Best Trumpet VST Plugins That Sound Realistic In 2024

The use of trumpet VSTs is becoming more and more popular in modern music production and for good reason; they’re effective and convenient. We are starting to see a shift from heavily synthesized sounds to more of a natural and organic feel.

In this article, we are going to cover the best trumpet VST plugins currently available. These options include both free & paid and I have spent days with each of these options.

If you are looking to dive into other VSTs, be sure to also check our list of the following:

• Best Flute VSTs
• Best Mandolin VSTs

Keyboard players typically excel when it comes to playing trumpet parts because you can write similar melodies to the piano.

It is my opinion that there are a lot of good trumpet VSTs out there that actually sound realistic. The best VSTs nail the sounds from the dynamics to the actual sound that is heard as the final product. Pop music is starting to really utilize these sounds as the likes of Bruno Mars and Charlie Puth are influencing some of the production.

My Favorite Trumpet Plugins – Quick Glance

Below is a comparison table of the top trumpet VSTs currently available. Right now, you can see the best possible option is Heavyocity.

What To Look For In Trumpet VSTs?

First off, you want to ultimately be looking for the absolute best sounding trumpets. A lot of VST’s will be able to give you some great customizability in each pre-set. The more that you can change within a VST, the better.

Dynamics are going to be a big part of a good trumpet sound. Not all parts are meant to be blaring and loud, so being able to have a different sound when played quietly will go a long way in your productions.

Effects are going to be another place that you can really start to dial your sounds in. The more effects, the better.

Note: With all of this being said, the most important part is that the VST is easy to use. Some VS’s make it way too hard to learn how to use them that the producer gets frustrated and moves on to a more user-friendly product. All of the trumpet VSTs discussed in this post are pretty user-friendly.

Why Are Trumpet VSTs Being Used More Often In Pop Music?

The answer to this question is rather simple: they’re being used because pop music is starting to use more organic sounding instruments in their production. While there are a lot of musicians that are bringing jazz instruments to the forefront of pop music, Bruno Mars is definitely one of the main influencers.

Producers are starting to use horn sounds as leads in their productions rather than using a synth lead. I believe this is because synths have been so prevalent in production that people are starting to want to hear different sounds playing the lead.

If you’re a fan of trumpet sounds, you might be interested in the best saxophone VST plugins as well as the best flute VST plugins.

Being a keyboard player, I personally think it’s awesome to see some more sounds being used, especially when VST’s make it possible for me to hear all the instruments.

Trumpet sounds used to sound rather cheap up until recently. I can remember back to using my old Yamaha keyboards and thinking that the trumpet sounds did not resemble trumpets very well. VST’s have changed this greatly.

Best Trumpet VSTs

Below are my favorite picks that I believe will help elevate your game to the next level.

1) Heavyocity Forzo Modern Brass

I recently stumbled upon this plugin during a writing session and I couldn’t believe it. The trumpets here are some of the most epic ones that I have ever heard.

A lot of people who dislike plugins may have their mind changed slightly when they hear some of these. The pre-sets are pure fire and the interface is also extremely easy to navigate

Sounds

I swear you will feel like you’re listening to Hanz Zimmer. The first time I used Forzo, I thought I was listening to the Dark Knight soundtrack. In short, the sounds are crushing.

Overall

This is currently the best trumpet VST available. Check out the video below for some incredible sounds.

2) Mojo 2 Horn Section

I stumbled upon these recently and I have to say that I am very happy that I did so. The Mojo 2 horn section has a section called session horns that is absolutely fantastic. This plug-in is a little more expensive, but if you swing it, it’s great.

You run this plug-in through the Kontakt player, just like a lot of other VST’s.

The main reason I like this specific plug-in is for its trumpet sounds. You get a nice and rich tone that sounds very realistic compared to some of the other VST’s out there.

Sounds

The sounds from the Mojo 2 horn section are top-notch. There are a ton of different presets to pick from and a ton of different effects that you can add.

Like I said above, the session trumpets are my favorite because they sound like you’re in the room with an actual session player. It’s really starting to blow my mind how advanced these VST’s are becoming.

Overall

Overall, the Mojo 2 horns are phenomenal. Easy to use overall and they are easily some of the best sounding trumpet VST’s out there right now.

3) VG Trumpets – Kontakt Player

The VG Trumpets come in a wide range of varieties from jazz, soprano, baritone, and tenor. These are used through the Kontakt player like many other VST’s.

Sounds

I think these really sound quite nice. The jazz sound is probably my favorite as it sounds incredibly realistic. If you’re a musician who likes to play jazz or understands it, you will appreciate it.

You get a really rich tone right out of the gate with the VG trumpets and I can’t say enough good things about them.

Overall

I think the VG trumpet VST’s are great and definitely worth checking out.

4) Native Instruments Session Horns

Session Horns by Native Instruments sound amazing. This is a VST that I have personally been using for about 2 years now and the tone is one of the best currently available.

There’s a good amount of presets and sounds to pick from and you can also tweak the sounds very easily.

Sounds

This is the selling point in my opinion. You can tweak the expression with the click of the mouse and it instantly sounds good. There’s a feature called the octave drop which allows you to drop sections of your horns to lower octaves. What this does is brings a different tonal texture to the overall sound.

Note: Check out this video here where you can hear the session horns in action.

Overall Thoughts

I think that this is easily one of the best products when it comes to trumpets. The sounds and tweaking abilities are what set it apart in my opinion.

Free Trumpet VST Plugins

For those of you producers on a budget, fear not, I have created a list of some great free options.

Some of these options only work for Windows & others only work for Mac, I will specify below.

• VSCO2 Trumpet – Windows/Mac
• Bigcat Trumpet – Windows/Mac
• XOXOs Aerophone – Windows Only
• Sonatina Trumpet – Windows/Mac
• DSK Brass – Windows Only

Conclusion

Trumpet VST’s have come a long way over the years. I hope this post provided you with some great options to step your production up to the next level.

In closing, I can’t get over the Heavyocity samples. Be sure to check them out for your next production.

Are there any trumpet VST’s that you’re using that I didn’t mention? Let me know below in the comments.