There are so many free VSTs out there, we only picked the best and indispensable ones for 2023. These plugins range from graphic equalizers to spectrum analyzers, offering solutions in music production such as great sounding instruments, effects, frequency monitoring, and tonal balance. They include Audiomodern Gatelab, VCV Rack 2, Sitala Free Drum Sampler, BPB Cassette Drums, Vital Wavetable Synth, Soundmagic Piano One, ValhallaDSP SuperMassive, Kuassa BasiQ, iZotope Vocal Doubler, Kuassa Efektor GQ3607 Graphic Equalizer, TDR Nova, Youlean Loudness Meter 2, Voxengo SPAN, and Amplifikation Lite. Each plugin is described in detail, highlighting its features and how it can enhance a music producer’s toolkit.
In our Kuassa HQ, the leading developer of digital audio software for music production. Our team of passionate musicians and audio enthusiasts have been creating cutting-edge plugins and virtual instruments for over a decade.
As musicians ourselves, we know how important it is to have the right tools to bring your ideas to life. That’s why we created a range of plugins that are both intuitive and powerful, making it easy for you to craft your sound just the way you want it. Over the years, we’ve had the pleasure of working with some of the most talented musicians in the industry, from beginners to seasoned pros. Many of them have found our plugins to be a must-have in their studio setups, and we’re proud to have played a role in their music-making process.
As for our personal favorites, our team is always exploring new sounds and techniques, but there are a few that we keep coming back to. Some of us have been using classic analog gear like the Moogs, DX7, Oberheim OB-6, or many sets of modular synthesizer system for decades, while others swear by more recent plugins like Arturia’s Pigments or Xfer Serum. Despite many of us are hard-core guitarists experimenting with countless different guitar amps and effects pedals to create unique tones for our tracks.
Thus, music production is a thrilling but expensive craft, and having access to quality tools can make a world of difference. Fortunately, free VST plugins can help cut costs without sacrificing quality. In this article, we’ve compiled a list of the top 16 free VST plugins that every music producer should add to their arsenal in 2023.
A simplified 3-band equalizer plugin that is designed to be easy to use and has a clean, transparent sound. It features a low shelf filter, a mid-range peaking filter, and a high shelf filter. Each filter can be adjusted in frequency and gain, and there is also a global output gain control.
The BasiQ EQ is a great tool for beginners or for those who need a simple, no-frills EQ to quickly shape the sound of their tracks. It can be used on individual tracks or on the master bus during mixing or mastering. Although it lacks some of the advanced features found in Kuassa’s other EQ plugins, it is a convenient, capable tool for basic EQing tasks. Our favorite way to use BasiQ is for tonal balance a pre-master with a reference track. Put BasiQ just before Kratos 2 Maximizer for quick and easy mastering a track.
iZotope has several free VST plugins. Another excellent freebie from the plugin company is Vocal Doubler, featuring iZotope’s fantastic and gorgeous interactive UI, we should give them kudos for how pretty and innovative the UI is. It’s perfect for achieving a natural-sounding doubled vocal effect, but it also works well on non-vocals such as guitars.
3. Efektor GQ3607 Graphic Equalizer
GQ3607 is a Free 7-band graphic equalizer pedal effects software plug-in. Great for a quick and easy EQ adjustments to enhance the tone (guitar, bass, vocals, also great for other instuments) while still offer intuitive and straightforward controls.
The three modes of frequency ranges (Bass, Guitar and Wide) offers meticulous equalization across seven carefully chosen points. It’s the perfect tone sculpting tool for any source. Eliminate ringing frequency, or amplify to cut through busy mix. Use it as a boost for solo guitars. Get more thunderous low-end on your bass. Kuassa GQ3607 allows you to apply quick EQ adjustments to enhance the tone while still offer intuitive and straightforward controls.
TDR Nova is a parallel dynamic EQ from Tokyo Dawn Records that is capable of both parametric and dynamic equalization, as well as multi-band and wideband compression, making it an all-in-one solution for shaping your track’s sound.
The free version give 4 EQ bands , with additional high and low-pass filters, allowing you to alter the character of your track’s sound as you see fit. The interface is sleek and modern which reminds us to Fabfilter’s, with easily accessible controls. For those requiring more than four EQ bands or powerful dynamics processing, the ‘Gentleman’s Edition’ is available for $60.
Although looks like an EQ, Nova is different with Kuassa EQs which are renowned for their vintage analog circuitry. Nova is more of a digital EQ with built in multiband compression. Great for spot treatment of problematic instruments in a mixing process.
We are usually put this right after our Kratos 2 Maximizer to get a picture on a perfect loudness level on a mastering session. If you’ve tried mastering your own tracks, you know the difficulty of achieving the right volume. Finding the balance between being loud enough for the listeners without risking clipping or loss of dynamic range can be challenging.
