7 Soft Synths Pushing the Envelope
Next-evel software synthesizers from Tracktion, BEATSURFING, Madrona Labs, and more.
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When you need to go beyond stale virtual analog and played out wavetables, turn to these seven soft synths pushing the envelope.
7 Soft Synths Pushing the Envelope
I love analog subtractive synthesis as much as the next guy. Whether hardware or software, I dig the sound of a buzzy sawtooth sliding through a creamy lowpass filter. There is, however, as Bjork once said, more to life than than this.
Tired of buying emulations of the same three or four classic synths over and over? You’ve come to the right place. Sometimes you need to go where virtual analog fears to tread, to a place where only the most cutting edge forms of synthesis reside. I’m talking about resynthesis, randomness, genetics, chaos. The kinds of synths that are so outside the box, they’re not even in the third dimension anymore.
Here are seven soft synths pushing the envelope – and two of them even have free versions.
Soft Synths Pushing the Envelope: BEATSURFING RANDOM
I don’t think I’ve ever seen a plugin quite like RANDOM before. BEATSURFING’s instrument is, at its heart, a bass synth, but one that generates sounds in a dramatically new way. The name gives it away: RANDOM uses randomization to come up with new sounds, with a wheel with Synth and Resonator amount sliders plus other controls like Stress (for decay), Spike (for aggression), and Bleed and Fluid. At the center is the Matter, a metallic black blob that you can interact with.
RANDOM has a very specific user in mind: producers who work in bass-oriented genres like trap, drum and bass, and techno and who also like the fun of experimentation. If this sounds like you, you’ll likely love RANDOM.
- BEATSURFING RANDOM product page
Soft Synths Pushing the Envelope: Tracktion Dawesome Myth
Some developers are content to emulate the past. And some won’t rest until they completely reinvent the synthesizer. The crazy people over at Tracktion fall into the second camp. It’s flabbergasting how many wild plugins they have in their roster. And perhaps the wildest is Dawesome Myth.
A resynthesis synthesizer, Myth features two oscillators called Irises. Drag and drop any audio file onto the Iris and it will resynthesize the sample into a complex waveform that you can then twist and pull in all sorts of ways with the Transformer controls. There are also the usual parameters like filters, modulators and effects. The kicker? It sounds heavenly.
There’s a very generous 90-day free trial and also – even more generous – a single-Iris free version called Zyklop.
- Tracktion Dawesome Myth product page
Soft Synths Pushing the Envelope: Newfangled Audio Generate
Newfangled Audio does things a little differently than other developers. Case in point: Generate. This polysynth is Buchla-inspired, which isn’t so unusual in itself, but it then combines those influences with chaos. Yes, literal chaos. The oscillators feature chaos generators to turn sine waves into the kinds of complex waveforms that Don could only dream of. Then you get five different wavefolders to play with, a low pass gate, modulators, and effects sourced from Newfangled’s roster of plugins.
All of this chaos and West Coast weirdness results in a buzzy, texture-filled sound that you won’t find anywhere else.
If you’re intrigued but maybe a little intimidated, try Pendulate, the free monosynth version, first.
- Newfangled Audio Generate product page
Soft Synths Pushing the Envelope: Sonic Charge Synplant 2
I tend to think of synthesis as something akin to sculpting, where a basic init sound is shaped into something new. Synplant takes a different approach, however, an organic one, with seeds and sprouts and plants as its metaphors. The original Synplant from developer Sonic Charge came out some 15 years ago and was always a curious thing, but version two improves the package overall, letting you get down into the DNA of the sound – and even clone existing audio.
As with Random above, there’s an element of chance involved with Synplant 2 and so requires some trial and error. But if you’re not in any rush and are willing to go where the growing vine takes you, Synplant 2 is a lot of fun.
- Sonic Charge Synplant 2 product page
Soft Synths Pushing the Envelope: Rhizomatic Plasmonic
When Native Instruments discontinued support for Absynth last year, many were upset. However, the original developer Rhizomatic is still releasing instruments. If you liked the dreamy and forward-thinking Absynth, you’ll love Plasmonic.
Plasmonic is a unique polysynth that combines elements of physical modeling and subtractive synthesis, with deep modulation and plenty of lush effects to liven things up. Like Absynth, it excels at pads and atmospheres. Unlike the classic Absynth, though, it’s very up to date, with MPE slide and pressure parameters an integral part of the modulation framework.
It’s also gorgeous-sounding, with a unique physical-modeling sheen that is both digital and organic. Beautifully inspiring.
- Rhizomatic Plasmonic product page
Soft Synths Pushing the Envelope: Madrona Labs Sumu
If you’re familiar with Madrona Labs, you know you’re in for something unusual when you fire up one of their instruments. The company’s latest, Sumu, is no exception, with an additive resynthesis engine at the center. Drop in a sample, let Sumu turn it into a collection of partials, and then go to work on the individual frequencies themselves. It’s both digital and organic with a sound like nothing else.
It also retains Madrona’s semi-modular structure, with Moog Ladder filter, modulators, envelopes, FM and a virtual space to play in.
- Madrona Labs Sumu product page
Soft Synths Pushing the Envelope: Tracktion BioTek 3
If you don’t know the name Wolfram Franke, you should. The developer has worked for Waldorf, among others, and he brings that pedigree to bear on BioTek 3, the latest iteration of the sound-design focused synth from Tracktion.
Combining deep synthesis with a sample set based on high-quality field recordings, BioTek 3 is ready-made for the kinds of cinematic sounds that you hear in movies, TV shows and video games. It’s not just ambient pads though. With its variety of oscillators, dual filters, and modulators, plus effects and other parameters, it can do pretty much anything you need it to. The latest version adds an Easy page for basic operation and sound design as well.
A secret weapon that’s been out in the open the whole time, BioTek 3 is a stunningly gorgeous synth with enough complexity and power to satisfy even the pickiest of synth fans.
- Tracktion BioTek 3 product page
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