I always wonder if people are recycling old lists, especially when they suggest things like Universal Audio's 1176 Classic Limiter Collection "requires a UA processor", when we all know they have had a native version out now for the entirety of 2023!
Some good plug ins here. Would have been nice to have heard some other genres particularly since the vocals aren’t particularly dynamic and the drums are programmed. Let’s face it, if they’re programmed then they’re already consistent transients that can be balanced by simply EQing, saturating and getting levels on the individual tracks.
I’ll give my list 20.bettermaker bus compressor 19. SSL transformer 18. Waves BB tubes 17.AMEK 9099 16.Weiss Deesser 15. SPL IRON 14.UAD AVALON VT-737SP/KAZROG VT 747SP (both sound dumb good) 13. Eventide split Eq 12. Kirchhoff Eq 11. Eioss Air Eq (the mid range king) 10. Soothe 2 9. NI RAUM (outside of seventh heaven RAUM is incredible and it’s FREE ) 8. Seventh Heaven 7 UAD LA-2 + LA2A (use it on instruments like strings,pads,leads or bus groups NOT JUST VOX) 6.Sonox Oxford limiter /INFLATOR 5.Elysia Alpha compressor 4.Master plan 3. Weiss DS-1 MK 3 2.THE God Partical 1. Tone projects Michelangelo
I'm also going to give a shout-out to Metric A/B. Maybe doesn't qualify here as it's not really used for processing audio but it's one of the most useful plug-ins I've ever bought, not sure if there's anything else quite like it out there. It's always on my master bus now.
They do! I think it's one guy that makes them (could be wrong) but I'm always super impressed by what they release, Elephant being a personal favorite.
The 1176 UADx doesn't require a UA Processor and, to my knowledge, there is no other 1176 that requires a UA processor? In any case, I have both UADx 1176 and Arturia and they are both very nice.
@@nectariosm Now, today, that is correct. For a long time, that was not correct. That part of the video clearly was addressing the many people who still kinda feel that way about that plugin.
@@IsHeHighI'm sure you've realized the video was also released today. Much like the sun has risen and will most definitely set as well. In places it already has, in fact.
This was fun. Just wanted to add that Pulsar makes some of the best compressors and EQs in the game, with the definitive 8200. Total game changer. Gullfoss is nice too, even if I find myself wondering what I’m actually using it for. Couple of others that I couldn’t live without: Kazrog’s range, Wavesfactory (especially Spectre and Trackspacer), Softube 1973 and Tape, Overloud’s Dopamine, and some of the Plugin Alliance stuff (Noveltech, Lindell De-Esser, SPL, Brainworx etc). Cytomic’s Glue is also surely a classic at this point.
I’ve been pushing Pulsar for over a year now. Everyone is like “who”? I use almost all of their plug-ins on every session. The 1178 is just phenomenal. Especially for parallel compressing.
Thanks for the gems! Acustica Audio Celestial is currently not available on their page, would've been interesting to try, any alternatives to that one?
Softube Weiss EQ1 - Best Dynamic EQ, transparent. Top Softube Weiss DS1-MK3 = no comment Acustica Audio Ash - "THE" Clipper Relab Development - Maselec MEA-2. They did a real good job Acustica Audio - Ivory - Ivory limiter is amazing Pulsar - MU CradleAudio - The God particle (just check and test)
@@Rio-uv1gs "no comment", for "AMAZING" and doesn't need a comment because it's more than a "must have". Sorry I'm french, "no comment" in french is use when you don't need to explain something. Sorry. Softube Weiss Complete Collection is the best Mastering Suite
Hey there, big fan of your work guys but I'd like to give some feedback. If you can change the order of the before and after so that the dry signal (before) comes first before the the wet signal. It would make a difference a lot of difference in noticing the differences. Also, exaggerating the parameters a bit so that they are noticed on most playback devices because I rarely have my monitors on me when watching your videos.
The UAD 1176 no longer requires the hardware mate. I just copped it for £16.50 ($19.99) via Sweetwater. I'd also argue that you should've put Inflator in place of the Sonnox Limiter, as this is basically what Inflator does.
Can't argue with the list. Most of these I don't have, but that's OK. I've got a Soundtoys 5.4 where I could get saturation, echo, other effects. Right now I'm using the SuperPlate. Sorry I just got the bundle a week ago. Basic Melda compressor for sidechain ducking, their MDynamicEQ as well Pulsar Audio 1178, Smasher, Mu compressors then their Massive and W495 EQ UAD LA-2A Relab LX480 V4 dual engine Softube saturation knob LVC Clipped-MAX and Limited-MAX TRD Nova Techivation T-De-Esser and T-Puncher Klanghelm Vu meters, SDRR, MJUC, TENS jr YouLean meter Antares Choir free and 2 month demo of Auto Tune bundle A few Soundspot plug-ins I'm not using No real order but ones I've got that I typically use often.
