MusicRadar

Alpha 3: partly inspired by the classic polysynths of the 80s

View in gallery

• Review
• Manufacturer's Description

LinPlug have been part of the plug-in synth scene from the very start. Their products are designed to give artists the tools they need to get on with making music and don't faff about with convoluted algorithms or complex and befuddling structures.

If it says LinPlug on the interface, you know you're going to get an instrument that sounds great and offers plenty of flexibility but won't leave you scratching your head.

The Alpha synth is a fine case in point. It's never been hyped as much as some of LinPlug's collaborative products, but it's quietly attracted a considerable number of fans. This is due in no small part to its agreeable price and the numerous free versions that have cropped up over the years.

Overview

Alpha 3 – the new full version of the synth – is a cross-platform instrument that supports the VST and AU standards.

The paltry asking fee gets you a subtractive synthesizer with all the trimmings: dual oscillators, multimode filtering, built-in chorus and more. Partly inspired by the classic polysynths of the 80s, Alpha 3 is ideal for everything from piercing leads and fulsome basses to viscous pads and evocative effects.

The first link in the Alpha 3 chain is that pair of oscillators; each of these offers 30 waveforms and users can select two distinct waveforms per oscillator and blend between the two. Oscillator 1 can be detuned, and you can also bring some amplitude or ring modulation to the party.

You can apply pulse width modulation to tweak the symmetry of all the onboard waveforms, not just the square waves. As of version 2.2, both of Alpha's oscillators have a switchable 'free running' mode.

In a real analogue synthesizer, the oscillators are running all the time, so when a note is played and the envelope generators open a VCA, the start position of the waveform pushing through is anyone's guess. Many modern instruments eschew this bit of chaos and lose a little grit in the process.

Free running oscillators such as those found here can provide a more convincing and lively sound. One of the most significant additions to version 3 is the noise generator.

Noise is an important element of many synthesized sounds, and its inclusion here ups the tonal ante significantly, giving you the ability to create far more convincing drums, effects and more.

Noise is to a sound designer what white paint is to an artist: it may not be terribly vibrant on its own, but when applied judiciously to the other available colours, the image can burst brilliantly to life.

Filters

We've always been keen on LinPlug's filter designs. Where some developers seem intent on creating filters that maximise the possibility of speaker damage, LinPlug have always focused on the musical aspects of filtering.

Like the popular Curtis chip filters of the 80s, LinPlug's are less about destruction and more about crafting rich, musically useful tones. Alpha 3 features a wide variety of filter modes, including low-, high- and band-pass (the first of which comes in both 12 and 24dB guises).