« Cool Freeware Synth »

NorthernBeat's Deadalus is a polyphonic VA(virtual analog) synthesizer. The synth features two oscillators, two filters that you can route to essentially whatever you want. There's also ring modulation, oscillator sync, chorus, delay, and an arpeggiator, which all work very well. Put together, these parts create a very solid and reliable, and easy to use synthesizer. It may not be the must have synth of the year, but it will prove a worthy addition to any collection. While it doesn't necessarily bring anything new to the table, it is a very solid synth with plenty of features in a simple and accessible interface. The sound can get very thick if you like that, especially with the onboard chorus.

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

The synthesizer comes as a standard VSTi plugin for windows, and installation is as simple as directing the .dll file to your plugin directory and opening your DAW. The plugin runs impeccably on my older windows XP install, with only 1 gig of RAM in Ableton Live. There are no performance issues or crashes. The interface is very nice and attractive, very professional looking. This isn't a top of the line synth by any means, or a very powerful one either, but it's still pretty cool and fun to have around. It's not particularly "powerful" but it sure does a lot with what it has, and does it well.

OVERALL OPINION

My favorite thing about this synth has got to be the fact that it only takes a minimal amount of tweaking to get what you want, be it filter sweeping pads, or crazy Dutch House leads. The ring modulator and chorus are both easily manipulated to add variety to the sounds. I'm not too impressed with the built in delay, which does not sync to tempo, but I have others so there isn't much need for it anyways. Overall, it's free so download it and try and put it too good use.