The Best Free Vst Synths
- Free Vst Synths
- The Best Free Vst Synths Of 2018
- Best Free Vst Synths For Edm
- Best Free Vst Synths 2019
As promised, this follow-up to the 10 Best Free VST Plugins list (that is, just effects and processors) is all about synths.
Some of these synths are early projects from designers who have gone on to work for larger companies making some of the most high-profile VST instruments; others are passion projects from solo sonic adventurers who simply want to share their skills with the music-making community. And some are simply streamlined versions of commercial synths.
Perfectly apt for trap, hip hop, EDM and trance boppers, Superwave P8 is considered one of the best synth VST plugins on the freeware market. It does help that it was remotely modelled off of the Roland JP 8000. Nov 20, 2020 The best free VST plugins 2020: must-have freeware synths, drum machines and effects By Si Truss ( Computer Music, Future Music, emusician ) 20 November 2020 Make music for nothing with our pick of the finest free sound makers and processors. 2getheraudio Cheeze Machine is a free VSTi inspired by vintage string synths like the ARP/Solina String Ensemble. It’s perfect for those phasey, vintage, lo-fi strings. Back to top ⟰ Applied Acoustics Systems AAS Player.
But what these VST synths have in common, other than price, is that they all have a fantastic sound and great tone-shaping features. You can load them up in your DAW right now and give any of them a spin in your next production. You won’t be disappointed!
1. u-he TyrellN6
Similar design to the classic Roland Juno 60, and awesomely named after the rogue replicants in Blade Runner…
Available for PC and Mac. More info and download link here.
2. Green Oak Crystal
Created by Glenn Olander, who went on to design Spectrasonics Omnisphere and Stylus RMX. No slouch then…
Available for PC and Mac. More info and downloads here. There’s also an iPad/iPhone version, available here.
3. Togu Audio Line TAL-NoiseMaker
A great synth from the guys who brought us the TAL-Effects bundle I mentioned previously. Well worth a look.
Available for PC and Mac. More info and download here.
4. Ichiro Toda Synth1
Free Vst Synths
This synth is modelled on the modern classic Clavia Nord Lead 2 Red Synth… Nuff said really :)
Available for PC and Mac. More info (translated from the Japanese) and download here.
5. de la Mancha FMMF
This FM synth, with 4 operators, is especially good for pads and sound design-y noises and effects.
Available for Windows VST only. More info and download here.
6. Ohm Force Symtohm:Melohman Performer Edition
A slimmed-down version of the original Symptohm:Melohman, the only actual difference being that you’re limited to presets from the Symptohm sound library.
But there are 1200 sounds there, enough to keep anybody busy for a while…
Available for PC and Mac. More info and download here.
7. u-he Zebralette
Again, this synth is a slimmed-down version of a commercial soft synth – in this case, the u-he Zebra2. But the Zebralette is very popular in it’s own right, as it’s capable of making some pretty great sounds of it’s own.
Available for PC and Mac. More info and download here.
8. Tonebytes Bleep’
Recreating the legendary sound of the Commodore 64 SID sound chip, this synth is an absolute must for chiptune makers and anyone who’s into retro / 8-bit game style sounds and FX.
It’s available for Windows VST only I’m afraid. More info and download at tonebytes.com.
9. Kairatune
A bass and lead synth with an inspiring interface, designed specifically with EDM in mind.
Windows VST only. More info and download here.
10. E-MU Proteus VX
A free synth sound module from the legendary hardware sampler makers. It’s a slimmed-down version of their Emulator X3, and can load any sounds from the Emulator X library.
Windows VST only. More info and download here.
Which other free synths are you using that I might have missed? Leave a comment below, cheers!
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It’s 2018 and there are literally hundreds & thousands *maybe*, of VST synth plugins in the market. Some are free, some are expensive and some cost very little.
Not every VST synth is made equal. On some synths, you may find big and usable sounds, right on the get-go. And on some other synths, you could get sound that sounds too amateurish until you spend time tweaking and inserting effects into it.
We could have attempted to write a list of the top 100 best free & paid VST plugins in the world today, but I really wanted to focus on the real best 5 must-have software VST synths, that should consider installing in your setup – as a music producer, whether you produce electronic music or hip-hop music.
Let’s get started.
The 5 Best Software VST Synths To Install Today
Check out this video, where Tim Cant (a really hilarious producer) shows us insights into the five of probably the most popular software synths in the world today. He’ll explain the five synths below, shows a quick walkthrough of each and explains what made them popular.
