As a seasoned music producer and mastering engineer, I’ve been using and following Waves plugins for decades.

Whether you’re searching for the best Waves plugins for vocals, mastering, or specific instruments, Waves offers a plethora of options to suit your needs. But there lies the problem – there are so many plugins, it can get overwhelming!

In this article I’ll share my thoughts on the top Waves plugins across various categories, including the best Waves plugins for mastering, vocals, drums, electronic music, and mixing.

My goal is to help you navigate the Waves Audio catalog and enhance your music production workflow. Let’s dive in and explore the plugins that can really help take your sound to the next level.

Table of Contents – Best Waves Plugins 2024

These are the best Waves plugins in 2024.

• Best Waves Plugins for Vocals
  • Waves Tune
  • Waves Tune Real-Time
  • Waves Harmony
  • Waves Vocal Rider
  • Waves Silk Vocal
  • Waves Clarity Vx
  • Waves Ovox Vocal Resynthesizer
• Best Waves Plugins for Mastering
  • Waves Abbey Road TG Mastering Chain
  • Waves C6 Multiband Compressor
  • Waves Center
  • Waves L2 Ultramaximizer
  • Waves Vitamin Sonic Enhancer
  • Waves SSL Compressor
• Best Waves Plugins for Drums
  • Waves Smack Attack
  • Waves CLA-76 Compressor / Limiter
  • Waves API-2500
• Best Waves Plugins for Electronic Music
  • Waves Element
  • Waves Space Rider
  • Waves CR8 Creative Sampler
  • Waves Cosmos Sample Finder
• Best Waves Mixing Plugins
  • Waves F6 Floating-Band Dynamic EQ
  • Waves NLS Non-Linear Summer
  • Waves NX Virtual Studio Collection
• Best Waves Bundle
  • Waves Gold
  • Waves Mercury

Considerations

Before diving into the review, here are a few pointers:

• Value for Money: Waves plugins often come with great discounts. I recommend waiting for these discounts rather than buying at full price. You can also check out my blog post about making buying decisions.
• Testing: This review highlights the plugins that stand out to me. Please conduct your own testing to find what works best for you.
• Credentials: Drawing on my 28 years of music production experience and 15 years in professional mastering, I’ve crafted this review from a seasoned perspective, focusing on what will work best for most people.
• This post contains affiliate links, meaning I earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. It helps keep the blog afloat and me caffeinated enough to continue creating good content.

What are the best Waves plugins in 2024?

Best Waves Plugins for Vocals

Waves Tune

Waves Tune is a tool for natural sounding pitch correction and vocal tuning. It allows for precise adjustments, ensuring your vocals are perfectly in tune without sounding artificial. If you’re after the “Auto-Tune” effect, check Waves Tune Real-Time (coming up next).

Waves Tune Tips:

• Use the graphic editing mode for detailed pitch correction.
• Adjust the speed and note transition settings to achieve natural-sounding results.

Link: Waves Tune

Waves Tune Real-Time

Waves Tune Real-Time offers instant, zero latency pitch correction. It’s easy to use and perfect for maintaining pitch accuracy on the fly, or creating “the Auto-Tune effect”.

Waves Tune Real-Time Tips:

• The presets offer great starting points for different styles of correction.
• The “Quantized correction” preset will give you that Auto-Tune sound.

Link: Waves Tune Real-Time

Waves Harmony

Waves Harmony is a creative tool that generates vocal harmonies from a single vocal track. It’s perfect for adding depth and richness to your vocal arrangements.

Waves Harmony Tips:

• Experiment with different harmony presets to find the perfect blend for your track.
• Use the MIDI control feature to customize the harmony notes in real-time.

Link: Waves Harmony

Waves Vocal Rider

Waves Vocal Rider automatically adjusts the level of your vocals to ensure they sit perfectly in the mix, saving you hours of manual volume automation. It’s a classic and definitely a top Waves plugin!

Waves Vocal Rider Tips:

• Use the sidechain input to ensure the vocals stay prominent without clashing with other elements.
• Try putting Silk Vocal after the Vocal Rider plugin. It’s an effortless way into a modern vocal sound.

Link: Waves Vocal Rider

Waves Silk Vocal

Waves Silk Vocal is an intelligent EQ & dynamics processor, designed to remove boominess, harshness and sibilance from vocals. It automatically identifies resonances across 2000 bands.

Waves Silk Vocal Tips:

• Apply Silk Vocal subtly to retain the natural character of the vocals.
• Don’t forget the compressor! It’s perfectly tuned for vocals.

Link: Waves Silk Vocal

Waves Clarity Vx

Waves Clarity Vx is an AI powered tool that excels in removing background noise from vocal recordings. It’s great for music but also voiceovers, podcasts, and dialogue post-production.

Waves Clarity Vx Tips:

• Adjust the sensitivity to strike a balance between noise reduction and preserving vocal detail.
• Use the A/B comparison feature to ensure the processing doesn’t affect the vocal quality.