@@sageaudio cool :) what I like about new Pro-R 2 is ability to load impulse responses, and generate reverb curves/parameters from them - it's interesting approach with interesting results
The Inflator is not the same as the Enhance feature in the Oxford Limiter, although the effects might be considered similar. In simple terms, the Inflator is a special kind of distortion generator which has no dynamic activity over time. It's a static process. It gives the impression of loudness by providing the harmonic cues we associate with loud and stressed sounds, increasing the harmonic density of the material in a way that is sympathetic to the ear. The Oxford Limiter's Enhance function is a special kind of 'dynamic' process that does not add distortion to steady state signals. It works over time, program history, peak and average levels and left/right stereo differences to limit the signal and squash peak events, while providing the listener with the impression that the peaks are still there. It can sympathetically remove peak events so that you can provide more transparent limiting, or make the program even louder without causing sample value overs. Hope this helps!
Most of the differences your trying to suggest are nearly imperceptible due to the order of on/off and the length of time they are played, as well as not using the same exact clip between the 2 examples. Half the time you turn a plugin on or off is when a beat drops and makes it difficult to tell what if anything changed. You also seem to be randomizing the order as some examples have the plugin ON first and other examples have the plugin OFF first. Would increase the watchability of your content greatly to fix those things.
Everyone will always disagree with 'best of lists' of any kind because everyone has their own workflow (mine is mainly UAD) but I still appreciate the effort!
Interesting video. Enjoyed it. The only real criticism I have is the A/B portion for each should have been a bit longer or A/B twice for each plug in. Other than that, good video.
I listened to this video on my phone(I know I know…) but that satin plug in gave some serious body to the song. Wow. Didn’t even know that existed. Gonna have to check it out now
saturn is my all time favourite too its absurd how much you can do with it and i still feel like i find out new stuff. like i put an lfo on the cross over and got a pitch flutter effect or the breakdown to just detune is fun or using it as a snare gate
@@Lokkodog definitely you can add bands to dial it in try out linear phase to see if it makes a difference. i have the high quality on good at minimum imo. theres some cool mastering presets to try. remember the levels before it does matter
Ok, it's been a minute since I've commented. Whelp, my predictions were accurate, you guys hit 170K when a few years back I was like, ya'll will be at 100K by the end of the year.. THE INFO IS OUTSTANDING........ Anyway, I am so glad you didn't use a lot of UA, Slate and other crazy expensive plugins in your top 20.. Thank you so much.. I had to come back guys.. This channel is WAY TOO VALUABLE not to understand how audio and frequencies work together.. YES SUHHH!!! IM BACK!!! Thanks Sage.. I like that Arturia NEve pre 73, that thing is amazing...
Interesting list, thanks for this take on the topic. The one from your list I would include in mine would be Satin, completely agree that this is the best tape emulation, still to this day. IK tape machine collection being a close second. One I very much disagree with, and I don't think should be ANYWHERE top 20 plugin list is Arturia Comp Fet-76. Testing it against hardware, it didn't even come close, and there are much better options out there. The main problem with the Arturia is that per default it aggresively rolls off all highs starting around 5k. So both high mids and highs. You can test this with Bertom. The hardware actually has quite a bit of excitment and openess up there, which seperates it from many plugin options...at the same gain reduction there is an openess in the mids and highs with the hardware, but the Arturia Comp Fet-76 doubles down on this classic plugin problem, making it worse than even other plugins. We're talking a full 3 dB cut in the highs just by inserting it, and there is no way to remedy it within Comp Fet-76, as its "Band EQ" is simply a detection feeder, not a normal eq. They should really add an option to have a more flat response instead of robbing the source of all the mids and highs even before compression. I own the plugin but never found a single source where it was useful due to this issue. So many better alternatives.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and your list! I'll have to check that out about the Arturia one - I mean I definitely trust what you're saying here, but want to see what else it might be doing. I distorted a kick with the original 1176, then compared the same signal to Arturia's and really liked what Arturia did! But maybe that's why I didn't notice a big change in the highs. Thanks again!
@@sageaudio Exactly...on a source like that it might work, although if I were you I would look to nebula tech for things like kick. But the rolling off highs per default (or boosting all the low mids and lows if you will) is a dirty trick some manufactures use to try to trick the listener into thinking the vst has low end retention through compression like the hardware does. The Lindell api bus compressor does the same. In reality you might as well just take a vanilla stock vst and boost the lows before going into it, as we're talking about a static low + low mids boost. That's not how you emulate analog well. As you know, the beauty of analog compressors is their ability to retain the low and high end THROUGH the compression. Not via static boosts. That means that even with considerable compression happening they sound more alive.
