Circle²
by Future Audio Workshop · Synth · Hybrid synth with drag-and-drop modulation
Not rated yet
Circle² is a hybrid synth with analogue, wavetable and VPS (vector phase shaping) oscillators and a drag-and-drop modulation system in one window.
It has 32-voice polyphony, an arpeggiator, NKS support and over 300 patches, and the developer lists it as free.
Best for: Keys & Synths, Bass, Sound Design. Genres: Electronic & EDM, Pop, Hip-Hop & Trap.
Keywords: hybrid, polyphonic, wavetable, modulation matrix, free, arpeggiator, modular, preset-driven, sound design, analog-sounding, analog, simple, leads, plucks, sequencer, subtractive, tube.
What it does
Circle² is Future Audio Workshop's semi-modular hybrid synth, built around a single window where you drag colour-coded modulators onto any control. The developer's pitch is "Synthesis made simple."
- Oscillators: four analog, four wavetable (110 shapes) and four VPS (Vector Phase Shaping) oscillators, plus a noise source and a feedback module.
- Filters and drive: an analog-modelled filter, a dual analog-modelled filter, two mouth (formant) filters, two fuzz and two overdrive units, two parametric EQs, two crushers and a VCA.
- Effects: up to three instances each of analog phaser, reverb, double echo, ping-pong echo, chorus, panner, analog-modelled bucket delay and tube distortion.
- Modulation: five wavetable LFOs with 16 shapes, five ADSR envelopes and five 16-step sequencers, all routed by dragging them onto a parameter.
- Performance: 32-voice polyphony, a MIDI note arpeggiator with swing and DAW sync, and visual MIDI learn with range adjustment.
- Patches and NKS: over 300 patches in a Smart Browser, extra patch packs for sale, and NKS support for Native Instruments hardware.
The current version is 2.2.1. The developer's homepage lists Circle² as free, while the product page still offers a trial by email sign-up and a Splice rent-to-own plan.
Source: Future Audio Workshop product page
When to use it
Circle² is the better pick when you want fast, visual patching rather than deep menus: you see every module at once and wire modulation by dragging. Compared with Vital it is older and has a much simpler wavetable side, but its VPS oscillators give odd, glassy and organ-like digital tones that Vital does not focus on. It is far less flexible than Phase Plant, which lets you build the signal chain from scratch, and it lacks the sample and granular engines of Serum 2. As a free download it costs nothing to try next to them.
- Best for: quick sound design with visual modulation, plucks, odd digital leads and dubby echo effects.
- Genres: electronic, techno, dub, pop and hip-hop.
- Look elsewhere if: you want a current, actively developed wavetable synth; Vital is also free and goes much deeper.
- Tip: hover a modulator over an input slot to hear its effect before you commit the connection (Resident Advisor).
What producers say
Reviewers liked version 2 for its sound and ease of use when it launched in 2015, with the main gripes about missing control over modulation and the VPS oscillator.
- Computer Music (via MusicRadar, 2015) called it an excellent semi-modular synth at a fair price, praising the new VPS oscillator and the Bucket Delay for "old-school dub echoes"; it noted the VPS can't act as a sub or sync source and there were few new features for the long wait.
- Resident Advisor (Mark Strauss, 2015) scored it 4.8 out of 5 for sound and ease of use and 4.0 for cost and versatility, praising the redesigned interface and the VPS oscillator's control.
- Criticisms: modulation amounts can't be automated or controlled by MIDI or OSC, and there is no sustain pedal support (Resident Advisor).
Where to buy
- Future Audio Workshop: Free
Tutorials and reviews
- Circle 2 Synth From Future Audio Workshop - Show & Reveal With Rob Jones
- Circle 2 Synth By Future Audio Workshop - Creating A Wobble Bass
- The Future of Synthesizer Vst? FAW Circle 2 plugin Review
- FAW Circle 2 First Look and some sound design
- FAW Circle 2 synth VST/AU plugin in action
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