VST Reverb Plugins (Free and Affordable )

In our projects we DI guitar and bass. Every thing else is a VST sound module or synth.   Even doing direct injection, which doesn't pick up any acoustic environment, reverb isn't a big thing in most of my own projects. I am more likely to us short delays instead of reverb so as not to add mud to the mix.  We don't do vocals often, where you do fuss about the reverb.

But when we do need reverb, there are plenty of free Reverb Plugins that do the trick, and there are LOTS of Impulses Responses on the net that do everything when used with the right plugin.

We use Reaper, and do everything ourselves, and aren't into huge projects. At least that has been the case so far. We keep it to a track or two for each part, plus a track or two for reverb, and generally one or two for delays  for short and long echo.

We recently used our Crystal Soup Project to look at all the reverbs we do have and see if we have been over looking something in our reverb selection.

The Crystal Bass Soup Project

The plugins we have on hand that we have used on occasion are Kaejerhus Classic Reverb, epicVerb, GlaceVerb, ReaVerb, SIR1 and Ambience. These are all free and downloadable from the web. We have also recently tried the Demo of ValhallaRoom. 

epicVerb

ValhallaRoom Demo

GlaceVerb

SIR1

ReaVerb

Ambience

Kaejerhus Classic Reverb

Of these ReaVerb and SIR1 don't have a sound of their own, but use Impulse Responses of other gear or rooms.   We basically use what you get in Lexicon MPX500-PCM81-PCM-91.rar with a few other plates and rooms you can find on the Internet.  The SIR1 has an EQ window, but we prefer using ReaEQ anyway, so ReaVerb, despite being very spartan, is just as good, and is part of Reaper any way.

More often than not Kaejerhus Classic Reverb is the algorithmic plugin of choice. For what I mainly do, there isn't really much difference between them! Not that they sound the same, but each is just as valid.  Once you make an mp3 file, or a YouTube video, the subtle low level details get lost anyway.

ValhallaRoom is only $50, which is similar to the Reaper license. It works very well and is very efficient, an issue if you have some CPU intensive synth and do want several processes running at the same time.   I haven't bought it, and really know that I don't need it.  It will not make any difference to the tracks I do anyway.

We have our tracks on the usual places;  SoundCloud, ReverbNation and BandCamp.   But the most views  by a factor close to a 100x is at our YouTube Channel.

Update: Jan 8 2013

ValhallaVintageVerb Demo

We have since been trying the ValhallaVintageVerb, and feel it has something over the ValhallaRoom, and the other plugin we have, for our music.  It indicates that the non NOW colors internally quantize modulation and other control signals and band limit the reverb itself.  These give options over Room and does very much look like the plugin to buy. Actually more than that.....

And from the developer:

"NONE of the algorithms are the same. The ValhallaRoom algorithms, for the most part, use a more "modern" topology (there are a bunch of different topologies in ValhallaRoom, but they all tend to be from more contemporary "schools" of reverb design). The ValhallaVintageVerb algorithms are all based on older reverb topologies, that have different characteristics than the VRoom algorithms."