This week, we’ve done nothing but pummel you with loads of gear you want. So, while you’re saving up thousands … sorry, tens of thousands of dollars for new analog gear from the 1970s, you might not be in the mood to ante up for a compressor or bass line synth.
If you also couldn’t be bothered to carefully scour my article on how the purchasing of software is about to change forever, let me spoil some of the fine print for you:
Collaboration tool Splice just quietly launched the biggest, best-organized database of free plug-ins I’ve ever seen.
Here it is:
https://splice.com/plugins/free_plugins
Now, the fact that it’s on Splice is actually important. That online site of collaborators has also amassed a huge pile of data about what people actually use. So if community members have uploaded a project using these plug-ins, the site knows. That associates projects with the plug-ins, and tells you which you’d actually use. It also means you can use this as a jumping-off point for collaboration – and a source of tools for which neither of you have to pay. (Hello, poor people collaborations, I’m with you!)
It’s not just Big Data working out what matters, though. Splice have also done some serious curating here, so everything is neatly organized and has big, bright screenshots. It seems they’ll also feature especially good stuff. Some downloads require Splice login (but then that also means you get them right away); others whisk you off to the developer’s site.
It’s the biggest, nicest, least-random, no-dead-links, most-actually-useful guide to free plug-ins I’ve ever seen, and I’ve seen a few.
My guess is that this could entice people to the Splice store, too, when they do want to invest in software. In other words, if you’re trying to build a popular store, you might want some free options to help you do it. (And I will say, even though there are lots of free plug-ins that can be a great deal of fun and spark some creativity, I also have no doubt many other plug-ins are worth paying for.)
So, have a look. And please, shout out in comments any good ones you find.