The Best Mastering Plugins A Producer Should Have!

  The Best Mastering Plugins That  A Music Producer Should Have!

Compression is a great tool for any mastering engineer. It can help shape the tone, control dynamics, and boost the perceived (and actual) loudness of your source material.
Here’s a roundup of my most used compressor plugins as well as some unique features of each.

1. UAD Shadow Hills Mastering Compressor

 

The hardware unit is a behemoth, consisting of several compressors in one, with many different controls and options. Don’t let the complicated look fool you; once you get a feel for the Shadow Hills, it’s extremely easy to dial in a great sound.
I generally use slow attack and fast release times when applying compression to an entire mix, and only want to be applying 1-2dB of gain reduction as to not introduce pumping or compromise the mix. The Shadow Hills Mastering Compressor can be very transparent, or it can be pushed to get a huge, modern, in-your-face sound.
Unique feature: There are many unique features on this one, but I’d have to go with the Nickel, Iron and Steel Transformer Types. Nickel is clean, Iron is subtly saturated, and Steel adds a pretty noticeable low end bump to your material.

2. Cytomic The Glue

 

The Glue is my favorite of the SSL-style compressors because it has a wet/dry blend knob. The Glue lives up to its name and really helps your material subtly breathe and “sit” within the same context.
The original SSL Bus Compressor has a very simple and functional layout, making it easy to quickly dial in a sound. You’ll find other emulations of this classic compressor from Waves and UAD.
Unique feature: As mentioned, The Glue has a wet/dry blend, so if I want to really push it and go for more than 3dB of gain reduction — add some subtle pumping — this allows me to dial back the entire mix for a more transparent sound while still boosting perceived loudness.

3. PSP MasterComp

 

Here’s another extremely versatile compressor with a lot of controls. It’s also specifically designed for mastering. PSP MasterComp is mostly transparent as long as it’s not pushed too hard, which is honestly what I’m looking for in a compressor most of the time. It does a fine job of adding intensity without unwanted pumping.
The metering is also great and includes more detail than most other mastering compressors.
Unique feature: It has a mix knob (wet/dry control), which as I’ve established, I really love. Additionally, it has unique side-chaining options, allowing you to compress more subtly by preventing extreme high and low frequencies from driving the compressor. It even has an external side-chain option, which is somewhat rare for a mastering compressor.

4. UAD Manley Vari-Mu

This is definitely the compressor on the list with the most tone. It doesn’t have as many features or intricate controls, but that doesn’t matter because this compressor makes your material sound better simply with the warm, rich tone it imparts onto the signal.
I’m very familiar with the hardware original and this is an excellent and faithful emulation.
Unique feature: The ability to work in mid-side mode adds a useful feature to what is already one of the most sought-after bus compressors.

5. iZotope Ozone 7 Vintage Compressor

 

The Vintage Compressor in Ozone 7 does a great job of combining the precise digital controls typical to the entire Ozone 7 Suite with a warm, vibey tone. I immediately notice a pleasant bump in the high end when using this compressor.
The three different modes and mid-side option make it a very versatile choice if you need to add some vintage character to your material.
Unique feature: The Auto-Gain Compensation feature allows you to really hear if the compression that you’re applying is enhancing your source material, or simply making it louder.

UAD Fairchild 670

The warmth, width and clarity of the Fairchild make it something that I reach for every so often. Although the controls on any Fairchild-style compressor don’t exactly allow for fine tuning of attack and release times, the ability to blend in the dry signal on this emulation more than makes up for its limitations.

FabFilter Pro-C 2
Although this doesn’t have the tone and attitude of some other compressor plugins, the sheer amount of controls and usability, which are common to all FabFilter plugins, make it a reliable option for both mixing and mastering. I find myself learning new things about compression when I use the Pro- C 2 simply because the metering is so incredibly detailed.

 

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