We're currently living in the age of digital audio. Mastering is an incredibly powerful tool that is essential to any music producer.

But there are so many different Mastering plugins in the music production landscape, so we decided to create the ultimate list of the top Mastering plugins today that will help you find the perfect fit.


MasterMagic

Mastering by Rob Papen



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Description


Welcome to ‘MasterMagic’ the plug-in that you will not want to miss anymore as part of your virtual mixer master section! Just place ‘MasterMagic’ at the very end of the master FX chain and be surprised how much it can do for your track!  The ‘Mono/Stereo’ section, will make your low end much tighter and the ‘AIR’ function is sheer magic… even if you only use it only a tiny amount.

Enjoy the magic of MasterMagic!




Features

  • Edit / Origin Feature

  • As soon as you start editing a Preset (i.e. change a MasterMagic control), the Edit button will light up. If you the click on the Origin button it will return the Preset to its original settings. 
  • Clicking on the ? HELP ICON opens PDF manual.
  • Click here to open the ECS menu. You can Load/Save your MIDI latched settings (External Control Settings) here.
  • This is handy if you want to use your own controller settings in other songs, music programs or systems.
  • Presets and Generic Controls

  • The Presets bar sits at the top of the MasterMagic window.
  • Preset Variations

  • A Preset in MasterMagic has two slots, A and B, in which to store two variations of the Preset. 
  • This bypasses the MasterMagic FX. If ‘Air’ and ‘Mono/Stereo’ are active, both are bypassed.
  • Air works as a booster of very high frequencies with a wide bandwidth using a top-notch algorithm. Its effect is perceived as giving the audio a more breathing space or ‘Air’.

  • On / Off: By clicking on the AIR icon, the Air function will become active. This is a handy feature if you also have the ‘Mono/Stereo’ function active. This way you can bypass only the ‘Air’ FX.
  • Amount: Amount sets the gain or amount of Air added to your channel.
  • Frequency: The frequency control sets the center frequency of the Air band. Its range runs from 30kHz to 40 kHz.
  • Mono / Stereo

  • The Mono / Stereo Split Filter is able to divide the audio signal into a mono and stereo part

  • based on a frequency. 

  • On / Off: By clicking on the MONO/STEREO Icon this function will become active.
  • Frequency and Range: The Frequency control (FREQ) sets the frequency of the mono filter: below this frequency the sound is transformed into a mono signal. 
  • Solo: The Solo switch, when engaged, only lets the transformed mono signal pass.This feature is handy to seek out the correct range.
  • Mode: The Mode setting determines how the stereo audio signal is turned into a mono signal. The options here are: Left Channel, Right Channel, the sum of the Left and Right Channels averaged (L+R), and the signal difference between the two channels (L-R).
  • Back Panel  

  • A click on the MasterMagic logo switches the plug-in to its back panel. The back panel contains

  • program information and a number of global settings. 

  • Controls are:

  • Computer Keyboard On / Off: The Keyboard On/Off switch activates the computer keyboard to cycle through the Presets and Banks.
  • MIDI Program Change: The Program Change switch enables MasterMagic to respond to MIDI Program Change commands to select Presets.
  • External MIDI Control Capture Mode: The Capture Mode switch, when enabled will ignore incoming MIDI controller messages that are latched to a MasterMagic control, until the value of the MIDI controller matches that of the value of the MasterMagic control. It prevents sudden jumps in parameter values that otherwise may occur as soon as you touch a latched external MIDI controller.
  • MIDI Channel: The MIDI Channel setting limits any MIDI control of MasterMagic to a specific MIDI Channel (1 – 16 / Omni)

Video


Rating


Value For Money

Sound Quality

General Ease of Use

Number of Presets


PC

  • Windows 7/ Windows 8/ Windows 10 (32 & 64 bits)

Formats:

  • VST
  • AAX (Note: PC AAX for PT 12 or higher)

Mac

  • OS-X 10.9 - 10.15 (64 bits only)

Formats:

  • AU
  • VST
  • AAX

Notes:

  • Serial/licence system with activation whilst registering the product
  • 2nd serial for a secondary computer/laptop is available after you have registered the product’s original serial/license.

OS Compatibility



Ozone 9 Advanced

Mastering by iZotope



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Description


The Future of Mastering

Building on a 17-year legacy in audio mastering, Ozone 9 brings balance to your music with never-before-seen processing for low end, real-time instrument separation, and lightning-fast workflows powered by machine learning. Find the perfect vibe with an expanded Master Assistant that knows exactly what you’re going for, whether it’s warm analogue character or transparent loudness for streaming. Talk to more iZotope plug-ins in your session with Tonal Balance Control 2 and blur the lines between mixing and mastering. Work faster with improved plug-in performance, smoother metering, and resizable windows. No more wondering if your music is ready for primetime—with Ozone 9, the future of mastering is in your hands.

Ozone 9 Advanced also comes with the new-and-improved Tonal Balance Control 2 plug-in.

Ozone 9 Upgrades & Crossgrades:

Why Ozone 9?

Master with machine learning

Master with machine learning: Ozone 9 helps make mastering easier with AI-powered assistive tools that give you an instant starting point. Master Assistant can add modern or vintage vibes and help you get the right loudness for streamingNew source separation technology in Master Rebalance lets you correct instrument levels before starting your master, or add excitement to key sections. Have the final say in any mix, with complete control of your sound.

Control lows, mids, and highs

Tame harshness in high end and bring out your low-end instruments with industry-first tools like the Spectral Shaper and Low-End Focus modules. Use intuitive, fluid controls to target specific regions to easily smooth out issues or create unique effects.

Match your reference track

Load your favourite reference tracks into Ozone 9, loop any section, and compare your master with a single button press. Take a snapshot of your reference with the new Match EQ module, and save your favourite profiles as presets for other songs. Or, use Master Assistant to set up a custom chain based on your reference.

Tonal Balance Control 2

Finalize and fine-tune your master in any listening environment using target curves for different genres. Quickly fix issues where you see them by calling up Ozone's EQ against your target. Use Tonal Balance Control in your mix session and adjust gain and EQ for Nectar, Neutron, and Relay plug-ins to keep frequencies in line.

NKS Support


Put the power of Ozone into your creative process and master while making music with Maschine or Komplete Kontrol. Open Ozone on the fly and easily add professional polish while making music on your hardware, using hundreds of different presets and accessible parameters mapped to your hardware controls. Add loudness, width, and EQ without touching your DAW and keep the creative juices flowing.

Ozone for Streaming

Get your music ready for prime time in today’s world of streaming audio. Set intelligent loudness targets to prevent your music from being turned down by a streaming platform with Master Assistant and Maximizer. Use CODEC Preview mode in Ozone 9 Advanced to hear your music translated to MP3 or AAC. Upload a reference track to Tonal Balance Control 2, Master Assistant, or EQ Match, and ensure your music stacks up against the competition. Create with confidence knowing your music will sound great in any format!

What's in Ozone?

Master Rebalance

Adjust volume on drums, bass, or vocals in ANY audio track, even a bounced mix. 

  • Master Rebalance works in real time...no need to render or bounce your tracks
  • Use DAW automation to add excitement in song sections with small gain changes
  • Twin spectrum meters let you see rebalanced source against the rest of your track

Low End Focus

Get clear and punchy low frequencies and avoid artefacts from EQ and compression. “Punchy” and “Smooth” modes let you find the right setting for percussive or sustained low-end issues

  • Set a Boundary region to add or remove contrast anywhere in your low end
  • Use the Listen button to hear what’s being removed and avoid over-processing

Imager

Add natural stereo width to narrow mixes with an upgraded “Stereoize” mode:

  • NEW! Two modes for stereoize give you new flavours for widening your track
  • Sculpt your image in stereo with per-band widening and narrowing
  • Monitor stereo width and phase new fluid metering

Equalizer

Control the finest details of your sound with fluid metering and new HUD controls

  • Emulate classic analogue EQs or modern digital models depending on your style
  • Use Mid/Side mode to correct frequencies in the sides of your audio
  • NEW! Enjoy smooth, fluid metering and a resizable window that lets you see more of your sound

Track Referencing

Seamlessly compare your mix with a reference track at the touch of a button

  • Loop specific regions of your references and load up to 16 at once into Ozone
  • See your reference displayed in Ozone’s meters for easy visual comparison
  • Use Master Assistant to automatically match the tone of your loaded reference tracks

Maximizer

Make mixes LOUD while preserving dynamics with Ozone’s intelligent limiter

  • Intelligent Release Control (IRC) modes react to your sound to reduce distortion and pumping
  • Threshold Learn mode intelligently sets loudness to a target LUFS level
  • True Peak detection ensures your audio doesn’t clip after export

Spectral Shaper

Add instant polish and remove harshness with spectral shaping technology. 

  • Light, Medium, and Heavy settings offer different smoothing flavours
  • Shape lows, mids, and highs with adjustable boundary controls
  • Listen mode lets you hear what parts of the sound you’re removing, helping you find the perfect settings

Dynamic EQ

Make EQ boosts and cuts that respond to the dynamics of your audio

  • Make subtle boosts and cuts that occur only when frequencies are too loud or soft
  • Control threshold, attack, and release along with frequency and gain
  • More precise that a compressor and more subtle than a normal EQ!

Exciter

Mix and match between seven different types of distortion to add warmth and character

  • Use different flavours of distortion such as Tape, Retro, or Tube
  • Add different distortion modes on multiple bands to create your own unique tonal balance

Dynamics

The mastering engineer’s most versatile tool. Tame dynamic mixes and give your tracks energy.

  • Compress in up to four bands, or with the Detection Filter mode
  • Use Auto-release mode for a smooth, natural response

Vintage Modules

Vintage Tape

Introduce rich saturation with all the frequency colouration, distortion, and phase effects of tape.

Vintage Limiter

Glue a mix together and get loud, pumping tracks using Vintage Limiter

Vintage EQ

Brighten your master, smooth out heavy low end, and add body to your digital recordings.

Vintage Compressor

Add colourful dynamics with compression modelled after famous mastering hardware

Advanced Tools

CODEC Preview

Hear how your mix sounds as an MP3 or AAC at different resolutions. Listen for any loss of audio quality and anticipate delivery issues down the line.

Dither

For when you’re ready to export, Ozone’s extensive suite of dithering options help you ensure no audible loss of audio quality.



Video


Rating


Value For Money

Sound Quality

General Ease of Use

Number of Presets


Operating Systems

  • Mac: OS X 10.11.6 (El Capitan) - macOS 11 Big Sur (Intel-based only, M1 Apple Silicon not yet supported) (64-bit only)
  • Windows: Windows 7 (Latest Service Packs) - Windows 10 (64-bit only)

Plugin Formats

  • AU (Mac only), AAX, VST2, VST3 (All formats 64-bit only)

Supported Hosts

  • Logic Pro X
  • Ableton Live 9 - 11
  • Pro Tools 12.8 - 2019
  • FL Studio 20
  • Cubase 9 - 10
  • Nuendo 10
  • Wavelab 9
  • Sound Forge Pro 13
  • Sound Forge Mac 3
  • Studio One 4
  • REAPER 5
  • Reason 10
  • Audition CC 2019
  • Premiere Pro CC 2019
  • MASCHINE 2
  • Komplete Kontrol
  • Bitwig Studio 3
  • Final Cut Pro X

OS Compatibility



Master Suite

Mastering by Initial Audio



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Description


Anyone Can Master!

With Master Suite mastering becomes as easy as 1-2-3. Simply adjust the loudness and finalize your track with the 3 band equalizer and stereo image controls. Sending out Songs and Instrumentals to clients, record labels, online stores and streaming services require them to have an industry standard loudness in order to have a state of the art sound. The LUFS display indicates an industry standard loudness by turning green and warns you when you start getting too loud. An intelligent algorithm applies the right amount of limiting and compression which can be controlled with soften and mix. The HD interface looks clean, feels great and can be seamlessly resized to match your screen resolution.




Features

  • THD: Total Harmonic Distortion, this can ‘fatten’ up the master and help increase the perceived loudness.
  • Loudness: Increase or decrease the loudness of your master in decibels. Uses an intelligent compression and limiting algorithm to ensure maximum loudness with minimal distortion.
  • LUFS Meter: The LUFS meter ( Loudness Units relative to Full Scale) is an industry standard representation of perceived loudness. The meter goes green when in the ‘sweet’ zone of a loud master without over compressing the dynamics of your mix.
  • Soften: This softens the compression curve, also known as a ‘soft knee’.
  • Mix: Mix the compressed audio with the original. If you are pushing the loudness hard and the master is sounding over compressed with a loss of dynamics, this control can help restore some dynamics while still keeping the master loud.
  • Analog: Changes the frequency response of master suite to sound more Analog.
  • 3 Band Equalizer: Cut or boost the low, mid and high frequencies by up to 6dB.
  • Stereo Image: The Mono control works by making the audio completely mono below the set frequency. This can help to tighten up the low end and ensure it is coming only from the center of the stereo field. The Stereo control enhances the stereo field for the frequencies only above the mid range, leaving the lower frequencies untouched. This can be used to add extra ‘space’ in the master by pushing instruments even wider in the stereo field.
  • Ceiling: Sets the maximum loudness for peaks. Your master will not go louder than this.

Video


Rating


Value For Money

Sound Quality

General Ease of Use

Number of Presets


PC

  • Windows 7 or higher
  • 4GB Ram
  • VST2 Compatible DAW such as FL Studio, Reaper, Reason, Cubase, Ableton Live, Bitwig, Machine, MPC Ren and many more 

Mac

  • OSX 10.6
  • 4GB Ram
  • VST2 or AU compatible DAW such as Logic, FL Studio, Reaper, Reason, Cubase, Ableton Live, Bitwig, Machine, MPC Ren and many more​

OS Compatibility



BASSROOM

Mastering by Mastering The Mix



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Description


Balancing the low-end is one of the hardest challenges in any mix or master. BASSROOM is a final mix and mastering EQ that helps beginners and pros nail their low-end in seconds.

The Struggle Is Over

Balancing the low-end is one of the hardest challenges in any mix or master. This is where so many potentially awesome tracks fail. Too much bass and your track will sound bloated and lack clarity. Not enough bass and your track will sound weak.

BASSROOM is a final mix and mastering EQ that helps beginners and pros nail their low-end in seconds. It does this by delivering exceptional sound quality and suggesting genre-specific EQ adjustments a great audio engineer in a world-class studio would make.