I like that one! Was also impressed with their infini-strip plugin. I'd like to see Vintage Warmer updated though - still sounds great, but I think they could improve it a little
@@sageaudio Infinistrip is amazing. Probably my #1 used plug-in at the moment. And zero latency! I actually like the simplicity of Vintage Warmer (and PSP plug-ins generally), as they tend to have a philosophy of doing one or a few things really well rather than trying to be all things to all people and I like that. I think their EQs are fantastic too and wildly underrated.
I don't mind the AI part too much - I think AI has a lot of promise for audio, so it's cool they implement it. I guess I'm just not the biggest fan of the sound and functions. Everything feels simplified and scaled back. Then they change/update it too often, which is frustrating, since I know they could update less and include more functions with each version.
2:40 UA 1176 no longer requires a UAD processor. That being said, the interface isn't nearly as good as Arturia's. It's actually quite bad. But the sound is great!
I hate Arturia's interface. That out of focus background is so unnecessary and takes up space. The whole Arturia's plugins look a bit blurred to me. Also, I know it has more functions than UAD's, but UA 1176 sounds better to me. Especially REV A. (I own both, also purple, softube and Waves)
@@JuanJacinto I have the 3 pack with original, LN, and AE. I think they all sound good. I haven't tried any others. I just wanted authenticity without my CPU exploding, so I'm happy to continually hear others say UAD sounds -among- the best.
For me at least its gotta be Oxford Drum Gate, Roughrider 3, Ruina, Rockrack V3, SurgeXT FX, Plamen, SSL Fusion, Krush, Gsat+, Pyros, Pre-X7, Slate Fresh Air and TDR Nova. Also just like most the stuff they make, CHANNEV, Konsol, Kolin, Frank, and FETish by Analog Obsessions are some of the best and most accurate free mixing tools I've ever used. These plugins are some of my most used bread and butters besides maybe UADx's 1176, LA2A and Verve Analog Machines if the tracks got vocals and stringed instruments :P Everything else Ill just use Stock Ableton plugins for.
Besides the obvious, like FabFilter, Kirchhoff, 7-th Heaven, I’d pay attention to Valhalla VintageVerb, SoundToys Super Plate, SSL X-Comp, Black Box HG-2, all bx_consoles, Slate FG-X2 - they are just amazing and absolutely necessary in my workflow.
dont bother with this geezer, there are plugins like El Rey, UAD, Softube tube tech and more he missed., but thats because there are so many but..why some of this trash lol!
Thank you for your list. I've never tried Voxengo Elephant. I leave limiter duties to Slate Digital's FG-X 2. Although it requires the hardware component headphones I would add Slate VSX since it allows you to churn out mixes you can trust. I use STL ControlHub which helps me arrive at what I imagine in my head quickly. I also use the Kirchoff EQ on every mix. Space Control by Acustica Audio takes care of frequency dependent imaging and more. Reverb wise Bob Clearmountain's Spaces, Verbsuite and UADs reverbs .. I can't choose 1. I remember when Satin came out I tried it on some material and compared it to Slate's Tape and Softube's Tape. I uninstalled it quickly as it could not give me what I wanted. The only other tape machines I use are the UAD ones and the emulations inside STL Controlhub. SPLs PQ on every mix as well
I was most surprised by the Voxengo Limiter. I've seen it but never considered it. I'm actually very surprised there are no Sonible plugins on this list. I use Smart:Comp on every mix to sidechain duck any masked frequencies. If I want the vocals to stick out more than the guitars or synths, I slap it on and in 20 seconds goal accomplished. I also use Oxford Inflator on almost everything. One thing is for sure, we are not at a loss for good options these days.
Surprised you didn't take in account any modulation plug-in. For me Valhalla Reverbs are a go-to can't live without them. Kotelnikov mastering compressor is great, i use it as regular compressor in almost anything.
Some of the plugins are compared not being in the same level.. far from it. You can't determine which is better in that way. There's even a button on the Pro-L2 that says 1:1 so you can listen to the effect at the same level of the input.
Wow! The "Elephant" in the room... I didn't even have that one on my radar... For me, I would have probably put the Avalon 747 from Kazrog on the list and instead of the Saturn the Spectre from Wavesfactory...
Sage has forgotten: Auburn Sounds LENS.... Oversampled Pancz.... Acustica Audio Tiger MU....JAM....(and SALT for some users).... ,,,and now a modern legend: Sound Theory new Kraftur....best loudness maximizer-clipper-saturator hybrid!
Missing: - Any channel strip! People have been using SSL, Softube, PA strips and going back so long. - UAD plugins (Especially Studer, LA-2A, 1176 - all available natively), Arturia over UAD's 1176? - SOUNDTOYS! Used by millions. Yet UVI Shade makes it to number 8? - Lexicon Native (Harrison), Eventide and Valhalla reverbs way more popular than Liquidsonics Seventh Heaven at quality or price. Eventide's have been around the longest and sound great. - McDSP - used by many for over a decade - Kontakt! - Acoustica plugins like Gold, Magenta and Pink go way back. Celestial was free when it came out. - SSL G Bus compressor (Waves or UAD). For a plugins of all time list, this seemed to ignore so much history.
