News
We have released VU Meter MK4 4.2.6, here’s what’s included:
- Improved VU meter responsiveness and reduced CPU usage
- Fixed popup menu issues in some DAWs
- Fixed VU meter peak hold indicator not working on session load
- Fixed auto gain resetting incorrectly during playback
- Fixed occasional crashes during normal use
- Removed VST2.4 support
- Increased minimum macOS to 10.15 and windows to windows 10
Get it now using HoRNet DoIn
Know Your Levels Before It’s Too Late
You know that frustrating feeling: you’ve got a fantastic mix, but you’re not sure if your levels are right. When working on a track, it’s useful to have an accurate meter. You start adjusting gain, checking peak levels, trying to figure out if your monitoring is correct… 20 minutes later you’re still second-guessing whether your mix translates to other systems.
VU Meter MK4 helps you identify exactly where your levels sit at a glance. Every audio source has its unique dynamic characteristics, and traditional meters leave you guessing whether the reading is accurate. Meanwhile, the material you’re working on keeps changing, and you’re there constantly checking and re-checking your meters.
That’s exactly why we created VU Meter MK4. After years of plugin development and thousands of hours studying how engineers actually work, we understood something fundamental: the fastest way to achieve accurate gain staging is to let the meter adapt to your audio, not the other way around.
The result? A VU meter that analyzes in real-time your material, auto-calibrates the gain level, and displays accurate, trustworthy readings you can rely on.
Now you can achieve professional metering and gain staging without the circus of manual setup. Whether you’re tracking, mixing, or mastering, VU Meter MK4 adapts to your needs with zero setup time and maximum accuracy.
Professional Metering, Automatic Results
No more guessing whether your levels are correct. VU Meter MK4 features automatic gain calibration that analyzes your audio’s level distribution and automatically sets the optimal level for correct gain staging. Just insert it on your track, hit play, and watch it learn your material.
Automatic Gain Calibration
VU Meter MK4 analyzes your audio’s level distribution and automatically sets the optimal level for accurate gain staging. No guesswork, no endless manual adjustment.
- Real-time signal level analysis
- Automatic gain calibration
- Peak hold indicators
- Group instances for faster workflow
Peak Hold Indicators
Visual feedback shows peak levels and clipping. You’ll know exactly where your tracks has their maximum level and if you have any digital clipping
- Peak hold indicators
- Red clipping alert
- 0 VU reference
Stable, Accurate Metering
The metering engine is designed for accurate, consistent readings, ensuring consistent, musical results across all material types.
- VU meter standard with 300ms of integration time
- Consistent peak tracking
- Digital clip indicator
Perfect for Any Stage
Whether you’re tracking, mixing, or mastering, VU Meter MK4 adapts to your workflow. Use it during recording for controlled performances, in mixing to check levels, or in mastering to men sure you have the right loudness.
- Recording: Real-time loudness monitoring
- Mixing: Automatic gain staging
- Mastering: Accurate level metering
Professional Features
Want precise metering? VU Meter MK4 offers real-time level analysis with automatic gain staging. Set your target Reference Level for your desired VU display, and enable “auto” to let the plugin set the level to your desired target.
Reference Level
Set your target VU level for the meter to display. At -18 dB, the meter shows standard 0VU level. Change the reference value according to the headroom of your equipment for correct loudness monitoring
Peak Hold
Peak level indicators hold momentarily, helping you catch transients and avoid clipping. Essential for tracking and mixing where sudden peaks can damage drivers or cause distortion in downstream processing.
Grouping: Eight assignable groups
Organize your VU Meter instances into groups for synchronized parameters changing. Enable any “auto” button for the whole group or for any instance. Show any meter from any other meter UI
Why VU Meter MK4 Is Different
| Traditional VU Meter | HoRNet VU Meter MK4 |
|---|---|
| Manual gain setting required | Automatic gain based on signal analysis |
| 300ms integration time (VU standard) | Peak hold and clipping indicators |
| Fixed reference level | Calibrate reference according to your requirements |
| Simple track metering | Enable grouping and display any meter from the UI |
Built for Modern Workflows
Clean, Hardware-Accelerated Interface
Minimalist design with scalable, GPU-accelerated graphics. Works smoothly on both standard and retina displays.
