Horizen 2

Name: Horizen 2
Price: 129 USD
Author: Tracktion

by Tracktion · Sampler · Hybrid sample, synth and loop instrument

Not rated yet

Horizen 2 is a Synth Factory instrument sold by Tracktion that combines four sample engines, four dual-oscillator/wavetable synths and two loop players.

It ships with 850+ voices and 350+ presets aimed at cinematic and multi-genre scoring, for $129.

Best for: Keys & Synths, Sound Design, Acoustic Instruments. Genres: Ambient & Cinematic, Electronic & EDM, Pop.

Keywords: cinematic, film & game audio, hybrid, wavetable, arpeggiator, chord generator, CPU-light, pads, polyphonic, drones, FM, monophonic, preset-driven, sequencer, sound design.

What it does

Horizen 2 is a hybrid instrument from Tracktion, built with Channel Robot's Lindon Mulcahy-Parker to meet the needs of composer and producer Andy Hodgson; the developer calls it "a synth made by composers for composers." It layers up to ten sound sources and blends them with an XY pad.

10-voice architecture: 4 sample engines, 4 dual-oscillator wavetable synths with FM, and 2 loop players, drawing on a library of more than 850 voices.
XY pad: drag sound sources onto the pad and move between them to morph the layered sound.
Loop players: drag and drop your own audio into the two loop engines.
Arpeggiators: two voice-assignable arpeggiators with 6 playback directions and a Pattern Generator for custom patterns.
Chord and Strum players: a chord player on 16 MIDI keys with 12 chord types; version 2.7 adds a Strum Player with CC control and Note Effects such as Arp Manager and Mono Glide.
Modulation: a drag-and-drop system with up to 6 LFOs with user-drawn shapes, 2 key, 2 velocity and 2 CC modulators, plus a Depth control that can follow aftertouch.
Effects: 23 voice and master effects with 4 send slots per voice; v2.7 added 7, including Rotary Speaker, Dark Drive, Glimmer and WarpVerb.

Version 2.7 ships with 350+ base presets; nine expansion packs are sold separately. A 7-day unlimited trial is available.

Source: Tracktion product page

When to use it

Horizen 2 is a layering instrument for scoring: its strength is blending samples, synths and loops into evolving beds from one XY pad. Compared with Omnisphere 3 it is far cheaper and much smaller in library and synthesis depth, but it is lighter on the CPU and quicker to get moving pads from. Unlike Kontakt 8, it is a closed instrument with its own engines rather than a host for third-party libraries. Next to Pigments 7 it has less synthesis power but more built-in loop and sample layering aimed at underscore.

Best for: cinematic beds, layered pads, drones and loop-driven underscore for film, games and video.
Genres: cinematic, ambient, electronic and pop.
Look elsewhere if: you need a much larger sound library (Omnisphere 3), or deep synth programming from scratch (Pigments 7).
Tip: open the plugin window to at least half the screen, since the labels are small, and try the randomizer for new starting points.

What producers say

The one detailed review found is clearly positive, praising the sound and the low CPU load, with reservations about editing depth and pack installation.

ProAudio.tech (Peter Kaminski, September 2025, version 2.6.1) recommended it for film, video and ambient work, praising the ten parallel engines, very low CPU use, easy preset handling and the expansion packs.
Criticisms: building your own presets takes synth experience and patience, installing expansion packs was described as "complicated", and the UI labels are small.

ProAudio.tech review

Where to buy

Tracktion: $129

Tutorials and reviews

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