The Crow Hill Company announce Crystal Pianos Rather than faithfully capturing an acoustic instrument, The Crow Hill Company's latest release uses sampling to invent a completely new one. 

Plugoff is a FREE audio plugin manager for macOS and Windows
Midifex has released Plugoff, a free app for macOS and Windows that scans, organizes, and offloads your audio plugins. It supports AU, VST, VST3, and AAX formats. Plugoff is currently free, but the developer stated that it will become a paid product in the future. So, now is the perfect time to get it. When [...]
View post: Plugoff is a FREE audio plugin manager for macOS and Windows

Audio Assault releases Amp Locker 98, a FREE guitar amp sim in full Windows 98 style
Audio Assault has released Amp Locker 98, a free guitar amp simulation plugin dressed head-to-toe in Windows 98 aesthetics. Yes, it’s an April Fools’ release, but no, it’s not a joke. Well, it is, but it’s also a real guitar amp plugin. If you grew up in the late 90s like me, this will be [...]
View post: Audio Assault releases Amp Locker 98, a FREE guitar amp sim in full Windows 98 style

Tokyo Dawn Labs OD LimenOD Limen – named after the Latin word for "threshold" – is a high-frequency acceleration limiter designed for mixing and mastering. Rather than limiting the full signal, Limen isolates and processes only the high-frequency content above a user-defined crossover point: Depth controls the intensity of the limiting process, from subtle taming to aggressive control. Crossover sets the split point using a linear-phase filter with adaptive slope for perfect signal reconstruction. Tilt shapes the spectral balance of what the limiter sees, controlling the focus between low and high frequencies. Recover preserves your tonal balance – ensuring Limen only affects the dynamics, not the character of your sound. Values above 100% add a silky high-frequency quality that conventional EQ cannot achieve. Traditional high-frequency limiters rely on a fixed threshold and require careful calibration to match the input level. Limen instead responds to high-frequency acceleration directly, adapting automatically to any input level. The processor features Focus Listen for soloing individual frequency bands, an external sidechain input, configurable keyboard shortcuts, and flexible L/R or M/S channel processing. Ohlhorst Digital is a brand by Jan Ohlhorst. Initially developed exclusively for his work as a mastering engineer, these well refined products are now being made publicly accessible. Read More

Two notes unveil the Captor X+ The Captor X+ offers deeper control, enhanced stereo functionality and some new tone-shaping tools, all of which have been designed specifically for real valve amplifiers and modern silent stage/studio rigs. 

dBdone releases Glas, a FREE spectral chaos engine for macOS and Windows
Developer dBdone has released Glas, a free spectral chaos engine for macOS and Windows. dBdone has been a fairly busy developer early in 2026. In January, we looked at Pentimento (a collaboration with the musician and YouTuber TAETRO), a texture-layering plugin available in both paid and free versions. In February, we covered AI Chords, a [...]
View post: dBdone releases Glas, a FREE spectral chaos engine for macOS and Windows

Make Noise Music introduce the GTE Make Noise Music have recently announced the launch of the latest addition to their New Universal Synthesizer System range, the Gestural Time Extractor, or GTE. 

Ciderka Labs FermentFerment is an expressive sound exploration engine built for musicians who perform live and want deep, real-time control over their sound. It's not a chain of stock effects — it's a unified instrument that adapts to your playing style, your instrument, and your creative direction. 92 parameters. One coherent signal path. Zero menu-diving. Four ways to work Machine — the full signal chain, all hands on deck. Input filter, wavefolder/clipper/bitcrush shaping, multi-voice chorus, octaver, tempo-synced delay, spatial processing, character section, dual LFOs, envelope follower, and post EQ. Every parameter is visible, mappable, and automatable. Magic — describe a sound in plain language ("warm, spacious, with gentle movement") and AI generates a matching preset across all 92 parameters. A radar chart shows the sonic profile across 8 perceptual dimensions. You hear three suggestions, pick one, and refine from there. Every generated value is fully editable — no black boxes. Material — acoustic instrument profiling. Record a few notes on your instrument and Ferment analyzes spectral content, dynamic range, attack, sustain, and harmonic structure. The profile optimizes the processing chain for your specific sound source. Built-in profiles for violin, cello, double bass, guitar, piano, organ, vocals, percussion, and more. Library — browse, preview, and manage presets. Built-in presets, community contributions, and downloadable preset packs. One-click audio preview before loading. Designed for live performance Full MIDI CC mapping and expression pedal support for hands-free control. Low-latency processing — built for real-time use, not offline rendering. Works with any instrument: acoustic strings, guitar, synth, voice, field recordings. Runs in any DAW (Ableton, Logic, Reaper, Bitwig...) or standalone host. Transparent about AI Ferment uses AI (Gemini Flash) to translate creative intent into parameter values. But every single value AI generates is visible and editable in Machine view. There are no hidden layers, no locked parameters. If you don't want to use AI at all, Machine and Material work completely offline. Specs Formats: VST3, AU, CLAP. Platforms: macOS 10.15+ / Windows 10+. Parameters: 92. Trial: Full features, 3 preset saves. License: $29 one-time purchase, no subscription. Beta: Currently in public beta — join the beta and help shape the final release. Feedback welcome at labs@ciderka.com Made with care by a solo developer from the Czech Republic. Questions or feedback: labs@ciderka.com Read More

KERN Audio offers a complete plugin mixing chain (SMOOTH, WARM, WIDE + free CHECK)
You’ve probably read our article about the free KERN CHECK spectral mono compatibility analyzer earlier this month. We absolutely loved it. CHECK shows you where your stereo image collapses in mono across 40 frequency bands, and it’s a very useful little diagnostic tool. The developer behind CHECK, Jonas R, also makes three paid mixing plugins [...]
View post: KERN Audio offers a complete plugin mixing chain (SMOOTH, WARM, WIDE + free CHECK)

SOS Music Creators Survey 2026 Complete our survey and enter the prize draw for a chance to win one of three $50 Amazon vouchers!

