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10 Best Waves VST Plugins in 2024
Waves is widely regarded as one of the top companies in professional digital audio technology for its cutting-edge mixing and mastering plugins. Mixing and mastering still stands as one of the most challenging things to master especially for producers just starting out or are in their early phase of music production. So the question arises why is mixing and mastering so tough?
- These are technically complex processes that require a deep understanding of sound engineering principles and tools. Many producers struggle with these aspects as they involve intricate techniques to achieve professional-quality results.
- Steep Learning Curves: Both mixing and mastering have steep learning curves, making it challenging for producers, especially beginners, to grasp the intricacies involved. Starting from the fundamentals is essential to build a strong foundation in these areas.
- Budget Constraints: Limited financial resources can pose a significant challenge for music producers, affecting their ability to invest in quality software, hardware, or professional services for mixing and mastering. Finding cost-effective solutions or investing wisely becomes crucial in such situations.
This is where Waves Plugins sit right in. Not only they have some great affordable plugins, there are plenty of tutorials online to help you in the learning curve. According to a recent report on VST plugins, Waves is one of the top 10 most popular plugin brands in the globe. This widespread popularity has led to tons of tutorials on YouTube where you can learn the art of mixing and mastering. Let’s take a look at some of the best Waves VST plugins in 2024.
Best Waves VST Plugins List:
- Vocal Bender
- H-Delay Hybrid Delay
- CLA Mixhub
- Silk Vocal
- Abbey Road Studio 3
- SSL E-Channel
- Tune
- WLM Plus Loudness Meter
- Silibance
- Renaissance Reverb
Waves VST #1 – Vocal Bender
Vocal Bender is a quick and easy solution for real-time vocal manipulation. With zero latency, two simple controls for pitch and formant, and a variety of modulators like LFO and SEQ, this plugin allows you to effortlessly create effects like deep-voiced adlibs, vocal doubles, pitch-shifted leads, and more. Whether you’re in the studio or performing live, Vocal Bender provides a straightforward experience with a ‘Flatten‘ feature for robotic effects, a mix knob for blending, and numerous presets for instant use.
Current Retail Price: $34.99
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Waves VST #2 – H-Delay Hybrid Delay
The H-Delay Hybrid Delay is a versatile tool offering a wide range of controls for effects like chorusing, flanging, echo, and more. From vintage to modern sounds, it provides rich quality and lo-fi options with a delay range from 1 to 3500 ms. Users can choose between analog characters or digital fidelity and tailor the tone with sophisticated filtering. With an accessible interface, straightforward controls, and MIDI Learn functionality, it’s a practical choice for sparking creativity and applying dynamic effects effortlessly. To check out H-Delay in action, check out the video tutorial here.
Current Retail Price: $49.99
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Waves VST #3 – CLA Mixhub
The CLA Mixhub made in collaboration with the legendary mix engineer Chris Lord Alge replicates the analog console experience in your DAW, allowing you to mix groups of 8 channels in a single window. With the flexibility to adjust EQ and dynamics across multiple tracks in real-time, CLA MixHub offers an intuitive and efficient workflow. The plugin models every detail of CLA’s console channels, providing 64 channels in 8 convenient ‘buckets’ of 8. Enjoy added flexibility with expandable modules, the ability to switch chain orders, and an extra insert per channel. The CLA Mixhub features sidechaining, the ‘super-gate,’ and the iconic 1176 Bluey dynamics. CLA MixHub Lite ensures light CPU use, and over 240 presets by CLA, Dave Pensado, Greg Wells, and others. Check out CLA Mixhub in action here.
Current Retail Price: $29.99
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Waves VST #4 – Silk VocalÂ
Silk Vocal is a smart EQ and dynamics processor for vocal mixing. This tool tackles resonant frequencies, boominess, harshness, and sibilance, allowing you to achieve a balanced mix. Silk Vocal’s easy-to-use interface accelerates the vocal mixing process, automatically detecting resonances across 2000 analysis bands and providing control over the intensity. Features like male and female voice modes, linear phase processing curves, and adjustable midrange tuning for focused processing are some of the plugin’s greatest assets.
Current Retail Price: $49.99
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Waves VST #5 – Abbey Road Studio 3
Waves’ Abbey Road Studio 3 brings the iconic Abbey Road Studios mixing experience to your headphones. The plugin uses 3D acoustics modeling, replicating the historic control room with correction EQ curves for 270 headphone models. This ensures a neutral, accurate sound, making it suitable for diverse productions. Whether you prefer near, mid, or far monitors, this innovation provides a realistic studio monitor feel for headphone mixing.
Current Retail Price: $50
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Waves VST #6 – SSL E-Channel
The SSL E-Channel, part of Solid State Logic’s SL 4000 series, is known for its smooth dynamics and distinctive “black knob” EQ. Developed under SSL’s license, this plugin features a 4-band EQ, dual filters, internal dynamics sidechaining, and is CPU-efficient for handling large multitrack projects. Check out SSL E-Channel in action here.
Current Retail Price: $35.99
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Waves VST #7 – Tune
Waves Tune is your go-to for pitch correction that goes beyond fixing mistakes. It offers flexibility, allowing you to experiment with your vocal range and techniques. Whether you need precise correction or want to add pitch effects to instruments, Waves Tune lets you control parameters like correction speed and vibrato synthesis. It’s a practical tool for preserving the authenticity of your performance while enhancing your sound.
Current Retail Price: $35.99
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Waves VST #8 – WLM Plus Loudness Meter
The WLM Plus Loudness Meter is a tool for ensuring compliance with ITU, EBU, and ATSC specifications. It offers practical features like a peak limiter and gain trim for adjusting levels, supporting various formats and providing essential readings such as True Peak and LUFS. With a user-friendly interface and customizable options, WLM Plus is a reliable choice for creators seeking precision and quality in their audio output across different media platforms.
Current Retail Price: $35.99
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Waves VST #9 – Silibance
Sibilance is an advanced de-esser that reduces unwanted “ess” and “shh” sounds in vocals without affecting other elements. It maintains the original tone, duration, and resonance of the human voice, making it ideal for vocals, dialogue, voiceovers, and podcasts. The plugin features Organic ReSynthesis for brightness retention, a variable frequency range, an informative graph for de-essing visualization, and a flexible detection mode. With a zero-latency version included, Sibilance is also suitable for live performances.
Current Retail Price: $29.99
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Waves VST #10 – Renaissance Reverb
Renaissance Reverb updates classic digital reverb with a smoother tone and 12 reverb types, including halls, chambers, and plates. It features an advanced early reflection system, a straightforward interface with touch control, dual-band EQ, custom damping controls, and 265 presets from top mix engineers. This plugin offers a practical blend of vintage sound and modern versatility for customizable, realistic reverb effects.
Current Retail Price: $35.99
Purchase Here
FAQ:
Q: Are Waves VST plugins always on sale?
A. Yes, Waves VST Plugins are usually on sale. Though the discount vary from time to time.
Q: Are Waves plugins CPU-intensive?
A. Some Waves plugins can use significant CPU, especially the Renaissance plug-ins which model analog hardware. Users should bounce instrument tracks with Waves FX to conserve CPU. The company offers a one-year warranty if technical issues arise.
Q: What makes Waves plugins unique?
A. Waves is known for obsessively modeling iconic analog gear used in classic recordings down to component levels. This gives producers the historical sounds behind countless hit albums directly inside the box. Their plugins also sound killer on modern production styles.
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