Step into any professional recording studio, and the first thing you’ll notice are the stacks of rack-mounted audio processing gear littering the room. From modular synthesizers to vintage compressors, guitar stomp boxes and arcane drum machines, the process of making music in the modern world often involves having lots of sonic flavorings to choose from, which can quickly become an expensive affair. GarageBand musicians might have condensed their studios down onto a Mac, but that doesn’t mean that there isn’t a vast array of software-based sound modules and effects that work directly inside their audio editor of choice. In the next seven pages, we’ll take you deep into the amazing world of Audio Units expansion plug-ins, which you may not have even realized work in GarageBand. You’ll be amazed at just how deep the rabbit hole goes.

Years ago, Apple created a standardized format for audio plug-ins. It’s called Audio Units (AU), and if a plug-in is delivered in that format, it means that it’ll work inside just about any audio-processing app that works on a Mac—and even some apps like Final Cut Pro. As you’d expect, GarageBand can take advantage of just about any AU plug-ins installed on your Mac, although Apple doesn’t go out of its way to educate GarageBanders about this aspect of the software (see “The Illogic of Logic,”).

While most software installers automatically plop AU plug-ins in the right place, it’s useful to know exactly where they live on your Mac: in a folder called Components, buried inside the Library folder on your main hard drive (Macintosh HD\Library\Audio\Plug-Ins\Components).

If you install  plug-ins by copying them to the Components folder manually, make sure you include any presets. Plug-ins and their supporting files usually come grouped together in a folder. Also, GarageBand should not be running when you copy the files to Components, so quit the app first, then relaunch it. Then, to access AU plug-ins inside GarageBand, double-click on any track in the main GarageBand window (or select the track and press Command-I). Up comes the Track Info window, showing the currently available Apple software instruments. You’re almost there—now click on the Details arrow at the bottom left of the Track Info panel, where you’re given the opportunity to access Audio Units instruments and effects (in GarageBand ’08, there are four effects slots; earlier versions have fewer slots). Click on the checkbox to turn on Generators. When you access the first pop-up menu, notice that built-in GarageBand instruments are listed at the top of the menu, while third-party AU modules appear at the bottom. All of your installed AU instruments and effects should appear here, so select the one you want to use and you can now play it from your MIDI/USB keyboard.

The pop-up menu to the right displays the presets for the selected instrument. If you’ve installed the lovely Crystal freeware synth (and if not, well, do it—see below), for example, clicking on this pop-up reveals a lengthy preset list. This feature doesn’t work for all third-party instruments: Arturia’s wonderful re-creations of classic hardware synths come with loads of cool presets, but they don’t show up in the presets pop-up. Not a problem, however, since you can always access presets from inside an instrument’s control panel too.

Presets are fine and dandy, but the real test of any software synthesizer is in the programming, and by clicking on the pencil tool to the right of the presets pop-up, you’ll be taken directly into the editing interface for the instrument plug-in. Here’s where you can crawl under the hood and mod to your heart’s desire. This editing window remains live while a song is playing, so if you turn on the Loop button in the GarageBand transport controls and adjust the loop duration to the segment of interest, you can play a section of your composition over and over while tweaking the sound to perfection.

You can also apply plug-ins to an entire mix by clicking on the Master Track button at the top of the Track Info pane. You’ll see plug-in slots in the Details area of the pane, and whatever plug-ins you switch on here will affect the entire composition, allowing you to apply a final mastering equalization or compression to everything at once.

Now let’s take a look at some of the tools you should consider adding to your virtual studio. There are two main categories of plug-ins: generators, aka instruments, and processors (which alter the sounds coming out of generators). For simplicity’s sake, we’ve only included plug-ins that are delivered as Universal binaries. 

