Nectar 2 is a powerhouse of vocal production that can do pretty much anything you could need when it comes to vocals. In addition to the classic tools such as de-essing, gating, compression and EQ that form the core of your vocal processing toolkit, it adds reverbs, saturatiom, delays and more. An integrated Melodyne-style pitch editor and real-time pitch correction mean that tuning and timing are on the menu too, and there’s even a breath control section. Handy presets can save you a bunch of time, and the entry-level Nectar Elements has the core tools at a discounted price. Celemony was one of the pioneers of making audio “elastic”, and with Melodyne 4 it has perhaps the most comprehensive tool ever devised for working not just with vocal parts but with any kind of digital audio.

• Best Plugins For Vocals
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It renders audio completely accessible down to the level of individual notes in polyphonic clips. So you can take a stereo file of a choir for example, and change notes within it. All aspects of pitch, tempo and envelopes and timbres can be manipulated in real time. If you don’t need all the bells and whistles, more entry-level versions are also available.

This is a bit of a cheat since it’s a bundle and not a single plugin, but then Waves makes so many cool processors and the discount for getting the bundle here is significant. You get six awesome processors here for tackling all aspects of vocal processing: DeBreath, Doubler, Renaissance Axx, Renaissance Channel, Renaissance DeEsser and Waves Tune. These will go beyond the stock plugins that come with your DAW so if you’re serious about working with vocal tracks they’re well worth taking a look at.

Another entry for iZotope, this time a highly specialized spectral audio editor plugin. Equally at home in the broadcast or pro audio industries, it provides unique tools for identifying problems in digital audio files visually and then using graphical tools to fix them. This might be a plosive sound, a car horn in the background or something else that conventional tools couldn’t fix. Here, you can reach “inside” the sound and remove unwanted elements. It takes a little practice but the results are almost impossible to achieve using other means.

Looking to upgrade your gear to get a better vocal sound?You’re in luck.Over my many years of mixing, I’ve tried out hundreds of premium plugins. Contents.But before we startPRO TIP: You do not need better plugins to get a better mix!What you do with the plugins you have is 10 times more important than what plugins you have. The best advice I can possible give you is to get good at your stock plugins, then begin to upgrade. You’ll get better mixes faster if you focus on what you have rather than blowing thousands of dollars on fancy new gear.That said, if you are good with your stock plugins, then upgrade away. Here’s my recommendations for the best vocal plugins on the market.I can help you filter through the list to find the plugins that work best for you.Check it out:What kind of plugin are you looking for?EQ Compressor De-Esser Saturation Reverb Delay Modulation EditingWhat’s your budget?Free $1-$50 $51-$100 $101-150 $151+. $51-$100Waves has dominated the audio plugin industry, and for good reason. They’ve found a way to balance high quality with low price.The CLA Classic Compressors consists of three plugins – the LA-2A, the LA-3A, and the 1176.

These three compressors are some of the most commonly used of all time. Name any pro record – they probably used one of these compressors to mix it.The LA-3A is more tailored to vocals (in my opinion), and offers a slow, smooth character. It’s pretty hard to make this plugin sound anything but great.If you’re wanting aggression and excitement, the 1176 has some of the fastest attack times in the world. Try using its “all buttons in” mode on rock vocals.

Your mixes will thank you.WAVES TIP: Waves is always running huge sales! Nearly everything goes on sale multiple times a year, sometimes up to 90% off. Make sure to buy any plugins from them when they’re cheapest, even if that means waiting a little bit.Original Vocals:Processed by LA-2A:Processed by LA-3A:Processed by 1176. $51-$100Cytomic’s The Glue is modelled after the now-famous SSL-4000 bus compressor. That console’s bus compressor (nicknamed “The Glue”) has become legendary for sonically “gluing” tracks together.It’s best used on instrument busses, like drums, electric guitars, or (my favorite) background vocals.

It’s also commonly used on the entire mix to tighten the whole song up.If you’re trying to make several recordings sound like one big instrument, try out The Glue.Original Vocals:Processed Vocals. $101-150If you’re wanting versatility, this is the de-esser for you.The applications for the Eiosis E² go far beyond just vocal sibilance. They have several different algorithms to target voiceovers, guitar string squeaks, cymbals, and even mastering. The most creative part of the E² is what it compresses.

Best Plugins For Vocals

You can create your own EQ curve, so that if the de-esser is triggered, several different frequencies are brought down by different amounts.It’s extremely powerful if you’re looking for total control.Original Vocals:Processed Vocals. $1-$50The Waves Renaissance De-Esser is one word: simple.With only a few sliders and buttons, it gets the job done quickly. While it’s not the cleanest de-esser on this list, it’s perfect for any producer who wants to “set it and forget it.”WAVES TIP: Waves is always running huge sales! Nearly everything goes on sale multiple times a year, sometimes up to 90% off. Make sure to buy any plugins from them when they’re cheapest, even if that means waiting a little bit.Original Vocals:Processed Vocals.

