The headline feature of v13 was the compatibility with Apple M1 processors. Prior to this, M1 users had to run Waves plugins in "Rosetta 2" mode (a translation layer), which caused significant CPU strain and instability. v13 introduced native ARM64 code, reducing latency and CPU usage for Mac users.
| Waves Plugin | Free Alternative | Why it’s good | | :--- | :--- | :--- | | | TDR Nova (Gentleman’s Edition) | Dynamic EQ, zero latency, better sound | | Waves R-Compressor | Tokyo Dawn Records Molotok | Aggressive or transparent, character-rich | | Waves L2 Limiter | LoudMax (by Thomas Mundt) | Brickwall limiting, transparent, simple | | Waves H-Delay | Valhalla Supermassive (Delay mode) | Huge, modulated delays for free | | Waves CLA-76 | Analog Obsession LALA (Patreon free) | FET-style compression, aggressive punch | waves 13 bundle free
It is no surprise, then, that thousands of producers search for the phrase every single day. The headline feature of v13 was the compatibility