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The Best Music Software Plugins for Music Producers?  Well, Here Are Some of Them...

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There's no denying that plugins are an essential part of music production in today's DAW-based world.  There's also few things as fun and inspiring as loading up a great new plugin for the first time.

So, in this section of RenegadeProducer.com we delve into the wild, wonderful and often wacky world of audio plugins.

You'll discover links to various audio plugin related posts on this site listed on the page below.  This includes the Big 3 Audio Plugins series where you'll discover 3 solid recommendations for plugins in various of the plugin categories available for music producers, beatmakers and audio engineers.

If you're completely new to production and want to see a big picture overview of 26 commonly used audio plugins then this post may catch your fancy.

A word of warning about music production recommendations in general:

As mentioned, in this section of RenegadeProducer.com we take a look at the best music software plugins (a.k.a. DAW plugins, audio plugins, VSTs) for music producers.

Now,  as with all music software and hardware recommendations,  your BS alert should light up when you see the word "best".  That's because, as you probably know by now,  there's no absolute best software or plugin. There's only the best plugin for the job at hand,  and that changes all the time.

That said, some plugins are really good for specific jobs and have stood the test of time.  Some plugin developers are also known for the quality and design of their plugins.

At the end of the day it all comes down to preference and workflow.  If it works for you,  then it works just fine!

The goal of this section is to explore some of the best music software plugins available for newer music producers.

Here something important to keep in mind before you dive in...

Your DAW Stock Plugins May Already Include What You Need to Get The Job Done!

The best digital audio workstations have all stepped-up their stock-plugin game in recent times. In fact, some of the best music software plugins available come included within the music software itself.  This means that there's often no need to buy a 3rd-party plugin.

So, first make sure you get to know your chosen DAW well before you start the often addictive 3rd-party plugin buying process.

That said, we all love new toys and with so many great 3rd-party plugins available, and more being released as we speak, obtaining new plugins is definitely one of the most fun areas of professional music production.  That's why this section on RenegadeProducer.com exists!

The Big 3 Audio Plugins Series:

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In this series of posts I suggest 3 of the best music software plugins available for different categories of plugins.

I'm sure you've probably come across posts that list "The 20 best distortion plugins" before.  Now, while these posts have their place and get the word out about some of the best music software plugins, they're not very helpful in terms of narrowing down your buying choices when you start out.

So, the idea of keeping it to 3 is to help newer producers start with solid plugin options to demo per category without the overwhelm of too many choices.

You can of course explore other options but at least you'll start with vetted, tried and tested plugins that come highly recommended.  I trust this will make life easier for you! ;-)

P.S. Be sure to sign up below and bookmark the blog as this section will be expanding rapidly,  and I don't want you to miss out on new posts.

Current Big 3 Audio Plugins Posts:

Delay Plugins

Filter Plugins

Reverb Plugins

EQ Plugins

Saturation Plugins

Distortion Plugins

Spectrum Analyzer Plugins

Limiter Plugins

Audio Mastering Plugins

Coming soon:

Compression Plugins

... and more!

Best Music Software Plugins - Conclusion:

The cool, crazy, beautiful world of the best music software plugins available for music producers can leave you with some serious FOMO.  It's tempting to download every free plugin you can get your hands on and buy as many premium plugins as possible.

At some point however you may, as many producers do, realize that you have too many options in your plugin folder.  This can slow your workflow down and be more of a hindrance to good, consistent music production than a help.

So, as a final word of warning I suggest you think carefully before you add new plugins to your collection. Do you really need it? Can you get it done with plugins you already own? Have you mastered the plugins you own?

The best music software plugins are the ones you know well, the ones that you use often and that contribute to you getting more tracks done, faster and with consistency.

Other than that,  may your plugin collection grow bountiful and may you have tons of fun in the studio! ;-)


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