Music Production Forum

Below is a list of some of the best software synths & virtual pianos (free & paid). Please reply to this post if you recommended any others There are a huge number of plugins available, here are some other lists I've created for products I recommend https://jamesm.blog/music-production/my-hardware-software/ https://jamesm.blog/music-production/my-hardware-software-wishlist/ https://jamesm.blog/music-production/physical-modeling-synths/ Synths (Free) Vendor Plugin Name Key Features Blamsoft VK-1 Viking Synthesizer Moog Voyager emulation, strong basses Digital Suburban Dexed Yamaha DX7 emulation, FM synthesis discoDSP OB-Xd Oberheim OB-X emulation, analog sounds M…

Controllers Drop Monolit Roto-Control Eurorack NUSS Citadel Multigrain Grooveboxes CyDrums Tonverk MPC Live III Pedals Motor Pedal Elipse Others Osmose 61 SubSix Orchid TR-1000

Sometimes you stumble across software that pushes everything familiar aside and immediately makes you want to dive deeper. Sonic Pi falls squarely into this category because music is created directly through code that responds audibly and provides immediate feedback. This code implements musical ideas with surprising immediacy. Anyone who loves electronic music and is curious about new ways of working will quickly realize that there is much more to this environment than an educational experiment... The post Sonic Pi Self-Test: Powerful Insights from Coding Beats Instead of Turning Knobs appeared first on gearnews.com. View the full article

Swiss-born, London-based producer and live artist Sensu returns with Pure Motion, a six-track EP on Headroom Records. The record captures her instinct-driven approach to production, blending UK garage, breakbeat, bass, and ambient textures into a raw, emotional, direct sound. Written across sessions that moved between headphones, club systems, and quiet hours in her London studio, Pure Motion marks a new stage in Sensu’s evolution. The sound feels personal yet built for movement, balancing the introspective clarity of her early work with the energy of modern bass music. Each track sits between precision and instinct, carrying her familiar blend of warmth and weight. In th…

Soft Loop Audio has released Harmonic Echo, a free generative MIDI delay plugin for macOS, Windows, and Linux. I was contacted by the developer behind Soft Loop Audio about this release, and instantly loved the concept. After spending some (very short, unfortunately) time with Harmonic Echo, I can safely say it’s unlike any MIDI effects I’ve [...] View post: Soft Loop Audio releases FREE Harmonic Echo generative MIDI plugin View the full article

Developer the Usual Suspects has officially released JE-8086, their free Roland JP-8080 emulation for macOS, Windows, and Linux. The Usual Suspects announced plans to release a Roland JP-8080 emulation a while back, and as expected, it generated quite a buzz. The excitement over any release from The Usual Suspects is merited and comes from an [...] View post: The Usual Suspects officially release JE-8086, a FREE Roland JP-8080 emulation View the full article

Emily Hopkins, a harpist and composer uniquely blending the traditional and modern, has released Chippo, a free chiptune-inspired sequencer plugin for macOS and Windows. In addition to performing live and working on music for film and video games, Emily has a popular YouTube channel where she showcases the harp in some weird and wonderful ways. [...] View post: Emily Hopkins releases Chippo, a FREE chiptune-inspired sequencer plugin View the full article

Visit any commercial studio, even smaller ones, and we’ll bet you find some outboard gear in use. Whether it’s a simple mic preamp unit, a hardware compressor, EQ, or master bus processor, or many rack units stacked together, producers everywhere appreciate the power, flexibility, and ultimately the sound that these products can contribute to their workflow. Here, we share some of the standout releases from 2025, including updated versions of classics, more affordable recreations of others and even some unique gear that lets you integrate rack processing directly into your DAW with no latency... The post MusicTech’s favourite outboard gear releases of 2025 appeared first …

This week is a big one: Polyverse Music, XLN Audio, and IK Multimedia are offering three extremely exciting deals on software. Polyverse is bringing a breath of fresh air to the studio with its wild effect plugins, proving that sound design can be really fun. XLN Audio presents XO, a beat tool that cleverly combines groove and visual inspiration. IK Multimedia’s offer opens the big stage for anyone who wants to take mixing, mastering, and guitar sounds to the next level. In short, these three strong manufacturers represent three completely different worlds, but they all offer plenty of sound fodder that will make you want to get started right away... The post XLN Audio, P…

