Best Vst Plugins For Eq
- Best Vst Plugins For Equine
- Best Vst Plugins For Reaper
- Best Vst Plugins For Equipment
- Best Vst Plugins For Cakewalk
- Best Vst Plugins For Rap
- Best Vst Plugin Eq
Every DAW comes with at least one EQ/Equalization plugin However, just having one might not cut it, especially since every EQ plugin offers different features. In this list I’m going to list the best 10 Free Equalization plugins which should make a great addition to your arsenal. Let’s get straight into it 1. TDR Nova Best 12 Free EQ VST/AU Plugins that Sound Great! For this reason, we picked 17 Best Free EQ VST Plugins, so you can choose your most favorite one and use it for mixing as well as for mastering. You may face several scenarios while mixing and mastering which may include the use of an equalizer, having a transparent display to analyze what you are adding or subtracting with the EQ, multiple EQ.
A case in point is the game-changing rise of dynamic and automatic EQ plugins in recent years, applying cuts and boosts in response to the volume level of the target frequency band, and taking us all one step closer to the controversial dream of AI-driven mixing, respectively. The best VST plugins 2020: the finest synth effects and instruments. 16 different EQ plugins. Today the market for VST eq plugins is saturated and prices have dropped a lot since a company could sell their SSL bundle for over $3000. The marked for new 5 band equalizers is practically gone. The number of DAW users is higher than ever but that also goes for the number of developers bursting out products. Here is a list of the top 10 best EQ VST & AU plugins 2018 to make your EQ shopping task easier. The list is drawn based on a rigorous research in the online audio communities and first hand experience. Factors such as effectiveness, popularity, and user friendliness were considered as selection criteria.
Article Content
There are plenty of options to choose from when it comes to software equalizers. Almost every plugin manufacturer in the business has at least one. With so many options it can be hard to figure out which ones to pick and why.
This little list is my favorite, go-to EQs, along with why I like them and how I use them. It’s not entirely comprehensive. I’m continually demoing new products and there are certainly some older ones that have fallen off my radar. That said, you will find at least one or two of these on just about every record I’ve mixed in the last few years.
1. FabFilter Pro-Q 3
Introduction to FabFilter Pro-Q 3
There are plenty of options to choose from when it comes to software equalizers. Almost every plugin manufacturer in the business has at least one. With so many options it can be hard to figure out which ones to pick and why. This little list is my favorite, go-to EQs, along with why I like them and
I would be amiss without mentioning my number one go-to: FabFilter Pro-Q. I’ve been using the Pro-Q series for years now. This EQ sets the bar for utility. It is very transparent and extremely versatile making it perfect for any general work on any source that needs enhancement or correction.
Mix Tips
808s: One of my favorite uses for the Pro-Q is to pump +20 to +30 dB of wideband top-end into an 808. I know that sounds utterly weird, but as I’ve pointed out in a few videos (below), the fun parts of the 808 are living above the fundamental tone. All that buzzy or grungy overtone that’s super buried ultimately amounts to the character of the 808 — but sometimes that stuff is really low. While adding 30 dB of anything sounds extreme, it’s really not if what you’re trying to push up is 30 to 60 dB lower than the fundamental tone.
Mixing 808: How to Enhance 808s in a Hip-Hop Mix
There are plenty of options to choose from when it comes to software equalizers. Almost every plugin manufacturer in the business has at least one. With so many options it can be hard to figure out which ones to pick and why. This little list is my favorite, go-to EQs, along with why I like them and
The Pro-Q 3 is a really nice step up from the Pro-Q 2 because it offers dynamic EQ. This means the amount of EQ reacts proportionately to the incoming signal level. This is very useful for sources that have highly fluctuating tones — vocals being the main culprit.
Vocals: For controlling the lower-mids of a vocal (that 200-600 Hz range where room tones and proximity build up) I like to use the FabFilter in dynamic mode. Sometimes only a static cut is needed, but more often than not, it’s hard to strike a balance between eliminating the mud and retaining the body. I’ll get as close as I can with static EQ, but I frequently finish the job with dynamic attenuation. This way I’m only cutting when there’s too much tonal build up.
