Vocal Compressor: AAX Vocal Compression Plugin by W. A. Production Free Download

The plugin passes audio through three distinct compressor types. Peaks is the first stage and clamps down on sudden loud peaks, so only a few dB of threshold reduction is needed to hear it working. Balance is a parallel compressor that preserves loud transients while lifting quieter parts, reducing overall dynamic range so a vocal sits more evenly in a mix. Flavour adds an integrated tape saturation curve for harmonics and bite.

Use the Mix and Makeup dials to set the blend between the lightly compressed Peaks output and the heavily compressed Balance output. The developer notes that Balance needs a threshold around 20 dB to work, so lower the threshold until the result sounds right.

The Gate control removes pops, clicks and noise. The Colour slider applies a frequency curve shaped for vocal processing. A master mix ratio lets you blend the compressed signal with the original, which is useful for parallel effects.

Bypass is smoothed to be pop and click free, which makes A/B comparison easier. Interface meters show gain reduction at each stage in real time, so you can monitor every point in the chain.