My personal highlights of the year 2025: The last year flew by for me, and to be honest, it started off pretty unspectacularly. As a synthesizer nerd, I had hoped for more. There were hardly any fresh ideas; instead, there were the umpteenth emulation of a classic – and sometimes even emulations of emulations. The scene seemed tired; the euphoria of previous years was barely noticeable. But then, sometime in the summer, everything clicked again. Suddenly, there were new things to discover: tools that really made a difference and sounds that kept me in the studio longer than planned. And yes, my G.A.S. struck again – or maybe it was just my curiosity, which never lets me r…

With Opal Drums, Denver-based producer Mux Mool and UK turntablist Jon1st are reshaping how electronic duos approach performance. Their debut single, “Burning Hammer,” introduces a world where lush, cinematic sound design meets raw, tactile percussion. The project combines the spontaneity of live musicianship with the precision of modern production, building a conceptual narrative around alien monoliths, transformation, and human curiosity. At the center of Mux Mool’s process is Maschine, a controller that has shaped both his solo work and his collaboration with Jon1st. As a longtime user, he relies on it for sketching rhythms, building performance-ready sequences, and ma…

2025 was probably the best year ever for free VST plugins. And that’s not an exaggeration. We covered well over 200 free plugins on BPB this year, ranging from simple utilities to genuinely mind-blowing tools that rival (and sometimes outperform) commercial software. Narrowing that list down wasn’t easy, but after months of testing, mixing, and [...] View post: These are my 15 favorite FREE music production plugins from 2025 View the full article

2025 was a busy year, but when looking back, it seemed to be a fairly quiet year when it came to big, new releases. This could be down to the fact that, post-COVID, there was a glut of releases in 2024, so this year may well have been some sort of rebalancing. That’s not to say there wasn’t some cool stuff going on and being released, so I decided to look back over the last 12 months and pick out some things that stuck in my mind and my ears. Naturally, this is a purely subjective list, so why not let me know your 2025 synthy highlights in the comments! ... The post My Highlights of 2025 – The Big Winners of My Year appeared first on gearnews.com. View the full article

Turn your pictures into music with these wild examples of visual synthesis: hardware and software synthesizers that use images to generate sound. Making sound with images may sound like a contradiction, but there is a thin but persistent thread throughout the history of electronic instruments that allows you to do just this. Whether this is shining a light on drawings to create sound with sine waves, or dropping image files into a plugin, there are a number of different ways to make music with pictures. Here are five visual synthesis instruments that I’ve come across. Have you found any others? Let me know in the comments... The post Visual Synthesis: 5 Synths to Make Cra…

This video explores modular improvisation along with sounds triggered through sonification of plants' electrical conductivity. … Read More ‘Plant Music’ With PlantWave & The Plantasia Moog ModularView the full article

Here's a modern take on the Novation Nova Desktop, a virtual analog synthesizer, introduced in 1999.… Read More Novation Nova Desktop Vintage Synth ReviewView the full article

(https://jamesm.blog/music-production/best-software-synths-2025/) Software synthesizers in 2025 are a study in contrast and creativity - flagship instruments with deep sonic universes, hybrid engines merging sampling with synthesis, and tools that make sound design feel like both art and play. Below is a panoramic view of the top soft synths this year, each with its release timing and why it matters to your creative workflow. Spectrasonics Omnisphere 3 – Released October 21, 2025 Omnisphere’s long‑anticipated third chapter landed in late October, and it’s already a touchstone for sound designers across genres. With tens of thousands of patches, integrated granular and wav…

https://jamesm.blog/music-production/top-5-grooveboxes-2025/ Grooveboxes are island universes of music creation — sequencing, sampling, synthesis, and performance all in a single box. They let you sketch ideas, build full tracks, jam live, and take your studio wherever you want. In 2025, they’re more powerful and diverse than ever.(musicradar.com) Roland MC-707 (£1,013) The MC‑707 is a flagship groovebox from Roland with a ZEN‑Core sound engine that packs thousands of presets, drum kits, effects, and routing options. Its strength lies in pattern and clip‑based sequencing, deep effects, and live remixing capabilities. Each track can be assigned Tone, Drum, or Looper engine…

https://jamesm.blog/music-production/top-5-sequencers-2025/ Hardware sequencers remain essential for producers who want hands-on control over patterns, rhythms, and melodies. Unlike grooveboxes, sequencers are often designed to drive external synths, modular systems, or entire hardware setups. Here’s a detailed look at the top 5 hardware sequencers in 2025, complete with images, prices, and strengths. (reverb.com) Teenage Engineering OP-XY (~£1,799) The OP-XY is a portable sequencer with integrated synth engines and expressive pattern management. It offers parameter locks, modulation lanes, and performance-friendly workflow. Its unique combination of sequencing and sound …