FabFilter Pro-Q 3 [Plugin Review]
There are plenty of options to choose from when it comes to software equalizers. Almost every plugin manufacturer in the business has at least one. With so many options it can be hard to figure out which ones to pick and why. This little list is my favorite, go-to EQs, along with why I like them and
2. Slate Digital FG-S & FG-A
Sometimes we want transparency. Other times we something with a specific flavor. Slate Digital prides itself on doing analog emulations and making colorful sounding plugins. While it’s debatable how close the emulations may or may not be to the hardware units (especially since analog gear will sound a little different from unit to unit), what isn’t debatable is that these plugins sound great!
Mix Tips
Drum Kit: I come from a Pop and Hip-Hop background which primarily rely on drum samples for the percussion elements. Acoustic drums do not inherently have the punch and boldness as really good samples. In order to get that it can require some pretty dramatic EQ moves. For the snare, don’t be afraid to do narrow boosts on the FG-S in both the upper-mids and to the primary fundamental in the bass/low-mids. Conventional EQ wisdom goes “boost wide, cut narrow” but on a snare drum, narrow boosts, and/or sizable medium Q cuts to the spongey midrange can bring out the attitude.
The same is also somewhat true for kicks, although I find I like to do broader boosts to the top end of a kick and pretty wide cuts to the midrange if there’s a lot of undesirable shell tone. I highly recommend the FG-S for this because there’s something about the way the EQ effects the perceived attack of a drum that doesn’t exist in many other EQs. When it comes to close mic captures, don’t be afraid to go a little overboard with the EQ. In solo, it might sound weird but in the context of the rest of the drums and the mix, you will probably find yourself going a bit further to get the right impact.
Piano & Acoustic Guitar: The FG-A is perfect for melodic instruments like Piano or Acoustic Guitar. While the FG-S is punchy and aggressive, the FG-A is shinier and sweeter with broad bands. I like the high shelf set to 2.5 kHz or 5 kHz (depending on the piano) to bring out the right hand in a sparkly way. Pushing a little 100 Hz is great to give body to an acoustic guitar, and if too much woofy tone shows up, reigning back some 400 Hz usually does the trick.
Bonus Tip: These EQs pair nicely with the Slate channel emulations. You can make your own digital channel strip which has a cool sound and can just be plain fun to experiment with.
Introducing The FG-A Vintage American Equalizer
There are plenty of options to choose from when it comes to software equalizers. Almost every plugin manufacturer in the business has at least one. With so many options it can be hard to figure out which ones to pick and why. This little list is my favorite, go-to EQs, along with why I like them and
3. Sonible smart:EQ 2
Now I want to get into the less general purpose EQs and into the stuff that does something really cool. The Sonible EQ is not always needed, but what it does, nothing else does. It’s a secret weapon EQ that really stands on its own. The Smart EQ is a linear phase EQ that has a whole bunch of fixed corner points, as well as five sweepable corner points. The EQ has preset target tone curves (and you can make your own) and automatically adjusts your source signal to match your preset. In other words, it makes a source sound more like an ideal version of itself, and can then be further contoured with the sweepable points.
Mix Tip
Super Fixing: Now, for a very well recorded source this might not be necessary. But for some sources where the recording has all sorts of unwanted peaks and dips that would be extremely burdensome and difficult to fix manually — this EQ is a lifesaver. I had a mix earlier today where the vocal was recorded poorly. Doing the treatment with a conventional EQ would have been time-consuming, would have involved a lot of tail chasing, and probably wouldn’t have come out as well. Basically, this EQ saved my ass.
smart:EQ 2 by sonible – The intelligent equalizer plug-in
There are plenty of options to choose from when it comes to software equalizers. Almost every plugin manufacturer in the business has at least one. With so many options it can be hard to figure out which ones to pick and why. This little list is my favorite, go-to EQs, along with why I like them and
BONUS: proximity:EQ⁺ & entropy:EQ⁺
Two more Sonible EQ plugins to check out are proximity:EQ⁺ and entropy:EQ⁺. These are not EQs in the conventional sense at all. The Proximity EQ takes variable frequency bands and makes them appear either closer or further away by separating the “dry” part of the signal and “reverberant” part and adjusting the ratio between the two.