Software Instruments

These virtual keyboards, drum kits, and other instruments offer an unlimited range of sounds—for less than you’d pay for the real thing. While the built-in GarageBand sounds are definitely fun to play, they offer little in the way of customization or editability, and that’s where third-party instruments enter the picture. The most awesomely powerful software synthesizer, or softsynth, costs a fraction of what the cheapest professional hardware equivalent does, and softsynths often have features that far outpace anything available in the physical world. There’s at least one great softsynth that costs exactly nothing, and the most expensive, deep monsters usually top out at $200. Also keep in mind that most of the software instruments we’re looking at here offer intense levels of programmability, and therefore require some actual effort to master. Our advice: Don’t worry, be happy. And have fun experimenting.

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Crystal Clarity

Crystal proves the best things in life truly can still be free!

Perhaps the single greatest bargain in the softsynth world is the venerable and free Crystal (www.greenoak.com/crystal/), which is yours for nothing more than the time it takes to download. While you might suspect that a free synth is nothing to write home about, guess again—Crystal is a truly sweet-sounding instrument, with a great selection of presets and some seriously deep controls. It has two classic synthesis modes—FM and Subtractive—and a full range of built-in effects, along with extensive modulation controls. All this results in complex, rich sounds—and the online manual is quite extensive and clear.

May The G-Force Be With You

Get your Mellotron on for less than $100 with G-force’s M-tron synth.

G-Force (www.gforcesoftware.com) has created some truly impressive digital reproductions of some of the quirkier analog synths of yesteryear, and we have a particular fondness for M-Tron, which is based on the Mellotron keyboard (think Moody Blues or the strings from “Strawberry Fields Forever”). Then there’s the impOSCar, based on the somewhat obscure OSCar synth that graced quite a few British synth-pop albums of the eighties, and it’s got some seriously juicy filters. For a street price of less than a hundred bucks each, these synths are totally musical and will help add a vintage vibe to your tunes.

Go Native

Drinking this Absynth isn’t hazardous to your health.

Native Instruments (www.native-instruments.com) is one of the most popular music software makers in the world, and for good reason: Absynth is amazing, with an intuitive interface, excellent presets, and the kind of emanations that are perfect for any genre served by synthesized sounds. Massive is a big, bad bruiser that can shake the shingles off the roof, and we found it to be a cinch to program. If you’re looking to get into the R&B groove, B4 II is a dead-on impersonation of the unique Hammond B3 sound, and it’s a lot easier to lug to gigs than the real thing. Native Instruments makes some other great synths, so check them out and prepare to be impressed.

Go By Camel

This Cameleon has very good karma.

Another independent developer, Camel Audio (www.camelaudio.com), has a wonderful, mystical, and downright frightening synth called Cameleon 5000, which has absolutely no counterpart in the hardware world. It can do things that are almost paranormal in nature, like open a sampled sound file and “resynthesize” it with its awesome synthesis engine, as well as move between four different sounds in ways that will bend your mind. While it comes with over 600 excellent presets, there are thousands more for the taking when you register the software, so it’s unlikely that you’ll ever run out of inspiration—or useful sounds. If you’re into the kind of brooding, atmospheric sounds that are found in movie soundtracks, Cameleon 5000 is a one-stop shop for bona fide aural goodness. 

Indie Pop

Plug in to the Lin sound with Free Alpha 3.

In the spirit of independence, LinPlug (www.linplug.com) is a developer out of Germany with a wide line of useful softsynths. There’s a LinPlug synth for just about any budget, and if you don’t believe us, check out the potent Free Alpha 3, which is, well, free. The $99 Alpha 3 is a solid workhorse and an excellent introduction to subtractive synthesis theory, the foundation of the analog synth world. Moving up the scale, ChronoX3 is a sample-based synth that covers everything from electric pianos to bubbling trance passages. One of our favorite overall softsynths is Albino 3, and, while it costs $249, it has more programming power than you’re ever likely to tap in a musical lifetime.

Sound Surge

We bet you can’t exhaust all the possibilities open to you in Surge.

Vember Audio’s Surge (www.vemberaudio.se) is a potent softsynth that packs a serious wallop for its $149 price tag. With over 1,000 presets and a synthesis engine that encompasses a vast territory of possibilities, we found this almost-unknown gem to be a wonderful instrument, full of great timbres and a straightforward interface design. Surge is deep, highly tweakable, and loads of fun to program and play.

