Overtonium is an amazing additive synth that works like a mixer, Ultiverb is one of the most feature-rich free reverbs I’ve ever seen, and ENS-86 delivers classic chorus sounds: Free plugins of the week!
Free Plugins of the Week
Dehli Musikk Overtonium: Additive Synthesis Deconstructed
I think the record for ‘Most Knobs in a Plugin’ may have just been broken. Overtonium is an additive synthesizer that puts a whole new meaning to ‘one knob per function’. The layout resembles a 32-channel mixer: Unlike other additive synths, which tend to hide their partials behind macro controls, Overtonium puts all of them on the surface, giving you an unprecedented degree of control over each individual partial.
Every ‘channel’ outputs a sine wave that represents a harmonic of the note you’re playing. Each partial can be individually tuned (to achieve different temperaments), panned, muted, and soloed. But that’s just the beginning: Overtonium also gives each partial its own modulation section with pitch and amp LFOs and an ADSR envelope. On the right, there’s an extra noise channel for even more sonic possibilities. Along the top, you’ll find a couple of effects, including Character, Echo, and Reverb.
If you’re curious about additive synthesis and want to find out how it works, Overtonium is about as clearly laid-out as it gets. It also sounds fantastic, especially when combined with expressive MPE control. Happy knobbing!
Overtonium is available for macOS, Windows, and Linux in VST3, AU, and LV2 formats.
Libelula Audio Ultiverb: The Ultimate Free Reverb Plugin?
Ultiverb by Libelula Audio is one of the most feature-rich free reverb plugins I’ve ever seen. You can control almost every aspect of the reverb in great detail, from the basic parameters to precise tone shaping and creative sound design.
The Space section gives you five algorithms to choose from, representing five fundamentally different kinds of reverb: Room, Hall, Plate, Spring, and Digital. You can then shape the space using familiar parameters such as decay time, size, pre-delay, diffusion, and early reflections. Ultiverb also offers four distinct ‘flavors’ for even more character.
But we’re just getting started. You can also set different decay times for different frequency bands, which helps clean up the mix and can also yield some pretty unusual results. The Motion and Fluctuate sections provide movement and analog-style imperfections. Ultiverb also features independent saturation stages for the dry and wet signals, as well as a built-in ducker.
Ultiverb is currently only available for Windows as a VST3 plugin. You can sign up for the Mac waitlist on the developer’s website to be notified when the Mac version becomes available.
Hivetune ENS-86: Free BBD-Style Chorus Plugin
ENS-86 by Hivetune emulates the classic analog BBD chorus effects of the ‘80s. Unlike some of its historic predecessors, however, the plugin gives you precise control and lets you dial in the exact speed and intensity of the modulation. You can even adjust the LFO phase to control the interaction between the left and right channels, which is great for wide stereo effects.
In addition, ENS-86 offers a mid/side-based stereo width control that lets you dial in anything between mono and 200% width. This also works independently of the chorus modulation.
ENS-86 is available for macOS and Windows in VST3 and AU formats.
Head over to our archive to discover more free plugins like Overtonium, Ultiverb, and ENS-86!
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