Free mastering plugins. Which are the best?

[franx]

I try to put a set of free mastering plugins together. Any recommendations which ones, what settings, what sequence, ....? Goal is to get a good quality sample setup.

[soCALLEDgenius]

http://www.voxengo.com/product/SPAN/ - analyzer
http://www.wwaym.com/nweq.html - parametric equalizer

[herodotus]

http://www.kvraudio.com/get/880.html

[.jon]

Aruguru's Stardust is cool.

[Tux]

http://www.kvraudio.com/get/1413.html

[fritzman]

TLs Pocket Limiter and Maximizer. Posihfopit.

Best wishes, FRitz

[Lunch Money]

George Yohng's W1 Limiter is a personal favourite.

[Hypertone]

TLs Pocket Limiter and Maximizer. Posihfopit.

Best wishes, FRitz

Those are the 3 that I use.

[;-)]

I try to put a set of free mastering plugins together. Any recommendations which ones, what settings, what sequence, ....? Goal is to get a good quality sample setup.

You did not ask for plugin recommendations in form of wild listings nere... but for the "right" usage of them, right?

There is no general rule, how to connect and setup a mastering chain. Whatsoever, a maximizer shuld always be the last.

I usually do EQing first, then applying multiband dynamics, exciting and multiband saturation and stereo imaging and finally multiband limiting (maximizing).

Well, I am not that limited to use freeware, but sometimes there are allot of them used.

.

[friteuse]

A litlle secret that can be used for mastering, too, is mda dynamics. No GUI, but amazing sound, especially the limiter, if output is gained up...

http://www.kvraudio.com/get/784.html

[fxe]

George Yohng's W1 Limiter is a personal favourite.

I second that.

[databass]

also the mastering is a matter of taste at least

I've recently discovered Buz Maxy very useful for mastering, especially in conjunction with Posihfopit can sculpt the sound you want!
another good addition in a chain can be Tube Limit
if you want to saturate and exite a bit to make a more crystalline sound

[;-)]

Hmm.

I think, "mastering" is something more than applying a five band EQ plus maximizer or saturator.

Mastering is very like a multiband processing to fine adjust and "equalize" a tone production in all possible aspects to give it the final touch, character and homogenity it needs.


But well, for some persons (not really knowing what they do) it is obviously like that: Passing that entire shit thru a whole brunch of "analog stylish" and hells expensive external mastering equipment in hope it gets finally that magic "warmth" anyhow ...

.

[ouroboros]

TLs Pocket Limiter and Maximizer. Posihfopit.

Best wishes, FRitz

Those are the 3 that I use.

tritto

[duncanparsons]

I usually do EQing first, then applying multiband dynamics, exciting and multiband saturation and stereo imaging and finally multiband limiting (maximizing)

I used to use a chain similar to that, but found that the initial EQing was often lost in the subsequent compression. A chain of Multiband compression->EQ->Limit has worked well.

I use:
SlimSlowSlider LPGEQ->T-SLEDGE multiband->TLS Maximiser [see here for username/password]

Seems to work for me. All depends what your after. T-SLEDGE has some excellent presets to use as a starting point depending on what you want.



DSP