The 7 Best Plugin Bundles of 2023 for a Pro Sound

Do you want to get your hands on many great pro plugins all at once? Plugin bundles are a great way to do this easily, while also saving your money.

These can contain highly professional effects plugins, great-sounding virtual instruments, as well as monitoring, mixing, and mastering tools.

The following is our pick of 7 of the best plugin bundles available. Be sure to check out each one to determine what suits your needs.

1. Soundtoys 5 Plugin Bundle

The Soundtoys 5 plugin bundle has all the bells and whistles that a pro music producer can ask for. It combines the perks of vintage processors with the modern efficiency that it brings to the table. 

One of its most remarkable features is its strong non-linear processing that easily lets you blend analog vibes into your songs. On top of that, the bundle integrates an Effect Rack that allows you to run individual Soundtoys effects. This makes it easier for you to store processing chains. 

You can even alter the blend between the processing and the input signals by taking full control of the Dry/Wet knobs included in the effects. Some of the most notable plugins in this bundle include Crystallizer, Little Alterboy, and Echoboy.

2. Music Production Suite 4

The iZotope Music Production Suite 4 is a full-blown bundle that integrates an impressive set of interconnected plugins to complement your DAW. In addition, it sports some unique, intelligent features that can help you unleash your creativity in an unprecedented way. 

For starters, the all-new Neoverb plugin boasts an updated Reverb Assistant that allows you to design unique space and ambiance for instruments and vocals without messing up the beat. And with Unmask, your reverb will never ruin the original sound that you worked so hard on.

The icing on top is that you get to spice up your arrangements with a rhythmic flair, exotic effects, and tempo sync movement, thanks to Stutter Edit 2. Other noteworthy plugins in this bundle include RX 8 Standard (audio restoration), Nectar 3 Plus (vocals), and Ozone 9 Advanced (mastering).

3. Komplete 13 Ultimate

Native Instruments’ Komplete 13 Ultimate bundle includes a whopping 118 instruments and effects and more than 67,000 sounds. That should keep you busy for a while, and it will certainly cost way less than getting everything individually!

The plugins include some of the best synths, effects, and sampled instruments, in addition to an orchestral toolkit for composers and sound designers.

It includes the MASSIVE X synth plugin, the hugely popular KONTAKT 6 sample engine, REAKTOR 6, Battery 4, and much, much more.

4. Waves Essentials

With over 30 plugins, the Waves Essentials bundle provides great value at an affordable price. The bundle includes live sound, EQ, compression, level maximization, reverb, vocal tools, delay, bass extension, and limiting.

All of the plugins in this bundle are compatible with SoundGrip consoles, like DiGiCo, Allen & Heath, Yamaha, and many more. Some of the most notable plugins in this bundle include AudioTrack, DeEsser, H-Delay Hybrid Delay, and Renaissance Bass.

This bundle is great for beginners. Not to mention, it’s pretty affordable. However, for a pro composer, you’ll probably feel that it lacks a bit in terms of plugin variety.

5. FabFilter Total Bundle

The FabFilter Total Bundle combines all of the jaw-dropping mix processors you could need to create your masterpieces in a single package. From audio effects to synths and filters, this bundle leaves nothing to be desired. 

FabFiler is famous for its intuitive frequency graph and draggable nodes that give you a bird’s eye view of all the essential controls you need. And that’s exactly what you get with all of these plugins under your fingertips. 

What’s more, the plugins are quite intuitive, and you should get familiar with them pretty quickly. You’ll be able to boost your signal processing skills without banging your head against the wall. 

Our favorite plugins in this bundle include Pro-C 2, Saturn 2, and Pro-L-2.

6. Vintage Vault 3

Packing 65 UVI instruments and over 500,000 samples, 111 drum machines, and 10,000 hand-crafted presets, the Vintage Vault 3 is a composer’s living heaven. From the exotic prototypes to the remarkable polyphonic analog synths from the Greed Decade and the classic drum machines, this collection has it all!

The instruments are pretty easy to adapt to, with a very organized workflow that’ll help you get up and running with the bundle in no time. Once you get a grasp on any of the tools, the rest should be a piece of cake for you.

