5 Free MPE synths we love
An essential collection of expressive freebies you can download right now
5 Free MPE synths we love
So you’ve bought a new MPE controller – or you’re considering it – and now you’re looking for something expressive to scratch the new-sounds itch? You’re in luck. Back when we launched the first Seaboard in 2013, there wasn’t a whole lot out there that could really take advantage of all those dimensions of touch. Today though, things look a little different. Within the software world, at least, it’d almost be easier to list the new synths that don’t support MPE, either on release or soon thereafter. Best of all? Some of them are completely free.
We’ve rounded up five of our favorite totally gratis MPE soft synths in one handy list. Read on to see which made the cut and download them for free so you can get creative.
Dexed
We’re kicking off our list with one of the free-est of the free synths. Dexed is an open-source emulation of Yamaha’s FM classic, the DX7. It sounds just like the real thing, comes with a library of virtual cartridges each packed with presets, it supports MPE out the box, and it can even load classic DX7 patches via SysEx. That means you can channel your inner Brian Eno with a free set of classic patches from the man himself.
Surge XT
Another open-source gem is Surge XT, a multi-engined powerhouse of a synth whose feature set belies its price tag. Designed with MPE in mind, SurgeXT comes with thousands of great-sounding presets covering classic virtual analog sounds as well as wavetable, FM, and more. It even includes 16 powerful built-in effect modules.
Vital
Vital is a self-described “spectral warping wavetable synth,” which roughly means that it’s capable of some incredibly out-there sound design without ever leaving the oscillator section. Only the basic version of Vital is free, but there’s plenty there to keep you busy – and the sounds speak for themselves. Should you be looking for more of the same, there’s some very reasonable upgrade pricing, including a $5/month subscription.
Animoog Z
When you think about synths, there’s a good chance you think about Moog. They’ve been building hardware synths in much the same way for 60 years, after all. Far from a mere nostalgia trip, however, this 16-voice soft synth folds wavetable and vector synthesis into a futuristic-but-intuitive interface with some surprising sonic results. Despite all of its experimental potential, you’ll be pleased to hear that Animoog Z also features a selection of classic-sounding presets – and it retains a good dose of that legendary Moog low-end too. There’s no Windows version, unfortunately, but it will run on macOS or any recent iPad (as demonstrated by Suzanne Ciani above!).
Pendulate
This last entry is a little bit of an oddball, given that it’s a monosynth. It is free, though, and Newfangled Audio promises MIDI “Polyphonic” Expression nonetheless. In this case, it means your controller’s going to work just fine right out the box – and you’ll get all of the expressive performance benefits, just for one note at a time. Why has it made the list? Because it sounds like nothing else (aside from perhaps Newfangled’s generate, which offers more of the same, and puts the P back in MPE – for a price).
Honorable mentions
There are, of course, other free synths out there – this is just a small selection of our favorites for use with Seaboard, LUMI and other MPE controllers. That said, we can’t wrap up without letting you know about a couple of other options that you won’t want to overlook – especially as you may own them already!
The first is Equator2 – our very own flagship MPE synth. With 1400+ acoustic, electronic and hybrid presets across four different synth engines, it’s capable of just about any sound you can imagine. And if you’ve bought a Seaboard RISE 2, you already have a license. Check out our handy guide to explore the features and start creating your own sounds
Equator2 isn’t all that you get with Seaboard. You’ll also have received a copy of Ableton Live Lite. And if you’ve bought a different keyboard or controller, it’s worth checking your emails – previous versions of Live Lite have been included with some very popular hardware over the years. Why does this matter? Every one of these is eligible for a free upgrade to version 12, which includes Ableton’s excellent new Drift synthesizer – analog-style oscillators, carefully modeled vintage filters, and full MPE compatibility for new twists on classic synth sounds.
Join the ROLI community