Top 10 FREE Mixing & Mastering Plugins 2019
The never-ending quest for the best mixing and mastering plugins is back again, only this time we’re searching through the freebies. We scouted through many polls and forums to look for what the audio engineering community has to say about freeware mixing and mastering plugins. So here is our top 10 list of the best and brightest freeware mixing and mastering plugins in no particular order.
1 Youlean Loudness Meter 2 by Youlean
We make digital reverb and analog-inspired delay plugins for musicians, engineers and other audio artists. We're obsessed with creating powerful tools with simple interfaces. Our goal is to inspire you and help your work to flow. SwarPlug is a VST, Audio Units and AAX plugin that will work on most DAWs. It features an ever increasing number of instruments (over 80 so far), each with a large quantity of MIDI loops that you can audition and simply drag & drop on your tracks, to achieve something genuinely sounding in instants.
One of the most important aspects of proper mixing and mastering is monitoring. Both audible and visual. This is where Loudness Meter 2 by Youlean comes in to play. This is a freeware loudness metering plugin featuring four metering modes (LUFS, LRA, DR and true peak). It is a must-have visual tool for every producer and mixing engineer on a budget as it will help determine the proper amount of loudness without sacrificing the sound quality and dynamic range of the track. Compared to V1, it has a better-looking GUI which is resizable with reduced CPU usage and is more stable than the previous one.
2 Bitter Sweet V3 by FLUX
FLUX is a very well-known company with amazing high-quality plugins respected by many audio professionals. Bitter Sweet is their freeware audio sweetening tool. Basically, this is a tone and transient shaper plugin which can make your individual tracks go from biting hard to silky smooth. The UI is very simple to use and it features a large knob for controlling the amount of the desired effect.
By going to the sweet side you get very smooth transients and a silky tonal character, while going over to the bitter side you’re getting much more pronounced tonal characteristics and more aggressive transients. A must have for anyone working with percussive and rhythmic materials.
3 Stereo Buss by Minimal System Group (MSI)
We already talked about this plugin in a previous post about the best free VST plugins overall but we’re going to give it some more attention here again.
This is a Windows only plugin but even so it’s very special. Yes we know that there are many other free “mastering” buss compressor plugins out there, and sure they all give you that kind of final touch and glue to you mixes, but in all honesty MSI Stereo Buss does it better than most others plain and simple. For what it does and the fact that you’re getting it for free, it really is the best one out there at the moment.
4 SPAN by Voxengo
Voxengo are very well-known among the freeware VST users out there and they’re highly praised. Everyone needs a good plain simple spectrum analyzer for metering and in all honesty you really can’t beat Voxengo here. It is our favourite spectrum analyzer overall and it beats many analyzers out there that are paid-for.
You can control the ballistics and response of its graph which makes it flexible enough for a wide variety of tasks. You can even route multiple tracks into SPAN and compare their frequency content. It is a great addition to YOULEAN Loudness Meter 2. Everyone needs to have Voxengo SPAN in their collection.
5 Freeware Plugins by Brainworx
This is not an official collection but mainly our own pick of various freeware plugins by the amazingly talented people at Brainworx.
bx_solo is a powerful tool for working with M/S because it features the legendary M/S technology from their bx_control V2.
bx_subfilter is a subharmonic content processor. Basically it shapes your sub content and adds more oomph to your signal with body and punch. Highly recommended if you’re into EDM and trailer music production.
bx_cleansweep is an extremely powerful Hi/Lo-Pass filter using advanced Brainworx technology.
6 Wider by Polyverse Music
We’re re-visiting Wider for this list also as we have nothing but high praise for it. This is a simple freeware VST plugin that widens your stereo signal with a very unique ability to broaden the stereo width of the signal without causing phasing issues when played back in mono.
You can’t make it simpler than this because Wider features only one control parameter and that’s it. The slider affects the amount of stereo processing, but be careful when pushing it too far though because too much stereo widening can make your track sound as if it doesn’t exist in the same space with others in your mix. Treated carefully, this plugin is one of the best stereo wideners while keeping your mix compatible with any type of playback system.
7 Neutrino by iZotope
iZotope’s Neutron plugin bundle features a very unique technology and they scaled it down in order to present us with Neutrino, which is a freeware version with limited options. Even though it is limited compared to the full-blown Neutron, you can still achieve amazing results with it. Neutrino tames undesirable resonances caused by poor room acoustics, cheap gear, and heavy-handed processing. iZotope calls this effect “spectral shaping” and it can sound similar to gentle, low-ratio multiband compression.
The GUI is very simple to understand and use because it features only two knobs for controlling the effect and 4 buttons for selecting the sound source you are working with.
8 Limiter No.6 by VLADG/Sound
This is a rather cool and useful mastering plugin packed with features. Combined with the previously mentioned YOULEAN Metering and Voxengo SPAN, you get a free mastering power tool. Limiter No.6 features 5 separate modules mostly known as gain stages. A compressor followed by a peak limiter, high frequency limiter, clipper and the protection module.
The Protection module ensures that your output of the signal doesn’t go into clipping. Each module is controlled individually and you can turn it on and off separately. The plugin has a certain character when pushed hard but it produces a warm pleasing output. It’s a no brainer if you want to own one.
