Best saturation plugins: Give your tracks some grit

There are few types of plugins that can take a track to the next level like saturation. It’s a versatile effect that is one of the best ways to spice up a digital recording. It sounds like a recording cliché to say that it can give a production that little something that’s missing. But it’s true. Even if there is no standout contender for the best saturation plugin.

It sounds great on any track type, and even sounds good if you stack one plugin with another. Saturation plugins come in a lot of variations, from a simple two controls all the way up to models that can do things that were once just a dream.

We chose five of our favorites.

Best saturation plugin for versatility: FabFilter Saturn 2

Best saturation plugin for versatility

FabFilter Saturn 2

A great saturator with plenty of distortion styles, multi-band EQ, and an easy to navigate GUI.

Pros

New and improved features over the previous version

28 distortion styles

Multi-band EQ

Intuitive GUI

Cons

Might not be aggressive enough for some

Buy From

FabFilter

Plugin boutique

reverb

FabFilter makes some of the cleanest plugins available. Saturn 2 is their updated version of the great sounding first iteration. And there are a lot of key features they’ve updated.

There are now 28 distortion styles. Everything from clean and subtle to totally in-your-face. Up to six bands of multi-band EQ let you get your frequencies right without having to use an additional EQ instance. Crossover slopes can be adjusted in 6, 12, 24, and 48 dB increments. That’s just the beginning. Some are improved over the first version and some are brand new.

FabFilter is famous for their easy to use and highly visual GUIs in their plugins. And they’re only getting better with time. No matter how you want to use it, or how much saturation/distortion you need – it’s in here. There’s even a 30-day trial available if you want to try before you buy.

Best saturation plugin for aggressive sounds: Soundtoys Devil-Loc Deluxe 5

Best saturation plugin for aggressive sounds

Soundtoys Devil-Loc Deluxe 5

Looking for aggressive saturation? This is it. The control set is simple and can be dialed in quickly.

Pros

Great for heavy, aggressive sounds

Switchable release times

Tone control

Cons

Might be too aggressive for some

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soundtoys

musician’s friend

plugin boutique

reverb

guitar center

Based on the Shure Level-Loc brick wall limiter from the 1960s, Devil-Loc has been a favorite of producers and engineers in all genres since it was released. The original is still great, but the improved Deluxe version adds some key features for more control over the sound.

Crush and Crunch controls are still here. But now there’s a Darkness control that acts as a tone knob. Switchable slow and fast release times are new, and a Mix control lets you blend wet/dry balance as you need. Parallel saturation is a popular mixing technique. Now you don’t have to setup a buss to make that happen.

It’s not for the faint of heart. It’s powerful and aggressive. But it get sounds that a lot of other saturation plugins can’t. And at just over $100, what do you have to lose?

Best saturation plugin for tape saturation: Slate Digital Virtual Tape Machines

Best saturation plugin for tape saturation

Slate Digital Virtual Tape Machines

The magic of analog harmonics and distortion is well-documented. VTM is great for livening up digital tracks.

Pros

Adds authentic analog tape sound to your tracks

Authentic controls like a real tape machine

Can be used on single tracks or busses

Cons

Requires a subscription

Buy From

reverb

Slate Digital’s plugins were pretty revolutionary when they came out. So it makes sense they caught on quickly. A few years ago people were looking to add the pleasing harmonic distortion of recording to analog tape to their digital recordings. And VTM was born.

The GUI looks like an authentic tape machine and is easy to dial in. Controls are simple. You set the input and output gain first. There are three bias types – normal, high, and low. You can choose between running it at 15ips or 30ips. This is the speed at which the tapes rotates. The real magic is the Machine Type switch, which lets you choose between 2” 16 track or ½” 2 track. No matter if you want to use it on a single channel, group bus, or the stereo master it just makes it sound better.

A settings menu lets you go even deeper with wow & flutter, level calibration, bass alignment to name a few. It’s not difficult to get it to sound good in a few minutes. Your tracks will thank you for it.

Best free saturation plugin: Klanghelm IVGI

Best free saturation plugin

Klanghelm IVGI

One of the best free saturation plugins offers easy controls and metering. It reacts dynamically to the signal instead of just sitting on top of it.

Pros

Dynamic saturation

Modeled from the response of real analog gear

Cons

None. Try it!

Buy From

klanghelm

Who doesn’t like trying out free plugins? There are some great freeware saturation plugins, but this versatile option sits a little bit above them in sonics. That’s why it’s included in this list of otherwise paid saturation plugins.

With just a few controls, it’s not a daunting interface. The coolest element is that it reacts dynamically to the signal. This gives increased fidelity and more of a feeling of old school hardware. It’s got controllable crosstalk modeled from analog desks. This makes it more a living, breathing effect than a set-it-and-forget-it. You can control how symmetrical the mix is and what frequency range it’s response is focused on.

Some freeware is only available for Windows in VST format. IVGI also comes in AU and AAX so it doesn’t matter what kind of rig you’re running.

Best saturation plugin with the most options: iZotope Trash 2

Best saturation plugin with the most options

iZotope Trash 2

An impressively fleshed out plugin with 60 saturation styles, multiple types of filtering, and amp and cabinet modeling.

Pros

60 saturation algorithms

Multiple types of filtering

Amp and cabinet modeling

Cons

Learning is a little steep

GUI takes some getting used to

Buy From

izotope

reverb

A lot of people know iZotope for their phenomenal mastering suite. They did a great job designing Trash 2, even though it’s a lesser-known saturation plugin. Which is a shame considering the amount of options it offers.

When dialing in distortion you can select from 60 algorithms, so whatever you need it’s here. After that comes a 4-band EQ and multiple types of additional filtering. It even has amp and cabinet modeling.

The GUI is a little daunting, but with a little practice you should have the navigation down. It might fly a little under the radar, but if you try it out you’ll see why that’s a shame.

FAQ

What are saturation plugins?

Essentially, they add harmonics to your signal. Some can also go into full-on distortion. A lot of them are designed to replicate what recording to an analog mixing desk or tape machine adds to the signal.

What is the best free saturation plugin?

There are so many great free plugins these days. We chose the Klanghelm IVGI. They also have another piece of freeware that’s great. But it really depends on what you need out of a saturation plugin. Luckily, you have no shortage of options.

Why use saturation plugins?

There are a lot of reasons to use saturation plugins. The reason a lot of people use them is because they can give an analog flavor to “cold” digital recordings. There are a lot of saturation plugins that distinctly model the sonic signatures of tape machines.

But they are capable of so much more. Adding dirt to a guitar track, spicing up a vocal, or adding grind to a bass track.