Additionally, the loudness requirements for different platforms can cause confusion if you are mastering for different music platforms. Youlean Loudness Meter aims to solve this problem by allowing you to measure the overall loudness of your tracks with the LUFs standard. This enables you to optimize the dynamics and volume of your tracks for your platform of choice easily. It uses the LUFs standard, which is the newest and most universally accepted standard for loudness measurement. This plugin eliminates concerns about whether your tracks are too loud or too quiet, providing you with optimal results.
Voxengo SPAN is a spectrum analyzer and metering plugin that you can use to monitor the frequency range of your tracks. Using SPAN, you can easily see which frequencies are loudest or quietest, and fix problem areas with your EQ of choice by reducing or enhancing specific frequencies. Perfect to pair it with either EVE-AT Neve Style Equalizers, EVE-MP5 Pultec Style Equalizer, or our Free BasiQ EQ
Besides the main frequency graph, SPAN also features headroom estimation, clipping detection and more. If your track is sounding too thin, muddy or otherwise subpar, you can use this plugin to quickly identify issues with your mix.
Gatelab is a creative gate sequencer, Volume Modulation generator and more. It randomizes a unique combination of parameters and delivers ever-evolving patterns and endless rhythmic effects. Chop up any audio signal through a number of music-creation and sound-mangling features and generate fresh new ideas on the spot. It can also send MIDI data, giving it the ability to control or randomize parameters in other plugins.
Amplifikation Lite is a free guitar amplifier simulation plugin developed by Kuassa. It is a versatile and easy-to-use guitar amplifier simulation plugin that is ideal for guitarists who want to create authentic tube amp sounds in their digital audio workstation, for FREE. Amplifikation Lite is based on Kuassa’s legacy custom amp with set of controls versatiile enough for a seasoned guitarist tapi get the tone he want.
Additionally, the plugin features a cab impulse response (IR) loader for speaker simulation, which allows you to choose external IRs for the best sounding amp sim sound attuned to your taste.
Although not supporting AAX and newer plugin format like VST3. Amplifikation Lite is now reborn as free modules inside Kuassa’s free modular guitar sound design environment: Amplifikation 360, which we will discuss next:
Amplifikation 360 is a whole sound sculpting studio for guitar and bass. It’s free, and works both as a standalone application and a plugin for the DAW. It also features many free modules (such as the aforementioned Amplifikation Lite) for routing inside Amplifikation 360, but if you own any of Kuassa’s Amp Sim or Efektor pedal FXs it’s automatically unlocked and added inside Amplifikation 360 to further design your own sound.
One of the key features of Amplifikation 360 is its intuitive single-screen interface, which allows users to easily create and customize their own guitar amp setups. The plugin also features a range of preset patches that can be used as starting points for creating your own custom setups.
Each of the Kuassa Amplifikation and/or Efektor plugins is broke down into smaller modules, then can be set up in a virtual pedalboard with unlimited routing possibilities: Serial, parallel, crossover, panned.The whole chain or selected parts of it can be saved as individual presets and recalled in even more combinations. And in every chain there can be 8 layouts with different elements engaged for instant recall of amp & pedal combinations.
Finally, there is the option to assign several midi switches and two expression pedals to any parameter in the program, so the player can use a pedal board or any midi controller they want. Amplifikation 360 is the ultimate sound design platform for guitarist. Read more here: https://www.kuassa.com/products/amplifikation-360/
The title may be a bit misleading as VCV Rack is not actually a free VST. Instead, it is a digital modular synthesizer that can host its own plugins, mix and export audio channels, and even create complete track arrangements. Despite not being a VST, VCV Rack has a lot to offer as a standalone synthesizer. It is fully open source and free to use, with an expanding library of custom modules that can be added to the already powerful core lineup. However, it cannot be used as a plugin within other applications, although a paid-for plugin version is now available. As a free alternative, it is possible to connect VCV Rack as a virtual effect thanks to the recently released VCV Bridge
Alternatively, an unofficial port is currently in development that allows users to load and use VCV Rack in their DAWs like any other virtual instrument. It should be noted that this port is not associated with VCV Rack’s author and is still a work in progress. Check out this link for more information: https://bedroomproducersblog.com/2018/07/08/vcv-rack-vst-port-unofficial/.
Efektor Silencer is a simple but effective noise gate plugin that is ideal for reducing unwanted noise and hum in your recordings by reducing the volume of signal below a certain threshold.
Apart from its simple functionality, many users have also praised the unique “character” of the Kuassa Amplifikation’s noise gate and have requested it as a standalone plugin. In response to this demand, Kuassa developed Silencer. In addition to being available as a standalone plugin, Silencer is also included as a free module within the aforementioned Amplifikation 360 plugin.
The plugin features a simple interface with controls for adjusting the threshold, release time, and range of the noise gate. The threshold control allows you to set the level at which the gate will open and allow sound to pass through, while the release time control adjusts how quickly the gate will close after the sound falls below the threshold. The range control adjusts the amount of gain reduction applied by the noise gate..