Auto gain setting
Not just metering, VU Meter MK4 allows you to auto set the gain of your track to reach the target you want.
Apple Silicon Native
Optimized for M1/M2/M3/M4 chips with native ARM support for maximum efficiency and minimal CPU usage.
Cross-Platform Compatibility
Available in Audio Units (AU), VST3 and AAX formats for macOS (10.15+) and Windows (10+).
Perfect for producers who want professional metering without complexity, mix engineers seeking accurate level visualization, and mastering engineers requiring transparent control.
Technical Specifications
Platforms
macOS 10.15+
Windows 10+
Formats
Audio Units (AU)
VST3
AAX
Apple Silicon
Native ARM support
M1/M2/M3/M4 optimized
Interface
Hardware-accelerated
Scalable graphics
Processing
Real-time signal analysis
Automatic gain calibration
Latency
Zero latency
Suitable for live tracking
Frequently Asked Questions
Does VU Meter MK4 replace other meters?
Not necessarily. VU Meter MK4 is designed to give you accurate level metering and automatic gain staging. VU Meter MK4 doesn’t replace standard peak meters, but it can become your “go-to” for 90% of daily metering work where convenience matters.
Can I use VU Meter MK4 in mastering?
Absolutely. A VU meter is a very handy way of measuring loudness and since you can set the reference of the 0 level you can easily choose your target loudness
What if I change audio material?
Press “Auto” to force VU Meter MK4 to re-analyze and recalibrate the gain level. This ensures optimal gain staging for the new material.
Can I automate parameters?
Yes, you can automate reference level gain and every other parameter. All parameters are DAW-automatable.
How accurate is the metering?
VU Meter MK4 provides real-time metering with 300ms integration representing standard vu metering loudness. It also provides peak hold indicator and blinks red when digital clipping happens
Is VU Meter MK4 CPU-intensive?
No. During the analysis theca load is minimal and during the standard processing it’s practically none. It’s suitable for multiple instances across tracks, buses, and master. Apple Silicon native support ensures minimal CPU usage on M-series chips.
Try VU Meter MK4
No demo available – full refund if not satisfied. Insert it on your track and discover how automatic gain staging works.
No copy protection
We have decided 15 years agoto not employ any complicated copy protection. We just add a watermark with your email address in it to the files you download. Trust is the best copy protection.
That’s a fine display. I wonder, would that also support the Inline Display mode for the Harrison MixBus DAW? There is quite a demand for such a VU meter plugin with inline display mode there!
Makes what was hitherto a tedious chore (gain staging your tracks) a simple one click solution. Don’t underestimate the value of this fantastic tool despite it’s ridiculously low price. A ‘must have’ Highly Recommended.
El mejor plugin para configurar la estructura de ganancia en mis mezclas. Lo configuro según mis necesitados y hace el trabajo por mi. esencial en mi flujo de trabajo.
The GOAT gain stageing plugin!!!
This is a very nice little and handy plugin. Probably one of the best VU meters that doesn’t try to be analog and vintage without any real reason. But there are a few problems:
1. Please make it possible to turn off this annoying red clipping indicator completely, please!)
2. Please make an option for color number two (after zero), now it happens automatically, but with some colors it doesn’t happen at all, the option is elementary and it would be much more usefull.
3. Zero on the scale is not marked visually at all. Maybe it’s okay for auto gain usage, but I only use it as a meter (mainly) for mastering, and it’s name…VU meter!)
Thanks in advance!
I love this plugin, and it was essential for my gain staging process (and cudos for your great work!), but the last month keep crushes/freezing my projects (Cubase Pro 10.5/Win11 Home 23H2).
I hope to get fixed soon, so I can use it again!!!
One Word Must Have Plugin HORNET U GUYS ROCKs… ! king of gain staging
Best plug-ins for gain staging.
Automatically captures the sound at its peak when the VU meter fails to capture the momentary sound. No clipping.
I put this at the beginning of every track.
Very good tool. I use it for each master, at the first step.