The Entropy EQ separates the signal as well, but does it by differentiating between harmonic (tones related to the fundamental pitches of the source) and non-harmonic (tones unrelated to fundamental pitch) sounds. In other words, you can effectively EQ down something like clipping distortion or EQ up something like the bow hairs of a cello.
It’s a very unique way to conceptualize “EQ” and is exceptionally useful when needed.
Introducing proximity:EQ⁺ – Plugin for ideal room acoustic by sonible
There are plenty of options to choose from when it comes to software equalizers. Almost every plugin manufacturer in the business has at least one. With so many options it can be hard to figure out which ones to pick and why. This little list is my favorite, go-to EQs, along with why I like them and
Introducing entropy:EQ⁺ – Creative postproduction plug in by sonible
There are plenty of options to choose from when it comes to software equalizers. Almost every plugin manufacturer in the business has at least one. With so many options it can be hard to figure out which ones to pick and why. This little list is my favorite, go-to EQs, along with why I like them and
4. Wavesfactory Spectre
While we’re talking funky and unique, I’ve been really digging the Wavesfactory Spectre EQ. It’s a bit of a twist on EQ in that it brings up tones using harmonic saturation rather than conventional phase manipulation. The EQ works in boost only, so it’s not really meant for contouring the frequency spectrum. Rather, it’s more for adding body and presence to a tone range, rather than simply quantity.
Mix Tip
Super Fixing: Spectre is exceptionally useful if a source sound is “thin” in a particular frequency range.
For example, we’ve all heard cheaply recorded vocals that are somehow muddy in the lower midrange, but when that mud is EQ’d out, the signal left behind feels empty or hollow. Spectre is perfect for putting energy right back into that otherwise thin capture.
Similarly, certain instruments just don’t naturally have a lot of presence in certain ranges.
Many pianos record dark. Spectre is great for adding upper-mid sparkle. Old cymbals also have this problem. They lack natural treble and end up sounding clanky or like tin cans. Spectre can bring some brilliance back in a way normal EQs can’t.
Spectre – Spectral Enhancer – Overview
There are plenty of options to choose from when it comes to software equalizers. Almost every plugin manufacturer in the business has at least one. With so many options it can be hard to figure out which ones to pick and why. This little list is my favorite, go-to EQs, along with why I like them and
Best Vst Plugins For Equine
5. Sound Radix SurferEQ 2
One of the most interesting EQs out there is the Sound Radix SurferEQ 2. This EQ identifies the fundamental pitch of an instrument. As the fundamental pitch changes with the note that’s being played, SurferEQ 2 gives the option to change a selected corner frequency relative to this shift. In other words, as the note moves, the frequency band you selected moves with it!
It’s a simple yet brilliant concept. Sometimes what we want to change is fixed … oh, there’s room build up at 500Hz — lets EQ that out. But sometimes it’s not … wow, this cello is very honky, so much wood tone from 700 to 1500Hz. Unfortunately, this honk is resonating relative to the note being bowed. Fortunately, there’s an EQ that moves relative to the note that we can use to control that.
Mix Tips
Strings: String instruments are notoriously dense, harmonically. Violins, violas, cellos and basses have pronounced overtones and not by accident. When you’re in a concert setting and the listener is 30 to 50 feet away from the string section (or further), these overtones help the instruments feel rich and alive. But when the microphone is six feet away (or less) the amount of tone getting into the mic can be just overwhelming.
While there are models of string instruments that are better for recording and mics that are better for recording them, we don’t always have these at our disposal. SurferEQ 2 is great for getting out the denser overtones (which move relative to the fundamental note being bowed) while allowing the sweeter tones to pop through.
