Limiters are awesome plugins for catching a signal’s highest peaks in a way that doesn’t ruin the overall tonality and balance of an instrument, group, or mix. Here is a modest sample of 10 of the best limiter plugins out…
How Much Does Spotify Pay Per Stream in 2024?
Streaming platforms have revolutionized music sales. There’s just no way around it—if you’re an artist, you have to upload your music for streaming. In 2019, digital streams accounted for nearly 80% of total music sales globally, and the number continues…
The Best Wireless Microphone for Singers [2024 Guide]
The best wireless microphone sounds great, is reliable, and most importantly, lets a performer roam the stage without restriction. Historically, there’ve been reservations about wireless systems, namely due to questions about interference, sound quality, and overall reliability. The truth is,…
The Ultimate List of Free Pro Tools Plugins 2024
If you’re looking for third-party plugins to expand your growing collection, look no further than The Ultimate List of Free Pro Tools plugins. Whether you need a Pultec-style EQ or a trigger gate for electronic music stutter effects, this list…
Apogee Duet 3 Review: Ultimate Portable Interface?
Fourteen years ago, Apogee revolutionized audio interfaces. The original Duet combined professional quality with portability in a never-before-seen way which changed the digital recording landscape. Over the years, they’ve consistently improved the original design, and in 2021, the Apogee Duet…
The Best Portable PA System for Live Music [2024 Guide]
A public address (PA) system is a must for any sort of performance. It amplifies and projects your sound so you can be heard over a crowd and throughout a venue. For many years, PA systems have been multiple component…
The 10 Best Mixing Plugins in 2024 (Free & Paid)
Mixing is one of the most satisfying parts of music production. It’s so much fun polishing raw recordings, adding creative effects, and putting the finishing touches on a song for listeners. There are literally thousands of plugins out there that…
The 8 Best Headphone Amplifiers for Any Budget [2024 Guide]
If you want to get the best sound quality out of a pair of high-end headphones, you may need an external amplifier to drive them. Headphone amplifiers deliver power to the drivers, just as an amplifier does with a pair…
The 7 Best Electronic Drum Sets for Your Home Studio [2024 Guide]
There was once a time when an electronic drum set sounded and felt nothing like the real thing. The earliest electric drums, like the Pollard Syndrum, didn’t simulate acoustic kits at all. They could create a variety of different sounds,…
The 15 Best Analog Summing Mixers for Your Studio in 2024
A summing mixer is a very interesting, if not often overlooked or misunderstood, piece of gear. Like most pieces of hardware, summing mixers vary in mileage; some have no more than a few knobs, while others have a slew of…
Jamulus Review: The ‘Zoom’ for Musicians
Jamulus isn’t the first of its kind, but it’s definitely gotten more traction the past several months. As the need for remote collaboration skyrocketed this last year, we’ve seen dormant technology like Jamulus emerge stronger than ever. We’ll strive to…
In Ear Monitors vs Earbuds – What’s the Difference?
Technology moves fast these days. Everyone has a personal listening device in their pocket, and with those come a slew of choices for how to get that sound to your ears. IEM (short for in-ear monitors) vs earbuds appear fairly…
The 9 Best Drum Mics for Live Sound & Recording (2024 Guide)
We talk about the best microphones for vocals and various instruments all the time, but what about the best mics for drums? As with any quality microphone, there’s always some overlap. You probably already own at least one transducer that…
Cordoba Iberia C5 Review: The Best Entry-Level Nylon Guitar?
