Software Alternatives & Reviews

Surge XT VS Synth1

Compare Surge XT VS Synth1 and see what are their differences

Surge XT logo Surge XT

Open-source subtractive-hybrid synthesizer formerly sold commercially as Vember Audio Surge.

Synth1 logo Synth1

Synth1 is a software synthesizer. Functionally it is modeled on the Clavia Nord Lead 2 Red Synth.
  • Surge XT Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-07-31

Surge XT is an open-source hybrid synthesizer and the synth which started the Surge Synth Team project!

  • Synth1 Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-07-22

Surge XT videos

Free VST - Surge Synthesizer plugin

Synth1 videos

Synth1 favorite 25 000 presets banks review

More videos:

  • Review - free download Friday: Synth1 VA synth VST(win and mac)
  • Demo - Synth1 Tyruke Soundbank Demo

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Surge XT and Synth1)
Email Marketing
89 89%
11% 11
Work Management
88 88%
12% 12
Cloud Computing
93 93%
7% 7
Audio & Music
78 78%
22% 22

User comments

Share your experience with using Surge XT and Synth1. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Surge XT seems to be a lot more popular than Synth1. While we know about 178 links to Surge XT, we've tracked only 13 mentions of Synth1. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Surge XT mentions (178)

  • Ask HN: Comment here about whatever you're passionate about at the moment
    Good stuff! I started getting in to this at the start of the year. Already had an old, dusty MicroKORG and MIDI interface to use it as a controller, but recently splashed out on a bigger controller as the Korg's tiny keys were hurting me - plus, I wanted something bigger to get better at piano! A couple of free soft synths I'd recommend are Surge XT, and Vital. https://surge-synthesizer.github.io/... - Source: Hacker News / 6 months ago
  • Obsolete (or not) DAW recommendations for windows 8?
    Https://surge-synthesizer.github.io/ and https://asb2m10.github.io/dexed/ should work like a charm. Source: 10 months ago
  • Hi, I'm new
    To get the equivalent of a symphonic orchestra in your computer, the solution is basically money; you buy the instruments you need. In the case of synthesizers, things are much cheaper - if you put in the effort yourself. https://surge-synthesizer.github.io/ is excellent and could even be used if you wanted to make a more retro-style soundtrack. Source: 10 months ago
  • So is serum worth the money? Can someone ELI5 why I should buy it rather than use a free synth like synth one?
    Instead of Synth1, try https://surge-synthesizer.github.io/ . It's pretty much better in every aspect except for the UI which is going to look a lot more daunting to you ;). Source: 10 months ago
  • These just appeared in my Facebook, anything to be excited about? I’m waiting on prices.
    For the DW-8000, check https://www.fullbucket.de/music/fb7999.html . Alternatively, https://surge-synthesizer.github.io/ can use single-cycle waveforms (basically wavetables that don't change) which can get you close. Source: 10 months ago
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Synth1 mentions (13)

  • Specific plugin question (Ichiro Toda Synth1 on Apple M2 CPU)
    If you haven't used it before but are willing to give it a try on your machine and let me know if it works, I'd really appreciate it. It's free and lightweight, and a nice little synth. It can be downloaded here if anyone's willing to give that a quick try for me https://daichilab.sakura.ne.jp/softsynth/index.html. Source: 8 months ago
  • I can't find a particular sound I am looking for
    Have you tried the free VST called Synth1? you'll probably find these sounds in there, or something that sounds close to this- because the sounds above are pretty straightforward - you can get Synth1 from here - https://daichilab.sakura.ne.jp/softsynth/index.html. Source: 11 months ago
  • Any good free vaporwave/synthwave plugins, vst’s, vital presets I should know about?
    Synth1 is the OG free VA synth and can make some great Synthwave tones: https://daichilab.sakura.ne.jp/softsynth/index.html. Source: about 1 year ago
  • Jazz/funk softsynth for beginner
    Synth1 (Nord Lead 2 style synth) + Synth1 Librarian + Presets. Source: about 1 year ago
  • What's the closest hardware synthesiser to the Synth1 VST?
    Just to be clear SynthV1 and Sythn1 are not the same thing :>. Source: over 1 year ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing Surge XT and Synth1, you can also consider the following products

Vital - Vital is a spectral warping wavetable synthesizer with drag'n'drop modulation workflow and animated preview of the synth's inner workings where needed. Comes with many modulation sources (including audio-rate), MPE support and FX chain.

Serum - VST for FL Studio, Ableton Live, and many other VST supported DAWs. Heavily utilized in EDM.

Dexed - Dexed is a multi-platform, multi-format plugin synth that is closely modeled on the Yamaha DX7.

ZynAddSubFX - ZynAddSubFX is an open source software synthesizer for Linux, Mac OS X and Microsoft Windows.

Auxy Music Studio - Auxy brings real music creation to iPhone in a simple and inspiring format.

padthv1 - An old-school polyphonic additive synthesizer