Spoton by Sixth Sample is an awesome free vocal tuning plugin that couldn’t be any easier to use. This week’s collection of the best free plugins also features the Auraleak vocal compressor and a tribute to the legendary Roland TB-303.
Sixth Sample Spoton: Easiest Auto-tune Plugin ever?
Sixth Sample Spoton is a vocal tuning plugin that makes Auto-tune-style pitch correction available for free! What I like most about this plugin (besides its good-sounding algorithm) is that it comes with no unnecessary ballast whatsoever. You get the two parameters that really matter, and in the case of Auto-tune, that’s Amount and Speed. The former dials in the desired strength of the effect, while the latter adjusts the time it takes for notes to arrive at their “corrected” pitch. Slower speed settings produce a gentler effect that’s easier to hide, while faster speeds result in the classic Cher effect.
In addition to this, Spoton has a little keyboard for setting the scale, as well as a handy visualizer that shows the detected and corrected pitches in real time. Oh, and it also comes with ten color themes to choose from. And that’s it. Life can be so simple sometimes.
Spoton is available for macOS and Windows in VST3, AU, and AAX formats.
Atlas Audio Auraleak: Vocal Compressor and Saturator
Auraleak by Atlas Audio is a vocal compressor plugin for Windows with a couple of extras. Does the dark, menacing theme hint at the genres the developer had in mind? Possibly: There’s even a Scream mode that tailors the response of the compressor to screaming and shouting vocals. But Auraleak also features a Clean mode for less aggressive vocal performances. The two modes are essentially two different settings for the attack and release times. In addition to this, there’s a Threshold knob that controls the amount of compression, as well as a Makeup Gain control.
Moreover, Auraleak also offers a built-in saturator for adding distortion, as well as a sibilance control. Lastly, a waveform visualizer helps to keep an eye on the compression.
Auraleak is a VST plugin for Windows only.
Yooz Music BL-303: Tribute to the legendary Bassline Synth
There’s certainly no shortage of free TB-303 emulations – in fact, it’s only been a few weeks since we last covered one. BL-303 by Yooz Music is another tribute to the legendary bassline synth. The developer says that the new 3.0 version has been fine-tuned to sound and behave even closer to the original.
BL-303 focuses on the sound generation part of the 303. All the important parameters that shape the 303 sound are available. You can select the waveform, adjust the tuning, cutoff, emphasis (resonance), and envelope modulation, and dial in the desired decay time and accent level.
While BL-303 does not include a sequencer (you’ll have to use your DAW for that), you can use MIDI velocity to control the accent and glide effects. Different velocity ranges produce regular notes, slides, and/or accented notes. Easy and practical!
BL-303 is available for macOS and Windows in VST, VST3, AU, and AAX formats.
Looking for more free plugins like Spoton, Auraleak, and BL-303? Check out our archive!
Image Sources:
- Sixth Sample Spoton: Sixth Sample
