iZotope Ozone 5 (Upgrade from Ozone 4) Reviews

Colin Jones
from Johnson City, TN
May 3, 2013Music Background:
Musician, Recording Engineer, Producer

Well Worth It

I downloaded the demo from their website and as soon as I heard a couple of the settings on my tracks, I knew I was going to purchase straight away. If you've always been disappointed with the sound quality of your tracks and can never get them to be as loud or sound as full as professional recordings, then this is going to blow you away. The interface is very straightforward and has something to offer either beginners or seasoned pros. It's a no-brainer really. This program is awesome and completely customizable.

Jim Z.
from Wisconsin
May 1, 2013Music Background:
Musician, Recording Engineer and Producer

WOW for Ozone 5

This program is amazing. Applied just the pre-set plugins and was blown away at how it changed my music. Am currently learning to use this powerhouse a little better so I can really use it to the max.

Alvin Henry
from
April 4, 2013Music Background:
producer

unexpected

First off if you have never used izotope, navigating through the program can be somewhat confusing just because of the set up. Once you get used to how to navigate through its a piece of cake. Now performance side. I use fl studio 10 and it works wonders. With all the presets that comes with this program its unreal. What I also like is the visual display it also has to assist you even more on bringing your music out even more. You can save previous mix masterings if you need to as well as customize the program to your liking. Thanks to my sales engineer Will for putting me on to this program. For the price you are getting this for its a steal for sure. O one other thing if your trying to add overall volume to your track without it blaring through the speakers. Look no further, I am very happy with my purchase and I hope my review will help anyone interested in buying this program. The only reason why it does not get 5 stars I'm still exploring the program thoroughly to give an accurate review so far so good

Kyle Campbell
from Grand Rapids, MI
February 7, 2013Music Background:
Freelance composer, recording engineer

Why wouldn't you buy it?

Demoed Ozone 4 about a year and a half ago and loved it but had it at about 3 or 4 on my gear wishlist. In the meantime I used my Renaissance EQ and Massey's L2007 Limiter for mastering mixes. Having purchased version 5, I can't imagine mastering without it now. And for the price, I definitely should have had it at 1 or 2 on my wishlist.

The interface is fairly straightforward (though will take some getting used to), they include a nice list of presets to get you started and I love the fact that all of your mastering needs are available in one plugin, with a ton of flexibility.

The maximizer has a few different modes depending on your needs and I've found it to be quite transparent overall (compared with Pro Tool's Maxim). And the harmonic exciter adds a whole new layer of detail I didn't have/consider with my previous mastering chain.

Overall, a well-thought out plug-in that gives you everything you need for mastering at a very reasonable price. Definitely a "Why wouldn't you if you can?" purchase.

Brian Smith
from
January 30, 2013Music Background:
25 yrs of performing and goofing off

Ozone 5 - The Swiss Army Knife of Mastering

In my opinion, Ozone 5 is almost indispensable for the home studio. I really am not a sound engineer by any stretch of the imagination and with a little work and patients, I believe you can dial in whatever style you want. I find myself using it on many tracks as well as the master track. You just can't go wrong. There are many good recording interfaces out there now days, but on the back end this is your best bet on a budget.
I downloaded the free trial, used it for one song, and immediately bought it. I use it with garageband and it really does a great job of giving songs a professional sound. Can it replace a professional- probably not. Can it take your home tracks to a retail level - definitely!

John
from Chicago
January 26, 2013Music Background:
Happy Analoq Toys.

Ozone 5 will give you a radio ready master.

I cant say enough good things about this software. It comes with great presets to help you get started. Very easy to use with fantastic results.

Rob Morgan
from Redding, CA
January 23, 2013Music Background:
Recording Engineer, Musician

Ozone 5 is a life changer

I have been recording and mixing for more than twenty years. I have been trying to master my recording for the last ten years or so with mixed results, none of which sounded like what the pros can do. With Ozone 5 my life is so much easier when it come to mastering. I particularly like the "learn" function in the multi-band compressor which finds the sweet spots for dividing the bands based on the sound being processed. And I LOVE the matching function of the EQ. This is where I have always struggled.... getting the EQ curve to match commercial professionally mastered recordings. Not anymore. I a press of a few buttons and I can have Ozone 5 match any source I want. Now for the big one….. mid/side processing. This is the first time I could afford to own a product that lets me process the sides of a stereo signal separately than the middle. This allows me to really open up the sound. All I can say is WOW this is product great.

Robb
from Georgia
January 21, 2013Music Background:
Professional guitar/keyboard player for over 40 years

Great ad on

Another great piece to the recording puzzle! I use logic and this is so much more advance than the logic mastering plug ins.
Just getting in to tweaking the individual settings. Very easy to use!

Timothy Arterbury
from
December 31, 2012Music Background:
Producer, Music Maker Man

Best Plugin Evahh!!!!!!!!!

