The Best Multiband Compression Plugins for Modern Metal

Let’s cut the crap. You’ve seen the forum threads and the YouTube comments. Everyone’s hunting for that one magic plugin that’ll fix their mix. You buy it, load it up, and… nothing really changes. Your mixes still sound kinda muddy, the guitars are harsh, and the low-end is a mess.

Here’s the deal: it’s not the plugin, it’s the brain behind the plugin. A killer mixer can get incredible results with stock tools. But—and this is a big but—when you need to do a very specific, surgical job, having the right tool makes a world of difference.

Multiband compression is one of those specific jobs.

It’s not your everyday compressor. You don’t just slap it on everything. It’s a problem-solver. It’s for when you need to tame the ugly fizz in your overheads without dulling the cymbals, or control the woofy low-mids on a bass guitar only when certain notes get out of hand. It’s dynamic EQ on steroids.

So, does it matter which one you use? Yeah, kinda. Some are transparent and surgical, others are colored and vibey. Some have GUIs that make sense, and others look like a space shuttle cockpit. The “best” one is the one that clicks with your brain and lets you work fast.

Let’s break down some of the top-tier multiband compression plugins that you’ll see the pros using and what makes them killer for heavy music.

FabFilter Pro-MB

If you ask ten professional mixers what their go-to multiband is, at least seven of them will say FabFilter Pro-MB. There’s a good reason for that. It’s the undisputed king of transparency and precision.

What Makes It Great for Metal?

The biggest win for Pro-MB is its interface and workflow. Instead of traditional, fixed crossover points, you just click on the frequency spectrum and create a new band wherever you want. This is insanely intuitive. Need to tame boominess around 150Hz on a downtuned guitar? Just click, drag to set the width, and pull down the threshold. Done.

Killer Application: Taming Cymbal Harshness

Here’s a classic metal mixing problem: the cymbals in your overheads are shredding your eardrums, especially around the 5kHz-8kHz range. A static EQ cut might make them sound dull and lifeless.

With Pro-MB, you can create a band in that harsh region and set a fast attack and release. Now, the compressor only kicks in when the cymbal hits are at their peak, clamping down on the harshness for just a millisecond. The rest of the time, the high-end is untouched, preserving the air and sparkle. The Dynamic Phase mode is also a lifesaver here, minimizing the phase-shift artifacts that can make other multibands sound weird.

iZotope Ozone 11 Dynamics

You can’t talk about powerful plugins without mentioning iZotope’s Ozone. Yeah, it can be intimidating—it’s like eight plugins in one. But the Dynamics module inside is a beast of a multiband compressor that’s perfect for bus processing and mastering.

What Makes It Great for Metal?

Ozone’s Dynamics module gives you up to four bands of compression, limiting, and expansion. It’s a staple on the master fader for a reason. You can gently tighten up the entire mix, adding punch and controlling dynamics in a way that feels “finished.”

Killer Application: Master Bus Glue & Punch

Got a killer mix, but it just needs that final 5% of polish? Slap Ozone on your master bus.

1. Low End: Set a band from 0-120Hz. Use a slow attack and medium release to gently ride the low-end dynamics. This can tighten up the kick and bass relationship without sucking the life out of them.
2. Mids: You might not even need to touch them. If anything, a tiny bit of compression in the 2kHz-5kHz range can help tame aggressive guitars or vocals.
3. High End: Create a band from 6kHz and up. Use a very light ratio (like 1.2:1) and a fast attack/release. This can add a nice “tick” and excitement to the cymbals and hi-hats without making them harsh.

The key is to be subtle. We’re talking 1-2 dB of gain reduction, max. It’s about gently massaging the mix into a cohesive unit.

Waves C6 Multiband Compressor

Before Pro-MB was a household name, the Waves C4 and its big brother, the C6, were the go-to workhorses. They’re simple, effective, and have been used on countless records. The C6 adds two floating “sidechain” bands, making it even more flexible.

What Makes It Great for Metal?

It’s straightforward and gets the job done. Sometimes you don’t need a million options. You just need to zero in on a problem frequency and fix it. The C6 is perfect for that kind of surgical task on individual tracks.

Killer Application: De-Booming a Bass DI

Let’s say you have a crushing bass tone, but the low B string is just way too boomy and overpowering around 80-120Hz. EQing it out would thin out the entire performance.

Instead, use the C6. Set one of the main bands to cover that low-mid frequency range. Now, the compressor will only work when those boomy notes are played, leaving the rest of the bass performance full and rich. It’s an essential move for getting a bass guitar to sit tight with modern, low-tuned guitars. You can learn more about how the pros balance guitars and bass in our hub page on EQing metal guitars.

Your DAW’s Stock Multiband Compressor

Hold on, don’t roll your eyes. Seriously. Plugins like Logic’s Multipressor, Cubase’s MultibandCompressor, or Reaper’s ReaXcomp are surprisingly powerful. Are they as slick as Pro-MB? No. Do they get the job done? Absolutely.

What Makes Them Great for Metal?

They cost you nothing, and they are the absolute best way to learn the concept of multiband compression. Before you drop hundreds on a third-party plugin, you should spend hours on your stock one. Figure out what attack and release times do in different bands. Understand how crossover points affect the sound.

Killer Application: Learning the Ropes

Load up your stock multiband plugin on a drum bus.

• Band 1 (Lows): Try to control the kick drum’s boominess without squashing it.
• Band 2 (Mids): See if you can bring out the snare’s “thwack” around 200-400Hz.
• Band 3 (Highs): Try to tame the hi-hats without making them disappear.

If you can make a mix sound better using a stock plugin, you’ll be a god when you finally upgrade. Every decision you make will be intentional, not just preset-surfing. This is the foundation of all good mixing, a core part of our metal compression philosophy.

The Real Secret: It’s Not the Plugin, It’s You

Plugin Acquisition Syndrome is real. We all think the next purchase will be the one that transforms our mixes. It won’t.

What will? Learning one of these tools so well that using it becomes second nature. It’s about developing your ears to hear why you need to reach for a multiband compressor in the first place. You don’t get that from a purchase; you get it from practice and by learning from people who have already mastered these tools.

Watching masters of the craft like Nolly Getgood, Jens Bogren, or Will Putney use Pro-MB to solve a specific problem in a real mix is more valuable than owning the plugin yourself. You see their thought process, you hear the “before” and “after,” and you understand the context of the decision.

That’s what Nail The Mix is all about. We give you the raw, pro-recorded multitracks from bands like Gojira, Lamb of God, and Periphery, and then you get to watch the original producer mix the song from scratch, explaining every plugin, every fader move, and every decision.

If you’re ready to stop collecting plugins and start building real-world skills, check out our full catalog of mixing sessions. See for yourself how the best in the business use these tools to create the massive metal sounds you love.