I needed some phone support from Waves and got it fast & easy. Any strong opinions from other vocal-level-obsessed engineers? I really do spend a ton of time & effort leveling vocals by hand.Īlso, +1 on legit. I'd love to save the time, but I'm not sure I'd dig the result. (Ugh, yup, lets play hide and seek & figure out which plug is hissing).Īlso, thinking about pulling the trigger on Vocal Rider, lowest price I've seen yet. I'm feeling like it's going to become a go-to. Starting to use it on lots of stuff tho.Īlso got the Kramer Tape, still getting the hang of it but really liked it on a drum room track, and I really layed into it & it helped out a vocal that wasn't really sounding very special. The thing where it gives you a big spike of GR when you adjust the release time is annoying. I also just got the Kramer PIE, it's pretty heavy handed even at 2:1, but wow, so great on a lead vocal just tickling it with 2 or 3dB of GR. Even the 560 has a weird feel to it, I find it awkward to use, especially trying to make small adjustments. However, the user interface on the API parametrics is so clumsy that I don't like to use them even though they sound good. Q10 for HP/LP and notches, talk about a daily driver.ĪPI 2500, and the API equalizers. I do like the dedicated hi-/lo-pass filters though. their all-in-one nature is appealing and I don't have any issues with the gate or comp, but the EQ strikes me as pretty unmusical when stacked up against the API offerings. I ALWAYS turn off those fucking analog switches, though, unless I'm feeling absolutely CRAZY.
#Best waves plugins for mastering kick zip#
Liberal MaxxBass abuse will cloud your lowmids pretty quicklyĪphex Exciter is another dangerous one, but an extremely conservative approach can really add some zip to a finished mix and help with its perceived loudness.Įlement is one of my favorite softsynths! I prefer to reinforce bass instruments with straightforward saturation. I use it for kick drum repair more than anything else. MaxxBass is dangerous but it has its uses. Equally useful for transparent control applications, and extreme pumping or sidechain effects in synthesis applications
#Best waves plugins for mastering kick how to#
I'm a big fan of Waves Loudness Meter for mastering applications - that info is really useful if you know how to interpret it. Sometimes I use it to tame unruly submixes as well. L2 is actually great for shaving transients off of jangly acoustic guitar - if you are conservative, it can be remarkably transparent compared to compression or leveling. 元 and up sound shitty in comparison, not sure what they decided to switch up there.
You just have to learn to dial that baby in - it's got idiosyncrasies for sureĬan't hate on L2 too hard when it comes to quick-and-dirty pseudomastering for client reference mixes, etc. The 76 is killer for extreme parallel drum compression, though.
I think they fall apart when pushed hard. The CLA comps (2A, 3A, 76) see a fair deal of use, but it's generally conservative. I deploy the 560 on the master buss, to impart an extremely subtle smiley curve to the mix.ĪPI 2500 often sits on my master bus and/or drum submix. I enjoy the restriction that comes with the semi-parametric nature 550A/B, it keeps you from getting carried away. You can push the breakup pretty fucking far with this one for extreme saturation effects or lo-fi madness, but it's really unsubtle no matter how you deploy it.ĪPI EQs are my go-to for color and boosting.
Its "head bump" is really pronounced, and the 7.5 ips setting can really make yo 808's thump. It's not something I would 'print' a mix through in most circumstances, it's a bit much for that, but I like it on individual elements for fluttery grit. Kramer Tape is a very dirty, colorful tape sim. Very flexible, and ideal for dark tapey delays and weird chorus effects. I love the modulation, Lo-Fi button, filters, and ping-pong setting. But in general, I find REQ rather unimpressive compared to many stock EQs. REQ2 ends up on a lot of channels as a bandpass filter for trimming excess subs and sizzle out of midrange elements. The Warm setting is awesome for bass guitar and drums. Not always my first choice, but it rarely fails me when I fall back on it. It beats Logic's stock compressor in a lot of instances and I generally find it to be a flexible tool for all sorts of DRC. I mix with my ears, but goddamn if that plugin isn't hella helpful when I really need to know what's going on in a nitty-gritty way. The first thing I do in any project is instantiate the PAZ Analyzer on the master buss.