like a separate LFO, modulation amount, and modulation mix sources. These features are not present in the hardware version.

Expansive Presets

The presets are classified and organized in terms of Genre, Type, and Description, and there is a huge variety of presets you can choose from, which fit a lot of different genres and styles. That makes the sound selection process easier, especially for composers and new music producers.

Compatibility:

The plugin requires a macOS 10.15 Catalina, 11 Big Sur, or 12 Monterey, and is available with the UAD Spark in AAX, AU, VST3, and LUNA plugin formats. Now, also available on Windows 10 or more.

11. Algonaut Atlas 2 (Sample Organizer & Much More)

Atlas 2 is a sample browser, kit creator, and drum sequencer by Algonaut.

It uses AI technology to analyze your countless samples and organize them into categories based on their common characteristics. It aims to speed up creating cohesive and interesting drum kits and make creating beats an easy process.

Here is a playlist with 9 various teasers covering house, techno and UK garage. All sounds you can hear comes from Atlas 2:

Key Features:

Excellent user interface.

Atlas 2 uses AI technology to split your samples into categories such as kicks, snares, open hi-hats, closed hi-hats, toms, etc. If the sounds are not percussive but synth one-shots or vocals, they are in the “others” category.

In-depth editing.

Once you load the samples of your choice in a new kit, you can modify them in great detail. You get pitch controls for each sample and volume, pan, filter, resonance, and velocity controls. Another great feature is the time control, which will nudge a sample forwards or backward in time by a few milliseconds.

Easily save kits and sequences.

You can save a kit and a sequence to use them in future projects. Once you save a kit, you can load it in a new sequence by dragging and dropping it, or drag and drop an old sequence to a new kit for inspiration.

Smart technology.

Atlas 2 is meant to cater to each producer’s needs. Its smart AI technology uses machine learning, meaning the more you use it and the more loops and kits you create, the more it understands and learns what sounds you prefer to use in your productions.

Compatibility:

Atlas 2 is available on macOS and Windows, in VST3, AU, and Standalone formats, 64-bit only.

Related Readings:

Top 20 Plugins For Ableton Live (AND 14 FREE Plugins)

20 Best Plugins For FL Studio (AND 14 FREE Plugins)

Effects:

12. Waves Harmony (Harmonizer)

The best vocal harmonies can be naturally created inside this awesome plugin.

Waves is well-known for producing high-quality plugins and audio software, which come in a variety of versions and choices to suit a wide range of applications. However, any plugin that may improve the sound aspects or make the workflow easier is appreciated, and Waves Harmony is just like that.

This useful voice harmony generator has a simple and beautiful UI with clear controls that are entertaining to experiment with in the recording studio or on stage.

Key Features:

Eight voices

Vocal Harmony is an excellent engine with eight separate voices, allowing for everything from a basic doubled-melody to a complicated and rich vocal arrangement for all these eight voices. This is critical and works flawlessly, with a true sound character like what actual vocalists would deliver.

Pitch correction

As predicted, this plugin makes pitch adjustments quickly and simply. You may freely change and vary the pitch of every note, either by accident or by personal desire, with relative indicators on the screen. Feel free to correct any lines or simply repair one erroneous note as quickly as possible.

Harmony Generator

The powerful engine hidden within Vocal Harmony is ideal not just for duplicating a vocal but also for sparking your creativity. The harmony generator may create immediate ideas based on current musical scales, giving your phrases and musical ideas even more authenticity.

Formant shift

This type of vocal plugin typically includes a “formant” preset, which allows you to mimic the actions a human lip makes when talking or singing. Of course, there are other factors to consider when giving a genuine aural experience, but being able to modify how a singer’s lips react to a given phrase adds realism to this replication.

Built-in effects

Although you can always add post-effects to anything you make, having the most significant aspects related to vocal harmony provided in this package is really useful. A separate “Delay” fader controls the effect’s feedback, while an extra “Filter” fader allows you to easily sweep over the frequencies in your music.

MIDI controlled

One of the finest features of virtual instruments or effects such as Vocal Harmony is the ability to connect a MIDI device and play whatever you want. This plugin has complete MIDI compatibility from Waves, which may be quite handy for getting your vocals done correctly with the help of a keyboard, for example.

Compatibility:

This plugin is available for macOS 10.15.7, 11.6.5, and 12.4 (64-bit only) and Windows 10 or higher (64-bit only).It runs in VST, VST3, AAX, and AU plugin formats.

Related Reading:

13. iZotope Nectar 3 Plus (Vocal Strip)

Nectar 3 Plus from iZotope gives you a whole set of vocal processing tools and some AI features.

Sometimes it’s convenient to have software that includes all the possible tools for vocals at your fingertips. The point is that you won’t be rummaging through your list of plugins, wondering which one to apply next. We’ve included a bonus option on our list that has it all “under one roof.”