Simply one of the best plugins ever made and easily the most usable, most reliable and most important plugin in my vast collection of over 3000 VSTs . And the most often applied and used one, too, without any doubt since it has literally been working on EVERY SINGLE TRACK or BUSS in my DAW since 2019. The HoRNet VU Meter MK4 is so good that I have literally bought blindly almost the whole portfolio of HoRNet plugins after rediscovering this site during last year's black friday sale. I have just begun trying and testing the nearly 70 plugins I've got in my virtual laboratory and I am very happy with the first results and looking forward to what is there to come.
I bought it yesterday, and i am actually pretty impressed. I now use it on all my mixes. This is the tool that all the producers need to know about. Keep the great work HoRNet!
I used this every day without realizing you can adjust the reference level and set it to any level you want, then watched the video and figured it out. Definitely a perfect plugin that will improve your well-being.
My music sounds 100 percent better not just a time saver, but my best friend. Thanks, HoRNet
Great plugin. Makes gain staging really nice and easy. Just one request. There is not enough contrast between the meter numbers: 0 to -20 to see your levels at a glance. Those numbers should be White, or at least changeable like the meter indicator is.
Thanks for great plugins!
Greg
Prior to getting this plugin I spent an inordinate amount of time doing gain-staging with various other metering plugins and the knobs and faders in my VST synths and DAW (FL Studio). VU Meter mk4 is a massive time-saver. It's as simple as pressing the AUTO button to get tracks to average at 0VU (-18dBFS), but you can also customize it for other settings. Being able to select different colours for the meter bars on various instances (e.g. for different mixer tracks or busses) is a nice touch too. I've added it to every track in my templates. For people like that me that get very annoyed with other companies' plugins not having auto-gain compensation, it's indispensable!
Best vu meter out there love Hornet plugins and the directing they are going!
GREAT product , insanely changed my mixing game for the better,, GETS ALL YOUR TRACKS TO THE SWEET SPOT OF 18 db,,with one click! sets all your track volumes at the same perfect levels for mix down , and great price too! I love the hornet vu meter,,, is used in every mix, its really dope!
Great Plugin.
But I have a few point you could improve upon…
Even when disabling the Max function it seems to react more on peaks than on average loudness.
And it would be awesome to disable an entire group just from one plugin, like right clicking on group and having the option to disable group wide
This is my go to for years now, in every channel just to get fast figure based on VU for gain staging… im bit old school, still love to compass my direction based on VU indicator.. this plugin is a blessing #bilikrakaman
Useful plugin. I've noticed though that the x64 VST3 version actually loads an x86 dll.
Not a big deal really but I thought I'd just mention it in case it's some error that can be fixed.
Awesome.
This is ridiculous, it feels like cheating. It's essential to me and it costed me so little. Just f***** buy this.
Celui la non plus
Utilissimo, lo metto in Ableton (che uso anche come live mixer) all'inizio di ogni traccia e clicco il bottone "auto". Zero latenza. Tutti i plugin successivi adesso funzionano molto meglio, anzi, direi che così ho scoperto che la ragione per cui alcuni file suonavano male era che non sapevo regolare il gain staging. Grazie infinite Saverio!
It's essential to my workflow. But as soon as I use it on medium to larger sessions in Logic Pro X , playback with AUTO on crashes Logic. This means I can't scan the tracks to adjust the gain stage. this happened in the past before, but went away. Now it is back. Running the latest version, and also re-installed the plugin. Everything else runs perfect on my machine, and it only happens in this situation.
Happy to give it 5 stars as soon as this gets resolved.
This is probably my most essential plugin on every track, right from the start. I have it on the first instance of all my inserts (audio tracks AND instrument tracks (=advanced midi-tracks within the Cubase-DAW).
I get a properly balanced mix from gground up, no matter how many tracks I use.
And yes, this plugin is capable of grouping, so I am able to handle f.e. percussive and non-percussive instruments differently.
The automatic mode of the VU meter works perfect .
This VST simply saves me a lot of time and nerve. Absolutely recommended!
Thanks , Saverio!!
This is probably my most essential plugin on every track, right from the start. I have it on the first instance of all my inserts (audio tracks AND instrument tracks (=advanced midi-tracks within the Cubase-DAW).
I get a properly balanced mix from gground up, no matter how many tracks I use.
And yes, this plugin is capable of grouping, so I am able to handle f.e. percussive and non-percussive instruments differently.
The automatic mode of the VU meter works perfect .