We analyzed the best mixes in various genres to give you EQ target presets you can trust. You can also create your own targets with BASSROOM's inbuilt analysis tools. From this starting point, you can tweak your low-end to perfection using the immersive 3D room interface.

How To Use BASSROOM

Master Channel

BASSROOM uses complex algorithms that accurately identifies how the human ear perceives low-frequencies relative to the balance of the whole mix. For that reason it should be loaded on your master channel so it can analyse and be applied to your whole mix.

Choose A Preset

To get the most value from BASSROOM, start by selecting a preset that best suits the material you’re working on.

Create A Target

Alternatively, you can create your own target values by clicking the target icon in the bottom left corner and importing reference tracks. If you’re creating targets, we recommend clicking and dragging on the waveform to select the drop or chorus for the analysis, as this is usually the material with the best representation of the bass in the track. BASSROOM will create targets based on all the tracks loaded into the analysis window.

Shape your low-end

Now monitor a bass heavy section of your production (i.e. the drop or chorus), and you’ll see the targets move to the suggested EQ positions based on the tonal balance of your mix compared to the tonal balance of your preset. Use the targets to get a great starting point, then adjust by ear to tweak your low-end to perfection. The algorithm accounts for differences in loudness, so the targets will be accurate and relevant whether you’re mixing or mastering.

Level Match

The EQ adjustments may have changed the overall gain of your audio. If the gain has changed by more than 2dB the speaker icon will turn orange. Hover your mouse over the bypass icon to open the output gain and level match pointer. Match the gain slider to the level match pointer to match the perceived loudness of your audio before it passed through BASSROOM.

Hear The Difference

Not only will your low-end fall into place, but the level matching will give you a well balanced sound across the whole frequency spectrum. Toggle bypass on and off to hear the difference.

Unique Features

Unparalleled EQ Quality

BASSROOM gives you unparalleled EQ quality when working with low-frequencies on your master channel. Other EQs can introduce transient ringing and smearing or phase distortion that reduces the quality and clarity of your audio.

BASSROOM has specifically designed filters that have minimal phase distortion AND minimal transient distortion providing greater transparency than standard linear-phase filters at low-frequencies. This means that the low-end is not affected by unwanted phase changes that can alter the timbre of your audio or by transient distortion that means you lose the bite from kicks or bass-lines.

For example, the plots show the transient effects on a step function when applying a 6dB gain at 240Hz. Think of this as a simplified waveform of a kick drum. It's clear that the output of the filter in Plot 2 has an oscillation before and after the "hit". This is a "ringing" of the transient and can sound like a sucking effect. In Plot 3 BASSROOM’s EQ produces virtually no oscillation and so the transient is preserved.

With BASSROOM, you can transparently shape your low-end without compromising the clarity of your mix or master. This translates into retaining punch in the low-mids, and definition in the low-end compared to other EQs.

Immersive 3D Room Display

Ordinary EQs use a horizontal representation of frequencies and vertical representation of gain. BASSROOM takes a unique approach and focuses more on how we experience audio in the real world. Louder sounds feel closer while quieter sounds feel further away and lower frequencies are associated with a ‘foundation’ whilst higher frequencies are perceived as ‘air.

To reflect this, in BASSROOM frequencies are displayed vertically, and gain is represented by depth in the room.

When a band is on the central 0dB line in the middle of the room, there is no gain adjustment. Push frequency bands back in the room to decrease gain, and bring them forward to increase gain.

The unique and intuitive UI helps you visualise how you’re adjusting the low-end of your song. This gives you a more immersive mixing experience, helping you connect more with your music.

EQ Targets You Can Trust

The targets on the walls of BASSROOM suggest the genre-specific EQ adjustments a great audio engineer in a world-class studio would make.

We analysed the best mixes in various genres to give you EQ target presets you can trust.

This isn’t simple ‘slowed-down’ frequency matching. The targets are a result of a complex algorithm that accurately identifies how the human ear perceives low-frequencies relative to the balance of the whole mix. BASSROOM analyses your mix and displays a target in each frequency band to help you make informed mixing decisions sonically relevant to your audio.

Matching the bands to target suggestions results in a clear and defined low-end that’s well balanced in the context of the whole mix. Use the targets to get a great starting point, then adjust by ear to tweak your low-end to perfection.



Video


Rating


Value For Money

Sound Quality

General Ease of Use

Number of Presets


Mac:

  • macOS 10.8 or higher (macOS 11 Big Sur + Apple M1 Silicon supported).
  • AU, VST 2/3 or AAX host (64-bit only)

Windows:

  • Windows 7, 8 or 10
  • VST 2/3 or AAX host (64-bit only)

Available in VST, VST3, Audio Units and AAX formats (64-bit only).

Please note: AAX compatible with Pro Tools 11 and later only.

OS Compatibility



2BC multiCORR

Mastering by MAAT



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Description


Stay on top of Correlation

A multiband correlation meter with essential metering and monitoring functions.

Can You Relate?

Why the heck do you need a multiband correlation meter? It’s simply that a regular stereo correlation meter doesn´t always show you trouble spots. If your fat kick and bass is mono, it’s mostly correlated so a stereo correlation meter would show that everything is O.K. while your strings, hi-hat, or vocals are cancelling out! 2BC multiCORR combines the useful and beloved functions of our free 2BusControl monitor controller plugin with a carefully designed, third octave multiband correlation meter. Our multiband approach warns you not to overdo stereo spread with your fancy spreading tool, or when your stereo mics are delivering a signal with too much out–of–phase content. Either way, you’d get cancellation when your mix is summed to mono.

Correlation measures the degree of relatedness between left and right channel. If they’re alike, that’s mono, and they will have perfect correlation. Stereo noise is decorrelated, with no similarity between channels. Stereo music should be more like the former, with a bit of “stereoness” to create a soundstage, whereas convincing, diffuse reverb should have lower inter-channel correlation. When content is present in one channel, and an inverted phase version is in the other channel, that sums to zero in mono and the audio disappears.

Unobtrusive Power

2BC multiCORR’s powerful features hide behind its clean and simple UI. We’ve brought essential functionality and innovative user interface design to what used to be an unremarkable product category. With five monitoring modes, an ergonomic and deceptively simple interface, highly tuned correlation metering over 31 bands plus stereo balance and correlation, you’ve got to try 2BC multiCORR for yourself.

Better By Design

Most correlation meters use a cosine scale, derived from old analog meters, while 2BC multiCORR employs a trueLinear™ scale. This linear scale better matches your perception. As with all of MAAT’s products, 2BCmC follows our guidelines for creating meaningful tools for modern engineers.

2BC multiCORR combines essential metering and monitor controls with a 31 band correlation meter group.

Details

  • 31 bands of correlation with carefully chosen centre frequencies
  • Exclusive trueLinear™ scale for higher precision with visuals that match your perception
  • Stereo Balance and Correlation
  • Five essential monitor controls: Left–Only, Right–Only, Mono (L+R), Diff (L-R) and Flip
  • Collapsable UI lets you see only what you need

Extras

  • Includes a native version that runs in standalone mode, great for dedicated metering
  • Plug–in runs on all major DAWs: AAX, AU, VST 2 & VST 3

Applications

2BC multiCORR is a general purpose tool for both production and post. Use its powerful metering and monitor controls for:

  • Tracking and Mixing
  • Mastering and Remastering
  • Sound & EFX Libraries
  • Radio & Television Production & Broadcast
  • Identifying Problem Elements; EFX, panning, widening or frequency ranges that may compromise playback or downstream processes
  • Verifying: balance, panning, super stereo processing and other creative decisions

Essentials

2BC multiCORR slots into all modern workflows:

  • Supports LPCM sample rates up to 384k for DSD and high–end postproduction
  • All standard formats: AU, VST 2 and 3, AAX
  • Compatible with macOS and Windows
  • Low fatigue visual design
  • Resizable user interface for every screen resolution

The Low Down

If your material is destined for LP distribution, keep in mind that lacquer cutting has difficulty with large amplitude, out–of–phase information at very low frequencies. 2BC multiCORR provides four bands of analysis for the critical bottom octave, six additional bands of metering covering frequencies up to 200 Hz, plus three additional bands for the 200 to 400 Hz range.
Other than vinyl, why should you care about mono? Monaural playback is more prevalent than ever, with the rise of battery–powered, hand-held party speakers and the seemingly ubiquitous “smart speaker.” Don’t forget that Center Channel speaker in a surround setup…Though a product may advertise stereo playback, the simple fact is that size matters. At low frequencies, playback from any single point, diminutive device is essentially monaural. Also, small sources usually cannot reproduce the bottom octave at all and many begin to roll off below 100 Hz. So make sure to maximize the appropriate amount of LF energy for the material you’re working on.

Not Just Correlation

2BC multiCORR isn’t just multiband correlation. It also includes a left/right balance meter, a broadband left/right correlation meter, plus five monitor controls allowing you to focus on any issues you may come across.

With a single button, you can switch to Left–Only or Right–Only, Mono (L+R) or Difference (L-R). The fifth monitor control, FLIP, swaps the left and right channels. Sometimes you may come across a subtle issue that you think may be in one channel or the other. The Flip control, along with the Left–Only/Right–Only buttons, quickly helps to confirm or identify any problems. Also, you may occasionally be presented with a mix that’s not laid out from the audience perspective, and Flip is a quick way to rotate the soundstage around to where you’re comfortable.

Don’t Hit The Chair Without It!

2BC multiCORR packs the advanced features you need into one resizable window that’s easy on the eyes. Not only does the UI “get out of the way” so you can be more productive, but we’ve also incorporated user-centric features that speed your workflow. Easy and intuitive to use, be sure to hang it off the last slot in your Master Bus so you always know exactly what’s going on with your mix!

Key Features

  • 31 bands of correlation with carefully chosen center frequencies
  • Exclusive trueLinear™ scale for higher precision with visuals that match your perception
  • Stereo Balance and Correlation
  • Five essential monitor controls: Left–Only, Right–Only, Mono (L+R), Diff (L-R) and Flip
  • Collapsable UI lets you see only what you need



Rating


Value For Money

Sound Quality

General Ease of Use

Number of Presets


  • macOS 10.8 and newer 64-bit only
  • Windows 7 and newer, 32 & 64 bit

Supporting:

  • AAX (Pro Tools 10.3.10 and newer), AU, VST 2, VST 3
  • Sample rates from 44.1 to 384 kHz

OS Compatibility



BUTE Loudness Suite 2 (Surround)

Mastering by Signum Audio



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Description


BUTE Loudness Suite 2 is a smart, integrated and responsive loudness metering and audio limiting plugin that delivers the tools studios, media and broadcasting producers need to mix and master professional audio within loudness specifications.

What Does BUTE Do?

Many producers are moving towards mixing and mastering within loudness specs set internally or by major streaming and broadcasting platforms for quality assurance. By providing metering and limiting functions in the same plugin with smart workflow features to maintain creative flow, BUTE helps optimise the quality of mixes and masters, while avoiding potential distortions downstream.

Smart, Synchronised Workflow For Broadcasting, Post and Games

Loudness metering tools are ideal for balancing music, dialogue and sound effects whether in stereo or up to Atmos 7.1.2 surround sound. Long-form content is made much easier to deal with using our smart history overview. Get an overview of up to 10-hours of content and navigate to any section of a track with ease using the interactive display. BUTE’s custom alert system will clearly point out areas where there are errors with True Peak overshoots. A wide array of industry-standard presets are included.

Mixing And Mastering With BUTE

BUTE plugins are compatible with VST, AU and AAX (including Audio Suite), so will synchronise harmoniously with almost any DAW. Signum Audio's smart auto re-metering feature gives instantaneous feedback on how loudness will be affected by changes to the mix so there is no need to re-meter the whole mix. Readings for Absolute/Relative Scale, True Peak/LUFS and Max/Live modes are easy to toggle between from the main display.

Powerful Compact Read-Out View

When screen estate and CPU are at a premium, a compact read-out helps keep things optimised. BUTE is completely resizable. Even while in compact view, easily switch between display settings and tweak limiting configurations, while saving screen estate for other programs.

Stay Faithful To Your Mix

Smooth out peaks by adjusting pre-gain and selecting a preset release curve - Transparent, Natural or Smooth - which have been designed to make gain reduction as un-noticeable as possible. The release time configures automatically based on multiple properties of the input signal, and the dial is used to set the multiplication factor of the calculated release time, enabling fine-tuning. BUTE can also be utilised as a maximiser to push quieter mixes louder whilst taking care of True Peak overshoots. The result? The audio stays faithful to the original sound, whilst fitting the loudness spec of any platform.

Bring Your Music To All Streaming Platform

All the tools in your hand to make your music sound optimal on Spotify, YouTube, TIDAL, Apple Check and more. We regularly update presets and include most platforms. User-defined presets for internal standards can also be created and saved. 

BUTE Loudness Normaliser & BUTE Limiter 2

Audio normalisation becomes a breeze with Signum Audio's automated solution, BUTE Loudness Normaliser, which comes in addition to the Suite as a standalone application. Perfect for a final check for True Peak overshoots. Simply drag and drop audio files into the standalone application, hit render and then export. Also included is Signum Audio's well-received BUTE Limiter 2 is a dedicated limiting plugin offering additional “Pumping” and “Linear” curves for creative music production.

