UAD Explore FREE
Get 8 Free Plug-Ins + LUNA DAW
Your Bundle Includes...
Eight legendary UAD plug-ins and our award-winning LUNA DAW. From iconic compressors to vintage tube preamps—it’s all yours. 100% free.
Plug-Ins
Recording Software
LUNA – The DAW Built for You
Create with incredible analog sound and AI-powered workflows that make recording easier. LUNA unlocks your creativity and helps you sound like the records you love.
UAD Explore FREE in Action
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Frequently Asked Questions
UAD Explore FREE is worth it for any music maker who wants studio-grade plug-ins without spending a dollar. The bundle gives you eight professional UAD plug-ins plus the LUNA Digital Audio Workstation at no cost, with no trial period, no subscription, and no credit card required. These are full, unrestricted versions of the same plug-ins we sell, so you get real value the moment you install them.
UAD Explore FREE stands apart because every plug-in included is a full professional title, not a lite edition or a time-limited demo. The bundle includes faithful models of classic studio hardware like the 1176 and LA-2A compressors and the 610 tube preamp, built by the same team behind our flagship plug-ins. You also get LUNA, a complete recording and mixing DAW, so the package is a working studio rather than a sampler of features.
UAD Explore FREE is a permanent, no-cost bundle of eight plug-ins plus LUNA, while UAD Spark is a paid subscription that opens up UA's full and growing plug-in catalog. UAD Explore FREE comes with a perpetual license to its included titles, which means they stay yours to keep. If you outgrow the free set and want the wider library, UAD Spark is the natural next step.
Yes, the UAD Explore FREE plug-ins sound identical to the paid versions, because they are the paid versions offered at no charge. Each title is a full, unrestricted release, not a stripped-down or watered-down edition, so the 1176, LA-2A, and 610 you get for free use the same modeling as the ones we sell. Nothing about the sound or feature set is held back.
A UAD native plug-in runs entirely on your computer's own processor, so the UAD Explore FREE plug-ins work like any standard VST3, AU, or AAX plug-in with no special hardware needed. This is different from DSP plug-ins, which run on the dedicated chips inside an Apollo interface. If you do own an Apollo, select UAD Explore FREE plug-ins can also run on its onboard DSP for ultra-low-latency realtime recording.
No, UAD Explore FREE requires no Apollo interface or UAD hardware of any kind. The plug-ins are UAD native, which means they run on your Mac or PC using your computer's own processing power, so you can use them with whatever audio interface you already own. If you do have an Apollo, you get the bonus of running select plug-ins on its DSP for realtime tracking.
The UAD Explore FREE plug-ins work in any DAW that supports VST3, AU, or AAX formats, which covers nearly every major recording program on Mac and Windows. The bundle also includes LUNA, UA's own recording DAW, at no charge, so you have a complete studio to record and mix from day one.
Yes, UAD Explore FREE plug-ins and the included LUNA DAW run on current versions of macOS, including Apple Silicon Macs, and Windows. Setup uses UA Connect, our free license and download manager, plus a free iLok account, and no physical iLok USB dongle is required. If you don't have an iLok account yet, we’ll helps you create one during installation.
The UAD Explore FREE plug-ins give you a complete mixing toolkit for vocals, drums, guitars, and full mixes. You can add punch and control with the 1176 and LA-2A compressors, shape tone with the 610 tube preamp and the Century channel strip, add space with Pure Plate Reverb, and bring movement and character with Vibe Analog Machines Essentials. There's also the Showtime '64 tube amp for guitar tones and the PolyMAX synth for building sounds from scratch.
Yes, the UAD Explore FREE plug-ins install directly into LUNA, the recording DAW included free with the bundle. LUNA gives you a full environment to record, mix, and produce, and it's built to get the most out of our analog-modeled sound. Together, the plug-ins and LUNA make a self-contained studio you can download and start using the same day.
Free plug-ins are good enough for professional mixes, and UAD Explore FREE is built to show it. The bundle's compressors, preamp, EQ, and reverb are the same models heard on countless commercial records, so the ceiling is set by your craft, not your budget. Many finished, released tracks are mixed entirely with tools like these.
No, you don't need to spend money on plug-ins to get professional results, and UAD Explore FREE is a starting point that costs nothing. Strong mixes come from fundamentals like gain staging, compression, and EQ, all of which the free bundle covers with studio-grade tools. You can always add more later, but the free set is enough to make polished, finished music today.
Universal Audio offers eight free professional plug-ins through the UAD Explore FREE bundle, along with the LUNA recording DAW at no cost. The set includes the 1176 and LA-2A compressors, the 610 tube preamp and EQ, Pure Plate Reverb, Vibe Analog Machines Essentials, the Showtime '64 tube amp, the Century channel strip, and the PolyMAX synth. They install as standard VST3, AU, or AAX plug-ins, so they work on any Mac or PC with a compatible DAW.
Yes, the 1176 and LA-2A compressors in UAD Explore FREE are the same full plug-ins we sell, offered here at no charge. Both are detailed models of the original studio hardware, the 1176 Classic FET Compressor for fast, punchy control and the Teletronix LA-2A Tube Compressor for smooth, musical leveling. Getting them free through UAD Explore FREE puts two of the most recorded compressors in history on your tracks today.