9 MFreeFX Bundle by MeldaProduction
MeldaProduction are well-known for some great plugins and they have earned their keep in many pro audio engineers’ plugin collections. This bundle contains 30 completely free plugins which span from bread and butter tools like compressors and EQs to some not so common effects like ring modulator and oscilloscope. If you’re starting out your path to becoming an audio engineer, or if you’re a student with no budget this is a must-have for you.
10 NOVA EQ by TDR
This is a rare sight to see when it comes to freeware plugins. NOVA EQ is a real Swiss army knife when it comes to fixing those problematic frequencies. It is very easy on the eye with its rather sleek looking GUI.
Each EQ band features a dedicated dynamics section which allows the EQ to cover a wide range of frequencies. The sound is very transparent.
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What are your favourite free mixing and mastering plugins?
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If you're using third-party plug-ins, try any of these recommendations to fix your issue depending on what you're experiencing:
- If you can open Logic Pro or MainStage, but you're having issues with your project or concert, try bypassing plug-ins.
- If you can't open Logic Pro or MainStage, try removing plug-ins.
- If a recently-installed plug-in isn't available in Logic Pro or MainStage, try the following in the order listed until you can find the plug-in:
Bypass Audio Units plug-ins
If you're having an issue in a particular Logic Pro project or MainStage concert that uses third-party plug-ins, bypass each third-party plug-in in the project one-by-one, testing the project after you bypass each plug-in.
You can bypass plug-ins several different ways:
- Place the pointer over the plug-in slot in a channel strip, then click the Bypass button so the slot dims.
- Option-click the plug-in slot so the slot dims.
- In the plug-in window, click the Bypass button so the slot dims.
If bypassing a plug-in fixes your issue, check with the manufacturer to see if the plug-in is compatible with your version of macOS, and for possible updates.
Remove Audio Units plug-ins
If you can’t open Logic Pro or MainStage, try manually removing plug-ins.
- Find the plug-in file on your Mac.
- If you suspect a particular plug-in, locate the file for the plug-in in the folder, then drag the file to the Desktop.
- Try to reopen the app.
If you still can't open Logic Pro or MainStage:
- Create a new folder on the Desktop.
- Move all the plug-in files that appear in their installation locations to the new folder.
- Try to open Logic Pro or MainStage.
- If you can open the app, replace each plug-in file to its original location one-by-one. Quit and reopen the app after you replace each plug-in file. If you can't open the app after replacing a particular plug-in file, that plug-in might be corrupted or incompatible. Try reinstalling the disabled plug-in or check with the manufacturer for an update.
Restart your Mac
If your Mac is running macOS High Sierra or later and you recently installed a plug-in that isn't available in Logic Pro or MainStage, restart your Mac. Before you restart your Mac, confirm that the plug-in is 64-bit compatible. 32-bit plug-ins aren't compatible with Logic Pro or MainStage.
- Choose Apple menu > Restart.
- Open Logic Pro or MainStage.
- Click an Audio Effect, Instrument, or MIDI Effect slot to see if the plug-in is available in the pop-up menu. If the plug-in still isn't available, rescan the plug-in.
Confirm that the plug-in is installed
If a recently-installed plug-in still isn't available after restarting your Mac, confirm that the plug-in is installed:
- Choose Logic Pro > Preferences > Plug-in Manager, or MainStage > Preferences > Plug-in Manager.
- In the Plug-in Manager, locate the plug-in. To filter the list by manufacturer, click the manufacturer's name in the left column.
- If the plug-in doesn't appear in the Plug-In Manager, find the plug-in file.
If 'not authorized' appears in the Compatibility column for the plug-in, make sure the plug-in is properly authorized as documented by the manufacturer. - Reinstall the plug-in, then restart the computer.
- If the plug-in still isn't available, check with the manufacturer to see if the plug-in is compatible with your version of macOS, and for possible updates.
Rescan a plug-in
If the recently-installed plug-in is installed, use the Plug-in Manager to rescan the plug-in.
- Choose Logic Pro > Preferences > Plug-In Manager, or MainStage > Preferences > Plug-In Manager.
- In the plug-in Manager, locate the plug-in you want to check. To filter by manufacturer, click manufacturer's name in the left column.
- If 'failed validation' appears in the Compatibility column for the plug-in, select the plug-in in the list, then click Reset & Rescan Selection.
If 'not authorized' appears in the Compatibility column for the plug-in, make sure the plug-in is properly authorized as documented by the manufacturer. Then rescan the plug-in. - If the plug-in fails validation again, check with the manufacturer to see if the plug-in is compatible with your version of macOS, and for possible updates.
Logic Vst Plugins Free
Rescan all plug-ins
To automatically rescan all installed plug-ins, remove the Audio Unit cache file.
Logic Pro Vst Plugin
- In the Finder, press Option and choose Go > Library.
- In the Finder window, go to Library/Caches/AudioUnitCache.
- Move the files from AudioUnitCache folder to the Desktop.
- Restart the computer, then open Logic Pro or MainStage. All installed Audio Units plug-ins will be rescanned.