Applications

Mixing & Mastering

  • Produce consistent masters
  • Avoid 'level shifting' and clipping downstream
  • Ensure accurate representation of your audio/music
  • Measure and refine dynamic content

Post-production & Broadcasting

  • Hit target levels easily with a wide range of implemented presets
  • Ensure and prove compliance with regulation
  • Balance dialogue, music and effects
  • Manage live broadcasting & streaming levels accurately and efficiently
  • Optimise dynamics for streaming content

Game Design

  • Balance sound effects and dialogue
  • ASWG 5.1 and 7.1 Surround Sound support (Surround Version)

​Features

  • Integrated True Peak limiter and loudness metering in one plugin
  • Smart history overview for completely interactive browsing of up to 10-hours of loudness data at a glance
  • Custom alert system flags up areas that need attention with severe (red) or warning (yellow) pointer on the history overview. User settings can be defined in the settings panel.
  • Smart auto re-metering feature which syncs to DAW on load-up, and auto-detects and reflects any adjustments you make in the DAW on the graphical display
  • Powerful compact read-out view which is completely resizable vertically and horizontally to optimise screen space while keeping readings visible and limiting settings accessible
  • An adaptive auto-release function which can be tweaked by a scale factor using the release knob, enabling fine-tuning
  • Ultra-transparent True Peak limiting algorithm means mastered audio stays faithful to the original mix
  • 3 different release curves for Transparent, Natural and Smooth limiting (BL2 includes an additional “Pumping” and “Linear” release curves for creative music production)
  • Display Settings on the main user interface to switch between True Peak/Metering, Relative/Absolute Scale, or Max/Live modes
  • A highly responsive and informative graphical interface
  • Auto-detects DAW channel configuration with a dropdown menu to select mono, stereo or surround configurations (Surround version)
  • A wide array of built-in presets for the very latest loudness standards and recommendations
  • Industry-standard (IEC 60268-18) meter bar fallback for natural, analogue feel
  • Clean and comprehensive read-outs for short-term & momentary loudness, True Peak, and traditional RMS
  • Reloadable session data
  • Save, Load and Export metering data
  • Includes additional copies of BUTE Loudness Normaliser standalone application and BUTE Limiter 2 plugin
  • Free future updates

BUTE is fully compliant with up-to-date presets for the following loudness specifications:

  • ITU-R BS. 1770, EBU R128, ATSC A/85OP-59, ARIB TR-B32, Spotify, YouTube, Apple Check, Hulu, Netflix, TIDAL, Sony Gaming (ASWG), AES Streaming Recommendation, US Public Radio (PRSS), TIDAL and Pandora. You also have the ability to save multiple user-defined presets



Video


Rating


Value For Money

Sound Quality

General Ease of Use

Number of Presets


  • OS X 10.9 or higher / Windows 7 or higher (64-bit only)
  • VST/ VST3/ AU/ AAX (including AudioSuite)
  • Available in 2 versions - Stereo or Surround (includes up to 7.1.2 support with Surround version).
  • Pro Tools 12.6 or higher (for the AAX version of the plugin)

OS Compatibility



BUTE Loudness Normaliser (Surround)

Mastering by Signum Audio



Images



Description


Automated loudness normalisation for making those final checks and giving you absolute peace of mind.

Note: This product is the Surround Sound version. The Stereo version of Bute Loudness Normaliser is also available.

The BUTE Normaliser is a high-end standalone application for Windows and Mac, assisting post-production engineers with the final checks of the mastering journey. With our automated solution, you can rest assured your audio is on point before submission in just a few clicks.

Simply Effective

It's incredibly easy to normaliser your files using our interface:

1) Drag in your WAV file.
2) Select one of the many presets, or set your custom parameters using our unique system.
3) Hit "Analyse" and get an in-depth analysis with alerts to areas that require Bute's attention.
4) Click "Comply" to normalise your audio - the metering graph clearly shows the extent of true peak limiting.

Audiophile Quality

Our advanced metering algorithm has been optimised to deliver superior sound quality and accurate results. The integrated true peak limiter provides absolute transparency and peace of mind that there are no overshoots getting through, whilst still normalising to target. Due to our approach, the relative dynamics of your audio will be affected as little as possible and you’ll be left with consistent, compliant masters of your audio files every single time. This makes it great as a final check for your mastering journey.

Applications

Mixing & Mastering:

  • Produce consistent masters
  • Avoid 'level shifting' and clipping downstream
  • Ensure accurate representation of your audio/music

Post-Production & Broadcasting:

  • Hit target levels for multiple platforms easily
  • Useful when you are facing tight deadlines
  • Deliver loudness compliant audio to streaming platforms, where standards are a recommendation rather than a regulation
  • Optimise dynamics for streaming content

DJs & Music Producers:

  • Hear how your audio will sound on all streaming platforms
  • Ensure the levels of all the tracks in your set list are consistent



Features

  • Built-In Presets

  • By boasting a comprehensive range of industry standards and recommendations, the Bute Normaliser ensures that you can tune your productions to the needs of your clients with minimal effort. We will keep these up-to-date and you can create and save your own presets as well.

  • Bute is fully compliant with all revisions of ITU-R BS. 1770, EBU R128, ATSC A/85, OP-59, ARIB TR-B32, Spotify, YouTube, Apple Check, Hulu, Netflix (including the latest revision), TIDAL, Sony Gaming (ASWG), AES Streaming Recommendation, US Public Radio (PRSS), TIDAL and Pandora.

  • Alert System

  • The colour-coded alert system notifies you if there are areas of your audio file that go out-with your desired target. You can see these areas in red on the history timeline. In addition, our custom alert system also allows you to finetune the alerts for all the readouts to your specific needs. These will appear in yellow.

  • Drag & Drop

  • Import and export your files with a simple drag & drop. Please note that the BUTE Normaliser only processes one file at a time. If you are looking for Batch Processing, then our server-based enterprise solution is what you are looking for.

  • High-Speed Processing

  • We understand that loudness compliance can be a time critical task at the end of a project. Our high speed processing will meter, limit and normalise your audio in record time.

  • Built-In True Peak Limiter for Peace of Mind

  • Our novel design approach to the true peak limiter is an industry first, and it provides absolute transparency whilst ensuring no peak will ever go over the threshold. A gain reduction display shows you where and how much the limiter reduced your mix.

  • Import & Export in Multiple Formats

  • We support the standard .WAV 42bit 48KHz for broadcasting with all its pull up and pull down variants. In addition, we also support .flac, .mp3, .aiff, and more.

  • Measurable Parameters

  • See clearly laid out readings for overall integrated loudness, loudness range, short-term and momentary loudness, RMS and true-peak. These can be toggled on and off, so you only see the information you require.

  • Flexible and Scalable

  • We give you the flexibility to adjust and integrate the Normaliser into your current work space. You can minimise it at the click of a button to divert your attention to other things.


Video


Rating


Value For Money

Sound Quality

General Ease of Use

Number of Presets


  • Operating System: Mac OSX 10.9 or higher / Windows 7 or higher
  • Available in 2 versions - Stereo or Surround (additional support up to Atmos 7.1.2 support)

OS Compatibility



BUTE Loudness Normaliser

Mastering by Signum Audio



Images



Description


Automated loudness normalisation for making those final checks and giving you absolute peace of mind.

Note: This product is the Stereo version. The Surround Sound version of Bute Loudness Analyser is also available.

The BUTE Normaliser is a high-end standalone application for Windows and Mac, assisting post-production engineers with the final checks of the mastering journey. With our automated solution, you can rest assured your audio is on point before submission in just a few clicks.

Simply Effective

It's incredibly easy to normaliser your files using our interface:

1) Drag in your WAV file.
2) Select one of the many presets, or set your custom parameters using our unique system.
3) Hit "Analyse" and get an in-depth analysis with alerts to areas that require Bute's attention.
4) Click "Comply" to normalise your audio - the metering graph clearly shows the extent of true peak limiting.

Audiophile Quality

Our advanced metering algorithm has been optimised to deliver superior sound quality and accurate results. The integrated true peak limiter provides absolute transparency and peace of mind that there are no overshoots getting through, whilst still normalising to target. Due to our approach, the relative dynamics of your audio will be affected as little as possible and you’ll be left with consistent, compliant masters of your audio files every single time. This makes it great as a final check for your mastering journey.

Applications

Mixing & Mastering:

  • Produce consistent masters
  • Avoid 'level shifting' and clipping downstream
  • Ensure accurate representation of your audio/music

Post-Production & Broadcasting:

  • Hit target levels for multiple platforms easily
  • Useful when you are facing tight deadlines
  • Deliver loudness compliant audio to streaming platforms, where standards are a recommendation rather than a regulation
  • Optimise dynamics for streaming content

DJs & Music Producers:

  • Hear how your audio will sound on all streaming platforms
  • Ensure the levels of all the tracks in your set list are consistent



Features

  • Built-In Presets

  • By boasting a comprehensive range of industry standards and recommendations, the Bute Normaliser ensures that you can tune your productions to the needs of your clients with minimal effort. We will keep these up-to-date and you can create and save your own presets as well.

  • Bute is fully compliant with all revisions of ITU-R BS. 1770, EBU R128, ATSC A/85, OP-59, ARIB TR-B32, Spotify, YouTube, Apple Check, Hulu, Netflix (including the latest revision), TIDAL, Sony Gaming (ASWG), AES Streaming Recommendation, US Public Radio (PRSS), TIDAL and Pandora.

  • Alert System

  • The colour-coded alert system notifies you if there are areas of your audio file that go out-with your desired target. You can see these areas in red on the history timeline. In addition, our custom alert system also allows you to finetune the alerts for all the readouts to your specific needs. These will appear in yellow.

  • Drag & Drop

  • Import and export your files with a simple drag & drop. Please note that the BUTE Normaliser only processes one file at a time. If you are looking for Batch Processing, then our server-based enterprise solution is what you are looking for.

  • High-Speed Processing

  • We understand that loudness compliance can be a time critical task at the end of a project. Our high speed processing will meter, limit and normalise your audio in record time.

  • Built-In True Peak Limiter for Peace of Mind

  • Our novel design approach to the true peak limiter is an industry first, and it provides absolute transparency whilst ensuring no peak will ever go over the threshold. A gain reduction display shows you where and how much the limiter reduced your mix.

  • Import & Export in Multiple Formats

  • We support the standard .WAV 42bit 48KHz for broadcasting with all its pull up and pull down variants. In addition, we also support .flac, .mp3, .aiff, and more.

  • Measurable Parameters

  • See clearly laid out readings for overall integrated loudness, loudness range, short-term and momentary loudness, RMS and true-peak. These can be toggled on and off, so you only see the information you require.

  • Flexible and Scalable

  • We give you the flexibility to adjust and integrate the Normaliser into your current work space. You can minimise it at the click of a button to divert your attention to other things.


Video


Rating


Value For Money

Sound Quality

General Ease of Use

Number of Presets


  • Operating System: Mac OSX 10.9 or higher / Windows 7 or higher
  • Available in 2 versions - Stereo or Surround (additional support up to Atmos 7.1.2 support)

Important note: This software is a standalone only application and will not function in a Digital Audio Workstation (DAW).

OS Compatibility



Ozone 9 Standard

Mastering by iZotope



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Description


The Future of Mastering

Ozone 9 Upgrades & Crossgrades:

Create with confidence using tools that polish and perfect your sound, and give you control the final result.

Ozone 9 is here, bringing the latest advances in audio technology to the world of mastering.  Find the perfect modern or vintage vibe with an expanded Master Assistant, or match to your favourite reference track with the new Match EQ. Work faster with improved plug-in performance, smoother metering, and resizable windows. Stop wondering if your music is ready for primetime—with Ozone 9, the future of mastering is in your hands.

Why Ozone 9?

AI-powered mastering

Master with machine learning: Ozone 9 helps make mastering easier with AI-powered assistive tools that give you an instant starting point. Master Assistant can add modern or vintage vibes and help you get the right loudness for streaming.

Match your reference track

Load your favourite reference tracks into Ozone 9, loop any section, and compare your master with a single button press. Take a snapshot of your reference with the new Match EQ module, and save your favorite profiles as presets for other songs. Or, use Master Assistant to set up a custom chain based on your reference.

NKS Support


Put the power of Ozone into your creative process and master while making music with Maschine or Komplete Kontrol. Open Ozone on the fly and easily add professional polish while making music on your hardware, using hundreds of different presets and accessible parameters mapped to your hardware controls. Add loudness, width, and EQ without touching your DAW and keep the creative juices flowing.

What's in Ozone?

Equalizer

Control the finest details of your sound with fluid metering and new HUD controls

  • Emulate classic analogue EQs or modern digital models depending on your style
  • Use Mid/Side mode to correct frequencies in the sides of your audio
  • NEW! Enjoy smooth, fluid metering and a resizable window that lets you see more of your sound

Imager

Add natural stereo width to narrow mixes with an upgraded “Stereoize” mode:

  • NEW! Two modes for stereoize give you new flavors for widening your track
  • Sculpt your image in stereo with per-band widening and narrowing
  • Monitor stereo width and phase new fluid metering

Track Referencing

Seamlessly compare your mix with a reference track at the touch of a button

  • Loop specific regions of your references and load up to 16 at once into Ozone
  • See your reference displayed in Ozone’s meters for easy visual comparison
  • Use Master Assistant to automatically match the tone of your loaded reference tracks

Maximizer

Make mixes LOUD while preserving dynamics with Ozone’s intelligent limiter

  • Intelligent Release Control (IRC) modes react to your sound to reduce distortion and pumping
  • Threshold Learn mode intelligently sets loudness to a target LUFS level
  • True Peak detection ensures your audio doesn’t clip after export

Dynamic EQ

Make EQ boosts and cuts that respond to the dynamics of your audio

  • Make subtle boosts and cuts that occur only when frequencies are too loud or soft
  • Control threshold, attack, and release along with frequency and gain
  • More precise that a compressor and more subtle than a normal EQ!

Exciter

Mix and match between seven different types of distortion to add warmth and character

  • Use different flavours of distortion such as Tape, Retro, or Tube
  • Add different distortion modes on multiple bands to create your own unique tonal balance

Dynamics

The mastering engineer’s most versatile tool. Tame dynamic mixes and give your tracks energy.

  • Compress in up to four bands, or with the Detection Filter mode
  • Use Auto-release mode for a smooth, natural response

Vintage Modules

Vintage Tape

Introduce rich saturation with all the frequency colouration, distortion, and phase effects of tape.

Vintage Limiter

Glue a mix together and get loud, pumping tracks using Vintage Limiter

Vintage EQ

Brighten your master, smooth out heavy low end, and add body to your digital recordings.

Vintage Compressor

Add colourful dynamics with compression modelled after famous mastering hardware



Video


Rating


Value For Money

Sound Quality

General Ease of Use

Number of Presets


Operating Systems

  • Mac: OS X 10.11.6 (El Capitan) - macOS 11 Big Sur (Intel-based only, M1 Apple Silicon not yet supported) (64-bit only)
  • Windows: Windows 7 (Latest Service Packs) - Windows 10 (64-bit only)

Plugin Formats

  • AU (Mac only), AAX, VST2, VST3 (All formats 64-bit only)

Supported Hosts

  • Logic Pro X
  • Ableton Live 9 - 11
  • Pro Tools 12.8 - 2019
  • FL Studio 20
  • Cubase 9 - 10
  • Nuendo 10
  • Wavelab 9
  • Sound Forge Pro 13
  • Sound Forge Mac 3
  • Studio One 4
  • REAPER 5
  • Reason 10
  • Audition CC 2019
  • Premiere Pro CC 2019
  • MASCHINE 2
  • Komplete Kontrol
  • Bitwig Studio 3
  • Final Cut Pro X

OS Compatibility



MASTER Bundle

Mastering by Zynaptiq



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Description


AI-Powered Audio Mastering

The MASTER Bundle: AI-powered audio mastering plugins for maximum quality with minimum effort. Our award-winning "smart" equalizer UNFILTER solves any EQ problems auto-magically (or manually, if preferred), with stunning precision, an incredibly quick workflow, and pristine quality. Carve out the details and character of your audio, add clarity, increase density, and boost loudness without breaking a sweat using INTENSITY. Change the level and punch of drums in a mixed recording or on the drum bus using our source separation based UNMIX::DRUMS. Whether you are a mastering or mixing engineer, music producer or artist, the MASTER Bundle will save you massive amounts of time while providing unbeatable results!