They make awesome plugins, especially for the price point! I always recommend them as an affordable alternative to FabFilter, but still think their plugins are surpassed by other developers.
0:40 Chandler Limiter
1:15 Ozone Image
1:56 Kirchoff EQ
2:34 Comp Fet76
3:11 P440
3:53 Weiss Deess
4:28 Presswerk
5:21 Pro Q3
6:03 Pro L2
6:38 Celestial
7:13 Oxford Limiter
7:46 GullFoss Master
8:32 Shade
9:21 Pro C2
10:02 Satin
10:52 Seventh Heaven
11:30 Soothe 2
12:15 Newfangled elevate
13:02 Elephant
13:45 Saturn 2
He's sponsored snm....
me ayuda como nota mental, al que le sirva pues bien @@twinny619
🎉🎉🎉@@twinny619
I always wonder if people are recycling old lists, especially when they suggest things like Universal Audio's 1176 Classic Limiter Collection "requires a UA processor", when we all know they have had a native version out now for the entirety of 2023!
Some good plug ins here. Would have been nice to have heard some other genres particularly since the vocals aren’t particularly dynamic and the drums are programmed. Let’s face it, if they’re programmed then they’re already consistent transients that can be balanced by simply EQing, saturating and getting levels on the individual tracks.
I’ll give my list
20.bettermaker bus compressor
19. SSL transformer
18. Waves BB tubes
17.AMEK 9099
16.Weiss Deesser
15. SPL IRON
14.UAD AVALON VT-737SP/KAZROG VT 747SP (both sound dumb good)
13. Eventide split Eq
12. Kirchhoff Eq
11. Eioss Air Eq (the mid range king)
10. Soothe 2
9. NI RAUM (outside of seventh heaven RAUM is incredible and it’s FREE )
8. Seventh Heaven
7 UAD LA-2 + LA2A (use it on instruments like strings,pads,leads or bus groups NOT JUST VOX)
6.Sonox Oxford limiter /INFLATOR
5.Elysia Alpha compressor
4.Master plan
3. Weiss DS-1 MK 3
2.THE God Partical
1. Tone projects Michelangelo
I'm also going to give a shout-out to Metric A/B. Maybe doesn't qualify here as it's not really used for processing audio but it's one of the most useful plug-ins I've ever bought, not sure if there's anything else quite like it out there. It's always on my master bus now.
I have metric A/B but sometimes wish I’d gone for Reference by Mastering The Mix instead
Voxengo Elephant totally deserved the shoutout! they got so many other great plugins too
They do! I think it's one guy that makes them (could be wrong) but I'm always super impressed by what they release, Elephant being a personal favorite.
The 1176 UADx doesn't require a UA Processor and, to my knowledge, there is no other 1176 that requires a UA processor? In any case, I have both UADx 1176 and Arturia and they are both very nice.
Lots of them have, and do, require a dedicated processor.
@@IsHeHigh the UADx 1176 Limiter Collection is UAD's native plug in. It does not require UAD's SHARC processors.
@@nectariosm Now, today, that is correct. For a long time, that was not correct. That part of the video clearly was addressing the many people who still kinda feel that way about that plugin.
It used to require UA hardware. All UA plugins used to require UA hardware at one point. Which has changed since UA Spark.
@@IsHeHighI'm sure you've realized the video was also released today. Much like the sun has risen and will most definitely set as well. In places it already has, in fact.
This was fun. Just wanted to add that Pulsar makes some of the best compressors and EQs in the game, with the definitive 8200. Total game changer. Gullfoss is nice too, even if I find myself wondering what I’m actually using it for. Couple of others that I couldn’t live without: Kazrog’s range, Wavesfactory (especially Spectre and Trackspacer), Softube 1973 and Tape, Overloud’s Dopamine, and some of the Plugin Alliance stuff (Noveltech, Lindell De-Esser, SPL, Brainworx etc). Cytomic’s Glue is also surely a classic at this point.
I’ve been pushing Pulsar for over a year now. Everyone is like “who”? I use almost all of their plug-ins on every session. The 1178 is just phenomenal. Especially for parallel compressing.
Thanks for the gems!
Acustica Audio Celestial is currently not available on their page, would've been interesting to try, any alternatives to that one?
Softube Weiss EQ1 - Best Dynamic EQ, transparent. Top
Softube Weiss DS1-MK3 = no comment
Acustica Audio Ash - "THE" Clipper
Relab Development - Maselec MEA-2. They did a real good job
Acustica Audio - Ivory - Ivory limiter is amazing
Pulsar - MU
CradleAudio - The God particle (just check and test)
+1 Softube Weiss EQ1
the EQ1 is niiiiiiiice, but the q632 edges the EQ1 out a tad.