Links: Waves Clarity Vx

Waves Ovox Vocal Resynthesizer

Waves Ovox turns your voice into a versatile production tool. Explore chord generation, vocoding, pitch tuning, and more. Convert vocals to MIDI or synthesize drums and bass.

Waves Ovox Vocal Resynthesizer Tips:

• Explore the presets for ideas – there are over 500!
• Use Ovox to convert your voice to MIDI in real-time, and send MIDI to any instrument.

Link: Waves Ovox Vocal Resynthesizer

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Best Waves Plugins for Mastering

Waves Abbey Road TG Mastering Chain

Waves Abbey Road TG Mastering Chain is a model of a vintage mastering console from the 70’s which is still being used today. It sounds awesome and is fun to use. The EQ is smooth, the compressor is solid and snappy, and the stereo widener is beautiful in small doses.

Waves Abbey Road TG Mastering Chain Tips:

• Hit the switch on the top right corner of each module for extended functionality.
• You can get many different behaviors out of the compressor. Spend some time with it to learn how it performs with different types of material.

Link: Waves Abbey Road TG Mastering Chain

Waves C6 Multiband Compressor

The Waves C6 Multiband Compressor allows for precise dynamic control across different frequency bands, making it ideal for mastering.

Waves C6 Multiband Compressor Tips:

• When mixing, utilize the external sidechain feature to make the C6 respond to other elements of the mix, such as ducking the background vocals when the lead vocal enters.
• You can change the behavior of the compression by choosing between Electro and Opto settings.

Links: Waves C6 Multiband Compressor

Waves Center

Waves Center is one of the best Waves mastering plugins. It allows you to adjust the center and sides of your stereo mix, perfect for mastering. You can push the bass to the center, widen the stereo image, or enhance the punch in the center or sides, and so on.

Waves Center Tips:

• To emphasize punch and impact in a full mix, try directing “Low” and “Punch” towards the center.
• For simple widening or narrowing of the stereo image, adjust the “Sides” fader up or down.

Link: Waves Center

Waves L2 Ultramaximizer

Waves L2 Ultramaximizer is a legendary Waves mastering plugin. In the 2000s, the L2 was the go-to plugin of its kind, shaping the unique sound of that period. Although it’s a transparent limiter by today’s standards, this very trait is what many users now find appealing. It’s light on the CPU and low latency, so you can use it on individual tracks, too.

Waves L2 Ultramaximizer Tips:

• The Adaptive Release Control (ARC) tends to be more transparent, while different effects from pumping to distortion can be achieved with manual release control.
• One of my fav tricks is to set the L2 up in dual mono and hear the stereo image open up!

Link: Waves L2 Ultramaximizer

Waves Vitamin Sonic Enhancer

Waves Vitamin Sonic Enhancer is a multiband harmonic enhancer that adds warmth, clarity, and presence to your mix. It sounds very good and is easy to operate. This is probably the best Waves saturation plugin and without doubt one of the best Waves plugins for mastering. But it’s equally good for using on subgroups or individual tracks.

Waves Vitamin Sonic Enhancer Tips:

• The width control for each band offers fantastic control for your stereo image.
• You can turn down the “Direct” fader completely to hear only the processing added by Vitamin. This is very useful.

Link: Waves Vitamin Sonic Enhancer

Waves SSL Compressor

Waves SSL-G Master Buss Compressor is a classic tool for adding glue and cohesion to your master, ensuring a smooth and polished sound. It is probably the best Waves master compressor.

Waves SSL-G Master Buss Compressor Tips:

• For a classic setting, try ratio of 4:1, attack 30ms and auto release.
• It can be easier to discern and set the attack/release characteristics by momentarily cranking the threshold harder, then easing off once you’ve found the right settings.

Link: Waves SSL-G Master Buss Compressor

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Best Waves Plugins for Drums

Waves Smack Attack

The Waves Smack Attack is a transient shaper that enhances the attack and sustain of your drum recordings, adding punch and definition.

Waves Smack Attack Tips:

• Use the Transient and Sustain controls to sculpt the attack and release of your drum hits.
• Experiment with the Sensitivity control to achieve the perfect balance between natural and processed sound.

Link: Waves Smack Attack

Waves CLA-76 Compressor / Limiter

Waves CLA-76 Compressor / Limiter is a versatile tool for adding punch and sustain to your drum tracks. Its fast attack and release times make it ideal for drums. It may also very well be the best Waves vocal compressor.

Tips:

• Use the “All Buttons In” mode for a distinctive, aggressive compression effect.
• Adjust the attack and release settings to control the transient response of your drums. 1 is the slowest setting while 7 is the fastest.

Link: Waves CLA-76 Compressor / Limiter

Waves API-2500

The Waves API-2500 is a powerful bus compressor that can add glue and punch to your drum bus, ensuring a cohesive and dynamic sound.