Nectar 3 Plus from iZotope is an entire suite that includes all stages of vocal mixing. It has everything from EQ, compression, de-essing to saturation and FX. This plugin’s cherry on the cake is the features that automatically help your vocal tracks break through the mix more or even do the whole process for you based on artificial intelligence.

Key Features:

A Complete Vocal Chain

You will be able to apply up to 12 different modules to your vocal track, responsible for separate processing stages – for example, Pitch Correction, Two Compressors, De-Esser with the listening function. Also, the effects like Delay, Dimension Module with Chorus, Flanger, and Phaser.

Vocal Assistant

The Vocal Assistant feature is based on artificial intelligence. It will analyze your vocal performance and apply all the necessary modules to optimize the vocal and make it more mix-ready.

Unmask Your Vocal

It is another AI-powered feature. The point is that sometimes the frequencies of other instruments can overlap the vocal frequencies and thus put it in the background. You need enough experience to know how to avoid this manually.

Get Melodyne

The nice thing is that with the Nectar 3 Plus, you also get a copy of the Melodyne 5 Essential. It is one of the most famous pitch correction software available. Thanks to it, you can immerse yourself in editing on a more detailed and professional level.

RX 8 Breath Control

Another bonus for you will be the RX 8 Breath Control. It is a plugin that is part of the iZotope repair tools bundle, and you get it here for free. With it, you can easily remove breaths from your vocal tracks. It will be helpful if you don’t want to do it by hand.

Compatibility:

The plugin is available for Windows 7 or higher and macOS 10.6.8 or higher, both 64-bit only. It comes in VST2/3, AU, and AAX formats.

14. Three-Body Technology Kirchhoff-EQ (Dynamic EQ)

The ultimate modern-looking parametric EQ plugin available nowadays.

Equalizers can be taunting to master properly, as they can inflict strange results in the process of tailoring the effect itself. One wrong twist or turn in a specific bandwidth, and your sound can go to crap instantly. This is one thing that Kirchhoff-EQ nails, and it’s all due to the incredible ease of use to set any parameters properly.

Key Features:

Great processing

The tweaks you make inside the plugin will be reflected automatically in your sound, as expected. The incredible number of options and parameters to adjust can be overwhelming, but almost assuredly, it won’t be a problem to be loaded properly.

Filter types

There are 15 filter types included in this EQ, with the most common shapes included – like low pass, high pass, and notch, for instance – and also some unusual ones, such as the “Sword” (kind of like a bell shape, but with a sharper slope) and brick walllow and high pass.

Phase modes

You can set the phase in your track between some unique modes, such as “zero-latency,” “analogue,” “linear,” and “mixed.” However, if the “Dynamic Functions” option is activated for a specific filter band, it will work on a minimum-phase mode that won’t affect other bands besides the one you’re currently working on.

Unique threshold adjustment

The threshold is usually the control that sets the “limit” upon which an effect can act upon. Most options only go one way, but in Kirchhoff-EQ, things are done differently. You can have a two-way threshold control to configure simultaneously the part of your signal acting above or below the threshold mark.

Compatibility:

This plugin is available for macOS 10.9 or higher (64-bit only) and Windows 7 or higher (64-bit only).It runs inVST2, VST3, AAX, and AUplugin formats.

15. Polyverse Manipulator (Vocoder/ Sound Design Tool)

Polyverse Manipulator has the ability to radically modify the tone and pitch of monophonic audio in previously unseen ways.

Thanks to Infected Mushroom’s sonic madness, the Polyverse Manipulator is guaranteed to make your audiences’ spines shiver. The algorithms in Manipulator revolve around five basic effects: altering pitch, formant, harmonics, as well as oscillating frequency modulation, and grains.

The MIDI capabilities, ideal for real-time performance whether or not you play keyboards, can expand the possibilities to fit your every musical idea. An innovative vocal synthesizer like the Polyverse Manipulator plugin is the next-step tool if you’re a performing vocalist or an electronic music producer, but it’s also great for creating soundscapes and textures as well.

Key Features:

Supporting effects

Aside from the main effects based on the five algorithms listed above, some additional effects can further expand the sonic madness. Controls for “Glide,” “Smear,” “Stereo,” and “Detune” are there to evolve your sound by the tweak of a knob.

Real-time pitch-shifting

Manipulator allows users to accept MIDI input in real-time and control pitch shifting with a MIDI controller on the go. This plugin can effortlessly transpose pitch and gives incoming audio a unique feel right when you play it.

Made in collaboration

The vocal modification techniques used by Infected Mushroom are a big aspect of their sound. The majority of the vocals on their records have been twisted, manipulated, chopped, and highly processed in order to sound like synthesizers.

