Lector
by Waldorf · Vocal Tool · Vocoder with built-in synth
Not rated yet
Lector is a stereo vocoder with 3 to 100 bands, built for clear speech intelligibility, with its own 16-voice synthesizer as a carrier and a full effects section.
It can make robot voices, talking drum loops, whispering strings and resonant bell tones, and costs €149 (about $169).
Best for: Vocals, Keys & Synths, Drums, Sound Design. Genres: Electronic & EDM, Pop, Hip-Hop & Trap.
Keywords: synths, dialogue, drums, samples & loops, vocals, strings, sound design, classic, sidechain input, deep, mixing, PWM, choir, pads, surgical, tempo-synced, tube.
What it does
Lector is Waldorf's software vocoder, built around speech intelligibility. It splits the input into up to 100 bands and uses them to shape a built-in synth or an external carrier, from a few bands for a classic robot voice to many bands for clear, detailed words.
- Bands: 3 to 100 selectable bands in a stereo design, with an adjustable analysis range and LFO-modulated offsets for the synthesis filterbank.
- Analysis tools: a whitening filter for preprocessing (useful on choir or vocal samples), a voiced/unvoiced detector, a 3-band parametric EQ, and separate compressors for the speech and carrier signals.
- Carrier synth: 16 voices with two oscillators each (sine, triangle, saw, pulse with PWM, sample & hold, noise), plus single and multi-sample playback.
- Synth shaping: FM and ring modulation, a multimode filter (lowpass, bandpass, highpass, notch at 12 or 24 dB), two AR envelopes, one LFO, portamento, and poly, mono or free-running modes.
- Effects: overdrive (tube, diode or hard clip), a 2- to 6-stage stereo chorus/flanger, tempo-syncable stereo delay and a hall reverb.
- Routing: sidechain input for an external carrier or modulator in VST3 and AU, and a separate carrier plugin for VST2 hosts; separate speech and carrier output levels.
A test version is available.
When to use it
Lector is the better pick when the words have to stay understandable: its 100-band analysis goes much finer than a classic-style vocoder like TAL-Vocoder, which aims at a vintage sound. Compared with Arturia's Vocoder V, which models a specific vintage unit, Lector is a modern design with a whole synth inside, so it works on its own without routing a carrier. It is also more of a sound-design tool than a vocal plugin like Nectar 4, with ring modulation, overdrive and formant-style filtering that go far past a robot voice. The trade-off is an older interface.
- Best for: intelligible vocoded vocals, robot voices, and putting speech or drum rhythms onto pads and strings.
- Genres: electronic, electro-pop, pop, hip-hop and sci-fi sound design.
- Look elsewhere if: you want a quick vintage vocoder sound with fewer controls (TAL-Vocoder or Vocoder V).
- Tip: over-enunciate when recording the modulator voice, and use the EQ to tame bass when vocoding with kick drums.
What producers say
Reviewers like its sound and depth; the main complaint is the hard-to-read interface.
- Future Music (MusicRadar, 2011) praised the deep parameter set, the 100-band analysis, the ring modulator and the effects, saying it does "classic vocoding beautifully"; its only con was the GUI's colours and shading, which make text hard to read.
- Barry Rudolph (Music Connection) called it more than a vocoder, praising the formant filter bank with LFO control and its use with drum loops as triggers; he raised no criticisms.
- Usage tips: explore the synth before vocoding, automate the Speech and Carrier levels for layered harmonies, and try a string synth as the carrier via sidechain.
Where to buy
- Best Service: $140.17
- Plugin Boutique: $165
- PluginFox: $165
- AudioDeluxe: $165
- Audio Plugin Deals: $165
- Waldorf: $169.19 (Listed at €149 incl. VAT; converted at €1 = $1.1355 (ECB rate, 29 Sep 2026))
Tutorials and reviews
- Waldorf Lector Vocoder Tutorial
- Checking Out Lector by Waldorf!
- Waldorf Lector Vocoder
- Waldorf Lector Demo - Synthesizer section
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