Jam Like Vangelis

Arturia (www.arturia.com) is the primary purveyor of reborn analog synths, and its officially endorsed MiniMoog V and Modular Moog V emulations are even better than the original gear—you can play actual chords, instead of just the single monophonic note capabilities of the originals. If you’re a Vangelis fan—he’s guy who did the soundtrack for Blade Runner—you’ll absolutely adore the CS-80V, which is based on the rare Yamaha synth that was Vangelis’s main axe for years. Arturia’s Analog Factory is a best-of collection of over 3,500 preset sounds culled from its vast virtual library, with basic editing abilities that should keep you going for a few years or so. Arturia’s softsynths are all list-priced at $249, but you can easily find them for $199 street. The V Collection is a bundle of Arturia’s top six instruments, and at $699, it might seem pricey—until you consider that $700 is what you’d pay for a low-end hardware synth. If you tried to acquire these six synths as hardware, you’d be looking at around $16,000.

Bang Your iDrum

Keep your headphones on so you don’t annoy the neighbors.

Izotope’s (www.izotope.com) sweet iDrum is an excellent and exceedingly straightforward electronic drum machine, and for $69, it’s both very cool and extremely useful. Patterned on classic drum machines, iDrum is geared toward electronic, trance, and dance music, and it includes a boatload of presets that will keep you in the beat for years.

Ebony and Ivory

Get lovely piano sound without the heavy lifting.

Modartt Pianoteq 2 (www.pianoteq.com) is the definitive modeled acoustic piano (5 out of 5 stars, June/08, p74), and even though it surpasses our $200 price ceiling, it might be the single most useful AU instrument plug-in in existence. It’s small, highly tweakable, and its sound is just astounding, gorgeous and alive. Ditch the heavy upright or grand—Pianoteq 2 is the holy grail of digital ivories.

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Signal Processing & Effects

Effects plug-ins can make the difference between a track that sounds wimpy and amateurish and one that packs presence and punch.

Like any other form of audio sweetening, the real trick to signal processing is to exercise moderation, and to apply it where it helps something sound better—although, of course, some rules are made to be broken (as Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails does on every album).

A key feature to watch out for in any type of signal processing plug-in is the ability to mix the dry (unaffected signal) with the wet (the sound with the effect applied). Take reverb, for example—a little bit added to any vocal gives the track some surrounding “air” and makes it sound more natural, while drowning it in reverb drains the life out of a track’s tonal definition and quality. Your own results may vary, but remember, start subtle and mix your way up for the 
best results.

Free Magic

SoundMagic Spectral sounds better than it looks.

You can’t beat free, and for starters, we suggest downloading the rather odd and intense set of plug-ins from New Zealand composer Michael Norris (www.michaelnorris.info/soundmagicspectral/). SoundMagic Spectral is a set of 23 plug-ins with minimalist interfaces and maximum audio shredding and mangling potential, all primarily focused on altering the way sounds play out over time and frequency. Spectral Filterbank takes a straight acoustic piano and turns it into tubular bells, a lovely effect we could definitely see using in a musical context. Spectral Granulation morphs the same piano into a slowly evolving, complex sonic texture that barely resembles the original piano, while Spectral Gate and Hold stretches a piano note into a soft, shimmering pad sound (an understated sound usually played in chords).

Luxonix LFX-1310 is one of a handful of capable free effects plug-ins out on the Net.

Mouse over to Luxonix (www.luxonix.com) and download the LFX-1310 multieffects processor, a freeware wonder that offers 24 different effect types (from reverbs and delays to compressors, equalizers, and even a lo-fi decimator) in three simultaneous slots, for some seriously sophisticated and useful processing options. Did we mention it’s free?

Loop-The-Loop

Augustus Loop, not to be confused with the Apple Infinite Loop.