Detection control

This dedicated control located on the far left side of the screen allows you to set the pitch detection range with “Hi,” “Mid,” and “Low” options. For instance, each of these options is suited for specific instruments, such as implementing the “Low” setting on bass and low voices.

It’s important to remember that this plugin doesn’t track polyphonic signals well, so it’s best to just go for one note at a time.

Cross-Modulation

The plugin allows you to use a single Modulation Source as an amplitude modulator for another. That helps you create complex sounds that would be unattainable any other way.

Modulation Slots

The plugin offers you five modulation sources: Meta Knob, ADSR, MIDI, Follower, and Sequencer. The plugin lets you choose four to use simultaneously, each in one slot. You can, of course, add multiple instances of the same modulation source.

The Meta Knob can control various parameters and be saved with user-generated names in presets. ADSR is triggered by incoming MIDI notes and controls the Attack, Decay, Sustain, and Release of the input signal.

MIDI converts the information into a modulation signal, while Follower converts the amplitude of the source into a modulation signal and lets you control its attack and release. Finally, the Sequencer creates a triggered, or free-running, LFO.

Compatibility:

This plugin runs in macOS 10.6 or higherand Windows 7 SP1 or higher, both in 32 and 64-bit options. It comes inVST, AU, and AAX plugin formats.

16. Waves Tune Real-Time (AutoTune)

As the name suggests, the Waves Tune Real-Time is designed for live performances and an instant effect. It’s great to have in the studio when recording vocals too. Thanks to its compelling interface and simple controls, this plugin is an uber-efficient tool for many needs.

If you’re looking for a great vocal tool to use in real-time that achieves seamless results and can add such value to a live show, check out the key features that follow.

Key Features:

Real-Time Correction

The main feature of this plugin is the real-time adjustment and correction made to make live performances and studio recordings sound great. The low-latency algorithm does a great job of keeping the natural nuances of the singer’s vocal alive while smoothly integrating adjustment.

Straightforward Design and Layout

Waves have made it easy to navigate the various functions by designing an interface with an instinctual layout and workflow. Essentially, you can control the initial signal by adjusting the speed, note transition, and vibrato controls which determine how quickly, smoothly, naturally, or unnaturally correction happens.

Tolerance Controls

The tolerance controls have two parameters that can adjust to achieve various intensities of ‘tolerance’. The cents and time parameters determine how much a singer can be off, and how long it will be corrected while the singer is off. By increasing the cents, you allow more ‘tolerance’ from the plugin when adjusting off-key notes.

On the other hand, you have time control, which determines how long this adjustment is held. If the singer is dropping off towards the end of a long note, you can extend the time which the adjustment will engage.

Compatibility:

This plugin is available for Windows 10–11 and macOS 10.14.6 – 11.5.2. It comes in VST/3, AU, and AAX formats.

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17. Brainworx bx_limiter True Peak (Advanced Limiter)

The bx_limiter TP, by Brainworx, was designed from the ground up with True Peak technology in mind.

The plugin offers straightforward parameters in a comprehensible UI, but it sounds way better than it looks. You can meter both in the input and output signals and solo individual parts of the audio. The balance and correlation meters are beneficial to ensure mono compatibility and the metering section is really precise.

Key Features:

Mode

Modern will suit any kind of modern music, while Classic will be great for old-school genres.

Foundation

Higher values give you a more bass-heavy foundation, creating a huge-sounding foundation, which will benefit most genres.

Dynamic Range Meter

This helps you determine the density of the track. Numbers below 6dB mean you’re applying too much compression in your mix, making your track sound lifeless.

Solo Buttons

Here, you can choose which part of the output signal is being monitored. If you choose either the L or R channels, they’ll play in the center unless you click the S.I.P. button, which will make the audio play in its respective position.

This saturation unit adds smooth harmonic distortion to the output signal.

Compatibility:

This plugin is available for Windows 7 and up and macOS 10.9 and newer in AAX, AU, and VST formats.

18. iZotope Ozone 10 Advanced (Mastering Suite)

Check on PluginBoutique (Trial Available)

iZotope Ozone 10 Advanced is a collection of mastering plugins to create cutting-edge industry standard masters.

Ozone has become the gold standard for mastering plugin packs, and iZotope has constantly improved it with regular new updates and features. It has a great collection of plugins with an expansive range of presets to help you get started with them. Everything from the interface to the controllers to the final sound and overall intuitiveness in these plugins is top-notch.

Key Features:

Equalizer 1

The equalizer 1 is an advanced eq plugin that operates in stereo, mid-side, and left/right modes. There are two modes in the plugin: analog and digital. You can add up to eight bands on the plugin and select their curves as low pass, hi pass, low shelf, high shelf, and bell, so each category has further subcategories of curves.

