Plugin Picks: 5 Inspiring Free Plugins to Get in February

Free plugins are one of the best things about being a producer in 2021. Quality music production tools have never been more accessible for the average musician. But with more freeware plugins showing up on the scene every day, knowing which ones are worth your time isn’t easy. That’s why we’re bringing you our top picks for the most useful and creative free music software every month.

In this edition—harmonic saturation, unique reverb, cheesy synths and more.

Creative developers will never stop releasing exciting tools for music production.

Plugins like EQ, compression, reverb and synths have been around forever, but there’s always a fresh new take on the core concepts to discover.

This month we take a look at some weird and wonderful approaches to plugin design that you’ll want to download right away.

Get the tools to shape your sound with 30+ synths, instruments, effects and utilities plugins from industry leaders like Arturia, UJAM and more. Try LANDR Plugins.

1. ChromaDSP Harmonic Boost

So many vintage gear emulations claim to enhance your sound with rich harmonics and overtones.

But in the old school hardware they emulate, those qualities were often side effects of the limited technology of the time.

Sometimes all it takes is one inspiring sound to pull you out of a creative rut.

What if you could sculpt the harmonics of your sound directly, without having to use a vintage-style processor?

That’s exactly how ChromaDSP’s Harmonic Boost is designed.

Harmonic Boost adds harmonics to your signal according to the notes of the musical alphabet. It’s a unique way to control the harmonic content of your tracks.

2. Zynaptiq Audio Subspace

Subspace is the little brother of Zynaptiq Audio’s groundbreaking Adaptiverb plugin.

It uses the same resynthesis technology that helps create the original’s haunting reflectionless reverb.

It’s a smooth cinematic sound that adds dimension and space without introducing harshness from typical reverb reflections.

Subspace delivers its unique reverb with an interface so stripped down it borders on minimalism.

Just choose between the A, B, C or Z presets, select your wet/dry mix to use this reverb plugin anywhere you need smooth, stylish ambience.

3. 2gether Audio Cheeze Machine 2

The 70s were the decade that synthesizers finally broke into the musical mainstream.

The 70s were the decade that synthesizers finally broke into the musical mainstream.

Spaced-out rockers like Edgar Winter and Pink Floyd made instruments like the Minimoog and ARP2600 into household names.

But there are plenty of other synths from the era that were forgotten as trends shifted and technology improved.

Some of the most interesting were the paraphonic “string synthesizers” like the ARP Solina String Ensemble.

These were some of the first widely available synths that could play more than one note at a time. Instead of true polyphony, string synths cheated by using a single filter and VCA to control their sound.

To make it more interesting, synth manufacturers added phaser and chorus effects to give the sustained tones a sense of action and movement.

The result was a slightly eerie fake string sound with a distinctly cheesy tone.

2gether Audio’s Cheeze Machine 2 lovingly recreates the sound of these forgotten synths with style. Shine on you crazy diamond!

4. TBProAudio dpMeter

It might seem less flashy than other plugins on this list, but TBProAudio dpMeter serves a highly practical purpose.

It’s a versatile, accurate and helpful tool for keeping an eye on the levels in your DAW session.

Get the tools to shape your sound with 30+ synths, instruments, effects and utilities plugins from industry leaders like Arturia, UJAM and more. Try LANDR Plugins.

You may have heard about some of the new ways of measuring loudness in an audio signal. If you’re used to your DAW’s peak and RMS meters, new standards like LUFS can be confusing.

These are the critical parameters used in mastering

That’s because headroom, dynamic range and overall loudness are actually more complicated than they seem.

The key to unravelling it is to understand the basics and get used to using a meter in your workflow.

Unfortunately, some premium metering options are extremely expensive.

TBProAudio dpMeter is an accessible and accurate way to get the same critical metering info used by the pros.

5. Creative Intent Temper

After compression, EQ and reverb, saturation is one of the mixing tools that can help shape your mix the most.

Unlike the others though, it’s frequently neglected by producers who mix in the DAW.

After all, digital distortion has a bad reputation for sounding thin, harsh and unpleasant.

But saturation plugins have gotten a lot better since the early days of digital audio.

They’re now considered essential tone-shapers for many pro mix engineers.

Saturation can add pleasing harmonics and push sounds forward in the mix without changing their dynamics or EQ too much.

Saturation can add pleasing harmonics and push sounds forward in the mix without changing their dynamics or EQ too much.

Creative Intent’s Temper offers a unique take on saturation based on a technique called phase distortion.

It’s complex technology, but the plugin makes it easy to use.

Check out Temper if you’re looking for a unique distortion device for your DAW.

Inspiring music tech

Sometimes all it takes is one inspiring sound to pull you out of a creative rut. That’s why free plugins are such a great opportunity for modern producers.

But keeping up with every single free plugin takes a lot of effort.

Check back in with LANDR to get an easy digest of the best new releases you need in your plugin folder.

If you’ve made it through this article you’ll know about some great new plugins you can download for free to get inspired.

Michael Hahn is an engineer and producer at Autoland and member of the swirling indie rock trio Slight.

@Michael Hahn