ExpertSleepers (www.expert-sleepers.co.uk) makes one of our favorite effects, dubbed Augustus Loop, a combined looper, delay unit, and pitch shifter that puts Robert Fripp’s Frippertronics to shame (Google it and try not to faint). With Augustus Loop, you can take a vocal passage, a guitar riff, or synth line and turn it into a living, breathing sonic entity that defies simple description. It’s one of the most important tools in our own personal toolbox, and has been for years. For $29, it’s the most fun you’ll ever have with a plug-in, and if you don’t believe that, download the excellent—and free—Multitap Delay to get a taste of true aural fun. ExpertSleepers makes a nice free phase shifter too, as well as some other commercial offerings. As the kids say, it’s all good.

Bargain Bin

Ground Control to Major Tom.

Stillwell Audio (www.stillwellaudio.com) is a company that we recently discovered, and we’re thrilled to tell you that it makes a wonderful line of synths and effects. Major Tom ($49) is one of the best software compressors we’ve run across, and it takes minimal effort to make vocals as smooth as silk, or bake up some punchy drum sounds that sit very nicely in a mix. We also adore Vibe-EQ ($39), an equalizer with definitive attitude and a sweet sound. Check out Stillwell’s site, which features more inexpensive goodies than we have space to cover here.

We love a good bargain, and the fine folks at Audio Damage (www.audiodamage.com) make a line of très cool plug-ins that span the range of moderately useful to totally essential, and at prices that are easy on the wallet. Most of the company’s offerings do one thing really well, and with minimal CPU load—always a good sign. We consider Reverence to be one of the best reverb plug-ins available. At $39, it’s an instant classic. If you use lots of acoustic guitar in your tunes, you’ll adore Fluid, one of the loveliest chorus effects we’ve heard, and great for adding sheen to background vocals as well. It’s $29, which is simply astounding. The DubStation is a re-creation of a classic “bucket brigade” analog delay, and for $39, you can conjure up the kind of wild, wacky effects that are not easily created with expensive digital delay effects. There are loads of other wonderful plug-ins from these guys, and they all sound spectacular.

OhmiGod

Harness the power of the Ohm Force’s OhmBoyz.

For the ultimate in bizarre interfaces, check out the madness of the Ohm Force plug-ins (www.ohmforce.com). The OhmBoyz is a dual delay line with some seriously twisted sonic abilities, and it sounds fantastic. On the other side of the sonic spectrum is Predatohm, a nasty distortion processor that puts serious bite into your pristine guitar tracks and makes synths sound like they’re having a bad hair day. Our only beef is that the software is priced in Euros, which means it’s as expensive as a meal in Paris paid for with weak American dollars. If you want a taste of the Ohm Force way, download the free Frohmage filter and try running a vocal track though it. Vive la France!

I'll Take A Little of Everything

SFX Machine Pro covers the effects gamut for $150.

SFX Machine Pro (www.sfxmachine.com) is a Swiss army knife of signal processing, and it’s reasonably priced at $150. It does a little bit of everything, from compression and equalization to robotic voices, flanging, and lo-fi effects. It’s easy to use and sounds smooth—and if you’re happy to settle for a bunch of the effects with less editing options, take a look at SFX Machine RT, which is half the price at $75 and offers most of the essential processing power of its bigger brother.

Season Your Sonic Stew

VintageWarmer 2 is delicious secret sauce for any composition.

PSP Audioware (www.pspaudioware.com) is an inspired Polish developer of superb audio tools, and we highly recommend its VintageWarmer 2 as a cure-all for adding punch, presence, and pizzazz to individual tracks or overall mixes. It’s super-secret sauce for a tasty sonic stew. We’re also mad about MixPack, which includes superb bass and treble processors (know that deep, oomphy bass on so many hip-hop records? It’s PSP MixBass2.), a great compressor, a slick saturation plug-in (for emulating overdriven tubes and adding analog warmth to crisp digital tracks), and an excellent noise gate. For $199, this is a killer bundle that could serve as the cornerstone of a virtual recording studio.

Remember the Lexicon? If you do, pick up Lexicon PSP 84 to add unique modulation and delays.

When you visit the website, take a look at some of their more esoteric offerings—Lexicon PSP 84 is a $149 re-creation of a truly cool old Lexicon, and it’s capable of making some of the weirdest delay and modulation effects you’ve ever heard.