Dynamic EQ

Dynamic EQ allows you to set a threshold on the band beyond which the EQ will act in real-time. You can add up to five bands and switch the curves between Proportional Q, Baxendall bass, Baxendall treble, bell, and band shelf. You can choose between analog and digital algorithms for dynamic EQ as well.

Match EQ

The plugin allows you to capture a reference song, compare its spectrum profile with your mix, and match your EQ curve with the reference song. It’s a great tool for mastering and getting ideas when you are stuck.

Vintage EQ

Vintage EQ has the following windows: low, mid, low mids, high mids, high boost, and high cut, such that in each window, you can select a particular frequency and adjust its amplitude.

Dynamics

Dynamics is a multi-band compressor plugin that lets you compress the audio in peak, envelope, and RMS levels. It allows you to set up to four bands so that each band can be soloed or muted.

Vintage comp

The Vintage Compressor operates in Sharp, balanced, smooth settings/algorithms. Other than that, it’s a simple compressor plugin with simple controls like ratio, attack, and release. In addition, it also has a three-band equalizer.

Vintage Limiter

The Vintage Limiter is a brick-wall limiter with the following algorithms: analog, tube, and modern. It has a simple workflow in which you set a peak and a threshold, along with a character slider for adding the vintage and analog tone to the audio.

Maximizer

Maximizer is the ultimate mastering limiter by Izotope, with Intelligence Release Control algorithms of five types, each offering its own characteristic sound and transient audio processing. In addition, there’s a transient emphasis slider and a stereo independence window with a transient and sustain slider.

Exciter

Exciter is a multiband saturation/distortion plugin or harmonic processor that allows up to four bands. The harmonic processing algorithms are Triode, Analog, Retro, Tube, Warm, and Dual Triode. You can adjust the amount and mix of saturation in each band.

Imager

The Ozone Imager is a multiband stereo imaging plugin with up to four bands and two imaging modes. You can adjust the width of each band individually and monitor the stereo width using a Vectorscope and a correlation meter. The curves on the vectorscope are polar sample, polar level, and Lissajous.

Low End Focus

This is a low-end (20 – 300 Hz) processing plugin with a simple interface of a band selector and two sliders, and two algorithms (punchy and smooth). It’s great for isolating and processing your sub-bass, bass, and low mid frequencies and has a great collection of usable factory presets.

Master Rebalance

The Master rebalance plugin allows you to isolate the drums, vocals, or bass and boost it on your master. It’s unbelievable how smart the plugin is, with its precise isolation algorithm and boosting of the elements without any obvious artifacts.

Vintage Tape

Vintage Tape emulates the sound of a magnetic tape machine and brings that analog warmth and vintage character to your sounds. It’s a great plugin for mastering and adding to the vocals to make them smooth, sweet, and analog, as the harmonics it adds are musical and sound great!

You can adjust the tape speed between 7.5, 15, and 30, adjust input drive, bias, boost harmonics, and low and high emphasis.

Tonal balance curve

The tonal balance curve allows you to compare your mix’s spectrum and tonal balance with a general frequency balance of different genres like hip-hop/rap, pop, EDM, Jazz, Rock, etc. Based on that, you can reference your mixes and match their width, dynamics, and EQ, with supportive parameters like Stabilizer and Maximizer.

Stabilizer Module

The stabilizer is essentially an EQ plugin that shapes your frequency spectrum towards a reference or a target mix. Here also, you can select different genres. There are two modes: Shape and Cut, such that Shape will allow you to boost and cut frequencies, whereas Cut will allow you only to subtract frequencies.

Impact

The Impact module is a dynamic processor that allows you to control the microdynamics of a track, create interesting rhythmic movements, and enhance the track’s feel. It uses four bands, each of which you can control individually and add the required spice to your mix.

Audiolens

iZotope offers this plugin with the purchase of Ozone 10 Advanced, and it is an AI-run tool that compares your mix with reference genres and tracks by listening to them from an audio streaming platform and collects data based on that listening to give you suggestions and inferences on sonic characteristics, by which you can visualize, compare, and match your songs with other songs.

Compatibility:

The bundle requires a minimum of macOS Catalina (10.15.7) or Windows 10 operating system and is available in AAX, AU, and VST 3 plugin formats.

Related Reading:

19. Image-Line Gross Beat (Turntables, Stutters & More)

Gross Beat is a volume and pitch manipulation effect plugin by Image-Line.

Created as a native FL Studio plugin, Gross Beat has gained immense popularity in electronic music production because of its ease of use and functionality. It can achieve stutters, gate effects, and pitch modulation effects.

Key Features:

Pitch and volume manipulation

Gross Beat is a turntable emulator since it attempts to recreate classic effects created on a turntable while DJing. Scratches, tape stops, spin downs, and shuffling are all included as presets and are easy to recreate from scratch.

Stutters and gates

Gross Beat produces gate and stutter effects through the volume function in its simplest form. You can shape stutters on-beat by creating rectangles on the grid or turning the snap off and designing free-form stutters and volume shapes.