What's included in the MASTER Bundle:

  • INTENSITY: Detail | Clarity | Density | Loudness
  • UNFILTER: Adaptive Precision Equalizer
  • UNMIX::DRUMS: Boost Or Attenuate Drums In Mixed Music

INTENSITY

INTENSITY is a new kind of audio processor for mixing, mastering and sound design. Built on techniques typically found in facial recognition algorithms, INTENSITY brings out a sound’s inherent detail, increases its perceived loudness and density, and adds insane amounts of clarity. The unique algorithm carves out important signal features – making sounds sound more like themselves – and is operated with essentially one control. Between the proprietary algorithm and an optional soft-knee saturating limiter in the plugin’s output stage, INTENSITY also excels at attaining maximum loudness and creating a beautifully aggressive tone. 

The key INTENSITY features at a glance:

  • Mastering-grade processing for more detail, clarity, density and loudness. 
  • Intuitive and fast workflow using a streamlined set of controls. 
  • Proprietary INTENSITY circuit with optional frequency-dependent BIAS function. 
  • Additional precision soft-knee saturating limiter at the output stage. 

Learn more about INTENSITY.

UNFILTER

UNFILTER is a real-time plug-in that removes filtering effects, such as comb filtering, resonance, or excessive equalization – effectively linearizing the frequency response of a signal automatically. UNFILTER can also apply a detected filter response to another signal, or export it to disk as an impulse response, and can even perform mastering grade adaptive, free-form, and graphic equalization. Whether you're in music production, film post, game audio, broadcast, sound design, forensics, or engineering – UNFILTER makes time-consuming and often impossible tasks as effortless as adjusting one control.

Key Features:

  • Automatically detect and remove resonances, equalization, roll-offs and the effects of comb filtering from musical,  location, dialog and surveillance recordings.
  • Apply the measured filter response to other signals to place them in the same "acoustic world".
  • Export the measured filter response to or import it from a linear- or minimum-phase impulse response file (WAV).
  • Mastering grade adaptive, free-form and graphic equalization.
  • Extremely steep 96dB/octave shelving high-pass filter.
  • Output limiter for unsupervised use in batch processing applications.
  • Highly time-efficient workflow and UI
  • For an overview of the use cases for UNFILTER in sound for picture, music production/mastering, sound design, broadcast or forensics, please have a look at the UNFILTER applications page.

Learn more about UNFILTER.

UNMIX::DRUMS

UNMIX::DRUMS is the world’s first audio plugin that allows attenuating or boosting drums in mixed music, in real-time. Using advanced source signal separation (a.k.a. de-mixing, unmixing, sound extraction, sound isolation) technology under the hood, UNMIX::DRUMS provides frequency dependent drum level control that ranges from up to +18dB of boost to virtually complete removal* – while always sounding great. Whether used on a full mix or on a drum bus, UNMIX::DRUMS can be used to shape and enhance the impact of your drums in a unique new way. Sporting an intuitive multi-level GUI, frequency dependent control of key parameters, a sample accurate sub-bass (re)synthesizer, our high-precision analyzer display, M/S operation and an output limiter, UNMIX::DRUMS opens up exciting new options for mastering, music production, sample-based music creation, mash-up artists, remixers and DJs.

* Actually achievable amounts depend on input signal specifics.

Key Features:

  • Source Separation-Based Control of Drum Level in Mixed Music.
  • SMOOTH and PUNCHY Boost Modes.
  • Sample-Accurate Sub-Bass (Re)Synthesizer.
  • Frequency Dependent Control of Key Parameters.
  • Intuitive 3-way GUI Design.

Learn more about UNMIX::DRUMS.



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Sound Quality

General Ease of Use

Number of Presets


 

INTENSITY

Formats

MacOS X:

  • Apple AudioUnits (32/64bit)
  • Avid RTAS
  • Avid AAX Native including AudioSuite (32/64bit)
  • Steinberg VST 2.4 (32/64bit)
  • Steinberg VST 3 (32/64bit)

Windows:

  • Avid RTAS
  • Avid AAX Native including AudioSuite (32/64bit)
  • Steinberg VST 2.4 (32/64bit)
  • Steinberg VST 3 (32/64bit)

Mac

  • Apple Mac computer
  • OSX 10.8.x or newer
  • Intel CPU with at least 2 Cores; i7 or better recommended.
  • Apple AU (AudioUnits), Steinberg VST 2.4, VST 3 or Avid RTAS/AAX compatible Host software
  • For AAX Native 32-bit, the minimum required Pro Tools version is 10.3.6
  • iLok.com account for machine- or iLok 2 based activation (of full as well as demo versions)
  • Internet Connection for Software Activation (though not necessarily on the computer used for audio)

Windows

  • Windows 7 or newer
  • CPU with at least 2 Cores; Intel CPU recommended, i7 or better recommended.
  • Steinberg VST 2.4, VST 3 or Avid RTAS/AAX compatible Host software
  • For AAX Native 32-bit, the minimum required Pro Tools version is 10.3.6
  • iLok.com account for machine- or iLok 2 based activation (of full as well as demo versions)
  • Internet Connection for Software Activation (though not necessarily on the computer used for audio)

UNFILTER

PC:

  • Windows 7 or newer
  • CPU with at least 2 Cores; Intel CPU recommended, i7 or better recommended.
  • Steinberg VST 2.4, VST 3 or Avid RTAS/AAX compatible Host software
  • For AAX Native 32-bit, the minimum required Pro Tools version is 10.3.6
  • iLok.com account for machine- or iLok 2 based activation (of full as well as demo versions) DOES NOT REQUIRE ILOK KEY
  • Internet Connection for Software Activation (though not necessarily on the computer used for audio)

MAC:  

  • Apple Mac computer
  • OSX 10.8.x or newer
  • Intel CPU with at least 2 Cores; i7 or better recommended.
  • Apple AU (AudioUnits), Steinberg VST 2.4, VST 3 or Avid RTAS/AAX compatible Host software
  • For AAX Native 32-bit, the minimum required Pro Tools version is 10.3.6
  • iLok.com account for machine- or iLok 2 based activation (of full as well as demo versions) DOES NOT REQUIRE ILOK KEY
  • Internet Connection for Software Activation (though not necessarily on the computer used for audio)

Formats:

UNFILTER is available for a variety of formats.

Mac OS X:

  • Apple AudioUnits (32/64bit)
  • Avid RTAS
  • Avid AAX Native including AudioSuite (32/64bit)
  • Steinberg VST 2.4 (32/64bit)

Windows:

  • Avid RTAS
  • Avid AAX Native including AudioSuite (32/64bit)
  • Steinberg VST 2.4 (32/64bit)
  • Zynaptiq UNFILTER Screenshot

UNMIX::DRUMS

PC:

  • Windows 7 or newer
  • CPU with at least 2 Cores; Intel CPU recommended, i7 or better recommended.
  • Steinberg VST 2.4, VST 3 or Avid RTAS/AAX compatible Host software
  • For AAX Native 32-bit, the minimum required Pro Tools version is 10.3.6
  • iLok.com account for machine- or iLok 2 based activation (of full as well as demo versions) DOES NOT REQUIRE ILOK KEY
  • Internet Connection for Software Activation (though not necessarily on the computer used for audio)

MAC:  

  • Apple Mac computer
  • OSX 10.8.x or newer
  • Intel CPU with at least 2 Cores; i7 or better recommended.
  • Apple AU (AudioUnits), Steinberg VST 2.4, VST 3 or Avid RTAS/AAX compatible Host software
  • For AAX Native 32-bit, the minimum required Pro Tools version is 10.3.6
  • iLok.com account for machine- or iLok 2 based activation (of full as well as demo versions) DOES NOT REQUIRE ILOK KEY
  • Internet Connection for Software Activation (though not necessarily on the computer used for audio)

Formats:

UNMIX::DRUMS is available for a variety of formats.

Mac OS X:

  • Apple AudioUnits (32/64bit)
  • Avid RTAS
  • Avid AAX Native including AudioSuite (32/64bit)
  • Steinberg VST 2.4 (32/64bit)

Windows:

  • Avid RTAS
  • Avid AAX Native including AudioSuite (32/64bit)
  • Steinberg VST 2.4 (32/64bit)
  • Zynaptiq UNMIX DRUMS Plug-In Screenshot

Copy Protection

This software uses the latest PACE copy protection, which allows you to place your activation on your machine or on an iLok 2* (or newer; not included). You will need a free iLok.com account to use our software, even for the the demos – but you do not necessarily need the iLok 2 dongle, if your machine has internet access (activation of a system without internet connectivity requires an iLok 2 device). All required software is installed along with our plugins, but we generally recommend downloading the latest versions directly from iLok.com.

*Please note: the older, first generation (blue) iLok is not supported!

OS Compatibility



Mastering Suite

Mastering by Acon Digital



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Description


Acon Digital Mastering Suite consists of five plug-ins for audio mastering that were designed for ultimate signal transparency:

Equalize

Equalize is a parametric equalizer. Unlike other equalizers, you can freely adjust not only centre frequency, gain and bandwidths, but also the filter slope for each band. The filter slope can be set anywhere from 3 dB to ultra-sharp 120 dB per octave. You can operate Equalize as a zero latency plug-in when using the minimum phase mode, choose to preserve the phase relationships in the linear phase mode or use the unique mixed phase mode. The mixed phase mode allows you to set the latency freely in the range 5 to 120 milliseconds while preserving the phase relationships as far as possible. That gives a unique control over potential pre-ringing artifacts which is a common problem with linear phase filtering.

Learn more about Equalize.

Dynamics

Dynamics is a combined compressor, expander or gate. The look-ahead can be set anywhere from 0 to 30 milliseconds and the intelligent algorithm ensures a band-limited gain signal which reduces potential distortion to a minimum even with minimal attack and release times. You can use up to 4 times oversampling to further reduce distortion. The side chain signal can be either internal or external and there’s a full-blown side chain equalizer integrated with a low-cut, low shelf, peak, high shelf and high cut filters. The complexity of algorithms is not reflected in the intuitive user interface which provides graphical visualizations of all aspects of the processing.

Multiband Dynamics

Multiband Dynamics is the multiband extension of Dynamics which allows dynamic processing in up to four separate bands. You can freely set the cross-over frequencies and even the filter slopes can be set freely in the range 6 and 48 dB per octave. Multiband Dynamics operates in linear phase mode to avoid phase issues between the processed bands.

Limit

Limit is a transparent limiter with intelligent look-ahead in the range 0 to 30 milliseconds that reduces distortion to a minimum. The limiting is performed in a two-step process with a pre-compressor follower by the actual peak limiting algorithm. You can use up to 4 times oversampling for true peak limiting and to further reduce distortion.

Dither

Dither is a dithering plug-in with flexible perceptual noise shaping. You can adjust the maximum gain and the filter length of the frequency response of the noise shaping filter is visualized graphically.

Acon Digital Mastering Suite is available in 32 and 64-bit versions, as VST, VST3 or AAX for both Windows and OS X or as AU plug-ins for OS X.



Video


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Value For Money

Sound Quality

General Ease of Use

Number of Presets


PC Version (Windows)

  • Windows 10 / 8 / 7
  • Intel Core i3 or AMD multi-core processor (Intel Core i5 or faster recommended)
  • 1366 x 768 display resolution (1920 x 1080 or higher recommended)
  • 1 GB RAM (4 GB or more recommended)
  • 1 GB free HD space
  • A host application that is compatible with VST, VST3 or AAX (Pro Tools 10.3.5 or higher)

Macintosh Version (OSX)

  • OS X 10.8 or later
  • 1 GB RAM (4 GB or more recommended)
  • 1 GB free HD space
  • A host application that is compatible with AU, VST, VST3 or AAX (Pro Tools 11 or higher)

OS Compatibility



Elevate Mastering Bundle

Mastering by Eventide



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Description


Elevate Bundle

Mastering with a Brain

Elevate is the most advanced mastering plug-in ever created. This unique multi-band limiter, human-ear EQ and powerful audio maximizer will increase the loudness of your mix while maintaining or improving its dynamic perception. It uses intelligent, adaptive technology that responds in real time to your music; creating not only the loudest, but the best sounding master.

Developed by Newfangled Audio, Elevate maintains subtle dynamics and improves the tonal balance of your mix. The adaptive limiter analyzes 26 frequency bands and alters the gain, speed and transients for each band in real time. The result is a transparent, natural sound, no matter how hard you push it.

Elevate utilizes 26 critical filter bands modeled from the human ear. Each of the bands are spaced to give maximum control over how the sound hits your eardrum. Draw curves, solo bands and manipulate the transient attack for each individual band to bring out particular instruments such as kick or snare drums.

Adaptive Technology

Elevate uses artificial intelligence algorithms to make it easy for you to get the best sounds, but you can still get under the hood for as much precise control as you desire. This includes giving you control over the tonal balance and transients inside the final limiting stage. The adaptive algorithms reduce audible artefacts and the additional controls give you maximum flexibility with professional results.




