FabFilter B.V. is a

Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...

developer of audio software plug-ins. Their plug-ins have been described as "something of an industry standard" by ''

Sound on Sound ''Sound on Sound'' is a monthly music technology magazine. The magazine includes product tests of electronic musical performance and recording devices, and interviews with industry professionals. Due to its technical focus, it is predominantly ...

'' magazine. The company won an Engineering Emmy for its equalizer plug-in Pro-Q 3 in 2019.

History

Frederik Slijkerman and Floris Klinkert founded FabFilter in 2002. Their first product was FabFilter One, a

synthesizer A synthesizer (also synthesiser or synth) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis a ...

; the company initially focused on creative plug-ins that create or manipulate sound such as synthesizers,

filters Filtration is a physical process that separates solid matter and fluid from a mixture. Filter, filtering, filters or filtration may also refer to: Science and technology Computing * Filter (higher-order function), in functional programming * Fil ...

and delays. In 2007, the company began launching a range of mixing and mastering plug-ins, starting with Pro-C, a

compressor A compressor is a mechanical device that increases the pressure of a gas by reducing its volume. An air compressor is a specific type of gas compressor. Many compressors can be staged, that is, the gas is compressed several times in steps o ...

Twin

In 2005, FabFilter released the synthesizer plug-in Twin. The company subsequently released Twin 2 in 2009 and Twin 3 in 2023. In a review of Twin 3, ''

'' magazine asserted that FabFilter plug-ins had "become something of an industry standard among mix engineers. It’s a rare Inside Track column in this magazine that doesn’t feature their Pro‑Q equaliser, Pro‑MB multiband dynamics or Pro‑C compressor". A preset from Twin was reported to be the inspiration for the name of

Billie Eilish Billie Eilish Pirate Baird O'Connell ( ; born December 18, 2001) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. She first gained public attention in 2015 with her debut single "Ocean Eyes (song), Ocean Eyes", written and produced by her broth ...

's 2024 album '' Hit Me Hard and Soft''; ''

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'' speculated that said preset was used on the album's track "Bittersuite".

Pro-Q

In 2009, FabFilter released Pro-Q, an equalizer plug-in. Pro-Q 2, 3, and 4 were released 2014, 2018, and 2024 respectively. In 2019, Pro-Q 3 was given an Engineering Emmy Award by the Television Academy. In an interview for ''Sound on Sound'' about his work on

St. Vincent Saint Vincent may refer to: People Saints * Vincent of Saragossa (died 304), a.k.a. Vincent the Deacon, deacon and martyr * Saint Vincenca, 3rd century Roman martyress, whose relics are in Blato, Croatia * Vincent, Orontius, and Victor (died 305 ...

's 2021 album '' Daddy's Home'', recording engineer Cian Riordan described it as "such a powerful plug‑in, just leagues above everything else". ''Recording'' magazine said in a review of Pro-Q 3 that "FabFilter is widely known for creating some of the best plug-ins on the market", adding that it "stands out in a sea of hardware modeling and emulation plug-ins because it doesn't attempt to emulate the design, operation or sound of a hardware EQ." In 2025, ''Sound on Sound'' compared the impact of Pro-Q to that of the

Minimoog The Minimoog is an analog synthesizer first manufactured by Moog Music between 1970 and 1981. Designed as a more affordable, portable version of the modular Moog synthesizer, it was the first synthesizer sold in retail stores. It was first popul ...

Yamaha DX7 The Yamaha DX7 is a synthesizer manufactured by Yamaha Corporation from 1983 to 1989. It was the first successful digital synthesizer and is one of the best-selling synthesizers in history, selling more than 200,000 units. In the early 1980s, th ...

, and SSL console, noting that "back in 2011... the large majority of plug‑in equalisers retained many nalogdesign conventions... Pro‑Q wriggled free of this straitjacket, reimagining the plug‑in equaliser using the principles of good software interface design instead of preconceptions inherited from hardware." ''

Tape Op A tape operator or tape op, also known as a second engineer, is a person who performs menial operations in a recording studio in a similar manner to a tea boy or gopher. They may act as an apprentice or an assistant to a recording engineer and d ...

'' magazine made a similar point, saying Pro-Q "has become one of the most used, if not the most used, EQ plug-ins for professionals and enthusiasts alike."

Products

FabFilter has released its products in VST, AU, AAX and VST3 formats for PC and Mac, and for

iOS Ios, Io or Nio (, ; ; locally Nios, Νιός) is a Greek island in the Cyclades group in the Aegean Sea. Ios is a hilly island with cliffs down to the sea on most sides. It is situated halfway between Naxos and Santorini. It is about long an ...

. The range of software is listed below.

External links

Official website

References

{{reflist Audio software companies Dutch companies established in 2002 Companies based in Amsterdam