Live possibilities

This effect is a solid live performance tool. The volume and time processors have 36 slots which you can trigger with MIDI notes. In addition, each of these slots can hold different settings for time or volume envelopes, so you essentially get 36 different effects to play with laid across your keyboard.

Compatibility:

Gross Beat is available on Windows and macOS as an FL studio native plugin.

20. Xfer LFO Tool (Advanced Sidechain)

More Info & Download

The Xfer LFO device is a comprehensive tool that gives you a vast selection of signal shaping options.

This plugin is very well suited to low-frequency instruments such as synth bass. The user interface is quite intricate and might be intimidating for those without basic knowledge of LFO’s function.

Key Features:

Customizable LFO Editor

The LFO editor lets you draw in your volume automation onto an x-y grid mapping, which you then apply to your signal. The editor allows you to link their programmed automation to affect things like the volume level, stereo panning, or filter parameters.

Modulation Layering

The interface allows you to control up to 4 graphs at the same time. This is handy when your want to create different modulation patterns for the same signal. For example, you might want the volume to open up while the filter’s cutoff is being brought down.

Smooth Setting

You can use the Smooth parameter to soften the punchiness of any peaks in the volume automation. Volume ducking can either be enhanced or dulled with this setting, giving you better control of signal dynamics while processing.

MIDI-CC output routing

The LFO Tool comes with a midi out option. This feature converts any modulations that you have programmed and converts them into CC information. You can then route this information to an external digital or analog device like a synthesizer or sampler and affect its output accordingly.

Compatibility:

This plugin is available in VST or AU formats for Windows7 and above users and Mac OS 10.12 or later.

13 Best Free Plugins For Cubase 2025

NI Kontakt 7 Player (Sample Player)

KONTAKT PLAYER 7 is a plugin that can run Native Instruments’ sample-based instruments and any third-party products developed for the KONTAKT platform.

KONTAKT PLAYER aims to provide its users with various creative instruments and sounds. This version of KONTAKT, available for no cost, includes 50 instruments and a 500 MB sound library and gives users access to various additional instruments and libraries made by developers worldwide.

Key Features:

Outputs Section

The outputs panel emulates a classic mixing console layout and includes controls for routing and mixing. The Rack’s Instruments feed their output signals into this section, sending them to the audio interface or host program’s physical outputs.

On-Screen Keyboard

When a MIDI keyboard is unavailable, you can use the On-Screen Keyboard in KONTAKT PLAYER to play instruments with the mouse. When a key on the keyboard is depressed, it triggers a note event sent to the active Instrument.

Snapshots

Snapshots make it simple to try out different configurations of any KONTAKT PLAYER Instrument and store them for later recall. You can create your custom sound presets with Snapshots, then save them as .nksn files for usage in future projects, across machines, or to share with other users.

Rack Multi-Instrument

Whenever you’re working in KONTAKT, you’ll be in the Rack. Rack instruments can be seen and edited in both Multi and Performance views when in Multi-Instrument mode. Instrument Edit mode is included in the full version of KONTAKT, allowing you to modify a single instrument’s internal structures.

Compatibility:

This plugin is available formacOS 10.10 or higher (64-bit only)andWindows 10 or higher (64-bit only). It comes inVST/RTAS/AU/AAXformats and supports32 and 64 bit systems.

Cherry Audio Surrealistic MG-1 Plus (Moog-Inspired)

Great analog tones are available for free in this plugin.

All the funky sounds and expressive elements of the Moog Concertmate MG-1 synthesizer are present in Cherry Audio Surrealistic MG-1 Plus. This unique recreation delivers the best analog sounds with serious offerings, like tailored effects and controls, for free.

Key Features:

Modeling process

As with their paid plugins, Cherry Audio studied and analyzed the circuitry for an authentic rendition of the Moog Concertmate synth. The final result excels in good vibes about its sound, as the great aspects of the funky synth from the 1980s were preserved and honored in this freebie.

Presets

There are 130 presets in Surrealistic MG-1 Plus, which is more than enough to start exploring around. It can be crucial to explore these, as they can teach you more about the workings of a synth and help you get nice sounds in no time.

Ring modulation

The ring modulation segment was also present in the original Moog Concertmate synth, and one of the most distinctive aspects of it was the “bell tone” it provided. Thanks to Cherry Audio, that same effect was brilliantly translated into digital format.

Compatibility:

This plugin is available for mac OS 10.9 or higher and Windows 7 or higher, both 64-bit. It comes in VST, VST3, AAX, and AU plugin formats.

Ample Guitar M Lite II (Acoustic Guitar)

Ample Sound makes a bold move by delivering a free plugin with virtually no compromises. It is the Ample Guitar M Lite II plugin.