$1-$50Despite being the less popular tape emulation from Waves, the Kramer is more versatile and fun to use on individual channels. Plus, it’s extremely simple. Adding excitement, warmth and character to your vocals is possible in just a few knob turns.Just don’t expect it to be an incredibly versatile plugin. Sometimes it’s the perfect tool for the job, but not in every mix.WAVES TIP: Waves is always running huge sales! Nearly everything goes on sale multiple times a year, sometimes up to 90% off. Make sure to buy any plugins from them when they’re cheapest, even if that means waiting a little bit.Original Vocals:Processed Vocals.

$151+Soundtoys Echoboy is the industry standard for a reason. If there’s a delay sound you’re wanting, it’s got it – especially if you’re looking for something vintage.The Echoboy has over twenty different delay styles, from tape, tube, analog, digital, telephone, and even weird ones they made up themselves.

This plugin sounds great, but more importantly, it’s as complicated as you want it to be. You can either set-it-and-forget-it, or you can take a deep dive into their “tweak” panels to get the exact sound you’re looking for.Original Vocals:Processed Vocals. $1-$50Wow, I just love this plugin. It doesn’t do anything special, but it makes dialling in a great delay really fun and easy. It takes seconds to set up a timed echo delay or and dial in your filters.Then the fun begins. Within the plugin you can add distortion, reverb, phasing and doubling.

This makes it really easy to make the delay sound 10x more interesting. Get creative with it!WAVES TIP: Waves is always running huge sales!

Nearly everything goes on sale multiple times a year, sometimes up to 90% off. Make sure to buy any plugins from them when they’re cheapest, even if that means waiting a little bit.Original Vocals:Processed Vocals. $1-$50This one is a treat. You know The Beatles’?

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John Lennon actually hated doubling his vocals. So their engineers got creative with a few tape machines, and ADT (Automatic Double Tracking) was born.I use this on tons of vocals when I want a thicker, “vibey-er” sound. The nice part about it is that it can be used to create both subtle thickness and balls-to-the-wall weirdness.WAVES TIP: Waves is always running huge sales! Nearly everything goes on sale multiple times a year, sometimes up to 90% off. Make sure to buy any plugins from them when they’re cheapest, even if that means waiting a little bit.Original Vocals:Processed Vocals. $151+Melodyne is in a tight battle with Autotune for control of the vocal editing industry. But between the two, I’d have to give them my recommendation.

Melodyne allows you to fix the tuning of your vocals in a natural way, allowing you to focus on emotion and excitement in your recording sessions rather than pitch.Melodyne Editor is the most popular version, but if you’re okay with only being able to tune monophonic sources (that means no chords), then Melodyne Assistant is a great, cheaper option. $1-$50One of the secrets to a professional-sounding vocal is – the practice of automating the gain of a sound BEFORE it gets to a compressor, making the compressor sound more natural.While it’s a pain to do this line by line, the Vocal Rider takes the bulk of the workload off your shoulders.

It “rides” the gain of the vocal based on the parameters you set, giving you that even-keel vocal sound in 10% of the time. I use this on 100% of my vocals.WAVES TIP: Waves is always running huge sales! Nearly everything goes on sale multiple times a year, sometimes up to 90% off. Make sure to buy any plugins from them when they’re cheapest, even if that means waiting a little bit. FreeMAutoPitch is fairly simple for a tuning plugin, but it does the job well.

It’s not as advanced as Melodyne or AutoTune (i.e. You can’t tune individual notes), but it’s a great set-it-and-forget-it tool. Just make sure to use it subtly, or it will start to sound like an autotune effect.Do plugins really matter?So, now you know the best plugins for mixing vocals.But this is just one small part of the process. You can have the best plugins on the market and still end up with mixes that sound like bedroom demos if you’re missing (it took me 10 years to learn this).There is SO MUCH that goes into a good mix. It’s actually pretty overwhelming.Once you’ve got awesome plugins, there’s a lot of other stuff you need to get right if you want your music to sound professional.But what if I told you that you don’t have to be an expert (with years of experience) to make radio-ready music at home?WellThat’s the truth.It’s likely that you’ve already wasted time, money and effort on the wrong things. I know I did. I wasted years focusing on the wrong things.So, what should you focus on if you want fast results?Inside, I share the secret to making radio-ready music at home.After I stumbled upon this new approach, I knew exactly where to spend my time and energy.

I was no longer confused and overwhelmed by the recording and mixing process.Honestly, I was annoyed I didn’t learn this stuff sooner. It would have saved me at least 7 years.This new approach hasn’t just worked for me eitherOne of my students – his name is Patrick – was pretty new to home recording when he came to me for help. I shared this idea with him and he went from his first ever home recording to high-quality, professional mixes in just 2 and a half months.This same approach has worked for hundreds of other musicians too.Now it’s your turn.If you want to learn the.exact. steps that will take your mixes to a professional standard in under a yearWatch the on-demand training now:It’s only playing for a limited time – we’re always updating the site and this could get removed soon. So go and check it out now.