Features

  • Analyzes and alters the gain, speed and transients of each filter band in real time.
  • Includes presets by: APS Mastering, Matt Lange, Jeremy Lubsey, Eric Beam, ROCAsound, Chris Tabron and John McCaig.
  • Automatically adapts the attack, release and look-ahead parameters for each filter band to greatly reduce "pumping" and breathing artifacts and perceived distortion.
  • Preserves or emphasizes fast transients to avoid squashing your mix.
  • Manipulates transients across the critical bands to preserve the attacks from kick drums, snares and cymbals, without affecting the entire mix.
  • Uses linear phase auditory filters — based on the Mel Scale — to manipulate the audio in a way that is natural to your inner ear.
  • Solo the output of one band (or a number of bands) to hone in on problem frequencies, tweak transients or alter gain.
  • Use the Auto Output Level feature to compare the limited signal to non-limited signals with the same amount of gain allowing you to easily hear what impact the processing is having on your sound.
  • Use the Spectral Clipper to overdrive the final output without affecting the tonal balance or allowing the signal to get “tubby.” Perfect for a more aggressive sound.
  • Six different types of metering allow you to keep an eye on every aspect of your output audio.
  • Powerful & Precise Human Ear EQ

  • Graphic EQ that uses filters which are modeled on the human ear.  Perfect for mixing and mastering, EQuivocate's auditory filters and match EQ functionality make it incredibly powerful, simple to use, and natural sounding. Each of the 26 critical bands tickles a different part of your inner ear, making any combination of settings sound as natural as possible. Combining this with a linear-phase filter shape that reduces pre-echo makes EQuivocate an EQ with a difference you can hear. Includes a parametric EQ, compressor, gate, soft saturation, transformer emulation, micro pitch shift, and stereo delays.

  • Saturate is the Spectral Clipper algorithm made popular in the Elevate Mastering Limiter. Saturate's two controls belie a sophisticated signal processing engine which allows it to overdrive a signal without effecting the tonal balance no matter how hard you push it. Add up to 12 dB of clipping with a variable shape parameter which moves from a pleasant soft curve to full hard clipping. Additionally, the SHAPE control allows you to smoothly morph between hard clipping and the mathematically smoothest curve possible. Use Saturate to overdrive individual tracks or your entire mix.

  • Learn more about Saturate.

  • Based on the Transient Emphasis section of the award-winning Elevate Mastering Limiter, Punctuate is a multi-band transient modulator based on the critical bands in the human ear. Punctuate's intelligent algorithms allow you to control the transient emphasis or suppression of all 26 critical bands with just 4 controls. This makes for an incredibly powerful, but very easy to use transient modulator.

  • Learn more about Punctuate.


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Windows

  • Windows 8 and later (32 / 64-bit) (Windows 11 supported)
  • AAX, VST2, VST3 (32 / 64-bit)

Mac

  • macOS 10.12 and later (64-bit only) (macOS 12 Monterey and M1 Apple Silicon supported)
  • AAX, AU, VST2, VST3 (64-bit)
  • Please Note: AAX format is only compatible with Intel Macs (until Avid adds native M1 Apple Silicon support).

Important Notes:

  • Eventide tests their desktop plugins in Ableton Live, Cubase, FL Studio, Logic Pro, Pro Tools, and Studio One (However, their plugins should work with any compatible host.)
  • No iLok dongle is required to run this software - only a FREE iLok account/Manager is required for authorisation.

OS Compatibility



Weiss MM-1

Mastering by Softube



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Description


Softube Weiss Collection

Weiss MM-1: Loudness Done Right

Some brands become synonymous with their fields. They so revolutionise and define their product or process that true experts can’t see beyond them. When it comes to audio mastering, the one-and-only name is Weiss.

Based on the legendary Weiss DS1-MK3, the centerpiece of mastering studios the world over (and also now available as a Softube plug-in), the future of fast and professional mix maximizing is now here - the MM-1 Mastering Maximizer.

Featuring the very same algorithms as the original digital hardware unit, the MM-1 offers five flavours of limiting; Transparent, Loud, Punch, Wide, and De-ess; intelligently progressing as the ‘amount’ knob turns, and blendable with the mix control, to give users precisely the right amount of power over the feel of their masters.

Crucial to this plug-in is that it can’t sound bad - the intelligent processes happening under the hood as the amount knob turns; the filtering, compression, de-essing, and so on; have been carefully designed by highly experienced mastering engineers using the industry standard DS1-MK3 as a foundation.

And there’s no better mastering limiter out there. This product allows users to get their mixes exactly as loud as they want, with exactly the sound they want, without sacrificing dynamics and musicality.

In Short:

  • Simple interface controlling detailed expert mastering processes.
  • Five ‘flavours’ of limiting available.
  • Contains the very same technology as the legendary hardware mastering processor, the Weiss MM-1.
  • Fully licensed and endorsed by Daniel Weiss himself.
  • Great for maximizing your mix-bus quickly and effectively.
  • Go as loud as you want; louder than any other product out there; without sacrificing desirable tone and dynamics.
  • Impossible to get it wrong. Be the master of your own masters!



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  • Mac OS X 10.13 or newer (older OS versions will not work) (64-bit only).
  • Windows 10 64-bit (older Windows versions may work but are not tested) (64-bit only).
  • Mac: Intel Core i3 / i5 / i7 / Xeon - M1 support pending.
  • Windows: Intel Core i3 / i5 / i7 / Xeon / AMD Quad-Core or newer.
  • Screen resolution 1280x800 or larger.
  • Supported sample rates: 44.1, 48, 88.2, 96, 176.4 and 192 kHz, in both mono and stereo.
  • 8 GB RAM or more is recommended, as well as at least 8 GB hard disk space for installation (individual plug-ins take less space, while sample libraries may require additional disk space).
  • A Softube account is required to register and install the software.
  • An iLok account is required for authorisation of the software.
  • Internet access for downloading installer and managing licenses.
  • iLok generation 2 and up, if you intend to use a physical iLok dongle for authorizing your plug-ins (note that an iLok dongle is not a requirement).
  • In theory, any 64-bit VST, VST3, AU, or AAX (11.0.2 or higher) compatible host application should work.
  • The most recent maintenance release of the DAW application is recommended.

However, due to plug-in host differences between DAWs - and Softube's own rigorous testing standards - Softube only officially test their plug-ins and instruments in the most recent versions of Pro Tools, Logic Pro, Cubase, Live, Studio One, Digital Performer, Reaper and Sonar. Softube plugins are not tested in the non-listed systems, but they most likely work as long as the system requirements are met.

Important note: make sure that you always use the latest iLok License Manager. It is not included in the Softube installer but can be downloaded from www.ilok.com​

OS Compatibility



Weiss DS1-MK3

Mastering by Softube



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Description


The Gold Standard in Mastering

Mastering compression, limiting, and de-essing without compromise. Every mastering engineer’s fondest dream is about to come true. Softube's plug-in is a line-by-line code port of the legendary Weiss DS1-MK3 mastering processor — the unit no serious mastering engineer can do without.

The DS1-MK3 brings unparalleled mastering quality into the DAW-based studio with new features and workflows and makes the very best in mastering dynamics more affordable than ever.

Purchase of the DS1-MK3 also includes the intelligent Weiss MM-1 Mastering Maximizer plug-in, the Weiss Deess de-essing plug-in and the Weiss Compressor/Limiter plug-in.

Gold-Standard

Since its launch in the 1990s, the Weiss DS1 has become an absolute gold-standard unit, indispensable in mastering studios around the world despite a premium price tag. Its transparency, unparalleled versatility, and exceptional sound quality make it a must-have, heard (or rather not heard) on pretty much any major record you’d care to mention from the last twenty years. And in that time updates and improvements by Weiss have led to the near-perfection of the DS1-MK3.

And now for the first time ever, it is available as a plug-in from Softube, offering more flexibility than ever in a modern DAW environment, at a fraction of the cost.

What is the Weiss DS1-MK3?

This digital compressor/limiter/de-esser performs tasks no analogue unit ever could, across a wider range of settings. World-renowned mastering engineer, Bob Katz, author of Mastering Audio (hailed by Sound on Sound magazine as ‘the definitive work on mastering’), and three times Grammy winner, described the original hardware unit as ‘impeccable’, saying ‘it is the most transparent, refined, flexible, and least “digital-sounding” dynamics processor I have ever used.’

Working in collaboration with Weiss Digital Audio, this latest addition to the already rich and desirable Softube product range has been almost three years in development. Porting the code perfectly, line by line, from the original unit so that the plug-in sounds identical was just one task. Recreating the workflow and characteristic broad and usable functionality that made the Weiss such a legend was another.

Running at 32 bit/192 kHz (an upgrade on even the hardware original) the plug-in opens up the absolute pinnacle of sound quality to everyone. And with two all-new advanced limiter algorithms in addition to the Weiss original, nothing touches this processor for sheer excellence. Mastering like the masters is open to all for the first time, with all the loudness, clarity, and precision, and none of the drawbacks.

An Improvement on a Legend

The plug-in DS1-MK3 works at resolutions of up to 32 bit/192 kHz (an upgrade on the original hardware). And because it's a plug-in, you can run it on multiple tracks at once, at no extra cost.

De-ess your mids and sides independently. Compress with variable soft-knee settings to take you from gentle levelling all the way to aggressive crushing. And limit with simply the best, most transparent, brick wall available — including two all-new advanced limiter algorithms in addition to the Weiss original, the second of which is designed for true peak limiting.




Features

  • Officially licensed and endorsed by Daniel Weiss himself.
  • Not an emulation, but a line-by-line code port of the original digital hardware.
  • Exactly the same processor as the $10,000 original, at a fraction of the cost.
  • Three processors in one; de-ess, compress, and limit, with the industry-standard tool.
  • Processes at resolutions of up to 32 bit/192 kHz for exceptional sound quality.
  • Advanced metering - waveform view.
  • Featuring all-new presets from Bob Katz.
  • Truly versatile de-essing. Choose your own filters, adjust frequency, and tailor the process to your needs working in stereo or mid-sides.
  • Digital compressor can operate at speeds no analogue unit ever could and offers you total control.
  • Two brand-new limiter algorithms included, as well as the Weiss original.
  • Run multiple instances of this legendary unit on the same mix at no extra cost.
  • Nothing sounds as clean, as transparent, as good. That’s why the hardware is in every major mastering studio in the world.

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  • Mac OS X 10.13 or newer (older OS versions will not work) (64-bit only).
  • Windows 10 64-bit (older Windows versions may work but are not tested) (64-bit only).
  • Mac: Intel Core i3 / i5 / i7 / Xeon - M1 support pending.
  • Windows: Intel Core i3 / i5 / i7 / Xeon / AMD Quad-Core or newer.
  • Screen resolution 1280x800 or larger.
  • Supported sample rates: 44.1, 48, 88.2, 96, 176.4 and 192 kHz, in both mono and stereo.
  • 8 GB RAM or more is recommended, as well as at least 8 GB hard disk space for installation (individual plug-ins take less space, while sample libraries may require additional disk space).
  • A Softube account is required to register and install the software.
  • An iLok account is required for authorisation of the software.
  • Internet access for downloading installer and managing licenses.
  • iLok generation 2 and up, if you intend to use a physical iLok dongle for authorizing your plug-ins (note that an iLok dongle is not a requirement).
  • In theory, any 64-bit VST, VST3, AU, or AAX (11.0.2 or higher) compatible host application should work.
  • The most recent maintenance release of the DAW application is recommended.

However, due to plug-in host differences between DAWs - and Softube's own rigorous testing standards - Softube only officially test their plug-ins and instruments in the most recent versions of Pro Tools, Logic Pro, Cubase, Live, Studio One, Digital Performer, Reaper and Sonar. Softube plugins are not tested in the non-listed systems, but they most likely work as long as the system requirements are met.

Important note: make sure that you always use the latest iLok License Manager. It is not included in the Softube installer but can be downloaded from www.ilok.com​

OS Compatibility



Focus

Mastering by SoundSpot



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Description


Easily Add Clarity & Depth to your Master Using Psychoacoustics

We designed Focus to make one of the mastering industry secrets available to you using psychoacoustics - right out of the box.

Focus takes care of all the wizardry behind the scenes, creating this psychoacoustic processing chain while keeping the effect mono-compatible.

All you have to do is to adjust the filterband to highlight any important elements in your master you want to stand out. 

This technique can take your mix into a completely new sonic realm, making your kick drums punch through and helping lead vocals and instruments sit effortlessly in the mix.




Features

  • Well guarded mastering secret revealed
  • Bring out elements in your master in a new way  
  • Analog modeled filters and summing
  • Extremely light on CPU and RAM
  • Mastering is the key to giving a well balanced mix the final push to make it stand out. However, many commercial releases seem to have a level of depth and clarity that seems extremely difficult to achieve

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General Ease of Use

Number of Presets


macOS:

  • 10.12 – 10.15 (older OS versions may work but are not tested)

Plugin Formats:

  • VST
  • VST3
  • AU
  • AAX (Pro Tools 11.0.2 or higher)

Windows

  • Windows 7, 8 or 10 (32 & 64-bit)

Plugin Formats: 

  • VST
  • VST3
  • AAX (Pro Tools 11.0.2 or higher)

Specification Requirements:

  • RAM: 8 GB RAM or more is recommended. Plus at least 8 GB hard disk space for installation.
  • Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo, AMD Athlon 64 X2 or newer.
  • Formats: In theory any 32 or 64-bit VST, VST3, AU, or AAX compatible host application should work.
  • Licensing: Internet access for activating licence key. Please ensure any outgoing connection blockers are deactivated.
  • Sample Rates: Supported sample rates: 44.1, 48, 88.2, 96, 176.4 and 192 kHz, in both mono and stereo.

OS Compatibility



MasterCheck

Mastering by NUGEN Audio



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Description


Mastering for Today's Digital Music Services

Mix and Master for the listener - directly to Apple, Spotify, DAB Radio and TV specifications, MasterCheck will immediately reveal how your audio is going to sound to the listener, allowing you to produce with confidence and certainty.

Become Soundcloud Ready

*Now with SoundCloud and MP3 support!

Mix & Master For The Listener

MasterCheck is the complete optimisation solution for today’s delivery services, a plug-in providing the tools to make sure your music reaches the listener as intended. Streaming apps, download stores and podcasts all use data compression, loudness normalisation or both. These processes can affect your track in undesirable ways: your loud, punchy mix could end up quiet and flat, or suffer clipping and distortion.

MasterCheck reveals these problems ahead of time and enables you to deliver masters perfectly tuned for specific playout systems.

MasterCheck demonstrates the effects of loudness normalisation so you can find the sweet spot between perceived loudness and dynamics, and allows you to hear artefacts introduced by the encoding process ahead of time. You can quickly find the point where these processes will start to negatively impact the music, putting you back in control.

Audition Codecs

How do people listen to your output? You work hard to deliver masters that sound great at home, in the car or on earbuds, but that’s only half the story. How does your music sound on Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal, SoundCloud or YouTube?