This plugin from the Chinese company Ample Sound is based on the Martin D-41 acoustic guitar, known for its rich sound. Beautiful inlays and the fingerboard make it a dream for many guitarists.

As with their other software, Ample Sound has taken care of deep sampling. The plugin includes Finger Instrument libraries to fit different needs and features rich firing noise, which has become more vivid and realistic. There are Sustain, Hammer-On & Pull-Off, Palm Mute, and Popping five articulations.

Key Features:

Technology

The plugin is equipped with Capo Logic technology, which provides intelligent play according to guitar rules. It also has Double Guitar, which means different samples at L & R channel. In addition, Ample Guitar M Lite II has Poly Legato, Slide Smoother, and Alternate Tuner.

Strummer

This feature will give you unusually realistic strum samples. In total, there are 14 strum notes with 28 different ways to play each chord. In addition, four humanization settings, strum SEQ with customized rhythm, and delicate presets with drag & drop support.

Tab Player

With the Tab Player, you can download and play several standard guitar tablature file formats. When used in a DAW, the Tab Player also lets you export tablature to an audio file. This feature supports all fingering, loops, chords, articulations, and other markers in the loaded tablature.

Compatibility:

The plugin is available forWindows 7 or higherandmacOS 10.9 or higher,both 64-bit only. It comes inVST2/3,AU, AAX formats, and as a standalone host.

Ample Bass P Lite II (Bass Guitar)

Don’t worry if you don’t have a budget. We’ve got some free plugins for you. The first is Ample Bass P Lite II from Ample Sound.

The Chinese company Ample Sound, from time to time, pleases its users with free products. For example, you can get a virtual instrument based on the Martin D-41 acoustic guitar. Ample Bass P Lite II is also on the list of free plugins.

This software is based on the Fender Precision Bass. More often than not, free plugins can’t surprise you with excellent sound quality. But let’s be honest with you – this one is perfect. At least you can safely try it before you buy similar virtual instruments.

Key Features:

Over 400 Bass Samples

In total, the plugin uses over four hundred bass guitar samples. It is pretty enough to provide many articulations. Namely, Hammer-Ons & Pull-Offs, Accent, and Sustain. Also, you will hear a rich fingering noise.

Implemented technologies

The creators have introduced the Auto Buzz system, Capo Logic, Customized Parameters Control, Poly Legato, and Slide Smoother technologies. You can also combine several articulations by pressing a few key switches at the same time.

Use Your Tabs

With the Tab Player, you can load and play guitar and bass tablature in the plugin. In addition, you can export the file from the Tab Player. This mode supports all necessary articulations as well.

Compatibility:

The plugin is available for Windows 7 or higher and macOS 10.9 or higher, both 64-bit only. It comes in VST2/3, AU, AAX formats, and as a standalone host.

Related Reading:

Top 20 Instrument VST Plugins For Musicians

Keolab Spicy Guitar (Classical Guitar)

Although this is an acoustic guitar synthesizer, there’s much fun in playing with this awesome plugin.

More serious users might prefer recorded samples over synthesizers, but this might be a good choice if you don’t fit this particular group. Keolab developed this software to bring realistic guitar parts into rich, natural, and lively sounds based on innovative technology.

Key Features:

Guitar character

Nine real guitars were used to capture the perfect wide range of a guitarist’s playing style, including major techniques and articulations. As this is based on full physical modeling of a guitar, characteristics such as body size and the string’s material can be altered in real-time.

Chord detection

Spicy Guitar also features a chord detection system that can instantly convert piano chords into guitar chords, automatically strumming them and facilitating the development of complex rhythm patterns.

Compatibility:

This library runs in macOSand Windows (64-bit only). It comes in VST and AU plugin formats.

Sampleson CollaB3 Tonewheel B3 Vintage Organ

As an encouraging gesture to promote and help with the Covid-19 quarantine, Sampleson collaborated with three other studios to deliver CollaB3, a free plugin that emulates a vintage tonewheel organ.

With a powerful team consisting of developers from Sampleson, Librewave, Studio 427, and Lalalaland Audio; it would be challenging not to see the final result become one of the best free organ VSTs there is.

The CollaB3 will surprise you with its versatility, timbre, and highly praised customizable settings with a complete set of parameters and straightforward controls.

Key Features:

Swiftness

Apart from the beautifully looking design, CollaB3 offers an extremely easy-to-use interface. The parameters and effects are brilliantly placed, so you don’t waste any time browsing through complex controls.

Parameters

The plugin by Sampleson lets you set high-quality parameters such as the Rotary, which can be turned off or sped up by one of the two-speed options. The interface also features a Leakage knob, a percussion segment, a chorus, and a reverb effect. All effects, while quite common, deliver good customization opportunities and sonic enrichment.