This VST simply saves me a lot of time and nerve. Absolutely recommended!
Thank you, Saverio!!
This very essential VU-plugin is definetely a NO-brainer! It saved and saves me hours when it comes to gain staging. This plugin always is on the first place in the insert chain of all my tracks.
I am a Cubase user and this plugin never let me down!
I also use it for the instrument channels (Cubase specific advanced MIDI-channels for VSTi). And yes it can and will certainly improve your overall sound because your tracks are much more settled from the beginning.
My only consents: This great plugin is way too cheap for what it is actually doing!
This plug-in is in my top 5 of all time. I have noticed though, in the latest version of StudioOne, on the latest version of Windows, that it does not remember my custom group names. It's not a deal breaker but is definitely a bug. I always wonder how companies can charge so much for their plugins, but in this case I wonder why it is so little! Highly recommended. 10/10. I'll be sure to tell my friends about it.
Also, just to balance things. This is ridiculously easy to install. Anyone having problems….is this your first ever vst ?
So simple to copy the dll and paste it into your plugins folder. No serial needed. That £2 to update from V3 is the best £2 I ever spent. Highly recommended =)
Cheers Saverio. Great update !! Hitting that auto button is like black magic =)
Love the new groups feature. It's much more usable than V3, and looks great. Cheers !
So, I would suggest a few things. Please take it as constructive criticism. Now, first of all, this and Lu meter, both are just awesome. No complain. They work as they should. But what I like to say is,
1. As VST3 plugins, can get the 'Track Name' info from the tracks ( or channels), it would be nice, if the VST3 versions of this and LU meter can get the Name from the tracks themselves so that we don't have to type in the names.
2. In studio one, if I save a zoomed version and then reopen the session, the plugin looks unnatural, although sounds right.
how do you install downloaded it purchase but nothing comes up to install it
Hi, how do I get this to show up as a mono plugin in Logic? It only works if I change the track to stereo, and then only when I select the right side.
Can't wait to get it working, it looks great!
Thanks, Duncan
I bet it's great but….it crashes Reaper every time I use it. What's worse: I opened a ticket about this on June 2nd (even sent in a crash report) but I've yet to hear from them and…it's June 25th. I even followed up with two emails. So…maybe a great plugin but really shoddy customer support.
Okay, so the response time from Hornet was quick and the solution was fairly simple (posted below). Now I can play around with it. Thanks Maso!:
Since Logic only supports the component plugins you have to copy the “.component” file into the folder:
/Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/Components
(To open this folder use Finder’s “Go” menu and choose “Go to folder…” then type in the path as written above. )
No clear
instructions on how to install this into Logic Pro X. The only thing they list is the following, yet a search via Finder on my Mac turns up none of these destinations. Waiting on support:
INSTALLATION
Mac OS X Audio Unit:
Copy "HoRNetVUMeterMK4.component" to /Library/Audio/Plug-ins/Components
Mac OS X VST:
Copy "HoRNetVUMeterMK4.vst" to /Library/Audio/Plug-ins/VST
Mac OS X VST3
Copy "HoRNetVUMeterMK4.vst3" to /Library/Audio/Plug-ins/VST3
Mac OS X AAX
Copy "HoRNetVUMeterMK4.aaxplugin” to /Library/Application Support/Avid/Audio/Plug-ins/
I'm confident about the plug, but good lord, I've never bought a plug I couldn't load until this company . I emailed support, we will see what kind of response time they have.
Would also be nice if they included an exchange rate converter on the site. So far, I'm disappointed .
I'll be back with a follow up. ( talkin to you Hornet )
Easily worth it's price after just one use! A HUGE time saver, and so easy to use!
Great Plugin.
Ease of use. Just set and mix. Your Plug-Ins are just awesome.
Hornet has some of the best plugs available. Especially the utility plugs. Keep up the good work!!
This is a super convenient plugin, Especially in the mixing phase. I just put these first on all channels as a mix prep and automatically get the gain to -18dBFS on all channels.
HoRNet guys, you are just time savers! Thanks for existing!
This is literally the best $3 I ever spent. Gain staging is so much faster with this plugin. I love the vu meter mk4. It is a plugin that is well thought through and does as it is intended to do.