All major online services encode your music, using different specs and formats depending on the playback device, the connection speed, or even whether the user is a “basic” or “premium” customer. Hot mixes can introduce True Peak overs that will clip on playback. MasterCheck detects these errors, and you’ll be able to hear obvious frequency masking and other artefacts. You can monitor the following codecs, with presets for specific streaming services:

  • Ogg Vorbis
  • FLAC
  • Opus
  • AAC-LC
  • HE-AACv1 (AAC+)
  • HE-AACv2 (DAB+)
  • MP3

Reference & Comparison

Via the 'External ref' function, MasterCheck allows you to A/B with reference material in order to check differences in loudness, PLR and True Peak measurements. If you wish, you can use 'Offset to match' to match the loudness for a direct comparison.

'Offset to match' can also be used to remove loudness from an FX chain. This can be useful for evaluating the impact of signal processing, without being influenced by the 'feel-good factor' of increased loudness.


Flexible Workflow

With a resizable interface and many user-configurable options, MasterCheck can easily be adjusted to suit any situation. Dynamic colour splits for PLR can be set to indicate desirable ranges, and meter splits can be easily set to show 'safe zones' which indicate inter-sample peaks and so on.

For Mastering

Playout services essentially have a ‘letterbox’ through which they deliver your audio; if it doesn’t slide through then the service will force it to fit. A super-loud master might win the loudness war on CD, but will simply be turned down on any major streaming service. This leaves valuable headroom which you could have used for transient detail and punch.

It is important to be aware of how True Peak clipping can cause downstream distortion in encoded audio. Heavy compression will result in audible 'fizzing' and loss of stereo definition, especially with lower quality codecs.

For Mixing

The most popular streaming platforms now only differ by 3 LU between the loudest and quietest target for normalisation. Clearly, there is no benefit in mixing louder than the loudest platform, at which point all platforms will be turning down your audio.

Much of this is primarily a concern for the mastering engineer, but if you over-compress a mix then the mastering engineer has nowhere to go. If you compress above a platform's target level, transients lost cannot be regained at a later stage. Try using MasterCheck to audition at the service playout level to hear your mix in context.




Features

  • Preview for digital music services
  • Balance Loudness & Dynamics
  • Audition encoding in real-time
  • Master for Spotify, Apple etc
  • Match referencing mixes
  • Ensure clip-free encoding
  • PLR/PSR Metering
  • Typical Applications

  • Measuring integrated loudness
  • Monitoring PLR and PSR to avoid over-compression
  • Identifying codec distortion, and tweaking to compensate
  • A/B referencing at matched loudness
  • Preparing mix dynamics for mastering
  • Mastering for digital music services
  • Measuring dynamic content
  • Avoiding downstream clipping
  • Auditioning loudness matched FX chains
  • Mastering for podcasts and digital radio
  • Music Mixing

  • Dynamic Range Measurement
  • Loudness matching across album tracks
  • FX chain auditioning with matched loudness
  • Preparation for Mastering
  • Service Presets:

  • Apple Music
  • BBC iPlayer
  • DAB+ Radio
  • Soundcloud
  • Industry Standard Metering:

  • Program Loudness
  • Short Term Loudness
  • PLR (Peak to Loudness Ratio) dynamic range
  • ITU compliant inter-sample peak
  • Realtime Preview:

  • Loudness Adjustments (Level Trim and Peak Limiting)
  • Audio Codecs
  • Reference & Comparison:

  • Simultaneous metering of reference track with mix
  • Reference monitoring (A/B)
  • Loudness matching
  • A/B Pre/Post Mix Master FX with matched loudness

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Minimum System Specification:

  • Mac OSX 10.7.x / 512 MB RAM
  • Windows (64 bit) Vista or above / 512 MB RAM

Supported Standards

Our loudness products are compatible with all recommendations and guidance based upon the international standard ITU-R B.S. 1770, revisions 1, 2, 3 and 4 including:

  • ATSC A/85 (CALM ACT)
  • EBU R128
  • EBU R128 S1
  • ARIB TR-B32
  • OP-59
  • AGCOM 219/9/CSP
  • Portaria 354
  • DPP

Supported Audio Codecs:

  • HE-AACv1 (AAC+)
  • HE-AACv2 (DAB+)
  • Ogg Vorbis
  • AAC-LC

Available Formats:

  • We support AAX, VST, VST3, and AU in both 64-bit and 32-bit versions. RTAS is also available as 32-bit only

OS Compatibility



Ozone Elements

Mastering by iZotope



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Description


The Future of Mastering

The brand new Ozone Elements delivers essential mastering tools in one affordable package. Balance your audio in stereo with an improved Imager, featuring a new “Stereoize” mode that can bring transparent width and depth to narrow mixes. Quickly create a custom preset with Master Assistant, which listens to your audio and makes suggestions for loudness and tone. Work faster with improved plug-in performance, smoother metering, and resizable windows that let you see more of your sound without taking up your CPU.  It’s the easiest and most affordable way to get your music ready for primetime.

Why Ozone 9?

AI-powered mastering

Master with machine learning: Ozone 9 helps make mastering easier with AI powered assistive tools that give you an instant starting point. 

Equalizer

Control the finest details of your sound with fluid metering and new HUD controls

  • Emulate classic analogue EQs or modern digital models depending on your style
  • Use Mid/Side mode to correct frequencies in the sides of your audio
  • NEW! Enjoy smooth, fluid metering and a resizable window that lets you see more of your sound

Imager

Add natural stereo width to narrow mixes with an upgraded “Stereoize” mode:

  • NEW! Two modes for stereoize give you new flavors for widening your track
  • Sculpt your image in stereo with per-band widening and narrowing
  • Monitor stereo width and phase new fluid metering

Maximizer

Make mixes LOUD while preserving dynamics with Ozone’s intelligent limiter

  • Intelligent Release Control (IRC) modes react to your sound to reduce distortion and pumping
  • Threshold Learn mode intelligently sets loudness to a target LUFS level
  • True Peak detection ensures your audio doesn’t clip after export

NKS Support

NKS support puts the power of Ozone into your creative process, letting you master while making music with Maschine 2 or Komplete Kontrol. Open Ozone on the fly and easily add professional polish while making music on your hardware, using hundreds of different presets and accessible parameters mapped to your hardware controls. Add loudness, width, and EQ without touching your DAW and keep the creative juices flowing.



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Operating Systems

  • Mac: OS X 10.11.6 (El Capitan) - macOS 11 Big Sur (Intel-based only, M1 Apple Silicon not yet supported) (64-bit only)
  • Windows: Windows 7 (Latest Service Packs) - Windows 10 (64-bit only)

Plugin Formats

  • AU (Mac only), AAX, VST2, VST3 (All formats 64-bit only)

Supported Hosts

  • Logic Pro X
  • Ableton Live 9 - 11
  • Pro Tools 12.8 - 2019
  • FL Studio 20
  • Cubase 9 - 10
  • Nuendo 10
  • Wavelab 9
  • Sound Forge Pro 13
  • Sound Forge Mac 3
  • Studio One 4
  • REAPER 5
  • Reason 10
  • Audition CC 2019
  • Premiere Pro CC 2019
  • MASCHINE 2
  • Komplete Kontrol
  • Bitwig Studio 3
  • Final Cut Pro X

OS Compatibility



Tonal Balance Control 2

Mastering by iZotope



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Description


Important Note: Tonal Balance Control 2 is included in Ozone 9 Advanced and Neutron 3 Advanced, and is now also available for separate purchase. Owners of Ozone 9 Advanced and Neutron 3 Advanced can update to the latest version of Tonal Balance Control 2 via iZotope Product Portal for free.

Find Your Balance

Get decades of mastering expertise in your next session with Tonal Balance Control 2, a plug-in that lets you overcome your listening environment and get a balanced mix that translates to your audience. Reference your track’s frequency balance against 12 different genre targets based on thousands of professional masters, or upload your own audio file to compare to a unique balance curve. Solo frequencies that are out of bounds, and make adjustments across your mix from within Tonal Balance Control 2 using controls that talk to Neutron 3, Ozone 9, and other compatible iZotope plug-ins. Whether you need a quick confidence check on a mix or are perfecting your final master, Tonal Balance Control 2 is essential for any project.




Features

  • Create with confidence: Tonal Balance Control 2 is your second set of ears in a session, with 12 target curves representing popular music genres that help you stay on target no matter your listening environment. Load your own audio file to create a custom curve for when you’re looking for a specific vibe. 
  • Fix issues in your session: Tonal Balance Control 2 can open an EQ from an iZotope Neutron 3 or Ozone 9 plug-in in your session, so you can fix balance issues from one plug-in window. Tonal Balance Control 2 can also talk to plug-ins like iZotope Nectar 3 or VocalSynth 2, letting you see how your vocal fits into your overall balance.
  • Get the complete picture: With improved fluid metering and resizability, it’s even easier to see every detail of your tonal balance. Work in Broad view mode to get a general bird’s eye of your mix, or switch to Fine view to zoom in on tough problem areas. Solo frequencies to hear exactly what’s contributing to your tonal balance, and quickly fix issues on your tracks with improved scaling that makes it easier to work with EQs in Ozone 9 or Neutron 3*
  • * Ozone, Neutron, Nectar, and other compatible iZotope plug-ins are not included with the purchase of Tonal Balance Control 2.

  • Target Curves *Updated in version 2!

  • Drawn from analysis of decades of recorded audio across the spectrum of styles and genres, Tonal Balance Control 2 offers a set of 12 target curves that help give you fix balance issues in your sound, even in poor listening environments. Whether your style calls for massive low-end or brilliant highs, you'll always have a benchmark with genre curves from "rock" to "reggae" and more.

  • Load your own reference track to generate a unique curve: see the balance of your favourite songs, and fine-tune your master to match their sound. Use the target curves to keep your music on track and help it translate to your audience!

  • New! Tonal Balance Control 2 includes 9 new genre-cased targets, for a total of 12 curves. Now you can measure you tonal balance in styles like Jazz, R&B/Hip-Hop, and Pop. See how your music translates for top-50 radio play, or the classical crowd!
  • Use Broad or Fine view modes to get a different perspective on your tonal balance. Broad view measures the general balance between low, low-mid, hi-mid, and hi frequency regions to give you an at-a-glance picture. Fine view lets you zoom in to catch smaller balance issues in a more narrow range.
  • Load your own audio file and generate a unique custom curve, perfect for when you're mastering to a reference track, or comparing two versions of a mix.
  • Find and Fix Issues In The Mix

  • Tonal Balance Control 2 is more than just a meter — by talking to the included Relay plug-in, you can make level adjustments to your tracks while checking your tonal balance in real-time.

  • If you have Neutron 3 or Ozone 9 in your session, you can open their EQs from Tonal Balance Control 2 and make finer tonal adjustments to your individual tracks or master. Combine the power of iZotope tools and bring your session together to speed up your mixing and mastering workflow!

  • New! Use Relay to view the spectrum of your tracks against your tonal balance targets. You can now make changes to Relay's gain controls from Tonal Balance Control 2 for quick adjustments against your target.
  • Talk to the EQ of any Ozone 9 or Neutron 3 plug-in in your session to make finer balance tweaks without changing the gain.
  • Use your alt/option key to "solo" frequency areas, useful for identifying what elements of your mix make up the overall tonal balance.
  • iZotope Relay

  • Relay is included in Tonal Balance Control 2 and goes on your individual tracks, acting as a mini-channel strip complete with gain, pan, high pass, and even stereo width controls. Relay also talks to other iZotope plug-ins, enabling machine-learning features to help you remove masking, bring balance and focus your mix, monitor dialogue intelligibility, and more. As a quick and easy trimming or sweetening tool, or an advanced workflow-saver, Relay is a great choice for any session template.

  • Control pan, gain, width, and add a high pass filter to your track without messing with your DAW faders or consuming a lot of CPU.
  • View the frequency of individual tracks in Tonal Balance Control 2 against your target curves, and adjust them against your balance targets in real-time.
  • Mix all of your tracks in a visual space with Neutron 3’s Visual Mixer: With Relay on your tracks or busses, you can open Visual Mixer and adjust pan, gain, and width directly within the Visual Mixer plug-in, included with Neutron 3 Advanced.
  • Measure Intelligibility with Insight 2’s Intelligibility Meter: Using this brand new meter in Insight 2, measure the relative intelligibility of your vocal and visualize how clearly it will be heard in different types of listening environments.
  • Remove masking from your vocal with Nectar 3: Relay communicates with Nectar 3’s Unmask mode and provides automatic processing to remove masking frequencies from your vocal track. Learn more about it here.
  • Visualize the spectrum of different tracks against your entire mix with the Spectrogram in Insight 2: Insight 2 will communicate with individual instances of Relay and display them on your spectrogram, with customizable colours.
  • With Relay on all your tracks, you can use Mix Assistant (available in Neutron 3 Advanced) to automatically set an initial level balance in your session.
  • *Relay is included for free with Tonal Balance Control 2, Neutron 3 Advanced, Insight 2, and Nectar 3. 


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Value For Money

Sound Quality

General Ease of Use

Number of Presets


Operating Systems

  • Mac: OS X 10.11.6 (El Capitan) - macOS 10.15 (64-bit only)
  • Windows: Windows 7 (64-bit) (Latest Service Packs) - Windows 10 (64-bit)

Plug-in Formats

  • AU
  • AAX
  • VST2
  • VST3
  • All formats are 64-bit only.

OS Compatibility



RX Loudness Control

Mastering by iZotope



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Description


RX Loudness Control: Automatic Global Loudness Correction

Deliver transparent audio while meeting global broadcast specifications! RX Loudness Control works faster than real-time to ensure your audio mixes are delivered within the appropriate loudness standards. Designed specifically for audio/video post production and broadcast workflows, RX Loudness Control combines industry-leading, intelligent audio signal processing with an easy-to-use interface.

Efficiently analyze and render your mix to comply with any of the global loudness standards, then instantly create a .CSV loudness report. It's the best-sounding automatic loudness compliance processing available today—unparalleled in speed, accuracy, reliability, and sound quality.

Key Highlights

  • Ensure your mixes meet the required delivery specifications with truly intelligent algorithms that take out the guesswork.
  • Deliver results globally with a single product offering the latest, greatest, loudness standards.
  • Produce more content than ever with extensive presets, a curated featureset, and a fast, efficient workflow that saves you time on the final stage of TV production.

Intuitive Workflow

Render your audio to be loudness compliant and appropriate for delivery and broadcast—all with just two clicks! A history graph and loudness report inform you of whether your audio is within the appropriate tolerance of the selected loudness standard, and if not, shows you where the overflows may be occurring. An easy-to-use interface guides you seamlessly through the workflow, displaying relevant and useful loudness metering.