The Crow Hill Company has added 1986, a Prophet-VS-inspired synth plugin, to the FREE Vaults series
1986 is the latest addition to The Crow Hill Company’s Vaults series, and it’s available in AU, VST, VST3, and AAX formats for macOS and Windows. As always, Vaults releases are free to download for six months before moving into the donationware category. At which point, they are available to purchase with a £3 donation, [...]
View post: The Crow Hill Company has added 1986, a Prophet-VS-inspired synth plugin, to the FREE Vaults series

Best Service launch Desert Winds The latest library to join Best Service’s ever-growing range includes four solo wind instruments that capture the spirit of traditional music from Armenia, Persia, Turkey and the Middle East. 

DeadLoop MoonPadMoonPad is a polyphonic synthesizer built for atmospheric sound design — from lush evolving pads to aggressive textured leads. 128 voices, 50+ presets, ~3% CPU. Synthesis Engine Dual oscillators with 6 waveforms (SuperSaw, Wavetable, Saw, Square, Triangle, Sine). PolyBLEP anti-aliasing, PWM, wavefold, hard sync, and FM synthesis. Shimmer Reverb 8-line FDN with allpass diffusion, modulated delays, dual-band damping, and granular pitch shifting at +12 semitones. Tidal Granular Engine 8-grain processor with pitch shift, scatter, stereo spread, feedback, and freeze mode. Filters 12 models: SVF, Moog Ladder, MS-20, Sallen-Key, Formant vowels, and resonant Comb. Effects & Modulation Multiband compressor with Linkwitz-Riley crossover. Full parametric EQ (HP, LP, 2 mid bands, shelves). Stereo chorus and syncable delay. 8-step trance gate with per-step level. BPM-synced arpeggiator (4 modes, up to 4 octaves). 8-slot mod matrix (9 sources, 13 destinations). Interface GPU-accelerated lunar UI with interactive Moon XY pad, crater snap points, and audio-reactive particles. Built in C++ with JUCE — 6MB install, ~180MB RAM. Important Notes MoonPad is developed by DeadLoop, an independent one-person studio. Our installers are not yet code-signed by Apple or Microsoft: Windows: SmartScreen may show a warning. Click "More info" then "Run anyway". macOS: Right-click the file, select "Open", then click "Open" again. These warnings are standard for independent developers. MoonPad contains no malware or tracking software. 14-day free trial available — no credit card required. Perpetual license with free lifetime updates. Activate on up to 2 machines. Bugs or issues? Contact us at contact@deadloop.fr — we respond quickly. Read More

FX-Mechanics Black Widow DrumsThe Black Widow Drums project is the first published drum sampler showcase for FxmeSampler's advanced spatial and processing features. Recorded on a Gretsch Black Widow kit, it utilizes an original microphone array and signal processing chain to deliver a studio-ready drum sound. Video demo here Microphone Configuration: Overheads: Rode NT-SF1 First-Order Ambisonic microphone, capturing a full 360° sound field. Kick: Blue Kick Ball. Snare/Toms: Three Shure SM57s (Snare, High Tom, Low Tom). Advanced Ambisonic-Mono Routing: Each drum element leverages the ambisonicmono hybrid strip. This routes the 4-channel B-Format overhead signal plus the dedicated proximity microphone into a single channel strip. This allows for: Spatial Sculpting: Precision control over the elevation, azimuth, and width of the overhead "view" for each specific drum. The Virtual MS Mic: The ability to treat the ambisonic field as a virtual Mid-Side pair that can be panned and balanced. Hybrid Mixing: An equal-power mix control to blend between the localized spatial field and the punch of the close-mic proximity signal. Room Modeling To optimize performance and reduce the plugin's memory footprint, the room sound is not played back from raw multi-channel files. Instead, a transfer function was calculated between the omnidirectional (W) component of the ambisonic overheads and the physical room microphones. This resulted in Impulse Responses (IRs). The Room channel in the mixer functions as a real-time convolution engine, applying these IRs to the dry signals. This provides an authentic room character while saving gigabytes of sample data. Processing & Mix Architecture: Channel Processing: Every strip features a dedicated effect chain consisting of a 4-band EQ, Dynamics (Compressor/Limiter), and Tube Saturation for harmonic enhancement. Parallel Compression Bus: A dedicated stereo bus for "New York style" parallel compression to add weight and density to the kit. Spatial FX Bus: A secondary bus hosting a combined Delay and Convolution Reverb for additional depth and atmosphere. Read More

Shadaloo Audio DSP releases H, a FREE tone and loudness enhancer plugin
Shadaloo Audio DSP has released H, a free tone and loudness enhancer plugin for macOS and Windows. H was built by Fabio “Shadaloo” Caterino, an Italian multi-platinum certified mix and mastering engineer. He originally designed the plugin for his own mixes and then decided to release it publicly as a pay-what-you-want download. First of all, [...]
View post: Shadaloo Audio DSP releases H, a FREE tone and loudness enhancer plugin