The 27 best free VST plug-ins in the world today

The internet is now awash with free VST plug-ins - you’ll find instruments, effects and others that defy categorisation. However, while it’s great to have so many to choose from, this weight of numbers means that it’s difficult to work out what’s worth having and what you should steer clear of. Of course, you won’t lose out financially by downloading a dud or two, but to save you a lot of time, effort and potential disappointment, we’ve compiled a list of the best free VST (and Audio Units) plug-ins in the world today. Our shortlist was put together based on your nominations from 2010, when we ran our first poll, and 2012, when we put the word out that our list was being updated. Before we get down to business, we should also remind you that our sister magazine, Computer Music, features a slew of exclusive plug-ins on its cover disc every month, so if the software on this list doesn't satisfy you, try that as well. NEXT: de la Mancha FMMF

Over 90 Free VST Effects Plugins VST plugins can add power and flexibility to your digital audio workstation. They can also be very expensive. Here is a collection of over ninety awesome effects plugins that have one thing in common: they're free. Check the details for each plugin to see if it works on your system. If you're strapped for cash after Christmas, this list is just what you need. Five months ago, AudioJungle author and Audiotuts+ loops contributor Mihai Sorohan started a thread on the AudioJungle forum listing the best free VST effects. 225 posts later, the thread is still going strong. Did we miss your favorite free plugin? 1. "The BootEQ mkII is an equalizer and pre-amp simulator combination which provides some nice and musical signal coloration effects." 2. "Density mkII was primarily designed to work in a typical stereo audio group mixing situation or for summing and to glue all things together in an unobtrusive way." 3. "NastyLF a offers push/pull style low-end EQ with an added saturation stage. 4. 5.

Top 10 High End VST's - Just like doughnuts and bacon, too many VST instruments are bad for you. They will drain your computer’s resources and stifle your work flow. Data streaming from too many VST instruments is like cholesterol in the USB arteries of your computer and will slow your DAW right down. We know that for the optimum producing environment we should focus on just a select few VST instruments, use them to their fullest ability and keep our DAWs nicely streamlined. But this is not about what we should do. 1. Cost – £315 Size – 50 Gigabytes Omnisphere is pretty much the ultimate synth. 2. Cost – £185 Size – 35 Gigabytes Trilian is Spectrasonics’ dedicated bass synth. 3. Cost – £245 Size – 14 Gigabytes This is a percussion module from Spectrasonics. 4. Cost – £378 Size – 194 Gigabytes The highest quality and most complete collection of orchestral sounds. 5. Cost – £90 Size – 2 Gigabytes What it lacks in physical size it makes up for in sound quality. 6. 7. Cost – £160+ Size – 25+ Gigabytes 8. Cost – £200