Is the Acustica AUdio Ivory better than Sonbile's smart:Limit and A.O.M's Invisible Limiter Gen2 or Gen3????
Why no comment on DS1-MK3? Is trash or under whelming?
@@Rio-uv1gs "no comment", for "AMAZING" and doesn't need a comment because it's more than a "must have". Sorry I'm french, "no comment" in french is use when you don't need to explain something. Sorry. Softube Weiss Complete Collection is the best Mastering Suite
Hey there, big fan of your work guys but I'd like to give some feedback.
If you can change the order of the before and after so that the dry signal (before) comes first before the the wet signal. It would make a difference a lot of difference in noticing the differences. Also, exaggerating the parameters a bit so that they are noticed on most playback devices because I rarely have my monitors on me when watching your videos.
The UAD 1176 no longer requires the hardware mate. I just copped it for £16.50 ($19.99) via Sweetwater. I'd also argue that you should've put Inflator in place of the Sonnox Limiter, as this is basically what Inflator does.
As vst/AU?
@@patkelly8309Yeah, the UAD 1176 plugins are now native, so VST(3)/AU/AAX
@@patkelly8309 yep.
@@patkelly8309yes
@@patkelly8309 Yeah, they've been native for a bit now.
Is the enhance on Oxford Limiter similar to the curve on Inflator? Seems like it does similar things.
Im pretty sure the DSP algo on inflator uses wave shaping..... Sort of a clipper , but way more functionality.
The curve control on Inflator crossfades between two different wave shaper "shapes". I don't know about the other.
Soundspot and Tokyo Dawn Plugins are probably some of my favorites, the TDR Nova was what inspired the features in the Fabfilter Pro Q3
TDR plugins are so underrated indeed! ;)
Almost put Limiter No. 6 on the list! TDR is awesome
Could we get your vocal chain for these VOs?
In no rational world will you ever convince someone that any Pulsar Modular plugin are worth their price tag
Their plugins are premium but the pricing is really crazy yeah
I just can’t agree with this
Never even heard of that company till today lol. They offer a demo I highly doubt it will make me pull out my wallet.
I mean I've spent good money on Acustica. Why not Pulsar? The eq is amazing.
@@BrofUJu acustica also ridiculously overpriced most of the time
Can't argue with the list. Most of these I don't have, but that's OK.
I've got a Soundtoys 5.4 where I could get saturation, echo, other effects. Right now I'm using the SuperPlate. Sorry I just got the bundle a week ago.
Basic Melda compressor for sidechain ducking, their MDynamicEQ as well
Pulsar Audio 1178, Smasher, Mu compressors then their Massive and W495 EQ
UAD LA-2A
Relab LX480 V4 dual engine
Softube saturation knob
LVC Clipped-MAX and Limited-MAX
TRD Nova
Techivation T-De-Esser and T-Puncher
Klanghelm Vu meters, SDRR, MJUC, TENS jr
YouLean meter
Antares Choir free and 2 month demo of Auto Tune bundle
A few Soundspot plug-ins I'm not using
No real order but ones I've got that I typically use often.
Great review! This really helps. Thanks so much!
tbh the stock plugins in your daw is enough to make a song hit the charts
Is there any plugin that works the same exact way as Eventide’s precision timeline plugin? Really don’t want to spend $100 for a plugin like that
since you did put Saturn 2 first, I wonder what you think about Volcano 3, Timeless 3 and Pro-R 2 ?
I like those! But after using them some, I don't find myself coming back too often. Pro-R is a great plugin though
@@sageaudio cool :) what I like about new Pro-R 2 is ability to load impulse responses, and generate reverb curves/parameters from them - it's interesting approach with interesting results
Gotta have mv2, rvox, and klanghelm mjuc.
Is the enhance function on the Sonnox limiter the same as their Inflator or different? Thanks
The Inflator is not the same as the Enhance feature in the Oxford Limiter, although the effects might be considered similar. In simple terms, the Inflator is a special kind of distortion generator which has no dynamic activity over time. It's a static process. It gives the impression of loudness by providing the harmonic cues we associate with loud and stressed sounds, increasing the harmonic density of the material in a way that is sympathetic to the ear.
The Oxford Limiter's Enhance function is a special kind of 'dynamic' process that does not add distortion to steady state signals. It works over time, program history, peak and average levels and left/right stereo differences to limit the signal and squash peak events, while providing the listener with the impression that the peaks are still there. It can sympathetically remove peak events so that you can provide more transparent limiting, or make the program even louder without causing sample value overs.
Hope this helps!
@@sageaudio Great, thanks for taking the time to explain this.
You're very welcome!
you should totally do comparisons from off to on instead of on to off, it really helps noticing changes.
