Music-Society and Gyl Synths have released WaveFlex FBG-1, a freeware synthesizer in 32-bit VST plugin format for Windows.
For a freeware synthesizer, the WaveFlex FBG-1 is rather advanced in terms of available features and flexibility. It is a 2-oscillator synthesizer (with additional sub and noise sources) that has quite a bit of on-board processing power and effects. The oscillators have several different modes and are, in my opinion, the most interesting thing about the FBG-1.
The description for this synth is written in broken English, but it appears that the first mode is a conventional oscillator with basic waveform shapes. The second mode is based on additive synthesis, meaning that it combines various types of sine waves together to create a tone. The third mode allows you to draw in your own waveform and the fourth mode loads a pre-made waveform from a library of over 4300 included shapes!
The plugin’s user interface looks like some old Windows 95 DJ software, but the layout is fairly logical and clear. I appreciate that there are graphic representations of everything such as the type of waveform used, filter modulation, step sequencing, and envelopes. Although it’s good to get into the habit of using your ears not your eyes, the visuals can be great references and learning tools.
Although I haven’t yet put the synth to a proper test, the YouTube and SoundCloud demos do a pretty good job showing the overall sounds and functionality. The sounds produced by the synth, or at least the presets I’ve heard so far, are nothing groundbreaking. They all share an old-school synthesizer vibe that is fairly standard, although some of them having some cool formant shaping which grabbed my attention. However, I was more impressed with the onboard effects and the included step sequencer/arpeggiator. Also, some of the pads in the demo have a lovely bit of subtle pitch modulation reminiscent of tape wobble in a way that I don’t hear in other synthesizers.
UPDATE (by Tomislav): Please note that you’ll need to sign up for a Music-Society forum user account in order to download plugin. The registration process is free, however you will need to submit a valid email address in order to validate your registration. Also, keep in mind that the forum admins delete inactive user accounts regularly. I signed up for a user account in February and they’ve already deleted it (probably due to inactivity). It’s no biggie, but I’m not sure if the whole registration thing is worth the effort if you only want to download the synth.
WaveFlex FBG-1 is available for free download via Music-Society (3.21 MB download size, ZIP archive, 32-bit VST plugin format for Windows, made with FlowStone).