Compatibility:

This plugin is available forWindows 7 or higher 32-bit and 64-bitandMac OS 10.7 or higher 32-bit and 64-bit.It comes inVST2/3,AU, andAAXformats.

RDG AUDIO Free Piano 2 (Piano & Strings)

A hybrid piano and strings virtual instrument like this can be a handy tool.

Bringing a simple configuration, RDG Audio Free Piano 2 is as straightforward as possible: it features a solo grand piano sound and a hybrid formation with a looped strings section. You can alternate between these two modes, and the most direct controls are distributed along the main interface.

Key Features:

Sampled sections

The piano chosen to capture the sample files was an Asian Type D Cottage Piano, with four specific microphone positions to fully capture its sound profile. The strings were captured similarly, bearing a distinctive good quality in each audio file.

Many samples

What makes such a virtual instrument so precise in terms of sound quality is the quantity of sample audio files included: the more samples, the more definitionis present in every note played. The extensive capturing process in Free Piano 2 produced over 600 samples, covering the full length of the grand piano’s tonalities.

Sustain MIDI CC

The sustain pedal is one of the key elements in any piano sound due to the characteristic responsiveness every note suffers when this pedal is activated. In essence, every note has a higher sustain value when this pedal is pressed, and you can include that in the MIDI CC value 64.

Articulations

Aside from more than 400 articulations included, which can substantially increase the instrument’s authenticity, you also have three different velocity layers for each note and four round robin, which can make the overall virtual instrument sound more realistic.

Master controls

You can adjust the overall sound, even if the strings section is included, via three knobs on the right side of your interface. The “Tune” knob is responsible for detuning the notes, while the “Volume” sets the overall volume and “Pan” adjusts the stereo imaging of your instruments.

Envelope and filter

As simple as possible, the “Envelope” and “Filter” sections feature fewer configurations than other sections. The first one has only “Attack” and “Release” controls, while the latter offers “Reverb” and “Cutoff” knobs, with the additional selection of a high or low pass filter type.

Compatibility:

This plugin is available for macOS 10.14 or higher (64-bit only) and Windows 7 through 10 (64-bit only).It runs in VST3 and AU plugin formats.

MaxSynths DR-910 (Drum Machine)

As the name suggests, DR-910 is a Roland TR-909 drum machine emulation.

The plugin attempts to recreate the original unit’s sounds by emulating each sound section (kick, snare, tom, hi-hat, and cymbal) individually. The result is a delightfully close reproduction. Furthermore, it adds to the legacy by including effects to make mixing easier.

Key Features:

Mixing Effects

The DR-910 includes a reverb, compressor, and a Lo-Fi effect. Each channel has an individual send control for the reverb, whereas the compressor is tailored to work with drums. And the Lo-Fi effect includes three modes for convenience. Overall, they offer enough for in-the-box mixing.

Four Outputs

The plugin includes four outputs for external mixing. They come in handy in real-world uses. Not only that, you can assign one of the outputs for the reverb channel as well. So, you can process the wet reverb signal alone with EQs or other effect plugins to achieve cleaner mixes.

Compatibility:

The plugin is available for Windows 7 or higher 32-bit only. It comes in VST 2 format.

Hvoya Audio Ribs By Eugene Yakshin (Granular FX)

Despite being a free plugin, Hvoya Audio Ribs is very complex and offers you a huge amount of control.

The complexity of this plugin is both its advantage and disadvantage. You will have to spend some time familiarizing yourself with this plugin and learning how it functions. Still, once the learning is done, you will realize that this plugin is incredibly powerful and full of potential.

Ribs require MIDI input to fill up at least one of its 32 buffers. This is quite difficult for usage on some DAWs like Sonar One, Pro Tools, etc, where inputting MIDI notes is a bit more frustrating.

Key Features:

Highly versatile plugin where you can edit the sound design in great detail
It can be used as a synth as well as be used to generate glitch or scratch effects and textures
32 buffers that can be filled together or individually
MIDI parameters are automatable
Ribs offer on-spot information about what each control does to help you understand the plugin easier and faster. All you have to do is click on the “?” icon next to the logo and then hover every control to understand what it does
For further understanding, the developers of the Ribs plugin provide a comprehensive PDF manual that is very helpful

Compatibility:

Hvoya Audio Ribs By Eugene Yakshin works on Windows 7 or higher for PC and OS Catalina or higher for Mac. It comes in VST/AU formats and supports 32 and 64-bit devices.

TDR Nova (Dynamic EQ)

Nova is a handy toolbox with everything you need for dynamic processing.

Nova is a powerful parallel dynamic equalizer that you can use for transparent frequency dynamic processing in mixing and mastering situations. This plugin offers you a wide range of possibilities in both cases. In addition, it allows you to be as drastic as you need while keeping transparency with the dry/wet mix knob without adding artifacts or distortion.