Most of the differences your trying to suggest are nearly imperceptible due to the order of on/off and the length of time they are played, as well as not using the same exact clip between the 2 examples. Half the time you turn a plugin on or off is when a beat drops and makes it difficult to tell what if anything changed. You also seem to be randomizing the order as some examples have the plugin ON first and other examples have the plugin OFF first. Would increase the watchability of your content greatly to fix those things.
Everyone will always disagree with 'best of lists' of any kind because everyone has their own workflow (mine is mainly UAD) but I still appreciate the effort!
Interesting video. Enjoyed it. The only real criticism I have is the A/B portion for each should have been a bit longer or A/B twice for each plug in. Other than that, good video.
Can you show them on the MP Controller which is a dedicated plugin controller?
I listened to this video on my phone(I know I know…) but that satin plug in gave some serious body to the song. Wow. Didn’t even know that existed. Gonna have to check it out now
saturn is my all time favourite too its absurd how much you can do with it and i still feel like i find out new stuff. like i put an lfo on the cross over and got a pitch flutter effect or the breakdown to just detune is fun or using it as a snare gate
I agree! It was a bit intimidating at first, but after using it for a while it's kind of mind blowing how it does so many things so well
@@sageaudio I have the first Saturn. How does it compare to 2?
Would you use it on a master chain? Before a limiter?
@@Lokkodog definitely you can add bands to dial it in try out linear phase to see if it makes a difference. i have the high quality on good at minimum imo. theres some cool mastering presets to try. remember the levels before it does matter
Does soothe 2 ever go on sale?
whats the difference between oxford lim "enhance" and oxford inflator?
Can you do a seperate tutorial on how to set up something like the mythical 3D preset or go in detail on how it works
9:48 " ... and notice how much work it does, without making the vocals sound over processed." Proceeds to play already very over-processed vocals
could you test and review Playfair Audio - Dynamic Grading?
SAGE...have all the MIXING tutorials been added to the plan yet?
Yes they have!
great info and video, will definitely be trying these...
Ok, it's been a minute since I've commented. Whelp, my predictions were accurate, you guys hit 170K when a few years back I was like, ya'll will be at 100K by the end of the year.. THE INFO IS OUTSTANDING........ Anyway, I am so glad you didn't use a lot of UA, Slate and other crazy expensive plugins in your top 20.. Thank you so much.. I had to come back guys.. This channel is WAY TOO VALUABLE not to understand how audio and frequencies work together.. YES SUHHH!!! IM BACK!!! Thanks Sage.. I like that Arturia NEve pre 73, that thing is amazing...
Hey JT it's been a while! Thanks for leaving a comment and hope you've been doing well 👍 I appreciate you sticking around as long as you have!
@@sageaudio, Yeah.. This channel is like FullSail.. Congrats guys..
Interesting list, thanks for this take on the topic. The one from your list I would include in mine would be Satin, completely agree that this is the best tape emulation, still to this day. IK tape machine collection being a close second. One I very much disagree with, and I don't think should be ANYWHERE top 20 plugin list is Arturia Comp Fet-76. Testing it against hardware, it didn't even come close, and there are much better options out there. The main problem with the Arturia is that per default it aggresively rolls off all highs starting around 5k. So both high mids and highs.
You can test this with Bertom. The hardware actually has quite a bit of excitment and openess up there, which seperates it from many plugin options...at the same gain reduction there is an openess in the mids and highs with the hardware, but the Arturia Comp Fet-76 doubles down on this classic plugin problem, making it worse than even other plugins. We're talking a full 3 dB cut in the highs just by inserting it, and there is no way to remedy it within Comp Fet-76, as its "Band EQ" is simply a detection feeder, not a normal eq. They should really add an option to have a more flat response instead of robbing the source of all the mids and highs even before compression. I own the plugin but never found a single source where it was useful due to this issue. So many better alternatives.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and your list! I'll have to check that out about the Arturia one - I mean I definitely trust what you're saying here, but want to see what else it might be doing.
I distorted a kick with the original 1176, then compared the same signal to Arturia's and really liked what Arturia did! But maybe that's why I didn't notice a big change in the highs. Thanks again!
@@sageaudio Exactly...on a source like that it might work, although if I were you I would look to nebula tech for things like kick.
But the rolling off highs per default (or boosting all the low mids and lows if you will) is a dirty trick some manufactures use to try to trick the listener into thinking the vst has low end retention through compression like the hardware does. The Lindell api bus compressor does the same. In reality you might as well just take a vanilla stock vst and boost the lows before going into it, as we're talking about a static low + low mids boost.
That's not how you emulate analog well. As you know, the beauty of analog compressors is their ability to retain the low and high end THROUGH the compression. Not via static boosts. That means that even with considerable compression happening they sound more alive.
Thanks you so much for this I been wanting this for years since following you guys
Criminal omission. PSP Vintage Warmer. Old, but gold.