Go Pro

ChannelStrip is a rare breed of AU plug-ins developed specifically for GarageBand.

One of the only plug-ins developed specifically for GarageBand, Metric Halo’s (www.mhlabs.com) ChannelStrip for GarageBand ($89) is an essential tool for serious equalization, compression, and gating work. The equalizer is one of the best we’ve used and is just right for fine-tuning vocal recordings, difficult instruments (such as cymbals and bass drums), and just about anything else likely to end up in your mixes. If you wanted to invest in just one plug-in for getting professional results from GarageBand, this is the one.

Leggo My Pluggo!

Weird name, cool effects.

One of the greatest single deals in the plug-in world is Cycling 74’s Pluggo (www
.cycling74.com), a collection of over 100 plug-ins for $199, and full of truly surprising and original sound processing chops. While the interfaces of the individual plug-ins vary wildly, the audio quality is uniformly high and the range of effects is as wide as a galaxy: weird delays, granular synthesis, and, can you imagine, an audio effect called Squirrel Parade? There are also a number of sound generators and synths, so for a couple hundred bucks, you end up with an entire arsenal of audio toys and tools.

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Nomad's Land

Nomad Factory (www.nomadfactory.net/index.html) is best known for its high-end tube emulation effects, but Liquid Bundle II ($187) is a well-balanced collection, with crisp, clear sound and just about everything except a good equalizer—the compressor and delay are superb, the modulator deep and soulful, and the strain on your CPU is minimal.

Positive Feedback

German creative genius Urs Heckman (www.u-he.com) makes a highly advanced delay processor called MFM2 (More Feedback Machine 2), and it’s the very first plug-in we turn to for putting things in deep, dark caverns or in the middle of a star about to go nova. If you want a single plug-in that goes from simple ambience and reverb to some of the most insane, spacey, spicy delay effects ever imagined in this part of the universe, look—and listen—no further than MRFM2. For $79, it’s a steal.

Catch This Wave, Brah

Wave Arts Power Suite 5  won’t hog processor power, we promise!

Even though it’s on the high end of the price spectrum ($600), we have personally come to rely on the Power Suite 5 bundle from Wave Arts (www.wavearts.com), a collection of world-class equalization, dynamics, and reverberation plug-ins that packs an awesome degree of pro-quality power in an extremely attractive package. MasterVerb 5 might be the best reverb for under a grand, and it’s amazing how little CPU power it uses to work its mojo. If you want to save some cash, consider the $99 TrackPlug 4 channel strip plug-in, which presents a serious challenge to Metric Halo’s ChannelStrip for GarageBand. You can also pick up MasterVerb 4, a version earlier than the one in the suite, for $99, easily the best bang for the buck for adding “air” to vocal and instrumental tracks.

The ilLogic of Logic

When Apple lowered the price of the Logic Studio bundle to $499, it sent shock waves throughout the music software industry, and for good reason: The sheer quantity and quality of the synths, effects processors, and music loops included with the package is really astounding—terrifying if you’re a third-party plug-in developer. If we consider that the single softsynth in the bundle—Sculpture—would easily sell for $200 by itself, the gravity of the situation becomes clear: If you tried to assemble a third-party collection of instruments and effects to match what comes with Logic Studio Pro, you’d easily have to spend thousands of dollars. Toss in the Apple Jam Packs ($99 each, available for GarageBand, bundled with Logic Studio Pro) and you’re up to $400 on just those, if purchased separately. It comes down to simple math: If you’re considering investing more than a few hundred dollars in plug-ins for GarageBand, it makes sense to upgrade to Logic Studio Pro, with the understanding that there’s a considerable learning curve involved in getting up to speed (but Logic can indeed import GarageBand projects). Logic Express is $199, but frankly, we’d recommend skipping it and going right to the Pro bundle.

We do have one bone to pick with Apple though—If we buy Logic Studio Pro and install it on the same Mac as GarageBand, why can’t we access Logic’s instruments and effects from inside GarageBand?