Audio reverb plugins are simply essential.
In every mix, you need to position your instruments in space using these effects.
Naturally, there is something for everyone. Some reverbs have a fairly transparent sound, giving the impression that the recorded instrument or singer is playing in a room or hall.
Others have much more character and color: these are often the ones that simulate vintage effects. You can find emulations of plate reverb (plate in English) or spring reverb (spring).
While there are many paid plugins, there are also a number of free professional-quality plugins (VSTs, AUs…) that you can use in your mixes. So, I have selected the best of the best for you and compiled them into this list.
With all this, you’ll be prepared for most mixing situations you can imagine 🙂
1. Oril River
Developer: Denis Tihanov
Format: VST, VST3 (32 and 64 bits, Windows and MacOS)
OrilRiver is a fairly recent plugin that undoubtedly ranks among the best reverbs available, even paid ones.
It simulates spaces ranging from small rooms to large halls, with an intuitive interface that simplifies its use (and two different GUIs available).
The plugin includes:
- 12 variations of Early Reflections
- 5 variations of reverb tails
- a rather effective equalizer to sculpt the sound
- and of course all the usual reverb controls: size, diffusion, modulation…
And it all sounds excellently well – so I can only highly recommend it to you. 🙂
► Click here to download Oril River
2. Supermassive
Developer: ValhallaDSP
Format: VST, VST3, AU, AAX (64 bits only)
It’s impossible to list free reverbs without mentioning Supermassive from ValhallaDSP — which actually won the gold medal in the “Readers’ Choice Project Home Studio” contest in 2020.
While it is primarily a plugin designed as a delay effect, it proves to be particularly effective for generating… massive atmospheres, as its name suggests. That is, simulations of particularly wide acoustic spaces.
Ideal for ambient music and synthesizers, but this free plugin is ultimately usable for many genres.
► Click here to download Valhalla Supermassive
3. VREV-666
Developer: Fuse Audio Labs
Format: VST, VST3, AU, AAX (32 and 64 bits on Windows, 64 bits on MacOS)
Undoubtedly the only free spring reverb simulation — since this plugin emulates the behavior of the Grampian 666 (hence the name), a reverb module from the 60s.
As you can see in the image above, the controls are quite simple and allow you to get straight to the point.
In terms of sound, it is necessarily a plugin with a lot of character that will easily give an old-school vibe to your recordings with the famous “twing” in the highs characteristic of spring reverbs.
► Click here to download VREV-666
4. Ambience
Developer : Magnus @ Smartelectronix
Format : VST, AU (32-bit on Windows, 32 and 64-bit on MacOS)
Ambience is probably one of the most well-known free plugins, and for good reason. With its numerous controls, you can really model a sound space to your liking, ranging from the smallest rooms to gigantic cathedrals.
In fact, it is quite a versatile reverb, although I find it particularly effective on long reverbs.
Also note two very handy buttons:
- “VARIATION”: allows you to create variations of the same room by changing certain technical parameters of the algorithm
- “HOLD!”: allows you to freeze the effect for a sense of infinite reverb. Useful for special effects or for making transitions, for example.
► Click here to download Ambience (via Plugins4Free)
5. Sanford Reverb
Developer : Leslie Sanford
Format : VST (Windows only)
Indeed, there are many buttons for adjusting the early reflections (Early Reflections), which makes it a bit complex to handle. But the sound is really interesting.
While it is a versatile reverb, I find it particularly excellent for simulating very large spaces (like Ambience just before). Therefore, I especially recommend it to ambient music producers (new age, dark ambient…).
My advice: to learn how to master this tool, start with the included presets. They showcase the plugin well and will serve as a good starting point.
► Click here to download Sanford Reverb
6. epicPlate
Developer : Variety of Sound
Format : VST (32 and 64-bit, Windows only)
Replacing the long-standing epicVerb plugin, Variety of Sound has released epicPlate, a high-quality reverb, unfortunately only available on Windows.
As its name suggests, it is a simulation of vintage plate reverb, offering that characteristic sound that is widely used in mixes across all genres.
To be tested especially on vocals, but also on drum tracks.
► Click here to download epicPlate
8. OldSkoolVerb
Developer : Voxengo
Format : VST, VST3 AU, AAX
Warning: this reverb has a lot of character, so it may not appeal to everyone. Indeed, it has a rather colored, organic sound, even a bit vintage (as its name suggests).
