On our MakeMoreNoise site and YouTube channel we’ve been pretty clear that we like a free plug-in. The sharp eyed amongst you may have noticed that we haven’t done much on synths. So without further ado here’s five free soft synths you should definitely add to your audition list.

IK Multimedia SampleTank Free

Available from IK Multimedia SampleTank free is, as the name implies, a sample based softsynth. It’s a hefty download at over 500 meg but that gets you over 200 sounds. Available as an AU, RTAS and VST for Mac and Windows it will work with all the major hosts. SampleTank also includes 33 DSP effects so you can modify sounds to suit your own taste.

The bundled sound set represents most of the important areas and could be described as a good “bread and butter” set. You can read a complete list of presets here. The SampleTank 2 sounds are augmented by taster sets from Sonik Synth 2, SampleMoog and Miroslav Philharmonik. Which add variety and give you an idea of what you’d get if you’re prepared to open your wallet.