In this Cordoba Iberia C5 review, we’ll have a look at what’s considered one of the best nylon-string guitars for beginners or first-timers to this style of instrument. Cordoba Is Known for High-End Acoustic Instruments Since 1997, Cordoba has been…
The 9 Best Rhodes VSTs [Free & Paid]
The Rhodes electric piano was an incredibly popular instrument throughout the ’60s and ’70s. Doors keyboardist Ray Manzarek was one of the first prominent musicians to start playing the Rhodes, picking up one of the earliest models in 1965. Its…
The 7 Best Wah Pedals for Your Pedalboard in 2024
Rarely is an effect quite as recognizable to the masses as the venerated wah. From Frank Zappa to Jimi Hendrix to Eric Clapton, and from Tony Iommi to Tom Morello to Kirk Hammett, many of the world’s most famous guitarists…
How to Design and Use Supersaw Synth
The “supersaw” originated in the ’90s and had a surge of popularity in the early 2000s, featured heavily in genres like trance, future bass, and progressive house. The now-iconic sound is a staple of EDM production. What Is Supersaw? Supersaw…
FM Synthesis: The Classic Synthesizer Sound
Lots of classic keyboards like the Yamaha DX7 use FM synthesis to generate sounds. If it seems daunting at first, that’s because FM synthesis really is more complex than other types of synthesis. FM is much more theory-driven, so trying…
10 Music Blogs to Submit To | Marketing Tips
The hardest thing an artist can do these days is have their music played. That’s partly because the democratization of the music industry has made the market overwhelmingly saturated. However, there are still ways to get yourself out there in…
21 Best FREE VST in 2024 [with Links!]
Steinberg developed Virtual Studio Technology in 1996 to bring synthesizers and effects into digital audio workstations. It’s a plugin format that numerous major DAWs host, like Ableton, Logic, FL Studio, Digital Performer, and Reaper, amongst others. VST instruments are a…
The 11 Best Headphones for Music Production 2024
Finding the right pair of headphones for music production can be tough. There are so many choices that if you ask engineers what their favorite headphones are, you’ll probably get different answers from each one. We’ve done our diligence to…
14 Best Orchestral Strings VST in 2024
Using string samples instead of real ones offers a lot of obvious advantages for the average home producer or songwriter. Just from a logistical standpoint, booking studio time and hiring musicians is costly and time consuming. But with samples, you…
Pro Tools Shortcuts for Faster Session Navigation
Keyboard shortcuts are the quickest way around your DAW. They let you do in one keystroke what would normally take extra time sifting through menus. If you hope to become a proficient engineer, then key commands are indispensable! Here are…
The 7 Best Home Studio Monitors for 2024
If you’re shopping for a pair of studio monitors to fit your home studio, you’ve come to the right place. Flat, neutral monitoring is one of the keys to getting the best mix you can—and it all starts with the…
15 Best Closed Back Studio Headphones in 2024
Closed back studio headphones are an essential piece of equipment to have on hand. They provide the best isolation with minor sacrifice to sound quality. But because they isolate the listener from the room, they’re the ideal option to use…
The 9 Best Guitar Loop Pedals for Any Budget [2024 Guide]
Many guitarists don’t considerate it, but a guitar loop pedal is one of the best upgrades for your board. From a creative standpoint, loop pedals can completely change the way you write and practice music. What Is a Loop Pedal?…
8 Best Bass Guitar VSTs in 2024 [Free & Paid]
Virtual Studio Technology (VST), developed by Steinberg in 1996, is a plugin format compatible with a majority of DAWs and operating systems. VSTs include both effects and software instruments, and it’s the closest thing we have to a universal plugin…
The 8 Best Studio Desks for Home Mixing [2024 Guide]
The studio desk is the centerpiece of your creative space. It should have everything you need at arm’s length to keep the inspiration flowing! Not only that, but it should be comfortable, fit your space, and keep your workflow neat…
Splice Sounds Review: Is the Subscription Worth It [2024 Guide]
One of the most important assets for any music producer is access to high-quality, royalty-free samples. Splice offers millions of one-shots, drum loops, instrumental loops, and sound effects. Over the years, it’s developed into a complete online community for producers…
The Best De-Esser Plugin for Your Vocals (Free & Paid)