Waves API-2500 Tips:

• Experiment with the Thrust control to shape the overall tone of the compression.
• Use the different compressor modes (Soft, Medium, Hard) to find the best setting for your drum mix.

Link: Waves API-2500

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Best Waves Plugins for Electronic Music

Waves Element

Waves Element is a powerful virtual analog synthesizer, perfect for creating rich, dynamic sounds in electronic music. It’s quite a beast and comes with over 400 of presets for instant inspiration.

Waves Element Tips:

• The “Punch” switch on the VCA can really give your bass patches some extra energy.
• I like creating polyrhythmic patterns with the sequencer. Set mode to “Sequence” and set the number of steps to your liking.

Link: Waves Element

Waves Space Rider

The Waves Space Rider is a creative reverb plugin designed to add depth and space to music.

Waves Space Rider Tips:

• Experiment with different reverb algorithms to find the perfect space for your track.
• Use the modulation features to add movement and complexity to the reverb tail.

Link: Waves Space Rider

Waves CR8 Creative Sampler

Waves CR8 Creative Sampler allows for versatile sample manipulation and creative sound design, perfect for electronic music. It comes with 2500 royalty-free samples and a free copy of the Cosmos Sample Finder.

Waves CR8 Creative Sampler Tips:

• Use the built-in effects and modulation options to transform your samples into unique sounds.
• Experiment with different sample layers and envelopes to create dynamic and evolving textures.

Link: Waves CR8 Creative Sampler

Waves Cosmos Sample Finder

Waves Cosmos Sample Finder is an AI-powered tool that helps you quickly find the perfect samples for your electronic music productions. It integrates seamlessly with the CR8 Creative Sampler plugin.

Waves Cosmos Sample Finder Tips:

• Use the tagging and search features to quickly locate samples that fit your project.
• Experiment with the similarity search to find variations and complementary samples.

Link: Waves Cosmos Sample Finder

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Best Waves Mixing Plugins

Waves F6 Floating-Band Dynamic EQ

Waves F6 Floating-Band Dynamic EQ is the best Waves EQ plugin for mastering and mixing. It’s a clean and super versatile tool for precise EQ adjustments and dynamic processing.

Waves F6 Floating-Band Dynamic EQ Tips:

• Use the “Solo” button to accurately hone in on the frequencies you want to target.
• With a short attack time, an EQ band can boost/reduce transients very effectively. It’s a great trick for working with drums. With a longer attack time, the plugin sounds more transparent.

Link: Waves F6 Floating-Band Dynamic EQ

Waves NLS Non-Linear Summer

The Waves NLS Non-Linear Summer emulates the analog summing of classic mixing consoles, adding warmth and character to your mix.

Waves NLS Non-Linear Summer Tips:

• Experiment with the different console models to find the perfect analog vibe for your mix. My fav is using Mike on the channels and Spike on the bus. Open and crunchy!
• Use the drive control to add saturation and harmonic distortion.

Link: Waves NLS Non-Linear Summer

Waves NX Virtual Studio Collection

Waves NX models the acoustics of world-famous mixing rooms on any headphones. You can mix with 3D acoustic replications of Ocean Way Nashville, Chris Lord-Alge’s Mix L.A., and Germano Studios New York. Includes EQ correction curves for over 270 headphone models.

Waves NX Tips:

• Use NX to check your mix in different rooms to spot possible issues.
• Experiment with the head tracking feature for an immersive mixing experience.

Link: Waves NX Virtual Studio Collection

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Best Waves Bundle

Waves Gold

The Waves Gold bundle has sold over 1 million copies making it the most popular plugin collection in history. It includes over 45 plugins, covering everything from EQs and compressors to reverbs and effects. This is what I would recommend for most people.

Link: Waves Gold

Waves Mercury

I wouldn’t recommend this to everyone, but I’m including it because this is what I have (and yes, I bought it with my own money). Waves Mercury isn’t exactly cheap, but then it comes with close to 200 plugins. Waves keep adding stuff with major Waves version upgrade, too.

Link: Waves Mercury

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Best Waves Plugins: Demo Video

In this demo video you’ll see me using many of my fav Waves VST plugins in a setting that is typical for me. Please note: this is an older video and some of the plugins featured in this post are not featured. I’ll be working on an updated video. If you have any questions just let me know in the comments section or email me via the contact page.

In-Depth Reviews of Best Waves Plugins for Vocals and Mastering (2024 Edition)

There’s only so much I could cover in this post without making it too long (it’s already very long!). To dive deeper into these specific topics, I’ve created a couple of further posts with a lot more detailed information and tips on each plugin:

Best Waves Plugins for Vocals 2024

Best Waves Plugins for Mastering 2024

Questions About Waves Plugins?

So here you have my review of the best Wave plugins. Let me know your thoughts in the comments section! If you have any questions about a specific Waves plugin, I’ll be happy to answer. You can also email me via the contact page.