7. UA Analog Classics Pro Bundle

The UA Classics Pro Bundle packs some of the most iconic presets from the likes of Ross Hogarth, Vance Powell, Joe Chiccar, and Ed Cherney. 

In this package, you get not one, not two, but three iterations of the widely-acclaimed 1176 compressor. Each one of them has its distinct sonic attributes. 

On top of that, the bundle includes UA 610 Tube Preamp & EQ Collection that enables you to give your beats warmth and body. You can also transform your vocals, drums, and bass with optical tube compression using 3 versions of the LA-2A plugins. 

Other famous plugins in this bundle include the Pultec Passive EQ Collection, the Fairchild Tube Limiter, and the UA 610 Tube Preamp & EQ collections. 

Our only problem with this bundle is that the plugin latency is too long. 

PluginBoutique Bundles

If you’re looking for bundles in a particular area, you should definitely check out PluginBoutique’s bundles. You can find some great packages that’ll cost you much less than huge bundles that contain plugins you don’t even need. 

Do you want to get into the modular world? Take a look at SoftTube’s Mutable Modular collection that includes 4 modular plugins: Modular, Modular Instruments Rings, Modular Instruments Braids, and Modular Instruments Clouds. 

Are you more of a vintage fan? Check out the Vintage Essentials bundle. This one has some of the most realistic vintage emulations that SoftTube has ever released. You can also opt for the Model Synth Bundle if synth emulations are what you seek. 

Plugin Alliance Mix/Master Bundle

Don’t want a one-time fee plugin bundle? Well, you can opt for a subscription-based one like the Plugin Alliance Mix/Master Bundle. There are monthly and annual plans that auto-renew every period, but you can cancel anytime with zero commitment. A subscription plan like this is not for everyone but it’s something to consider.

Plugin Alliance offers 80 plugins in this bundle that cover Dynamics, EQs, mastering, Mix Effects, Drum Replacement & Samples, and TMT consoles.

What Are The Benefits of Plugin Bundles?

Plugin bundles are often cheaper than individual plugins

Getting individual items can usually cost you a lot more. When you bundle up a number of plugins together, their individual costs reduce and become much more economical for the buyer.

They are easier to install

Every brand of plugins has its own method of installation. Individual purchases mean that each time a different installation method is going to be required. This can be quite a hassle. Whereas getting most of your plugins from the same brand will save you a lot of time and energy because they are all similarly installed.

This is incredibly useful for when you are moving to a separate computer. For example, iZotope has a ‘Product Portal’ application that you install onto your computer, which can automatically fetch plugins files and updates.

Less time choosing, more time making music

Whether it is music or any other nature of work, the more time you spend collecting your tools and supplies, the more creative ideas you waste.

If you spend weeks and months deciding which plugins to buy separately, the chances are that you will not be creating any music during this time. Thus, get most of your plugins altogether in a bundle and get back to music production much sooner.

Less information overload

With a wide variety of plugins in the market, it can sometimes be overwhelming to learn about each one individually. Getting a bundle narrows down your source of relevant information and keeps unnecessary stress and anxiety at bay.

Consistent plugin designs

You have probably noticed that brands create a certain interface or design for their products. Plugins from the same developers are often relatively similar in terms of user-interface and layout (this is not always the case, but it’s usually true). This makes subsequent plugins from the same maker a lot easier to understand right away.

What Are The Drawbacks of Plugin Bundles?

You might not need everything in the bundle

While many people love the idea of getting all of their necessary supplies in a single deal, you might not need everything in the bundle.

They should not be a replacement for good music production and engineering skills

Music plugins can indeed be a major help while creating music. However, it is always important to remember that they are not a replacement for genuine, high-quality music developed by engineering skills and techniques. They are merely a helping aid in the process.

Up-front Price

Even though the individual prices tend to become lower in a bundle, the overall upfront cost of a bundle can still be quite large.

Conclusion

The 7 best music plugin bundles listed above can help you narrow down your options and make the choice easier. You can select the one you like, according to the details mentioned along with it, to make an informed decision.  This will prevent any future regrets as plugin bundles can be quite a large up-front investment.