Behringer releases its first synth plugin, Vintage, for free…or does it?
Modelled on the analogue circuitry of vintage synthesizers for those lush 70s/ 80s tones.
Image: Behringer
After surprising fans with the launch of the MS-5 last week, Behringer is back at it again — this time, with the release of its first synth plugin, Vintage.
Based on “meticulous modelling of the analogue circuitry of legendary vintage synthesizers”, the Vintage synth engine is said to deliver all the lush, classic synth tones that defined the 70s and 80s.
Most surprising of all is that the synth is totally free — if you can get your hands on it, that is. At the time of writing, the Behringer Vintage webpage appears to be broken. There is no messaging from the brand about the plugin and only a small number of producers have managed to download it. Some details have been reported, thankfully.
According to Behringer (via GearNews), the plugin features two oscillators with a hard sync function and selectable waveform: sine, square, saw, noise and sub-oscillator. Pulse width modulation of the square wave oscillator is included, in addition to a noise generator with a colour knob to control the low pass cut-off frequency.
There are two versatile filters featuring 12/24 dB switchable low-pass, band-pass, high-pass, notch and formant modes, plus selectable drive curves for lush harmonic saturation. A flexible routing scheme, meanwhile, allows for serial or parallel filtering. The audio signal path ends with two amplifier modules with a built-in ADSR envelope, panning, and levelling controls.
In terms of modulation, the synth has two LFOs to modulate the oscillators, filters and amplifiers. Each LFO features a separate control for rate, attack, delay, retrig and waveform, which encompasses triangle, sine, random and square wave with pulse width control.
The community’s impressions of the plugin are pretty mixed so far, with some saying that it sounds strikingly digital and “boring,” also claiming some aesthetic similarities between Vintage and Tone2 Saurus. Others, however, have their fingers crossed that a fix is on the way. In the meantime, you can check out a demo video of the plugin in action below.
The synth is available for both Windows 10+ and macOS 10.13+ and as a VST3 and AU plugin. A standalone version is also included. All you have to do is visit the Behringer website and sign up with your email. Any donations, entirely optional by the way, made for the plugin will be directed to the Playing For Change foundation.
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