Bass: SurferEQ 2 works particularly well on bass instruments. Bass instruments rely heavily on the primary fundamental and lower overtones to define their sound. SurferEQ 2 is perfect for dialing in the bass sound in the context of a record by raising or lowering any given overtone.
Introduction to Surfer EQ 2
There are plenty of options to choose from when it comes to software equalizers. Almost every plugin manufacturer in the business has at least one. With so many options it can be hard to figure out which ones to pick and why. This little list is my favorite, go-to EQs, along with why I like them and
Mixing with EQ Course
If you’d like to learn how to use EQ to take your mixes to the next level by manipulating tone, texture and balance, check out Mixing with EQ.
Mixing with EQ: Mix Training Course from Matthew Weiss
There are plenty of options to choose from when it comes to software equalizers. Almost every plugin manufacturer in the business has at least one. With so many options it can be hard to figure out which ones to pick and why. This little list is my favorite, go-to EQs, along with why I like them and
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16 different EQ plugins
Today the market for VSTeq plugins is saturated and prices have dropped a lot since a company could sell their SSL bundle for over $3000. The marked for new 5 band equalizers is practically gone.
The number of DAW users is higher than ever but that also goes for the number of developers bursting out products.
The value of music has fallen and so has the music production gear used to make it.
Emulating old analog hardware has been popular and is probably still selling.
This article is about software equalizers and we take a look at 16 of them grouped by following styles
- Solid State Logic
- SSL Native tools based on the famous large console from the late '80s and forward
- Neve
- The fat analog op amp sound from the '70s will always be modern
- Pultec
- An all-valve design with cut and boost on the same bands for different curves
- Modern
- Clean digital software rewriting the take on a user-friendly plugin with a good sound
SSL style
SSL like equalizers are equalizers emulating analog equalizers from the 80's console.
- SSL Native Channelstrip V6
- Metric Halo Channelstrip 3
- Waves 4000
- Native Instruments Solid Series
Neve style
A series of equalizers emulating some of the classic designs by Rupert Neve
- Scheps 73
- VEQ4
- Stillwell Audio 1973
Modern digital style
Modern digital equalizers developed with optimized GUI and multiple bands.
- Izotope Inc EQs
- SSL X-EQ
- Fabfilter eqs
Pultec style
An old analog Valve based design giving unique features and sound
- IK Multimedia EQP 1A
- Nomadfactory AS Pulse
the plugins
Modern eqs with no emulation
Moderne digital plugins that do not try to sound like any old gear has the highest versatility and best GUI options compared to the more or less faithful emulations. Companies like Izotope Inc and SSL have good modern equalizers with a user-friendly GUI.
Fabfilter Pro Q 2 and 3
This has become very popular for its interface and features. Clearly an inspiration for other developers.
- Multiband up to 24 bands
- Mouse scroll Wheel features
- Single-band listen mode
- New and clever GUI
Izoptope inc Neutron (version 2 and 3)
Izotopes extensive channel strips with multiple bands
The plugin is known for its new technology masking feature that connects instances in a network where you can see analysis from other instances as information.
Best Vst Plugins For Reaper
SSL X-EQ
SSL X-EQ and SSL X-EQ2 is a modern multiband plugin like the Fabfilters. High-quality processing with an SSL sound.
The new Version 2 has a unique band parameter pop-up controller where you easily control most band parameters.
SSL X-EQ 2 has a small but well laid out gui and icons pop-up
Cubase Frequency
Frequency is a good versatile equalizer plugin build into Cubase DAW from version 10 Professional.
This is actually all you need in Cubase
- 8 bands
- Stereo and MS
- Linear option
- Auto listen mode for isolating a band but not quite as elegant as others
- Frequency to note on the keyboard
Like a lot of other Steinberg interfaces it is a bit clumsy but the audio processing results are still good
Neve style eqs
This is a classic brand series defined by the selected fixed frequencies and the band widths
Waves VEQ4
Waves VEQ4 is a cpu lightweight plugin with 4 bands emulating old analog gear.
