Model 80 Five Voice Synthesizer is the latest software instrument to be released by Softube, and is said to provide the authentic sound, feel and performance of one of the most iconic synthesizers of all time, the Sequential Prophet-5.
Each section of the original instrument has been meticulously recreated, with the company paying attention to every detail of the circuit interactions and relationship between voices in order to deliver the most accurate emulation possible. As well as the in-depth modelling of the synthesizer itself, the plug-in also comes loaded with recreations of all 40 of the original factory presets.
Original Features
A pair of oscillators are present, and offer the same choice of waveforms as the Prophet-5: sawtooth and square options are available on both, whilst the second also provides a triangle. Pulse Width parameters are available on each, and Oscillator 2 is kitted out with a fine tuning parameter. The levels of each oscillator can then be balanced and blended with a noise source from within the Mixer section.
The filter section has been faithfully recreated, offering an identical set of parameters to the original instrument, and all of the original modulation options from both the LFO and Wheel Mod sections are gathered together and presented in a new Global Modulation section.
Enhancements
As with many modern recreations of classic instruments, Model 80 also comes equipped with a range of additional features that expand on the feature set provided by the original hardware. Softube have carefully modelled the Voice Mod (Poly Mod) section of the Prophet-5 to ensure that the soft synth’s behaviour matches that of the real instrument, for example, but have also added a new Invert Voice Mod button in order to increase its versatility.
Other enhancements include the introduction of a poly-portamento glide feature, and a Voice Pan Spread parameter which spaces the five voices across the stereo field, and an Aging control which allows users to introduce additional wear, replicating the inconsistencies that are present in older instruments.
As you would expect, it is possible to sync the Model 80’s LFO to the host DAWs tempo if required, and some expressive performance-based features have been added in the form of velocity and aftertouch modulation capabilities.
Modular
In addition to the complete synthesizer, Softube are also including the instrument’s VCO, VCF, LFO, ENV and MULTIPAN sections as individual components for Modular, their modular synthesizer plug-in. Developed in partnership with Doepfer, the plug-in allows users to create their own custom instruments using modules that model a variety of popular analogue synthesizers. To find out more, check out our review in the February 2019 issue.
Compatibility
Model 80 is supported on PCs running Windows 10 or 11, and Macs running macOS 11 or higher. VST, VST3, AU and AAX versions are available, and users will require both a Softube and iLok account.
Pricing & Availability
Model 80 is available now, and is being offered for an introductory price of $99 until 2 June 2023, after which it will increase to $159.
