The Best Synth Plugins for Lofi and Chill Beats
Hey, here are some cold hard facts. Lofi is fun to listen to, and it’s fun to make. Go ahead, set the tempo at around 80 bpm, throw a couple chords around, add a chill beat. Alright, now look me in the eyes and tell me you’re not having the time of your life. You can’t, right? That’s what I thought. And maybe it’s just me, but the more VSTs you have to play with, the more fun you have. Especially when you can get yourself a new synth plugin for a few dollars. That’s right, you don’t have to spend thousands of dollars on hardware to make music nowadays, you can just get a couple nice plugins and get started. There are even some free plugins out there that are just as good as the best of ‘em. I made a little list for you, check out my picks below.
Love-Fi Lite 2 | Quiet Music
If you want to get in the lofi game, I really recommend experimenting with all sorts of cool synths and acoustic instruments. But I also understand that it might be an overwhelming process to try to get the classic chill sounds from all these intimidating tools.
Luckily, if you’re looking for that straight up lofi “beats to relax and study to” sauce, there have been a few interesting instruments aimed specifically at the genre lately. For instance, Love-Fi is a super fun instrument that contains 3 modules. You have all the classic key sounds in the Midnight module, some tasty drums in Rhythm, and sweet foley and nature noises in Things.
Even as someone who has all the plugins in the world, I use this on the daily. (Seriously though, I have a VST addiction, consider this my cry for help!) Love-Fi is like that comfort food your mama makes: it’s rich, nostalgic, and it always hits the spot.
Get started with Love-Fi Lite, which is entirely free. If you dig, you can upgrade to the paid version.
Download Love-Fi here.
PlastikGuitar | Audiolatry
You might have all the keys and the synths you need, but what about guitars. What about those sensuous tickles of the nylon strings? You need those too.
I have some pretty good guitar VST, but when I’m making lofi, the legit industry standards are almost too perfect. Most often, I want those weird re-sampled types of textures, that’s why I love PlastikGuitar. This free VST has no pretensions of being a faithful recreation of an acoustic instrument.
PlastikGuitar - like its name suggests - sounds crappy and ugly and I love it.
Another great free option is Classic.GTR, by the same folks who brought you Love-Fi. Get bought (they’re free) and see which one floats your boat.
Download PlastikGuitar here.
U-NO-LX | TAL Software
The U-NO-LX is based on the infamous Juno 60, a vintage Roland synth from the 80s. You know the 80s, right? Well, they’re back, so deal with it.
The Juno is a fantastic instrument that manages to sound retro - sometimes straight-up weird - without being too associated with a specific era of music. Maybe that’s the case because it’s been used pretty constantly since its release. I’m sure all your favorite artists have a Juno patch somewhere on at least a few of their tracks.
U-NO is really comprehensive, you don’t have to dive down countless menus to create cool keys and pulsating arpeggios. That being said, it’s always good to get started with some beautiful presets.
A company called Reverb Machine has some especially good preset banks inspired by modern artists. Check it out!
Download U-NO-LX here.
Synplant | Sonic Charge
Making lofi is all about buying organic and making so-called happy accidents. So if you’re tired of cycling through the same presets over and over again, but you also think making patches from scratch is sort of intimidating, then Synplant might be the synth for you.
Inspired by DNA, Synplant let’s you make whacky synth patches by drawing plant roots. And in case you’re wondering, no I didn’t just have a stroke. Maybe I don’t sound like I’m making much sense, but maybe I’m just on my next-level shit. Have you considered that?
So, yeah, Synplant sounds like nothing else. It’s really weird and goofy, and it’s the kind of plugin that breaks the routine and forces you to think outside of the box and reconnect with the pleasure of making music. No wonder this thing has been the secret weapon of some of the dopest producers out there, including Duke Dumont and Petit Biscuit, to name a few.
Download Synplant here.
Serum | Xfer Records
Will I ever write a post about cool synths and not talk about Serum?
No. No, I won’t.
Serum is the absolute bomb for all the EDM big sounds and modulated madness. I wouldn’t blame you for thinking it’s not suited for lofi, but you’d be TOTALLY wrong. Serum can get pretty lofi synth sounds if you know how to use it.
I suggest playing with the noise generator and the filter envelopes until you get a sound you like. It’s really not that hard…
But I understand that time is money, and maybe you just want some cool presets. Why not? A company called Echo Sound Works makes some of my favorite presets out there. They really put a lot of love + care into their craft.
They have a lot of free products and insane deals all year long. If you’re looking to invest in some preset packs, I’d suggest Vivid and X Keys, which you can find in the Soundsets section of their website.
Put that in your pipe, you won’t regret it.
Download Serum here.
Astra | Splice
If you’re making lofi, you’re probably hard into Splice. Mark my word, this website will have proven to be as important in the history of music as the invention of the flugelhorn (or the invention of the piano, if you’re a nerd.)
Splice is the top source for cool samples, and as a beatmaker who has lived through the before as well as the after, I can’t express how good it feels to have samples you can’t use without being scared of getting sued by The Winstons.
Anyways, Splice also launched a VST synth, and it’s pretty cool. With its clean interface, it’s simple enough to use, but the real selling point is… once again… say it with me… THE! PRESETS!
That’s right, you can buy countless great presets on their website for a couple cents each. When Astra first came out, honestly I thought it was some kind of cheap gimmick to get me to spend my hard-earned credits, but I have to admit I’ve been using it. Like, a lot.
Astra comes free when you subscribe to Splice. Since you’re probably already on Splice, you can download Astra, load it up and get jiggy.
Download Astra here.
