Leigh Pierce has released REV-246, a reverb plugin that is available completely free!
In this article, we cover how to get REV-246 for free, along with an overview of its features.
1. What Is Leigh Pierce REV-246?
REV-246 is a free, open-source digital reverb inspired by the EMT 246, a studio reverb from the mid-1980s. It features five programs (including a non-linear program for gated/reverse effects and the classic EMT 250 algorithm) that cover everything from short, small-room-like reverb tails to long, cathedral-like decays of up to 20 seconds. The panel recreates the original unit’s six levers, glowing readouts and faders, while adding modern features such as a ducker and stereo width control. Note that this is an independent project and is not affiliated with EMT or any other manufacturer.
Key Features
- 5 programs: S (Short / 0.2–2.5 s), M (Medium / 0.5–5 s), L (Long / 2–20 s), E (EMT 250 algorithm / 0.4–4.5 s), N (Non-linear: gated reverb, reverse reverb)
- 6 levers: low-pass (2–12 kHz), reflection delay (0–999 ms) and level, decay (low-frequency multiplier, reverb time, high-frequency multiplier)
- 16-BIT / FLOAT switch: recreates the noise and texture of the original unit’s 16-bit processing (FLOAT for a clean reverb tail)
- XFMR: low-end coloration and gentle harmonic distortion from the transformer that was an option on the original unit
- Ducker (adjustable range, threshold, attack and release)
- WIDTH: adjust the spread of the wet signal from 0 to 200 (above 100, the low end stays mono)
- Input modes: ORIGINAL (mono-summed) / TRUE ST (reverb per channel)
- MIX, INPUT/OUTPUT faders (LINK), dry signal PAN, and level meters with overload indicators and CAL
- 65 factory presets plus user presets
- Latency of about 1 ms (compensated by the DAW) and low CPU usage
- Compatibility: macOS (AU, VST3), Windows (VST3), Linux (VST3)
2. How to Download and Install REV-246
Download the installer for your OS (.pkg for macOS, .exe for Windows, .deb for Linux) from the latest release on the official GitHub page and install it.
That wraps up our coverage of the free REV-246 release. Grab this EMT 246-inspired reverb while you can and give it a try in your next mix!