Total Awesomeness!!! Ozone 5 totally changes the way I do my mastering!!! It totally glues everything together nicely and sounds amazing! All the modules within the plugin are great and have a ton of different options!!! I love how the modules can be placed in different places within the signal chain!
I think my favorite thing to do in this plugin is Mid/Side EQ! The M/S EQ option allows you to EQ the mono audio signal separately from the stereo audio signal. This allows the stereo items to pop out of the speakers and sound clearer while allowing the mono items to stay solid. Ozone takes this very complicated idea and makes it very easy!!!
My second favorite thing in this plugin is the reverb which was very surprising to me! Originally when I heard and researched about this plugin I thought I would never use the reverb module because usually reverb is already used in mixing a track and it would be pointless to add more reverb and the whole track would sound muddy. WRONG! The reverb sounds AWESOME and really opens up a track to make it sound large!!! Just today, I used Ozone to master an ambient track I made that already had a buttload of reverb before I put Ozone on it. I stuck Ozone on it and when I turned on the reverb I was very surprised how it made my track feel larger without mudding everything up! The reverb comes in three flavors: Plate, Room, and Hall. The hall sounded great on my ambient track! Amazing reverb.
Everything else in this plugin is amazing too! The multi-band compressor is great! The harmonic exciter really brightens up dull mixes and makes them sort of sparkle! The stereo imaging module really widens mixes and allows you to widen different frequency bands of audio so you you can widen the higher frequencies while keeping the lower bass frequencies hard mono. And the maximizer really completes Ozone. It really brings up the volume without crushing the transients. There are many different options within the maximizer. For example, you can choose a maximizer type based on the CPU load you want to use.
Overall this is an amazing plugin and teaches you more about how digital audio works as you use it. A really cool looking interface mixed with amazing high quality audio tools and great visual feedback make this the Best Plugin Evahh!!!!!!!!!! Thanks a lot Sweetwater and iZotope!!! Ozone 5 was definitely worth buying!

J. Gilson
from Fort Lauderdale, FL
December 12, 2012Music Background:
Pro Musician, live and studio work, songwriter

iZotope Ozone5

This plug-in has added an amazing new level to my tracks. I love that all the presets are totally adjustable and then can be saved so there's no guessing when it comes to using for different tracks. Love it!

from
December 9, 2012

Pro Product for Pro's

After using ozone5 for only 3 days i immediantly had the urge to redo all my using ozone5. I truely here the difference in quality as well as the possibilities and versatility of the plug-in. The only issue for me was the learning curve associated with the plug-in. at first it was akward and took some time to find where things where and what they do (mainly for the reason there is so much packed into the plug-in...whcih i thinkis a good thing). overall great product but make sure you have a week to really get comfortable with it

Keith
from Texas
November 18, 2012Music Background:
decades of part-time bands, ensembles, community groupsm etc; P&W (guitar) for past 4 years; amateur recording hobbyist

Useful and fascinating

This "mastering" software is a collection of several plugins, along with many, many "presets" which combine those plugins (EQ, Reverb, Dynamics/Compressor, et al) in multiple ways.

Right out of the box you can pick a preset, e.g., "Country Master - Rock" and apply it to a stereo track, and often you'll hear something that sounds a lot closer to a finished product that what you may have done up to that point. It's a great way to take something that may sound a little weak and turn it into a track with more commercial qualities. I use the presets, or ones I've modified from the stock (easy to do, and ultimately, necessary), to take "hand-held" recordings, both live and off an Aviom, and make them sound richer, and more current, with little effort. A real time saver.

Is it a substitute for professional mastering? Of course not, but if your "customers" are friends or band-mates, and you take the time to learn how to use it, they'll appreciate the improvements. And, it *will* take time, but you'll learn not just what the presets can do, but once you dig in to what they are doing, you'll learn what the individual effects do, and realize this software works great both for "mastering" and as single plug-in effects, plus it's a great learning tool.

akihisa
from heaven
November 12, 2012Music Background:
major studio

useful

Keep ya mind, you do not have to use all effect chain in ozone.
if u need treat low alance, or feeling of attack, then use multiband comp, at first 2band, if u need more adjust, then 3band, etc.
because of very powerful tool, also u can made ur track into scrap.
less is more. again, less is more.

Ward Sexton
from LA
September 24, 2012Music Background:
Nada...I'm a VO

Totally NOT technically minded!

Don't know what to say...except this is awesome!!

David Ghostlaw
from New Windsor NY.
September 21, 2012Music Background:
Musician, Engineer, Producer

Ozone 5. Worth every dollar

Ozone 5 makes my music sound better! I was using Ozone 4 for a few years. I switched my hardware and host software to Presonus and started mastering my songs using a variety of plugins. Dennis (Sweetwater) suggested considering upgrading to Ozone 5. I did my do diligence and decided to upgrade. I could not be more happy! Having the whole mastering suite in one plugin improves my workflow. This is a major upgrade from Ozone 4. The flexibility and power of this program is astonishing. I strongly recommend Ozone 5!

ble
from USA
February 22, 2012Music Background:
Hobbyist - Home Studio

Outstanding

I own Ozone 4 and love it. I just upgraded to Ozone 5 and cannot say enough good things about it.

Simply outstanding - interface, templates, control - everything simply sounds even better than with Ozone 4.

Best purchase I have made in awhile, hands down.

Robert Muszynski
from Michigan
December 26, 2011Music Background:
Musician, songwriter, recording

Amazing Plug In

I'm a semi-pro musician, not an engineer, so I use a lot of trial and error to get my tracks to sound good. I got Ozone as more of a learning tool and I am more than satisfied. The explainations about what's going on in all the modules is priceless for taming my tracks, and finishing them off with Ozone 5 on the Master Buss is just jaw-dropping. My only complaint would be that all the presets sound so good on their own it's hard to know where to start, and worse, when to stop. Worth every penny.

Joe Piccione
from United States
December 17, 2011Music Background:
Drummer, Recording Enthusiast

Worth the Upgrade

Totally worth the upgrade. I immediately re mastered several of the songs that I had just finished and WOW. I love the new Post EQ, with it I've been able to tweak my finalized mix. The quality of this plugin is incredible and well worth every penny. Get it, you won't be sorry.

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