MARCEL Studios has released TOM, a freeware virtual synthesizer VST plugin for Windows (both 32-bit and 64-bit digital audio workstations are supported).
The developers at MARCEL Studios stated that they were inspired by vintage sci-fi movie sounds and old analog instruments like the Thérémin and Ondes Martenot while creating TOM. The instrument’s sonic properties match the UI panel’s old and gritty vibe, delivering recognizable analog-style sounds. It doesn’s sound particularly authentic in terms of analog emulation, but the tones it generates can be a good fit for vintage-inspired music.
The included presets leave a lot to be desired, though, both in terms of quantity and quality. There are seven presets in total (all rather mediocre-sounding), so you’d better prepare to dig in and create your own sounds. To be fair, TOM is capable of delivering some relatively interesting sounds with a bit of tweaking. The synthesis controls are fairly standard for a virtual analog synthesizer, with the addition of a few less ordinary features that make TOM stand out a bit. For example, apart from the basic reverb and delay effects, the synth also includes the “Old” effect/mode which is supposed to emulate the behavior of old analog instruments. It’s a subtle effect, but fun to use nonetheless.
Unfortunately, I ran into a few stability issues while testing TOM and the synth went completely silent a couple of times for no apparent reason. Pair that with a user interface that isn’t the most intuitive (some of the controls aren’t clearly labeled which can cause confusion while programming a patch) and you get a synth that I can’t highly recommend, despite being a freeware product. I’m a big fan of the vintage synthesizer theme and I’m all in for analog emulations, but in this case, I’ll pass. The fact is, one could get far better-sounding results with a freeware instrument like Charlatan paired with a couple of delay and reverb effects.
TOM is available for free download via MARCEL Studios (14.8 MB download size, ZIP archive containing manual installers, 32-bit & 64-bit VST plugin format for Windows).