1. SynthMaster 2.9 (KV331 Audio)
SynthMaster, an award-winning synth may have been around for a long time, but every update has kept it fresh for the competition with the world’s best soft synths.
Now at version 2.9, SynthMaster has practically every sound generation feature you could want in a synthesizer: wavetable oscillators, loads of voicing parameters, dual filters, multistage envelope generators and a modular signal flow – all times two with two synthesis layers. On top of that, there’s also four LFOs, an effects section including a Vocoder, and loads more.
SynthMaster’s Killer Feature? It’s oscillator waveforms include samples of classic hardware to use as sources.
Its seen to be used by DJs like Armin van Buuren, Martin Garrix and Zedd.
Buy SynthMaster at Plugin Boutique – $99
2. Spire (Reveal Sound)
The Spire does not come cheap. (Almost the price of a DAW!).
But it brings an impressive range of oscillators and synthesis types, and an even more impressive range of third-party preset developers. Spire is an extensive VST plugin as it allows for complicated modulation options while sounding extremely big.
Choose one of 49 waves in a Spire oscillator, and you can morph it using the CtrlA and CtrlB knobs. What these two do to the waveform is determined by the synthesis type, which is selected at the top of the oscillator. And that’s without mentioning the dual filters, the four LFOs, the four envelopes and effects.
Spire’s Killer Feature? It’s five-page modulation matrix, giving access to over 200 mod destinations. Reveal Sound, the maker of Spire also claims that the plugin is used by artists such as Dash Berlin and Hardwell.
A quick thing you should know about Spire is that it uses quite a bit of CPU processing and in our opinion, we think that could be improved – perhaps in its upcoming version updates.
Buy Spire at Plugin Boutique – $199
3. Avenger by Vengeance Sound
You probably have heard its sounds in lots of music pieces on the radio. This monstrous, top-of-the-line synth is the first instrument released by plugin and sound household legends, Vengeance Sound.
It has eight oscillators, which host classic analogue shapes, samples, a choice of digital wave cycles and wavetables. ThThere areM and AM options, and each oscillator can be run through a unique combination of filters, amps, arpeggiators and effects, meaning that you could make an entire track in one instance of Avenger.
Elsewhere, there’s a spectral filter, macro controls, and far too many features to even namecheck.
Avenger’s Killer Feature? It’s got an entire drum machine – and drum sequencer – built in! Put simply, Avenger is excessive and would fit the tweak-hungry music producer.
Buy Avenger at Plugin Boutique – $220
4. Diva (u-he)
Synths made by u-he (like Zebra synth), never fail to disappoint. Diva is a classic analogue synth takes the best bits of hardware history and puts them into one incredible-sounding plugin. It’s also the type of synth to reach for to make big rave music anthems.
With Diva, you could pair a Minimoog oscillator with an MS-20 filter, and then pipe the signal through a Jupiter-6 style envelope, or swap out any of the elements for any other. Diva’s also got two LFOs, two effects slots, a Modifications tab to make advanced tweaks, and a kickass oscilloscope visualiser.
Diva’s Killer Feature? Divine Mode – this menu control cranks Diva up to maximum quality, making it its most analogue, but with a hefty CPU hit. You could use it if you have enough CPU power under the hood of your computer.
U-he’s Diva is no stranger to the world of music production and has been around since late 2011.
Buy Diva at Plugin Boutique – $179
5. Serum (Xfer Records)
My personal favourite to the list of synths here. Serum is a modern looking wavetable VST synth, that has become a staple to many electronic music producers. Out of the box, the presets itself sounds super big and usable. You’ll enjoy using them in your tracks and will only look at tweaking them, to create your own unique sounds.
Serum’s two wavetable oscillators are actually superweapons, with 3D wave morphing, additive synthesis, wavetable interpolation, wave cycle morphing, and loads more complicated-sounding powers. But the trick is, in reality, every one of Serum’s features is completely straightforward to use, and there are countless third-party preset packs available that showcase its incredible potential.
The Best Free Vst Synths Of 2018
Serum’s three Killer Features? It’s got up to eight multipoint LFOs, PNG Wavetable import, and everyone with Serum gets a copy of Serum FX, an effects-only version with only Serum’s FX tab.
Native Instrument’s Massive is something of an alternative to Serum, but having experienced them first-hand, I’ll be first to tell you that you’ll find it easier to program on Serum compared to Massive.
Buy Serum at Plugin Boutique – $189
Best Free Vst Synths For Edm
What are your takes on the 5 VST soft synths that I featured here in this post? Let me know and contribute some of your thoughts to the other readers!