Sitala, a freeware drum sampler instrument in VST, AU, and AAX plugin formats for digital audio workstations on Windows, macOS, and Linux. As a strong proponent of simple and straightforward graphics, it immediately drew our attention as an uncommonly streamlined drum sampler plugin.
Whereas most flagship drum samplers have so many features that you simply need to read the user manual to fully grasp their workflow, Sitala does exactly the opposite. This freeware drum sampler is simple, intuitive, and easy to grasp. Great for guitarists who need an intuitive drum sampler for making their tracks, both sampling a recorded acoustic drum set, or even an experimental kitchenware clacking beats.
Sitala features sixteen drum pads, each capable of loading one sample. The user can adjust the volume, pan, tuning, compression, envelope, and tone for every sample. Each drum pad can be mapped to a separate audio output for further processing in the DAW. Easily load the samples via drag and drop or with the built-in file browser. Rearrange the loaded drums and save custom kits for later use. It’s also worth noting that Sitala comes with a default 808 drum kit, which sounds quite decent.
13. BPB Cassette Drums – Free Drum Machine VST/AU Plugin
Cassette Drums is a freeware VST and AU plugin bundle consisting of three individual plugins: Cassette 606 VST, Cassette 808 VST, and Cassette 909 VST. The bundle based on Bedroomproducer’s popular Cassette 606, Cassette 808, and Cassette 909 drum sample packs. While it’s a sample based drum machine not a synth-based emulation of the legendary TR-X0X Roland grooveboxes, but it’s free and provides a quick and easy access for you who need drum machine sounds.
Interestingly, each plugin comes with a set of three drum kits: Clean, Warm, and Hot. The Clean kits are based on the raw, unprocessed recordings of these iconic analog drum machines, whereas the Warm and Hot kits feature the saturated drum hits that were re-sampled from an audio cassette deck.
14. Vital Audio Vital Wavetable Synth
Vital is a cutting-edge synthesizer that has taken the music production world by storm. Unlike most free VST synths on the market, Vital is a “spectral warping” wavetable synth that utilizes morphable sampled sounds as its oscillators. The user interface is visually stunning, with dynamic, animated parameters that provide instant feedback. Some of its advanced features include audio rate modulation, multiple filter models, stereo LFOs, and MPE control.
What sets Vital apart from other high-end synths is that it follows a freemium model. The basic version is free, offering a mostly complete set of features. However, it has a limited library of source wavetables (25) and presets (75). While this may be restrictive, it is still possible to explore and experiment with this impressive synthesizer. In fact, designing and creating your own presets can be a fun and rewarding experience. For those who want more, Vital offers various upgrade options, including an expanded version for $25 and a subscription model for $5 per month, providing access to unlimited features and resources.
Soundmagic Piano One, a free piano VST plugin developed by Soundmagic, has been downloaded over one million times, and for good reason. This plugin is based on the iconic Yamaha C7 grand piano, which is known for its concert-level quality. Soundmagic uses their Hybrid Modeling Engine to create Piano One, which provides a compromise solution between sampling and modeling. This approach aims to achieve the realism of sampled instruments while retaining the flexibility of a modeled piano, resulting in a sound that is truly unique.
Piano One offers a feature-packed set for a free plugin. It has a panel for controlling the volume of auxiliary piano sounds such as the sound of the pedals or the “action,” as well as seven velocity curves to change the dynamic character of your performance. Even if you’re not an experienced pianist, you can still get great-sounding results with Piano One, making it an excellent choice for both beginners and professionals.
ValhallaDSP SuperMassive, a plugin that straddles the line between an echo unit and a reverb. Other than our own Efektor Delay and Reverb plugin, Valhalla DSP is undoubtedly as respected fellow plugin developer with their products as one of the most slick and powerful reverb plugins that we’ve tried. They are widely known for making some of the best commercial reverb and delay plugins, but they have also treated the music community to several must-have freebies over the years, such as the excellent Freq Echo and Space Modulator.
SuperMassive is Valhalla’s most recent freeware offering, capable of generating extreme feedback and dense washes of repeats. It is a stereo, multi-mode delay plugin with multiple delay types on offer, a decent crop of presets, an interactive help guide, and, most notably, a gorgeous sound that makes it a must-have for any producer or sound designer. Even if it wasn’t free, SuperMassive would be worth its weight in gold for the creative possibilities it offers.
In conclusion, Free VST plugins offer an excellent way to boost your music production game without breaking the bank. By taking advantage of the top 16 free plugins highlighted in this article, producers can achieve better tonal balance, sprinkle magic dust to their tracks, monitor frequency range, and being all experimental with ease. These plugins are free, versatile, easy to use, and can deliver quality results, making them indispensable tools in a music producer’s toolkit. Try them all, we’re sure you won’t be disappointed.