Gainer

Gain Staging is important in your mix process for sure. Your DAW will give you the ability to control the gain level for each track and for your master bus, but that's where it ends and this isnt nearly enough control or flexibility. You need the ability to control the amount of gain going into and coming out of each of the plug-ins you are using, as every plug-in has an optimal amount of gain for it to work at it's best. If your selected effect plugin doesn't have it's own input gain, then this is going to be difficult.

Gainer to the rescue.

Gainer is a clear and simple gain-staging plugin that allows you to see, at each stage of your effect chain, the gain levels coming out of each plug-in (the Audio IN of Gainer) and it allows you to change the levels going into the next plugin (the Audio OUT of Gainer). You can add up to +24dB or remove up to -100dB. Gainer throws in the ability to switch the signal phase and offers you an inverted gating compressor, for a more subtle and controllable noise reduction process when compared to a simple noise gate.

All of this is completely free, just enter the coupon code above.