Surround Sound

Channel count formats vary from project to project, and loudness standards can dictate specs for surround channel counts. To ensure loudness compliance in any channel format you may be working with, RX Loudness Control supports mono, stereo, and surround channel counts up to 5.1 for seamless integration into any workflow.

IRC™ II Limiting

Existing automated loudness correction tools can sometimes produce questionable sound quality. Fortunately, RX Loudness Control includes IRC (Intelligent Release Control) II, an incredibly transparent limiting algorithm that sonically outperforms the competition. This offline process corrects a mono, stereo, or surround sound audio file for True Peak value (dBTP).

Global Loudness Standards

With so many loudness specifications being introduced and refined across the globe, it can be difficult to maintain loudness compliance for multiple broadcast networks. RX Loudness Control boasts an extensive list of the latest and most significant global loudness standards. Select from among the following loudness standards:

  • BS.1770-1 (Global)
  • BS.1770-2-3 (Global)
  • EBU R128 (Europe)
  • EBU R128 s1 (Europe)
  • AGCOM 219/09/CSP (Italy)
  • ATSC A/85 (U.S.)
  • OP-59 (Australia)
  • ARIB TR-B32 (Japan)

Multi-host Compatibility

RX Loudness Control supports offline processing as an AudioSuite plug-in for the two leading broadcast editing platforms: Avid Media Composer and Pro Tools 10-12. And for the first time, offline loudness-compliant processing is available as an audio extension for Adobe Premiere Pro.

Technical FAQs

How does RX Loudness Control process multiple channels of audio?

  • RX Loudness Control applies the same gain envelope (linked operation) to all channels—for example, stereo and 5.1 surround—to maintain phase and balance between the different channels in the final mix file.

How does RX Loudness Control comply with different loudness standards?

  • RX Loudness Control first analyzes the audio source file. Then it computes the amount of transparent correction required to hit the target without a perceived change to the dynamic range. The correction pass includes three elements:
    • A fixed amount of gain to hit the specified integrated loudness
    • [optional] An RMS compressor to limit the Short-term (or Momentary) loudness
    • A True Peak limiter
    • Steps 2 and 3 work only on an as-needed basis. If the audio signal already meets Short-term and True Peak specs, no extra processing is applied.

How does RX Loudness Control use compression?

  • RX Loudness Control uses compression in a way that preserves the quality of your audio. When needed, a compressor dynamically and transparently adjusts your audio to ensure you get the best sound while remaining compliant. For loudness standards that require Short-term or Momentary compliance, the compressor is engaged automatically when loudness exceeds the specified target. You simply enable a slider via an on/off button and set the threshold. The Short-term/Momentary slider toggles between both modes, and can be turned on or off.

How will the processing affect the dynamics of my mix?

  • For many mixes, dynamics are not affected at all. This is because only a fixed gain is required to meet the spec. However, if your mix is too dynamic or has significant transients, compression and/or limiting are required to meet Short-term (Momentary) or True Peak parts of the spec. This reduces the dynamics of the mix in the same manner as a compressor and/or iZotope's IRC™ II limiter (also found in iZotope's creative mastering platform, Ozone 6.).

Can my audio distort if my peaks are higher than the True Peak setting?

  • IRC II is considered one of the best limiting algorithms. Its goal is to provide the best possible sound transparently during operation. For most mixes, it will only work occasionally to meet the loudness spec. If the limiter is being hit hard, it might be that the mix is too dynamic and needs to be redone or compressed prior to loudness correction.

What's the difference between RX Loudness Control and iZotope's Insight?

  • RX Loudness Control and Insight complement each other in post and broadcast workflows. Insight is a surround sound, real-time loudness metering suite that helps you visualize changes made during mixing and mastering. RX Loudness Control is a more comprehensive tool that analyzes and corrects your final render for compliance with global loudness standards.

What is the difference between RX Loudness Control and the Loudness module in RX 4?

  • RX Loudness Control includes several updates and enhancements that make it a more comprehensive tool than the Loudness module in RX. These include the following:
  • Generate a loudness report in .CSV
  • Supports surround sound, up to 5.1
  • Available on the Adobe CC platform and as an Audiosuite DPM/AAX plug-in
  • New, faster loudness algorithm (still with industry-leading accuracy)
  • Supports the EBU R128 s1 standard

Will RX Loudness Control preserve the Left total/Right total (LtRt) encoding on a Dolby-encoded LtRt mix?

  • Yes, RX Loudness Control will fully preserve your Dolby LtRt mix. Because the gain is applied consistently across all channels, the phase relationships and panning angles of your LtRt mix will be maintained.



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:

  • Windows: 7, 8 and 10
  • Mac: OS X 10.7-10.13

NOTE: We are currently in the process of qualifying our most current products for Mojave 10.14 support. At this time, we recommend that our community wait to update to ensure the smoothest possible experience with our products. More information on Mojave support will be available very soon.

Supported plug-in hosts

  • Media Composer 7.0.4 and 8.3.1, Premiere Pro CC*, Pro Tools 10-12.  
  • *Although we support CC 2015, you will have to manually move the presets from the old location to the new location in order to load them. Additional host support is under development. 

Supported plug-in formats

  • Adobe Extension for Media Encoder CC, Adobe Extension for Premiere Pro CC, and AudioSuite DPM & AAX.

OS Compatibility



Tonal Balance Control 2 EDU

Mastering by iZotope



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Description


Important Note: Tonal Balance Control 2 is included in Ozone 9 Advanced and Neutron 3 Advanced, and is now also available for separate purchase. Owners of Ozone 9 Advanced and Neutron 3 Advanced can update to the latest version of Tonal Balance Control 2 via iZotope Product Portal for free.

Find Your Balance

Get decades of mastering expertise in your next session with Tonal Balance Control 2, a plug-in that lets you overcome your listening environment and get a balanced mix that translates to your audience. Reference your track’s frequency balance against 12 different genre targets based on thousands of professional masters, or upload your own audio file to compare to a unique balance curve. Solo frequencies that are out of bounds, and make adjustments across your mix from within Tonal Balance Control 2 using controls that talk to Neutron 3, Ozone 9, and other compatible iZotope plug-ins. Whether you need a quick confidence check on a mix or are perfecting your final master, Tonal Balance Control 2 is essential for any project.




Features

  • Create with confidence: Tonal Balance Control 2 is your second set of ears in a session, with 12 target curves representing popular music genres that help you stay on target no matter your listening environment. Load your own audio file to create a custom curve for when you’re looking for a specific vibe. 
  • Fix issues in your session: Tonal Balance Control 2 can open an EQ from an iZotope Neutron 3 or Ozone 9 plug-in in your session, so you can fix balance issues from one plug-in window. Tonal Balance Control 2 can also talk to plug-ins like iZotope Nectar 3 or VocalSynth 2, letting you see how your vocal fits into your overall balance.
  • Get the complete picture: With improved fluid metering and resizability, it’s even easier to see every detail of your tonal balance. Work in Broad view mode to get a general bird’s eye of your mix, or switch to Fine view to zoom in on tough problem areas. Solo frequencies to hear exactly what’s contributing to your tonal balance, and quickly fix issues on your tracks with improved scaling that makes it easier to work with EQs in Ozone 9 or Neutron 3*
  • * Ozone, Neutron, Nectar, and other compatible iZotope plug-ins are not included with the purchase of Tonal Balance Control 2.

  • Target Curves *Updated in version 2!

  • Drawn from analysis of decades of recorded audio across the spectrum of styles and genres, Tonal Balance Control 2 offers a set of 12 target curves that help give you fix balance issues in your sound, even in poor listening environments. Whether your style calls for massive low-end or brilliant highs, you'll always have a benchmark with genre curves from "rock" to "reggae" and more.

  • Load your own reference track to generate a unique curve: see the balance of your favourite songs, and fine-tune your master to match their sound. Use the target curves to keep your music on track and help it translate to your audience!

  • New! Tonal Balance Control 2 includes 9 new genre-cased targets, for a total of 12 curves. Now you can measure you tonal balance in styles like Jazz, R&B/Hip-Hop, and Pop. See how your music translates for top-50 radio play, or the classical crowd!
  • Use Broad or Fine view modes to get a different perspective on your tonal balance. Broad view measures the general balance between low, low-mid, hi-mid, and hi frequency regions to give you an at-a-glance picture. Fine view lets you zoom in to catch smaller balance issues in a more narrow range.
  • Load your own audio file and generate a unique custom curve, perfect for when you're mastering to a reference track, or comparing two versions of a mix.
  • Find and Fix Issues In The Mix

  • Tonal Balance Control 2 is more than just a meter — by talking to the included Relay plug-in, you can make level adjustments to your tracks while checking your tonal balance in real-time.

  • If you have Neutron 3 or Ozone 9 in your session, you can open their EQs from Tonal Balance Control 2 and make finer tonal adjustments to your individual tracks or master. Combine the power of iZotope tools and bring your session together to speed up your mixing and mastering workflow!

  • New! Use Relay to view the spectrum of your tracks against your tonal balance targets. You can now make changes to Relay's gain controls from Tonal Balance Control 2 for quick adjustments against your target.
  • Talk to the EQ of any Ozone 9 or Neutron 3 plug-in in your session to make finer balance tweaks without changing the gain.
  • Use your alt/option key to "solo" frequency areas, useful for identifying what elements of your mix make up the overall tonal balance.
  • iZotope Relay

  • Relay is included in Tonal Balance Control 2 and goes on your individual tracks, acting as a mini-channel strip complete with gain, pan, high pass, and even stereo width controls. Relay also talks to other iZotope plug-ins, enabling machine-learning features to help you remove masking, bring balance and focus your mix, monitor dialogue intelligibility, and more. As a quick and easy trimming or sweetening tool, or an advanced workflow-saver, Relay is a great choice for any session template.

  • Control pan, gain, width, and add a high pass filter to your track without messing with your DAW faders or consuming a lot of CPU.
  • View the frequency of individual tracks in Tonal Balance Control 2 against your target curves, and adjust them against your balance targets in real-time.
  • Mix all of your tracks in a visual space with Neutron 3’s Visual Mixer: With Relay on your tracks or busses, you can open Visual Mixer and adjust pan, gain, and width directly within the Visual Mixer plug-in, included with Neutron 3 Advanced.
  • Measure Intelligibility with Insight 2’s Intelligibility Meter: Using this brand new meter in Insight 2, measure the relative intelligibility of your vocal and visualize how clearly it will be heard in different types of listening environments.
  • Remove masking from your vocal with Nectar 3: Relay communicates with Nectar 3’s Unmask mode and provides automatic processing to remove masking frequencies from your vocal track. Learn more about it here.
  • Visualize the spectrum of different tracks against your entire mix with the Spectrogram in Insight 2: Insight 2 will communicate with individual instances of Relay and display them on your spectrogram, with customizable colours.
  • With Relay on all your tracks, you can use Mix Assistant (available in Neutron 3 Advanced) to automatically set an initial level balance in your session.
  • *Relay is included for free with Tonal Balance Control 2, Neutron 3 Advanced, Insight 2, and Nectar 3. 


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Operating Systems

  • Mac: OS X 10.11.6 (El Capitan) - macOS 10.15 (64-bit only)
  • Windows: Windows 7 (64-bit) (Latest Service Packs) - Windows 10 (64-bit)

Plug-in Formats

  • AU
  • AAX
  • VST2
  • VST3
  • All formats are 64-bit only.

OS Compatibility



Oxford Dynamics V3

Mastering by Sonnox



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Description


A powerful all-in-one dynamics control plugin

Oxford Dynamics is a powerhouse of dynamic control in a single plugin that features six independent processes for precision dynamic sculpting of your tracks.

  • Gate
  • Expander
  • Compressor
  • Limiter
  • 2-band side-chain EQ 
  • Warmth control

From subtle control of a vocal to a pumping side-chained effect; from lightning-fast gating and precision expansion to peak level limiting of single tracks and buses alike. Sonic clarity at all times – with the option of tube-like harmonic saturation when you need it.




Features

  • Gate, Expander, Compressor, Limiter & 2-band side-chain EQ 
  • Warmth for extra presence and tube-like saturation 
  • 3 different compressor types; Normal, Classic and Linear  
  • Variable soft knee; 0 dBr to –20 dBr in 5 dB steps 
  • Surround bus compressor & limiter (HD-HDX only) 
  • Ultra-low noise and distortion
  • The dynamics section from the acclaimed Sony OXF-R3 console

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Mac

  • Mac OS X 10.7 Lion - 10.15 Catalina (macOS 11 Big Sur not yet officially supported)
  • Compatible with any host application that supports Audio Unit (AU), VST2 or VST3 Plug-Ins.
  • Pro Tools 7, 8, 9, 10 – TDM/RTAS (Legacy support for OS X 10.4.11 – 10.6.8)
  • Pro Tools 10.3.8, 11.3.2, 12 – AAX DSP/ AAX Native
  • iLok 2 / iLok 3 USB key with latest drivers OR an active internet connection required (iLok Cloud)

Supported Hosts:

  • Pro Tools 10.3.8 – 12 - 2021 (AAX Native & AAX DSP)
  • Pro Tools 7 – 10 (TDM & RTAS)
  • Logic Pro X
  • Logic 8 & 9
  • Digital Performer
  • Nuendo
  • Cubase
  • Ableton Live
  • Studio One

Windows

  • Windows 7 or later
  • Compatible with any host application that supports VST2 or VST3 Plug-Ins.
  • Pro Tools 7, 8, 9, 10 – TDM/RTAS (Legacy support for Windows XP)
  • Pro Tools 10.3.8, 11.3.2, 12 - 2021 – AAX DSP/ AAX Native
  • iLok 2 / iLok 3 USB key with latest drivers OR an active internet connection required (iLok Cloud)

Supported Hosts:

  • Pro Tools 10.3.8 – 12 - 2021 (AAX Native & AAX DSP)
  • Pro Tools 7 – 10 (TDM & RTAS)
  • Nuendo
  • Cubase
  • Ableton Live
  • Samplitude
  • Sequoia
  • Pyramix
  • Studio One

Please note: This product supports both iLok Cloud and iLok USB Key activation. An iLok USB Dongle OR an active internet connection (for iLok Cloud) is required in order to activate and use this product

OS Compatibility



BUTE Loudness Suite 2

Mastering by Signum Audio



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Description


BUTE Loudness Suite 2 is a smart, integrated and responsive loudness metering and audio limiting plugin that delivers the tools studios, media and broadcasting producers need to mix and master professional audio within loudness specifications.

What Does BUTE Do?