Mixing professional sounding vocals isn’t easy. Before even getting to that stage, it starts with an amazing performance and an excellent recording. Covering those two bases is fundamental and certainly helps make the mix stage more creative and fun rather…
The 20 Best Filter Plugin VSTs in 2024 [Free & Paid]
Filter plugins are one of the easiest effects to use that can have a huge impact on how something sounds. As a form of EQ, filters help you shape the frequency content of an instrument. In the simplest terms, they…
The 15 Best UAD Plugins for Vocals [2024 Guide]
Over 20 years ago, Universal Audio ushered in a new standard for plugins and interfaces. UAD’s plugin catalog is a huge collection of some of the best analog emulations out there. Most importantly, the software runs on dedicated DSP supplied by…
The Best Compressor Pedal for Any Budget [Our Top 12 Picks]
The compressor pedal can be an afterthought for many players. In fact, it’s probably right up there next to tuners as far as fun goes. For many guitarists, because it doesn’t have an immediately noticeable effect in the same way…
6 Best Practice Amps in 2024
Every guitarist could use a great practice amp, whether they’re a beginner or have been playing for years. The ideal choice should first and foremost provide great tone and flexibility, perhaps come with some onboard effects, and be small and…
What’s the Best Microphone for Hi-Hats? [2024 Guide]
To keep time and carry the feel of a song, hi-hats are one of the most important parts of a drum kit. It isn’t enough to capture them with overheads or a nearby snare microphone. In order to get the…
FabFilter vs. iZotope Plugins for Music Production
When it comes to mixing and mastering, we have access to hundreds of amazing plugins from many companies. We collect our favorites from a variety of developers since there’s no be-all-end-all plugin maker. However, an interesting debate we’ve occasionally seen…
The 10 Best Guitar Tuner Options in 2024
It goes without saying that one of the most important first purchases for every guitar player is a tuner — that bears no further explanation! We’ve put together a list of 10 of the most popular options to help narrow…
The 8 Best Wireless Guitar Systems in 2024
A wireless guitar system is a perfect way to clean up and professionalize your rig. If you’re tired of lugging around long cable runs, then it’s time to go wireless. Why Consider Using a Wireless Guitar System The main reason…
How To Get Your Music On Spotify in 2024
Understanding how to get your music on Spotify is essential knowledge in 2024, when streaming dominates music sales. As of 2020, streaming platforms like Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal, and others accounted for over 80% of the total revenue generated by…
The 8 Best DJ Headphones in 2024 (Our Top Picks for Any Budget)
The best DJ headphones aren’t the same as the best studio headphones. We’ll discover what sets them apart and how to pick the right set for you! Why Having a Quality Pair of Headphones for DJing Is a Must Nearly…
Neve Summing Review | Inside UA’s LUNA
Neve summing is an optional extension that integrates seamlessly into Universal Audio’s proprietary recording system/DAW, LUNA. The emulation intends to provide the width and dimension of analog summing for individual channels or whole mixes; currently, it’s the only authentic emulation…
The 10 Best Eventide Plugins for Your Studio [2024 Guide]
Eventide has been a preeminent name for decades thanks to its innovative approach to powerful digital effects hardware. Among their most significant achievements was development of the original H910 Harmonizer in 1974-75. It became the first commercially available pitch shifter…
Top 10 Transient Shaper Plugins [2024 Guide]
A transient shaper lets you control the attack and sustain of a signal. Unlike a compressor, they do not affect the level or the entire envelope of a sound. Transient shapers (also called ‘designers’) can increase or decrease the attack,…
Digital Music Distribution: Getting Music Out in 2024
Before making albums in people’s bedroom was the norm, record deals were the only way to get your music out there. A label provided the budget for recording, marketing, printing, and distributing copies of an album to consumers. Today, digital…
The 15 Best MIDI Controllers for Music Production in 2024
Wondering which is the best MIDI controller for you? Take your pick from 12 of the top choices, whether you’re after a portable 25-note controller for production on-the-go, or a full-sized keyboard for ultimate playability. What Is MIDI? MIDI is…