Absynth Returns: Weirder Than Ever After 16 Years
▼ Summary
– Absynth 6 marks the return of the cult-classic soft synth, developed with its original designer and featuring presets from notable artists like Brian Eno.
– The synth retains its core semi-modular design with multiple synthesis engines, including subtractive, FM, sample playback, and granular synthesis.
– It distinguishes itself with an exceptionally powerful envelope system, offering up to 68 points for creating complex, evolving soundscapes.
– New features include MPE support for expressive per-note control and an AI-assisted preset explorer for navigating its extensive sound library.
– The update is priced at $199 for new users, with a $99 upgrade path available for owners of the discontinued Absynth 5.
After a sixteen-year hiatus, the legendary software synthesizer Absynth has made a dramatic comeback. Absynth 6 emerges from its long slumber, rebuilt in partnership with its original creator and infused with new, cutting-edge capabilities. This revival brings back the beloved, deeply experimental instrument with a modernized interface, AI-powered sound discovery, and support for the latest expressive playing techniques, ensuring its place as a uniquely powerful tool for sound designers and composers.
The soul of Absynth remains intact. It continues to be a formidable semi-modular synth, offering a choice of synthesis engines: traditional subtractive with customizable waveforms, frequency modulation (FM), a sample player, and a granular engine. This places it among powerhouse instruments like Omnisphere and Serum. However, Absynth’s true distinction lies in its unparalleled modulation system. Eschewing simple ADSR envelopes, it provides envelopes with up to 68 breakpoints that can loop, run once, or sync to tempo. This extraordinary flexibility is the key to crafting sounds that evolve and morph over time, living up to its “weird by design” philosophy.
This update significantly expands its creative potential. New MPE (MIDI Polyphonic Expression) support allows each note to be manipulated independently on compatible controllers. Pressing harder on a key might open a filter, while sliding a finger could introduce a new oscillator layer, enabling incredibly nuanced and dynamic performances. Furthermore, Absynth 6 now supports up to eight-channel surround sound, a rare feature that opens vast possibilities for immersive cinematic and atmospheric scoring.
The most visually striking new feature is an AI-assisted preset browser. Instead of a standard list, it presents sounds as a constellation of points grouped by mood. While this can inspire happy accidents within the library of over 2,000 presets, some users may find navigating and tracking auditioned sounds less intuitive than a traditional menu. For quick sound shaping, each patch includes up to eight macro knobs and a “Mutate” button that generates semi-random variations on the current sound.
Priced at $199 for new users, Absynth 6 also offers a $99 upgrade path for owners of the previous version. Its return reaffirms its status as an indispensable instrument for anyone dedicated to forging truly original and evolving sonic textures.
(Source: The Verge)