Many producers are moving towards mixing and mastering within loudness specs set internally or by major streaming and broadcasting platforms for quality assurance. By providing metering and limiting functions in the same plugin with smart workflow features to maintain creative flow, BUTE helps optimise the quality of mixes and masters, while avoiding potential distortions downstream.

Smart, Synchronised Workflow For Broadcasting, Post and Games

Loudness metering tools are ideal for balancing music, dialogue and sound effects whether in stereo or up to Atmos 7.1.2 surround sound. Long-form content is made much easier to deal with using our smart history overview. Get an overview of up to 10-hours of content and navigate to any section of a track with ease using the interactive display. BUTE’s custom alert system will clearly point out areas where there are errors with True Peak overshoots. A wide array of industry-standard presets are included.

Mixing And Mastering With BUTE

BUTE plugins are compatible with VST, AU and AAX (including Audio Suite), so will synchronise harmoniously with almost any DAW. Signum Audio's smart auto re-metering feature gives instantaneous feedback on how loudness will be affected by changes to the mix so there is no need to re-meter the whole mix. Readings for Absolute/Relative Scale, True Peak/LUFS and Max/Live modes are easy to toggle between from the main display.

Powerful Compact Read-Out View

When screen estate and CPU are at a premium, a compact read-out helps keep things optimised. BUTE is completely resizable. Even while in compact view, easily switch between display settings and tweak limiting configurations, while saving screen estate for other programs.

Stay Faithful To Your Mix

Smooth out peaks by adjusting pre-gain and selecting a preset release curve - Transparent, Natural or Smooth - which have been designed to make gain reduction as un-noticeable as possible. The release time configures automatically based on multiple properties of the input signal, and the dial is used to set the multiplication factor of the calculated release time, enabling fine-tuning. BUTE can also be utilised as a maximiser to push quieter mixes louder whilst taking care of True Peak overshoots. The result? The audio stays faithful to the original sound, whilst fitting the loudness spec of any platform.

Bring Your Music To All Streaming Platform

All the tools in your hand to make your music sound optimal on Spotify, YouTube, TIDAL, Apple Check and more. We regularly update presets and include most platforms. User-defined presets for internal standards can also be created and saved. 

BUTE Loudness Normaliser & BUTE Limiter 2

Audio normalisation becomes a breeze with Signum Audio's automated solution, BUTE Loudness Normaliser, which comes in addition to the Suite as a standalone application. Perfect for a final check for True Peak overshoots. Simply drag and drop audio files into the standalone application, hit render and then export. Also included is Signum Audio's well-received BUTE Limiter 2 is a dedicated limiting plugin offering additional “Pumping” and “Linear” curves for creative music production.

Applications

Mixing & Mastering

  • Produce consistent masters
  • Avoid 'level shifting' and clipping downstream
  • Ensure accurate representation of your audio/music
  • Measure and refine dynamic content

Post-production & Broadcasting

  • Hit target levels easily with a wide range of implemented presets
  • Ensure and prove compliance with regulation
  • Balance dialogue, music and effects
  • Manage live broadcasting & streaming levels accurately and efficiently
  • Optimise dynamics for streaming content

Game Design

  • Balance sound effects and dialogue
  • ASWG 5.1 and 7.1 Surround Sound support (Surround Version)

​Features

  • Integrated True Peak limiter and loudness metering in one plugin
  • Smart history overview for completely interactive browsing of up to 10-hours of loudness data at a glance
  • Custom alert system flags up areas that need attention with severe (red) or warning (yellow) pointer on the history overview. User settings can be defined in the settings panel.
  • Smart auto re-metering feature which syncs to DAW on load-up, and auto-detects and reflects any adjustments you make in the DAW on the graphical display
  • Powerful compact read-out view which is completely resizable vertically and horizontally to optimise screen space while keeping readings visible and limiting settings accessible
  • An adaptive auto-release function which can be tweaked by a scale factor using the release knob, enabling fine-tuning
  • Ultra-transparent True Peak limiting algorithm means mastered audio stays faithful to the original mix
  • 3 different release curves for Transparent, Natural and Smooth limiting (BL2 includes an additional “Pumping” and “Linear” release curves for creative music production)
  • Display Settings on the main user interface to switch between True Peak/Metering, Relative/Absolute Scale, or Max/Live modes
  • A highly responsive and informative graphical interface
  • Auto-detects DAW channel configuration with a dropdown menu to select mono, stereo or surround configurations (Surround version)
  • A wide array of built-in presets for the very latest loudness standards and recommendations
  • Industry-standard (IEC 60268-18) meter bar fallback for natural, analogue feel
  • Clean and comprehensive read-outs for short-term & momentary loudness, True Peak, and traditional RMS
  • Reloadable session data
  • Save, Load and Export metering data
  • Includes additional copies of BUTE Loudness Normaliser standalone application and BUTE Limiter 2 plugin
  • Free future updates

BUTE is fully compliant with up-to-date presets for the following loudness specifications:

  • ITU-R BS. 1770, EBU R128, ATSC A/85OP-59, ARIB TR-B32, Spotify, YouTube, Apple Check, Hulu, Netflix, TIDAL, Sony Gaming (ASWG), AES Streaming Recommendation, US Public Radio (PRSS), TIDAL and Pandora. You also have the ability to save multiple user-defined presets



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  • OS X 10.9 or higher / Windows 7 or higher (64-bit only)
  • VST/ VST3/ AU/ AAX (including AudioSuite)
  • Available in 2 versions - Stereo or Surround (includes up to 7.1.2 support with Surround version).
  • Pro Tools 12.6 or higher (for the AAX version of the plugin)

OS Compatibility



Monofilter

Mastering by NUGEN Audio



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Description


Trusted by producers the world over, Monofilter grabs hold of your bass and roots it solidly within your mix. With its intuitive controls you can quickly anchor the power, while retaining the essential character and perceived spatial characteristics of the original sound.

Bring transparent solidity to your bass. Sharpen, define and align for the tightest mix using Monofilter in every track. With presets for every situation and controls for fine tuning to perfection, Monofilter anchors your bass with ease.

Monofilter defines the centre of your bass, so easily lost through stereo effects processing, synth sound generation, unwanted phase inconsistencies and live recording mic. bleed. Market-leading features give you really accurate control over stereo spread, transition and phase alignment, with precise visual feedback in a tactile interface that lets you grab the applied stereo envelope and manipulate it directly – without using abstract parameters and knobs.

A Solid Foundation

When solid or natural sounding bass is a requirement in your recording projects, Monofilter provides the foundation for real power and definition.

The non-directional nature of low frequencies can often contribute to a perceived lack of clarity and focus in the mix. Adding stereo FX processing and using multiple mic. set-ups in the studio can introduce phase inconsistencies leading to ‘weak’, ‘hollow’ or ‘flat’ sounds.

Monofilter lets you align and balance low frequencies with the minimum of effort, leaving you with the same sound, yet louder, more focussed and better defined. And with Monofilter you can be sure of great playback performance on systems with separate low-frequency handling, such as club PAs, live rigs, home cinema systems, HiFi, and 2.1 gaming systems.

Applications

  • Bringing definition to weak/hollow/flat bass
  • Re-centering LF after stereo FX
  • Correcting phase issues
  • Sampling/restoring old masters
  • Taking care for vinyl
  • Psychoacoustic 'Panning' bass
  • Making a frequency split
  • Stereo spectrum analysis

Low Frequency Control

  • Sharper bass
  • Anchor low end power
  • Eliminate weak | hollow | flat bass
  • Ensure mono compatibility
  • Master with confidence

Avoid Problems

  • Add stereo effects and maintain low end punch
  • No unwanted artefacts
  • Optimise for louder solid playback

Restoration and Correction

  • Restore old recordings
  • Fix samples
  • Fix LF phase issues
  • High quality audio analysis



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Number of Presets


Available Formats

  • AAX, VST, AU and AudioSuite in both 64-bit and 32-bit versions. RTAS is also available as 32-bit only.

Mac

  • OSX 10.6.x, 512 MB RAM 

Windows

  • XP or above, 512 MB RAM

OS Compatibility



LM-Correct 2

Mastering by NUGEN Audio



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Description


LM-Correct gives you a Unique, Immediate and Hassle-Free Route to Loudness-Compliant Audio in your Day-to-Day Loudness Workflow, Saving you Time and Preventing Costly Mistakes.

Either within your NLE/DAW or as a stand-alone application, LM-Correct delivers automated compliance with True-Peak correction, solving your compliance issues on the spot. Used in conjunction with a real-time meter, LM-Correct saves iterative adjustments to the mix as you approach target levels, allowing transparent in-edit 'quick-touch' finishing of your audio. It’s an essential part of your loudness toolkit.

Automated, Faster than Real-Time

For file based-processes (either with the standalone or Avid AudioSuite versions), LM-Correct rapidly assesses and adjusts the entire file much faster than real time. Automatically handling audio files from mono through 5.1, LM-Correct is compliant with all current loudness standards and if you need it you can specify the optional dialog-gated measure.

Automatically Re-Purpose and Re-Version

LM-Correct  dramatically increases efficiency when delivering multiple versions and re-purposing for different regions and play-out specifications. Transform audio from one specification to the next with a single click, faster than real-time, without the need to manually re-purpose time and again in the editor.

Peace of Mind

Our unique look-ahead true-peak limiter also prevents potential compliance failure due to loudness correction. With True-peak, Integrated Program and Short-term Maximum targeting you can be sure your audio is compliant every time. LM-Correct: total control and complete peace of mind in production.

Powerful Processing with a single click

With the introduction of optional dynamic processing in-LM-Correct 2, even complex recommendations like EBU R128 S1 can be met with great sounding algorithms, smooth efficiency. Uniquely, the new DynApt extension powered by technology developed for our server-side solutions also allows immediate correction for LRA and dynamics, whilst preserving dialogue intelligibility and correctly identifying and respecting intentional dramatic transitions. LM-Correct 2 delivers unparalleled power with renowned ease of use.

Fast, Accurate Analysis and Correction

  • Single-click solution to loudness conformance
  • Immediate finishing of audio to loudness standards
  • Editor based and stand alone operation
  • Integrated true-peak back-stop limiter
  • Text file analysis and processing summaries
  • Optional dialog gated measure

Peace of Mind

  • Automated standard compliance
  • ITU-R BS. 1770 | EBU R128 | CALM Act compliant
  • Integrated loudness target
  • Maximum True Peak Level
  • Short-term and Momentary loudness limiting
  • Optional DynApt LRA dynamics targeting
  • 'EBU Mode'
  • Automatic mono through 5.1 compatibility + ASWG 7.1 support

Intuitive Operation

  • Clear parameter read out
  • Simple one-click analysis
  • Dial in target values directly
  • One-click correction
  • Offline faster than real-time advantage

What's New in 2?

  • M Max measure/correct (Dynamic correction)
  • S Max measure/correct (Dynamic correction)
  • 1 Click analysis and correction
  • LRA measure/correct *
  • EBU R128 S1 support
  • Game audio (ASWG 7.1 Surround)
  • Compact interface
  • Expanded interface
  • Options panel
  • Text file processing summary log

*requires optional DynApt extension



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Available Formats

  • LM-Correct supports AudioSuite (AAX) in both 64-bit and 32-bit versions. AudioSuite RTAS is also available as 32-bit only.
  • LM-Correct is also available as a stand alone application for Windows and OSX

Mac

  • OSX 10.6.x, 512 MB RAM

Windows

  • XP or above, 512 MB RAM

OS Compatibility



Mini Mastering Bundle

Mastering by Minimal System Group



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Description


Important Note: This product is only compatible with Windows operating systems.

The Mini Mastering Bundle contains two of our flagship plugins from our established range. Included in this bundle are the MasterMix Buss Compressor and the Mastering Limiter. If you mix and master your own music and you are looking for the perfect plugin toolset to assist you in getting a fantastic quality sound then this package is for you.

MasterMix Buss Compressor

The MasterMix Buss Compressor is a has been a labour of love for us here at Minimal System Group and is designed for those producers looking to add the finishing touches to their latest masterpiece. Modelled on legendary buss compressors from classic analogue consoles the MasterMix Buss Compressor is a mixing and mastering powerhouse.

MasterMix Buss Compressor Features:

  • Analogue Modelled Buss Compressor.
  • The MasterMix Buss Compressor is designed for use on the Master Buss and also on sub-groups (Drum Groups etc).
  • Tape simulator stage complete with tape hiss and saturation.
  • Great visual feedback.
  • Functional and easy to use GUI Design.
  • Very low CPU usage.

Hints and Tips:

  • Try placing the MasterMix Buss Compressor on the main output (Master Buss) early on in the mixing process using around 1-3dB of gain reduction.
  • Buss compressors are often used on signals that display a variation of frequencies and transients such as drum kits and backing vocals.
  • Try grouping all elements of you drums together into one group. Add the MasterMix Buss Compressor onto this group.
  • Holding down the 'Shift' key whilst operating a parameter allows fine adjustments to be made. Holding down 'CTRL' and clicking on a parameter reverts it to its default position. (These two operations work on all Minimal System plugins).

Mastering Limiter

The Mastering Limiter is a high end audio processing advanced peak limiter designed to maximize both the level of the digital signal and the resolution of your final rendered file.

The Mastering Limiter's lookahead peak limiter algorithm provides the mixing and mastering engineer with the capability to increase resolution and production master levels with precise control. Specifically designed for mastering, digital editing, multimedia, and any application that requires limiting of the digital signal with highest quality; the Mastering Limiter is perfect addition to your mixing and mastering tool set.

In order to ensure the maximum possible resolution of a processed signal, it is very highly recommended that the Mastering Limiter be used last in the processing chain.



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  • PC running a Windows operating system. VST compatible DAW or VST hosting software.
  • This plugin is 32bit but can be run on 64bit systems using jBridge.
  • This plugin also operates within the 64bit versions of Cubase, Nuendo, Bitwig Studio, Reaper, Tracktion, Renoise, FL Studio, Sonar, Mixcraft and Samplitude using their inbuilt bridging.
  • It is recommended that you always try out the demo before purchases to ensure that the plugin is compatible with your system.

Host Compatibility

  • Minimal System Group Plugins run on Windows based PC's using a suitable VST host or DAW. Our plugins have been fully tested within Ableton Live, Adobe Audition, Cakewalk Sonar, FL Studio, Energy XT, Presonus Studio One, Renoise, and Cubase.

Please Note: This plugin is 32bit but can be run on 64bit systems using jBridge.

OS Compatibility