I like that one! Was also impressed with their infini-strip plugin. I'd like to see Vintage Warmer updated though - still sounds great, but I think they could improve it a little
@@sageaudio Infinistrip is amazing. Probably my #1 used plug-in at the moment. And zero latency! I actually like the simplicity of Vintage Warmer (and PSP plug-ins generally), as they tend to have a philosophy of doing one or a few things really well rather than trying to be all things to all people and I like that. I think their EQs are fantastic too and wildly underrated.
yes, that plugin is magic
Thank you! Great list! I feel this could have been a far more effective video with a more dynamic and natural track.
Thanks so much for these videos your helping a lot!!❤
What do you dislike about Ozone?
It's an AI mastering plugin. He's a mastering engineer. So, you know...
I don't mind the AI part too much - I think AI has a lot of promise for audio, so it's cool they implement it. I guess I'm just not the biggest fan of the sound and functions. Everything feels simplified and scaled back. Then they change/update it too often, which is frustrating, since I know they could update less and include more functions with each version.
You left out FGX 2 and all the TDR plugins
2:40 UA 1176 no longer requires a UAD processor. That being said, the interface isn't nearly as good as Arturia's. It's actually quite bad. But the sound is great!
I hate Arturia's interface. That out of focus background is so unnecessary and takes up space. The whole Arturia's plugins look a bit blurred to me. Also, I know it has more functions than UAD's, but UA 1176 sounds better to me. Especially REV A. (I own both, also purple, softube and Waves)
@@JuanJacinto I have the 3 pack with original, LN, and AE. I think they all sound good. I haven't tried any others. I just wanted authenticity without my CPU exploding, so I'm happy to continually hear others say UAD sounds -among- the best.
Kirchhoff is good but I think Eventide split eq is a pretty impressive challenger to pro Q
Sooth is great!
ProQ and SplitEQ are both good but for different purposes
the enhance in Sonnox limiter is not like in Inflator?
It's different! Inflator is great, but enhance has something special about it (in my opinion)
@@sageaudio i think i read that in the sonnox limiter manual
Can someone tell me how 1 compares to 2? I have the first Saturn, is it really worth an upgrade?
I prefer the spectre, from waves factory, it's incredible, it costs 99 dollars
i started using Fabfilter Pro Q3 and after that Izotope Ozone and i´m loving what those 2 can do to my music!
Great list, I agree some of this are the best of their kind
Showcasing a De-esser using a vocal sample part, without Ess-es...
For me at least its gotta be Oxford Drum Gate, Roughrider 3, Ruina, Rockrack V3, SurgeXT FX, Plamen, SSL Fusion, Krush, Gsat+, Pyros, Pre-X7, Slate Fresh Air and TDR Nova. Also just like most the stuff they make, CHANNEV, Konsol, Kolin, Frank, and FETish by Analog Obsessions are some of the best and most accurate free mixing tools I've ever used. These plugins are some of my most used bread and butters besides maybe UADx's 1176, LA2A and Verve Analog Machines if the tracks got vocals and stringed instruments :P Everything else Ill just use Stock Ableton plugins for.
Besides the obvious, like FabFilter, Kirchhoff, 7-th Heaven, I’d pay attention to Valhalla VintageVerb, SoundToys Super Plate, SSL X-Comp, Black Box HG-2, all bx_consoles, Slate FG-X2 - they are just amazing and absolutely necessary in my workflow.
dont bother with this geezer, there are plugins like El Rey, UAD, Softube tube tech and more he missed., but thats because there are so many but..why some of this trash lol!
I like those! But these are just my opinions :]
@@sageaudio so change the title to my 20 favourite plugins
Thank you for your list. I've never tried Voxengo Elephant. I leave limiter duties to Slate Digital's FG-X 2. Although it requires the hardware component headphones I would add Slate VSX since it allows you to churn out mixes you can trust. I use STL ControlHub which helps me arrive at what I imagine in my head quickly. I also use the Kirchoff EQ on every mix. Space Control by Acustica Audio takes care of frequency dependent imaging and more. Reverb wise Bob Clearmountain's Spaces, Verbsuite and UADs reverbs .. I can't choose 1. I remember when Satin came out I tried it on some material and compared it to Slate's Tape and Softube's Tape. I uninstalled it quickly as it could not give me what I wanted. The only other tape machines I use are the UAD ones and the emulations inside STL Controlhub. SPLs PQ on every mix as well
UAD now has native plugins including their 1176. I just bought their signature bundle.
Wot no sosig?
I was most surprised by the Voxengo Limiter. I've seen it but never considered it. I'm actually very surprised there are no Sonible plugins on this list. I use Smart:Comp on every mix to sidechain duck any masked frequencies. If I want the vocals to stick out more than the guitars or synths, I slap it on and in 20 seconds goal accomplished. I also use Oxford Inflator on almost everything. One thing is for sure, we are not at a loss for good options these days.