The Crow Hill Company is currently running a £25 voucher promotion that you can use to claim the Pocket Strings (£10) library for FREE or get a £4 bargain of your choice. The coupon code crowmas25 knocks £25 off any purchase in the Crow Hill store, with no minimum spend required. The no minimum spend [...] View post: Get the Pocket Strings library for FREE for a limited time View the full article

SoundMorph has launched a time-limited holiday deal that lets you take $49 off anything in their store, with no minimum spending required. If you play it right, that means you can grab select plugins or sound libraries completely free of charge. The discount is applied using the code Christmas49, and it’s valid until December 27 [...] View post: Get a FREE SoundMorph product with $49 OFF coupon (ends December 27) View the full article

The Novation Circuit range looks pretty cool, use Tracks for synth-led sketches and full ideas, use Rhythm for sample-driven beats and performance. Both look fun, immediate, and play nicely with other gear. Circuit Tracks is the all-rounder: two synth tracks, four drum tracks, slick pattern workflow, and great MIDI control. Ideal if you want melodies and beats in one box. Circuit Rhythm is all about sampling and groove: fast recording, slicing, resampling, and hands-on performance. Feels built for beatmakers who like to mangle audio live.

I genuinely can’t get over how mental the Reliq from Reliq Instruments is. Not just in features - physically. This thing is huge. The 16×16 grid dominates the unit and makes everything else look small by comparison. It’s less “desktop groovebox” and more “command bridge of a spaceship.” You’re sequencing, routing, mixing, and launching clips on a surface that looks like it could run an entire studio by itself - because it basically can. Specs aside, the scale alone is wild. It’s clearly designed to be the centre of everything, not something you casually tuck next to a synth. If you want a subtle box, this is not it. If you want a single, imposing brain that screams commit…

This is a fast-paced comparison of a wide range of synths, grooveboxes, drum machines, and oddball gear, covering a lot of modern synths, classic digital gear, pocket operators, grooveboxes, and a dawless jam at the end. Gear covered in the video; Novation Peak ASM Hydrasynth Polyend Tracker Korg Electribe EMX-1 Roland MC-101 Korg opsix Casio CZ-101 Roland S-1 vs 1010music Blackbox Korg Wavestate MK2 Roland TB-3 Roland Cloud Teenage Engineering PO-33 KO! Korg Volca Modular Teenage Engineering Pocket Operator Modular 400 Elektron Digitakt II Korg Minilogue XD Boss DR-5

https://www.kvraudio.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=625544

Since I first saw it demonstrated on the BBC TV programme ‘Tomorrow’s World’ in 1980, I have been fascinated and obsessed with the Fairlight CMI, a remarkable machine that changed the way we make music and whose DNA remains in the way we use computers in music to this very day. Its inventors should, in my very humble opinion, be held in the same regard as Bob Moog, Tom Oberheim, Dave Smith, Ikutaro Kakehashi, et al, such was their impact on the way we make music and how it shaped modern culture. Since 2013, I’ve been involved with restoring and repairing Fairlight CMIs and have become somewhat intimately knowledgeable about them. I’ve also been incredibly fortunate to mee…

Image-Line has introduced FL Studio Web, a browser-based version of the popular digital audio workstation. … Read More FL Studio Web Now Available In Your Web BrowserView the full article

Black Octopus Sound has released Christmas Gift – Starter Deck Sampler, a huge free sample pack available for a limited time, and a 100% discount for a full Starter Deck of your choice. I downloaded the pack out of curiosity, expecting little more than a generous teaser, but this is a proper sound library. Black [...] View post: Black Octopus Sound releases Christmas Starter Deck Sampler with 3 GB of FREE sounds View the full article

Developer Majetone is offering Pantomime 4, a virtual synthesizer with plenty of character, free for a limited time during the holidays. To download this, head to the Pantomime 4 product page, scroll down, and enter your email address. Once you sign up for the Majetone mailing list, a 100% discount code is automatically applied at [...] View post: Majetone offers Pantomime 4 virtual synth FREE for email subscribers View the full article

Happy Holidays, everyone! Before we get ready for the new year, it’s time to look back at my personal gear highlights of 2025. Spoiler alert: no synths this time! I mostly write about synths at GEARNEWS. But I don’t want to waste your time with yet another list of the best synths of the year (apart from a pair of stunning groove machines that no recap of 2025 can do without). So here’s my list of the other things I found exciting or interesting this year, outside of my main area of focus... The post Highlights of the Year: My Favorite Gear of 2025 appeared first on gearnews.com. View the full article