Old Tape Piano | Wavesfactory
If you're like me, your fingers are raw from putting another RC-20 on a piano track over and over again all the damn time. There’s gotta be a better way, right?
Old Tape Piano is a Kontakt instrument that sounds like it’s already been mixed, so you can just stick it in your mix and use the time you saved to get a bowl of Cap’n Crunch, or whatever your hobby is.
It’s not a game-changer, but it’s cool.
If you’re looking for some cool free keys, I’d recommend LABS by Spitfire Audio. It comes with a couple of really well-made instruments including my personal favorite: Soft Piano, which is basically pure gold in sound form.
Download Old Tape Piano here.
Lounge Lizard | Applied Acoustics Systems
Is it me or do all the Rhodes plugins suck @$$…?
Well, all but one: Lounge Lizard. This has all the creamy tones I want when I want an electric piano on a track. It’s simple to use, has some great effects and it sits well in a mix.
This is my one and only go-to for Rhodes, although I’ll give props to Arturia for making some improvements to Stage 73 V, making it a pretty accurate interpretation of the more nuanced side of the famous keyboard.
Still, if you want that classic smooth jazzy chill sound, hit up The Liz (That’s my fun little nickname for Lounge Lizard.)
Download Lounge Lizard here.
CS-80 V4 | Arturia
Speaking of Arturia, their V Collection X offers a treasure trove of amazing vintage synth goodness. I will never not recommend Analog Lab Pro, which is sort of Arturia’s tasting menu (or maybe their salad bar?)
And look, I love a tasting menu, but sometimes you want to go one-on-one with some delicious dish and really chow down, you know? For lofi, I’d recommend getting the brand new version of the CS-80, one of the most ambitious and successful emulations of the French company’s catalog. (That says a lot because everything they do is nothing short of miraculous.)
Based on a Yamaha absolute classic, the CS-80 has all the woolly and fuzzy tones you need to create an ambiance like a motherfucker. It’s an endlessly inspiring instrument. I dare you to load it up, pick a preset at random, and not get inspired to make an amazing track!
You didn’t even accept my dare, and yet you’ve already lost. The CS-80 V4 is that good.
miniBit | AudioThing
The year was 2003. People spoke on landline phones like a bunch of losers, and the web 2.0 was just a glimmer in society’s eyes. At the time, a bunch of nerds were buying old video game consoles and circuit-bending them to make some cool-ass music.
The white pleather belt was en vogue. Frankly, it was a better time.
Cut to today! Kids are on their TikToks downloading vape and paying for it in space coins (I just made that up, but doesn’t it sound like a thing?) Musicians are in their plasma pods, dreaming of the fuzzy music of yesteryears, which they call “lofi”…
Sorry, I was brainstorming a pitch for my sci-fi movie, but my point is that chiptune is cool. Old 8-bit games are cool, and maybe it’s time to bring those sounds back in lofi and give that Yoshi meets Metroid sound to your tracks. Which you can do with miniBit by AudioThing.
Stick that in an RC-20 and call me in the morning. And while you’re at it, use it to generate some funky Super Nintendo-style drums. It’s time.
Download miniBit here.
EMISYNTH | Strix Instruments
You know that feeling of going to a thrift store and finding some obscure cheapo-depot keyboard that you then bring home and put all over your tracks? And then your friends think you’re a genius because they’ve all been using the same freakin’ 8 presets on Omnisphere while you’re out there living your best life?
You know the feeling I’m talking about?
Well, EMISYNTH can give you that great experience sans the bed bugs and the weird chemical smells that come with every thrift store. (Seriously, why does it smell like that??)
For this Kontakt instrument, Strix Instruments got their grubby mitts on a bunch of weird soviet toys and keyboards, sampled them to perfection, and put them in your computer for you to enjoy.
Isn’t that nice? It’s nice, right?
And we’re basically living in a crumbling empire, so at least we have that in common with soviet machines… But I digress.
This is a great instrument for leads and pads and even sound design. Look, it’s a VST, use it however you want, I’m not here to tell you how to live your life.
Download EMISYNTH here.
Lofi Panda | Clark Audio
Much like the aforementioned Love-Fi, Lofi Panda 2 is a great instrument preloaded with a bunch of instantly loveable, playlist-ready sounds. If you want those juicy type beat sounds you’ve been looking for, this is the one.
Also, the interface has a drawing of a panda on it. Like, come on guys, enough with your boring GUI. I’m staring at this stuff all day, why not throw a cute animal in the mix? You know what I mean? It’s just a cool thing to do.
Download Lofi Panda here.
Bonus: Scaler 2 | Plugin Boutique
Ooh yeah, that’s right, we’re in the bonus round now, babe. I’m including Scaler 2 in my list of synths because a) it has a sound engine included in it, and b) because this is my blog and as long as you’re under my roof, you will listen to me talk about VSTs no one else but me cares about!
Sorry, I guess I’m in one of my moods today.
But yeah, basically Scaler has some cool sounds, but the main attraction is the powerful chord generating it can do. No more boring piano loops you’ve heard on a million tracks. No more futzing around playing the same chord voicings you’ve played a thousand times.
In a couple of clicks, Scaler lets you follow your heart and find some dope chord progressions the likes of which you’ve never heard before.
You can also use it to find the key of a beat, or to generate a bassline, or to play chords with one finger (useful when you’re picking your nose with the other hand)…
Like, what can’t Scaler do? Nothing, that’s what.
Download Scaler 2 here.
If you’d like some synths for your trap type beats, you’re in luck my friend because I also wrote a post about that. Check it out!
Cover credit: Soundtrap
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