DMG Audio (EQUILIBRIUM, LIMITLESS, MULTIPLICITY) yes!
I've tried limitless but not the other ones, I'll check them out!
I like your channel but
when has anyone chose a plugin by: Start with plugin ON & let’s turn it OFF to hear how it sounds?
i don't agree with Sage on u-he's Presswerk. It compresses the low end too much for me but the other frequencies, it does an extraordinary job.
P40 sweat spot ❤
To me Gullfoss is number 1
Surprised you didn't take in account any modulation plug-in. For me Valhalla Reverbs are a go-to can't live without them. Kotelnikov mastering compressor is great, i use it as regular compressor in almost anything.
Very informative !
Tone Projects Kelvin and Michelangelo, Flux IRCAM Reverb
Unisum is probably the best comp out there along with DMG TrackComp2
OFF > ON is better than ON > OFF
This
Also Gain-Matched is better than whatever he did...
great selection, horrific song choice. unlistenable.
if you don.t like the oxford limiter but you like the curve get the inflator
This will boil piss no doubt that disclaimer won’t work 😂😂 let’s go 🎉
Not a shabby list
Avengers 2 VPS not featuring anywhere🤔
Your authenticy will forever make Sage Audio a sage in the game.
Either way, Great video!
I stole a couple of concepts.
I’ll give em back later promise!
Some of the plugins are compared not being in the same level.. far from it. You can't determine which is better in that way. There's even a button on the Pro-L2 that says 1:1 so you can listen to the effect at the same level of the input.
PSP warmer saved my mix from harshness
Would love to hear test results with a full real live band. That song material was not helpful at all
Wow! The "Elephant" in the room... I didn't even have that one on my radar... For me, I would have probably put the Avalon 747 from Kazrog on the list and instead of the Saturn the Spectre from Wavesfactory...
+Melodyne!!!!!
It was hard for me to appreciate the A/B because of the unique sound of your test song.
Sage has forgotten:
Auburn Sounds LENS....
Oversampled Pancz....
Acustica Audio Tiger MU....JAM....(and SALT for some users)....
,,,and now a modern legend: Sound Theory new Kraftur....best loudness maximizer-clipper-saturator hybrid!
Missing:
- Any channel strip! People have been using SSL, Softube, PA strips and going back so long.
- UAD plugins (Especially Studer, LA-2A, 1176 - all available natively), Arturia over UAD's 1176?
- SOUNDTOYS! Used by millions. Yet UVI Shade makes it to number 8?
- Lexicon Native (Harrison), Eventide and Valhalla reverbs way more popular than Liquidsonics Seventh Heaven at quality or price. Eventide's have been around the longest and sound great.
- McDSP - used by many for over a decade
- Kontakt!
- Acoustica plugins like Gold, Magenta and Pink go way back. Celestial was free when it came out.
- SSL G Bus compressor (Waves or UAD).
For a plugins of all time list, this seemed to ignore so much history.
I own all Soundtoys and for some reason I'm only using Little Plate, EchoBoy and Devil Loc.
@@JuanJacinto Not tried Super Plate? Decapitator should have been on this top list, or Echoboy. Everyone has them.
3:24 harmonics that match the WHAT
Yet nobody talks about TONEBOOSTERS Plugins 🤦♂️🤦♂️🤦♂️
They make awesome plugins, especially for the price point! I always recommend them as an affordable alternative to FabFilter, but still think their plugins are surpassed by other developers.
Thanks bro
I like PressWerk very much
Voxengo Elephant and IK Multimedia Stealth Limiter
wait, what, no OTT ? 😉😆🤣
No trackspacer??? And…. Shade?? Nah dude, this aint it!
Soothe and Gullfoss replaced Trackspacer for me. Also Shade is awesome lol. It's like if Saturn 2's modulation and the Pro Q 3 combined
Pro Audio DSP DSM??? It's my favorite of all time.
9:01 Apparently I've played way too much Zelda TOTK. 😂
HAhaah best part of video re: Acustica "am i always confused about which to choose from the menu...absolutely:
Sound Toys EchoBoy is the best plugin of all time because the world is empty without it. 😁
there's so much options that i lost it.... 😬
Great channel and nice review but unfortunately often using disgusting music examples.
Agreed! Also, I didn't hear much sibilance for the De Esser, so we couldn't really hear what it was doing.
I have the same opinion. The very interesting information provided in this channel would be greatly enhanced with other types of music examples.
Bonus Plugin and my number one = Michelangelo by Tone Projects, nothing comes close, in fact it's on another plane of sonic exellence :D
Agree 100%. It's really amazing. Another amazing plugin from the same company is BassLane Pro. Nothing else like it
The sample music used is crap. Gives no idea at all in many examples.
where is Trigger 2
demo song sounds... not so good to be honest.
Outstanding reviews