PhatNoise Simple ModFilter, a freeware modulated filter effect

The LFO on the PhatNoise Simple Modfilter has a waveform selector, rate control, and normal/quad toggle. Even though this is a fairly straightforward filter effect the developer has provided 20 presets to get you started and to show off the various functionalities.

https://www.edinburghrecords.com/products/vst-plugins/modfilter/

Soundiggy Midi Patchbay

Midi Patchbay is quite a simple, yet powerful MIDI merger/splitter/filter. It works as an 8x8 MIDI interface, allowing you to map real physical or virtual MIDI ports to its internal inputs and outputs.

http://en.soundigy.com/midipatchbay.php

FILTEQ

Absession has released Filteq, a freeware 3-band coloring equalizer VST/AU plugin inspired by the Filtek MK3 vintage hardware EQ.

Filtek MK3 is a hardware equalizer from the 1970s, manufactured by the Swiss company FILTEK Labo SA based on the original design by Stefan Sulke. Designed primarily for use as broadcast modules, Filter MK3 and other units inspired by its design later found their use in recording studios. The EQ featured transformer-balanced inputs and outputs, a bypass switch, 3 parametric bands with a 12-way frequency selector on each one, and a pair of filters.

http://analogobsession.com/product/filteq/

VST Video player

VidPlayVST Is A Free Video Player

The user interface is simple, easy to use, and fully resizable which is great. The two buttons in the upper-left corner of the UI are used for loading the desired video file and adjusting the playback settings. From the options menu, the video can be played in full-screen mode, synced to tempo changes (a very cool feature), or muted so that it doesn’t interfere with the rest of the audio. Looping a specified section of the clip is also supported, although it needs to be activated in the options menu first.

Another neat possibility is to trigger the clip via a C note, so that you can sync different clips to different parts of the project, or cue the clip to a particular section of the project’s timeline. I also liked the fact that, since VidPlayVST is loaded as a VST plugin, the loaded file’s audio output is treated as any other audio source, meaning that it can be processed using the effects available inside the DAW. This is pretty useful for fixing a bad sounding clip quickly using advanced audio effects that aren’t available in some video editing applications. Of course, you’d still need to export the edited audio and combine it with the original video file in a separate application.

http://vidplayvst.com/index.htm

OSL Chorus

OSL Chorus, a freeware VST/AU plugin which emulates the chorus module found in the Roland Juno 60 hardware synthesizer.

OSL Chorus was designed to sound as close as possible to the original Juno 60 chorus out of the box. However, in contrast to the original unit which offered only two presets, Oblivion Sound Lab’s freeware emulation provides a range of parameters for customizing its sound. This also makes OSL Chorus an interesting, slightly more advanced alternative to Togu Audio Line’s excellent (and also free) TAL-Chorus-LX effect.

The plugin’s control scheme isn’t super-complex or anything like that, but it provides enough versatility to cover a wide range of chorusing flavors. It features LFO rate, modulation depth, and offset parameters, along with a filter cutoff control and dry/wet signal volume adjustments. The LFO controls can take OSL Chorus anywhere from a very subtle chorus effect to a rather aggressive modulation effect, whereas the filter cutoff dial works well for shaping the tone of the effect. This makes OSL Chorus a reasonably flexible chorus unit, much more so than its hardware counterpart. It’s also worth mentioning the the plugin can process both stereo and mono audio sources, meaning that it can be used for adding width to your mono recordings.

The interface looks nice and clean, with a color scheme which only ever so slightly resembles the synthesizer that inspired it. I’d prefer to see those classic Juno blue and yellow highlights, simply for the nostalgia effect. There’s nothing technically wrong with the GUI, though, and it’s a joy to use. The CPU usage (or lack thereof, to be precise) is another good reason to add OSL Chorus to your plugin arsenal.


http://oblivionsoundlab.com/product/osl-chorus/

VHL-3C Pultec eq

VHL-3C, a freeware vintage Pultec-style filter effect.

VHL-3C is based on Black Rooster Audio’s component-based circuit simulation technology which was used to emulate the classic Pultec passive filter design. The plugin is suitable for cleaning up the high and low end of the processed signal’s frequency spectrum before it reaches an EQ or a compressor. The emulated filters sounds very natural and transparent, making them more suitable for use on certain types of audio material compared to a standard parametric EQ (most of which have built-in high-pass and low-pass filters).

The control scheme is very simple and intuitive. There’s a bypass switch, two cutoff knobs (one for each filter), and a switch for adjusting the filter slope. The cutoff knobs aren’t smooth. There’s a range of preset values to choose from, along with the “OFF” setting for each filter. The high-pass filter ranges from 50 Hz to 2 kHz, whereas the low-pass filter ranges from 1.5 kHz to 15 kHz.

https://blackroosteraudio.com/products/item/vhl-3c.html

Moppelsynths Sonitarium

Sonitarium employs a variant of DSF synthesis with aliasing-free oscillators that generate a quadrature stereo signal. Providing up to 100 oscillators per voice, Sonitarium is most suitable for pads, drone sounds, and some oddities.

Features:
Aliasing-free DSF oscillators, each generating a quadrature stereo signal.
Up to 200 oscillators per voice. Unison controls to alter the pitches and phases of the oscillators.
Freely selectable polyphony with up to 16 voices.
Text field input for all controls.
Envelope and key tracking controlled volume. Adjustable pitch bend range.
Freely adjustable Attack, Decay, and Release slopes.
MIDI control of all parameters (CC).
92 presets.

http://www.verklagekasper.de/synths/sonitarium.html#Do

Thump2 sub bass enhancer

Thump2 is basically a sub bass generator/enhancer effect powered by a couple of envelope driven oscillators that respond independently to the audio signal on the input. It is possible to control the attack and sustain of the amplitude and pitch envelopes, as well as to mix the processed and dry signal on the output. The plugin also provides detailed metering of both oscillators, making it easier to understand how the envelope followers respond to the signal on the input.

The user interface looks nice and comes in three different sizes that can be switched between on the fly (the GUI size control is located in the upper-left corner of the interface). It also features a built-in preset browser with twelve factory patches. The factory presets are a good way to get familiar with Thump2’s controls, along with the well-written user manual in PDF format that is included with the download.

As a mix tool, Thump2 works best for beefing up the low end of acoustic drums, sampled drums and similar percussive material where you don’t have direct control over the pitch. When used on complex material such as a full drum mix, it is advisable to load the plugin on a send channel, so that you can isolate the frequency range on the input with an equalizer. Of course, Thump2 can also be used for a range of more creative purposes, such as generating basslines and comb filter style background textures. The provided dry/wet knob is essentially important when using the plugin as an insert effect. Performance-wise, Thump2 is stable and CPU usage is very low. The plugin used around 1% of available CPU resources on a single core Intel processor during our test in MuLab 6 Free.

http://mhsecure.com/metric_halo/products/software/thump.html

Wavesfactory SK10 Subkick Generator

SK10 was designed to emulate the so-called “subkick” microphone inside your DAW. This is the microphone that captures the lowest frequencies when recording an acoustic drum kit.

https://www.wavesfactory.com/product/sk10/