Free plugins come and go, and while we see plenty of excellent ones passing through our inbox, it's not often we stumble on eleven gems all at once.
After ceasing operations in February, software developer Inear Display has made its entire catalogue of audio tools available as pay-what-you-want downloads – and that means you can have them for free, if you're not able to make a contribution.
Writing on Inear Display's website, founder Thomas Hennebert says that while the company was a commercial endeavour for 12 years, it became a side project in 2025, and now that he's moved on to pastures new, Inear Display's suite of sound-mangling plugins has been generously gifted to the world. Here's a list of the whole bunch.
Article continues below- Ephemere: Glitch percussion synth
- Amalgame: Sound design playground
- Litote: Granular exploration box
- Lancinantes: Drone synthesizer
- Gorgon: Ultraviolent distortion
- Interstice: Esoteric dual band delay
- Incipit: Creative delay toolbox
- Cruelle: Brutal distortion unit
- Antagone: Glitchy dual delay
- Bref: Random glitch percussion synth
- Regressif: Audio degradation effect
Available in both VST3 and AU formats for macOS and Windows, the plugins on offer span both instruments and audio effects, covering distortion, delay, lo-fi processors and granular effects. On the whole, they all share a distinctly glitchy, chaotic and experimental character that will appeal to electronic music-makers taking a leftfield approach to sound design.
Ephemere is an FM-based percussion synth capable of producing some rather brutal sounds that would be right at home in an industrial techno track – hits can be sculpted via the multimode filter and dual envelope generators, and extensive randomization options are on hand to keep things interesting.
Litote is an audio effect that creates ambient soundscapes and atmospheric textures using a combination of granulators, resonators and diffusion delays. The plugin is kitted out with four separate granular engines, each with its own set of controls, that can be blended via an XY pad. Once again, there's intelligent randomization to play with, along with a neat Trajectory Mode that modulates the position of the target on the pad.
Probably the most powerful tool in the set is Amalgame, a multi-effects plugin and "sound design playground" designed to streamline the creation of complex signal processing chains.
Stacked with a library of 23 individual effects, spanning reverbs, delays, filters, distortion, modulation and more exotic options, Amalgame can chain up to six effects, each equipped with an XY pad for two-dimensional control. Both X and Y axes can be modulated using dedicated tempo-synced sequencers with adjustable rate, length, and direction, so there's real potential here to create complex and evolving textures with a combination of effects.
While we haven't had a chance to test out all 11 of Inear Display's plugins, we've had tons of fun with the handful that we've tried – this is a fantastic set of creatively inspiring tools that really has no business being free. If you're able to contribute, we urge you to pay a fair price for the plugins you download.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.