This plugin is suitable for a full mixer setup emulation an all channels analog rack.
Best Vst Plugins For Equipment
Waves Scheps 73
Scheps 73 is a plugin designed with Andrew Scheps. A high quality tool with distinct analog features emulating the original hardware.
A good emulation but a pretty cpu heavy plugin that might need track freeze if used on multi channels. Use it on the important channels.
Waves API 550B
The 550B plugin is a faithfull emulation of the old 500 format discrete 4 band hardware version by API. With overlapping frequencies the 4 bands is very versatile.
An old plugin but it still has a 550B sound and a low cpu usage/latency for a full 48- or 64 channel mixer setup.
Pultec style eqs
A series of emulated valve equalizers with a unique analog design with cut and boost on the same bands.
IK Multimedia EQP 1A
An emulation of a classic valve unit in a different design. It has boost and cut on the same bands the can form musical curves.
It works well for deep bass work. A good plugin for bass drum deep bumps.
Nomad Factory AS Pulse EQ
It sounds fine but the GUI is a little less readable compared to the IK EQP 1A.
SSL style eqs
The SSL is a series of great tools with a certain sound that can do it all
Best Vst Plugins For Cakewalk
SSL Native Channelstrip V6
SSL Channelstrip V6 is a great plugin that contains an emulation of the channelstrip from 4000 E and G series mixer sections. Sound close to the real console.
Metric Halo Channelstrip 3
An old but still good channelstrip with a SSL like sound with good performance. One of the most CPU efficient of the plugins mentioned here.
Waves SSL 4000
SSL 4000 e was probably the first SSL 4000 emulation done in software. A very cpu lightweight plugin but it has a little latency. The never CLA MixHub has even more of the SSL sound including preamp modeling.
Nomad Analog Studio Rack State EQ
A Nomad Factory version of an analog SSL E strip from the 80´s. The GUI is a bit small but it sounds good.
No VST3 support.
SSL 4000 Channelstrip E
An old plugin emulation of the SSL 4000 E and G. Very lightweight but also very old and overrun by others but if you already own this one, use it.
This tool has a bit of latency but very low cpu usage.
Native Instruments Solid EQ
This another bread and butter SSL design from Native Instruments. the GUI is a bit small on a large screen but it has the standard features and easy switch between e and g versions of the design. Zero-latency and a low CPU usage makes this a useful plugin for large projects.
CPU Usage
CPU usage and latency can sometimes be a factor in the process before final mixing. When composing a latency-free setup is much more playable than a setup with latency.
The following image is a screen dump with relative CPU usage comparing 16 equalizers and lower is better. 808 massacre vst plugin expansion.
CPU usage and latency metering from Reaper Daw. Equalizers.
# FX is the number of insert VST plugins in the channel. PDC is Plugin Delay Compensation.
It is good to have a few very CPU lightweight options for composing and other pre-final mixing tasks. According to the CPU usage meter in the image above the Fabfilter equalizer is amazingly low and makes this a no brainer.
When to use what
In a practical reality, most software eqs can solve most tasks but some are better and easier than others. Fixed frequency bands might help the rookies or give a certain character.
There are in fact very few situations where you need to buy a certain plugin.
Plugin selection strategies
Different plugin strategies to go for:
- Stay with the build-in DAWs equalizers
- All professional audio workstations are made with what you need for professional mixing
- Go for what you have
- Have at least one plugin in every category in the toolbox
- Ignore the analog emulation jungle and use one modern 'can do it all' plugin
- Whenever you are bored or stuck, buy a new plugin
- This is a popular but expensive and emotional strategy. Not exactly advisable but too much is never enough
Best Vst Plugins For Rap
Conclusion
There is not a plugin mentioned in this article that you should not use. All of them have their use. The newer products are of cause the best in audio quality but also tend to be more most CPU requiring some of the older emulation plugins are still useable.
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