If you were looking for a free mastering solution or want to get started with dynamic EQs and didn’t know what to get, Nova by Tokyo Dawn Records is a great option. This plugin gives you precise control over your signal and brings the possibility of using it as a multi-band compressor or a wideband compressor.

Besides all its features, it has a smooth user interface, and it’s super helpful if you’re at a beginner’s level and aren’t familiar with this type of tool. It explains itself and has helpers that will guide you through the plugin so that you adapt quickly and achieve results.

Key Features:

Automatic gain compensation:

Nova has a button called EQ gain that automatically makes up for all gain additions and reductions you apply with the EQ to prevent you from confusing louder with better.

Band individuality:

Compress each band by group or individually with separate settings for each band. Determine which parts of the spectrum will be affected by the compression.

Wideband compression:

Nova comes with a wideband aside from the four EQ bands and the two filters that you can add to emphasize or reduce the overall EQ curve or add compression to the entire spectrum. Additionally, you can combine this band with the others to enhance an entire mix or for bus processing.

Control over your compression:

Not only do all individual bands have their compressor, but also you can control every aspect of the processing and even limit each band separately or exclude them from being compressed. You can adjust the ratio, threshold, attack, and release to the frequency cuts and the wideband.

Compatibility:

Supports Windows XP SP2 or higher, supports macOS 10.9or higher, runs on 64 bit only, and comes in VST, AU, and AAX formats.

IK Multimedia – AmpliTube 5 CS (Amps, Cabs, Pedals & More)

The free version of the Amplitube 5 is the CS version. You get more than 400 models of gear available for you to test before actually buying it.

First,you get 41 different cabinets, amps, pedals, and effect racks to use the way you wantto record with it or just use it. These are 100% free. There already lies endless possibilities for your recording chain.

Key Features:

Cost-benefit

If you do the math for the amount of good gear that you get for free when downloading The Custom Shop version of Amplitube 5, you’ll see it is worth it with the possibility of upgrading to the full version only if you feel the need.Besides, it lets you play and experiment with every single paid option, you can’t record with it, but you cantry it out and see if it works for you.

New technologies

All the new tech involved in the full version of AmpliTube 5 is also present in the CS version. It includesDIM™, DSM™, and the new VIR™ from IK Multimedia. They deliver super-realistic, real-world simulations.

Interface re-modeled

The new interface that comes with the CS version of Amplitube is divided into three parts:Chain,where you organize to your taste the signal chain,Gear view,where the head of the amp is displayed, and where the general control knobs are displayed and finally,Gear Selectorwhere you choose each model of amp, cabinet and effect pedals.

Compatibility:

The AmpliTube 5 CS made by IK Multimedia is available forWindows 7 or later 64 bit, and macOS 10.10 or later 64 and. And it comes in a VST2, VST3, and AAX format.

Integraudio & Sixth Sample Deelay (Sound Design Delay)

A free delay, developed by Sixth Sample jointly with Integraudio and ready to be helpful in your next production.

Our last item in today’s list is slightly different from the rest, more like a bonus. Deelay is a delay plugin created in collaboration with Sixth Sample, with a very minimalistic interface that’s very easy to work around.

The most important controls are distributed on the screen, with a very helpful dB meter on both left and right sides to monitor your signal. Please don’t be hesitant to use it in the most diverse audio productions; it’s guaranteed it will sound good.

Key Features:

Diffusion

There are two knobs, “Diff Amt” and “Diff Size,” which control the “Diffusion” setting. Basically, it treats the delay’s echoes in a similar way to what a reverb would do, crafting the perfect ambiance in a very distinctive way.

Distortion

It features 11 types of distortion, including “saturation,” “asymmetrical,” “clip,” “tube,” “rectify,” “crackly,” “lightning,” “amp,” “bumpy,” “razor,” and “pixelated,” you can tweak them to find the perfect saturation in your effect – just like an analog unit would offer.

Modes

You can have five different delay modes with Deelay. Each can be toggled to invoke a specific characteristic, with options such as “normal,” “reverse forward,” “pure reversed,” “chaos,” and “reversed chaos.” The first three types are common among delay plugins, but the last two feature a new soundscape: the “chaos” modes change each echo’s pitch interval, which can be the perfect experimental tool for your track. The “reversed chaos” is equally unique and innovative.

Ducking

This setting is featured right at the center of the interface, with three knobs (“Duck Att,” “Duck,” and “Duck Rel”) that allows for full configuration. It essentially lowers the wet signal’s volume whenever the dry signal is playing in order not to present a “muddy” and heavy-loaded frequency spectrum.

Compatibility:

This plugin is available for macOS 10.9 or higher (64-bit only) and Windows 8.1 or higher (32 and 64-bit).It comes in VST3 and AU plugin formats.

Aegean Music Pitchproof (Harmonizer)