Creating asub bass can be very easy: Open your favorite (bass) synth, turn on a sine ortriangle oscillator and boom, you got a nice and clean sub bass.
Sometimes,a sub bass like this won’t do, though – you might need a little more bombast. Forthis case, I’ve created the following list where I’m collecting free sub bassVST plugins and sample libraries.
Free Synth Plugins For Ableton Mac. A curated selection of the best free 64 bit emulations of analog synths in VST or Audio Unit format for Mac OS X or PC Windows. These VSTi can be used in Ableton Live, Logic Pro, Steinberg Cubase, FL Studio, Bitwig and all other daw and hosts that support VST plugins and AU.
Note: Make sure to use headphones or quality speakers to listen to the audio examples. Sub frequencies do not translate well on phone and laptop speakers.
Xsub
Format: VST, 32 bit + 64 bit
OS: Windows, Mac
- A great synth from the guys who brought us the TAL-Effects bundle I mentioned previously. Well worth a look. Available for PC and Mac. More info and download here. Ichiro Toda Synth1 This synth is modelled on the modern classic Clavia Nord Lead 2 Red Synth Nuff said really:) Available for PC and Mac.
- Akai MPK249US: UK: CAN: Free Synth Plugin DownloadsTyrell N6: http://www.vst4free.com.
Audio examples:
Xsub is a free808 sub bass VST brought to you by Hexloops and SimplySounds. According toHexloops, Xsub was created “using analog synthesizers, digital sine waves,guitar amps and other fancy gear.” A total of 36 different bass sounds areincluded, each spanning two octaves. I was surprised by how much the includedsounds differ in character. Some of the sounds include an 808-ish click in thebeginning, while others are smooth bass sounds. Many of the presets are more onthe distorted side – and while this means that Xsub might be a little dirtierthan some might like, this is also what gives some of the sounds their uniquetone and presence.
Xsub has abuilt-in ADSR envelope, a panning knob and even a reverb. There’s also a pitch-modulatingLFO.
You can download Xsub from the Hexloops website.
X-Eight Lite
Format: VST/AU, 32 bit + 64 bit
OS: Windows, Mac
Audio examples:
X-Eight Liteis the free lite version of X-Eight, an 808 and sub bass VST/AU plugin createdby Thenatan. While the paid plugin contains over 1000 presets, X-Eight Litecomes with a total of 80 sub bass and 808 presets. That’s a good amount ofpresets for a free plugin! What’s even better is that these sounds are all verydistinct, creative and fun to play with.
For some,the main issue with X-Eight Lite might be that many of the sounds are not subbyor subtle enough and will steal quite a bit of attention as they contain plentyof high frequency content. However, depending on the style of music you’remaking, this might also be a good thing – these samples bang hard!
If you wantto remove some of the high frequency content, you can use X-Eight’s built-inlow pass filter. Besides attack and release, you can also dial in the rightamount of glide. This feature makes X-Eight Lite even more useful for creatingengaging beats.
There’sanother issue with this particular preset selection if you’re looking for subbass for layering purposes. Most of the included samples feature a prominentkick or click sound in the beginning. While you can lengthen the attack or pulldown the filter to remove some of the kick/click sounds, this will also shapethe sound in a way that might not be practical for your purpose.
I alsodiscovered an odd behavior that you should be aware of when using the filter:When the filter is completely at 0 and you start turning the knob up slightlywith your mouse, the knob will be sluggish and not move but the filter will, infact, open. (Note: I don’t know if this bug exists just in the context of mysetup or whether it’s reproducible somewhere else.) This is not a big problem,but it’s good to be aware of it.
To get X-Eight, you’ll have to add it to your cart on the Thenatan website. You can decide what you want to pay ($0 is okay as well) and are then redirect to a page where you have to type in your email address. After you’ve submitted your information, you will receive a download link in your email inbox.
Alternatives
Not happy with the selection? Here’s more:
Free Modular Synth
- Beatmaker 808 Bass Module 2 Lite (VST, AU / Windows, Mac / 32 bit + 64 bit)
- subfreak (useable sound but GUI is TINY) (VST / Windows / 32 bit)
About thispage
I decided to focus page exclusively on plugins and libraries that have their strength in the sub range. There are many other bass synths and libraries with a wider range of bass tones that I will cover in other articles.
Synthesizer Software For Mac
Over to you
Free Synth Software For Mac
Free Synth Plug-ins For Mac
If you knowof any other cool sub bass plugins, I’d love to hear from you! Write a commentbelow or get in touch here.
