The World of Plugin Effects, Essential Tools for Music Production!

Hello!
I’m Kaoru, a composer!!

This time, I would like to talk about plugin effects, which are essential tools for music production.
Compared to software instruments, they don’t get as much attention, so I feel that many beginners don’t realize how important they are.

Even though we simply call them plugins, there are many different types, each with its own characteristics.

In this article, I’ll introduce some standard plugins as well as a few unique ones!!

Waves Audio / Horizon (simple package delivery)

This bundle includes many of the popular plugins from the professional go-to plugin manufacturer Waves.
Among the various grades available, this one falls in the mid tier.
(The order is Gold → Platinum → Diamond → Horizon → Mercury.)

Horizon is extremely popular because of its great cost performance.

It bundles more than 76 plugins, including the cutting-edge mastering plugin L3-16, the CLA Classic Compressors collection that perfectly models four compressors highly regarded by audio engineers around the world, and JJP Analog Legends, which astonishingly models pristine Fairchild and Pultec units with incredible accuracy.

Excluding the top-tier Mercury bundle, the plugins included only in Horizon among the bundles mentioned above are as follows:

• Bass Rider
• CLA Guitars
• CLA-2A Compressor / Limiter
• CLA-3A Compressor / Limiter
• CLA-76 Compressor / Limiter
• DeBreath
• Kramer HLS Channel
• Kramer Master Tape
• Kramer PIE Compressor
• Maserati DRM
• PuigChild Compressor
• UM225 / UM226
• Vocal Rider

It’s an all-purpose product that can perfectly handle not only processing for individual instruments but also mixing and mastering, so you definitely won’t regret owning it!!

In addition, you can manage licenses using Waves Central, making it easy to use across multiple PCs!

The regular price is ¥528,000 (tax included), which is quite expensive, but during sales you can purchase it at a significant discount.

FabFilter / Mixing Bundle

This is another manufacturer frequently used by professionals.

All of their products feature intuitive, easy-to-use design and highly functional, high-performance tools that allow for detailed adjustments.

The included plugins are as follows:

• Pro-R: A natural-sounding reverb plugin
• Pro-Q3: An analog-modeled EQ plugin
• Pro-C2: A compressor plugin
• Pro-G: A gate/expander plugin
• Pro-DS: A de-esser plugin
• Saturn: An amp modeling plugin
• Timeless 2: A tape delay plugin

Among them, the most popular is Pro-Q3. It is useful for processing almost all instruments and is also ideal for mastering.

It can be used in an all-around way regardless of music genre!!

Another major feature is its rich analyzer functions, which allow you to visually confirm the sound, making it highly recommended for beginners as well!!
By learning the frequency ranges of each instrument, it will undoubtedly become a powerful weapon you won’t be able to let go of!!

iZotope / RX 9 Standard

The latest Standard-grade model of the classic noise reduction and audio repair software, the iZotope RX series.
No matter how carefully you record, unwanted noise can still get in—but this makes it easy to remove.

What’s more, it allows you to process the audio while maintaining the quality of the track, so it’s no exaggeration to say it’s an indispensable tool for improving overall sound quality.

It can also separate each part of a song, which makes it useful for transcribing by ear.

Since it can be used as a tool for analyzing music, I also recommend it to those who want to deepen their musical knowledge.

Positive Grid / BIAS AMP 2.0 Professional (simple package)

An amp simulator that shows its true power when programming or recording guitar and bass.
The presets are of such high quality that just loading them lets you enjoy superb sound.

You can also customize each part of the amp, allowing you to create your own original amp.

Many professional guitarists and bassists use it, which adds to its credibility!
It can also run as a standalone application, so you can incorporate it into live performances or practice sessions.

This is a perfect plugin for anyone who wants to be particular about their sound design!

That’s a summary of plugin effects!
This time, I focused mainly on bundles, so from next time, I plan to dive deeper into individual effects. I hope you’ll check it out!!

Have a great music life!!!!

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