Dane Bowgen

A synthesizer, often referred to as a synth, is an instrument that plays similarly to a piano, but uses electronic technology. This hybrid allowed anyone who could play a piano to manipulate the sound using LFOs, envelopes, oscillators amongst other effects. Although synths have been around since 1955, the use of them really took off in the 1980s when the technology developed further and more artists began experimenting with them.

Recently, these analog sounds from earlier synth models have been highly sought after the emergence of synthwave and lo-fi music. Unfortunately, many of these old school synths aren’t mass produced anymore, making them expensive to get a hold of.

But never fear, thanks to the rapid advancement of digital music technology, it’s possible to acquire virtual instruments that emulate the sounds and appearance of these machines. But best of all, many of them are free! So let’s take a look at some of the best retro synth VSTs available today.

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7 Best Free Retro Synth VST Plugins, For An 80s Style Sound 2025Read More »

The Roland TR-808 was launched in 1980 and made an instant impact on the way people wrote music. The title of Kanye’s fourth studio album, “808s & Heartbreak,” was inspired by the machine. It’s also a common sound in trap, hip hop, and electronic music.

Fortunately, there are lots of VSTs that replicate the sounds musicians discovered with the old drum machine these days, so it’s no longer necessary to invest in one. Even free ones! Which is what we’ll be looking at in this article.

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7 Best Free 808 VST Plugins 2025Read More »

A good arpeggiator can really help bring excitement and a whole new depth to your simple chord sequence. For drums, it can get you out of your comfort zone of pencilling or playing notes into the grid by creating drum beats in a whole different way.

Ever wondered if there might be any free options out there? This article will cover some of the best arpeggiators out there today. So there’s no need to wonder anymore! Only a need to try as many of these plugins as possible. They’re all good in their own way and perfect for different circumstances.

Most plugins work for both Mac and windows, but the ones that don’t will be made clear in the title (for you Mac users out there).

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7 Best Free Arpeggiator VST Plugins 2025Read More »

Have you become tired of the stock delay plugins that come within your DAW? Are you looking for some new plugins but too broke to splash out on some of the extortionately expensive ones? Then you’ve come to the right place!

On this list, you will read about some of the best free delay plugins available today. Each delay has something unique about it that would prove useful for a music producer or songwriter in specific situations.

So, without further ado, let’s get into the list!

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7 Best Free Delay VST Plugins 2025Read More »

A good analog saturator can really help shape the tone of a mix, bus or single instrument track. It does this by adding harmonic color and compression. Not only could this be achieved by a saturator designated for that purpose, but it’s also possible with old gear like a tape machine or vintage tube compressor.

But what if you didn’t have access to this equipment? Is it impossible to be able to obtain this sought after sound? Not at all. On this list, we will look at some of the best saturator plugins available. They are also totally free.

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13 Best Free Saturation VST Plugins 2025Read More »

Ever wanted to jump into the world of distortion, bitcrushing and saturation without breaking the bank on expensive hardware or VSTs? Well, you’ve come to the right place. Nowadays, there are so many spectacular plugins available to experiment with that are totally free. Today, we’ll be taking a look at some of the best free Distortion VSTs available right now.

Every VST mentioned in this list works on both Mac and Windows, and covers a vast array of distortion plugins, from guitar pedal and amp simulators to subtle saturation tools.

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13 Best Free Distortion VST Plugins 2025Read More »