It works particularly well with vocals, synths (pads), and piano. A bit less well with percussive instruments like drums. I recommend mixing it quite subtly for it to sound its best.
Note also that you have access to no less than 6 reverb algorithms: Default, Plus, Deep, Reverse, Old, and Slapback, which gives you quite a few mixing possibilities.
► Click here to download OldSkoolVerb
9. TAL Reverb 4 (and 2, and 3…)
Developer : Togu Audio Line (TAL)
Format : VST, VST3, AU, AAX (64 bits only; incl. Linux)
Togu Audio Line is a publisher that has been in the plugin market for a long time, known for both its excellent free plugins and, more recently, for its very good vintage synthesizer simulations.
With TAL Reverb 4, of course completely free, you have at your disposal a reverb with somewhat old-school sounds, with a lot of character but at the same time very easy to adjust due to a low number of settings.
To learn more, feel free to check out my video tutorial below dedicated to this plugin! 😉
Also note the existence of two other free reverbs from the same publisher, TAL Reverb 2 and TAL Reverb 3, which are just as interesting.
► Click here to download TAL Reverb 4 (and here for TAL Reverb 2 and 3)
10. Protoverb
Developer : u-he
Format : VST, AU, AAX
Protoverb is a truly experimental reverb that you won’t use every day. Although…
Specifically, it generates spaces more oriented towards Room and Hall. Instead of only modeling the resonances of the walls of a room, it models the air that is in the room. As a result, the output is quite organic and especially very natural.
Very few controls on this plugin: the effect parameters are almost all generated randomly (hence the experimental aspect). You can of course save your own presets, but also send them to u-he, the publisher, for analysis.
A tip: take the time to test this reverb, it has some surprises in store for you 😉
► Click here to download Protoverb
11. Dragonfly Reverb
Developer : Michael Willis
Formats : VST, AU, LV2 (32 and 64 bits on Windows, 64 bits on MacOS and Linux)
The Dragonfly Reverb is a set of four high-quality reverb plugins, each equipped with a specific algorithm:
- Hall Reverb
- Plate Reverb
- Room Reverb
- and also a module specifically simulating the early reflections of a room.
The sound is rich, sufficiently dense… one could easily think it’s a paid plugin, but it’s not! 🙂
Definitely worth testing, especially the Dragonfly Hall on synth pads.
► Click here to download Dragonfly Reverb
12. RO-GOLD
Developer : Black Rooster Audio
Formats : VST, AU, AAX
Black Rooster Audio is undoubtedly one of my favorite plugin publishers, and unsurprisingly their little reverb RO-GOLD, a lighter version of their more comprehensive plugin RO-140, performs quite well.
In this case, it is a simulation of plate reverb, very vintage in style, and thus provides a sound with an analog color similar to what can often be heard in tracks from the 50s and 60s.
Different parameters allow you to adjust the sound: amount of bass, duration of plate resonance, and pre-delay.
The plugin is easy to adjust and provides a very convincing sound.
Also, if you don’t have a plate reverb, this is a plugin to test as soon as possible! 🙂
► Click here to download RO-GOLD
13. Verberate Basic
Developer: Acon Digital
Formats: VST, VST3, AU, AAX
A relatively lesser-known reverb plugin, but it can be a good choice for beginners, partly because it is free, but also because it is really simple to use.
First step, select the algorithm of your choice. There are four available:
- a plate reverb simulation, with a rather airy side and at the same time a good density;
- a Room reverb;
- a Hall, for wide and dense reverberations;
- and a Lush Hall, for something even wider & modulated that works well on synthesizers
Second step, adjust the amount of reverb.
And there you go.
Sometimes, that’s all it takes: you don’t always need thousands of settings…
► Click here to download Verberate Basic
14. Convology XT
Developer: Impulse Record
Formats: VST, AU, AAX
Convology XT stands out a bit from the other plugins on this list, as it is not an algorithmic reverb but a convolution reverb.
In other words, a plugin that allows you, via impulse responses (IRs), to simulate real acoustic spaces or hardware reverbs that have been, in a way, “pre-recorded” (I will do an article or a video on the subject in some time…).
Most plugins of this type are paid, but Convology XT is completely free and offers more than enough features for most home studio uses.
► Click here to download Impulse Record Convology XT
Looking for more plugins?
Check out my article compiling all my lists of free plugins