Plogue’s chipsynth C64 features ‘The Deepest SID Sound Chip Emulation Ever’
Plogue has introduced chipsynth C64, a new virtual instrument for macOS + Windows, described as “The new reference for SID emulation”.
Plogue says that chipsynth C64 is designed to be “the deepest SID sound chip emulation ever”, and the new soft synth is informed by years of research.
The MOS Technology 6581/8580 SID (Sound Interface Device) is the built-in programmable sound generator chip used in the Commodore 64 and other Commodore computers of the era.
The SID contains 3 oscillators, each with a volume envelope, which can either be used as-is, or sent through the filter. SID music typically use one oscillator per sound. This allows for 3 notes of polyphony, but the single filter has to be shared between tracks, requiring the use of ad hoc manual allocation.
Plogue chipsynth C64 removes the need for this complex allocation process, as each voice has access to its own complete emulated core, allowing for rich layered sounds. In addition to this, classic chorus, Ambience reverb and stereo delay effects can be applied.
What they have to say about chipsynth C64:
“The fruit of years of laborious research, it bears our legendary desire for emulation perfection. Real chips in the field vary wildly in sound – every slight deviation in silicon composition radically changes the character of the filter – and we went all out on capturing this.
We reproduced no less than 32 different SID chips in excruciating detail, covering the full rainbow spectrum of SIDs: every revision of 6581 and 8580 from R1 to R5, every tone from warm to bright to clean to distorted and gnarly.
This is a full, REAL emulator that can actually play original songs natively and accurately, with a full-featured SID file player capable of playing even exotic songs with multiple-SID setups, sample playback and hard filter overdrive.
They said it was all bleep bloops. But it’s GOOD bleep and bloops! And we couldn’t be happier. And, as always, no samples are used, it’s all true emulation!”
chipsynth C64 Audio Demos:
chipsynth C64 is available now for $49.95
