Firebird 2.1 released!

[Bastiaan van Noord]

Firebird 2.1

Since there was a lot of positive feedback on the freeware release of FireBird (previously $79) we decided to release a final update for it. Firebird itself is already vintage and even though it's no longer profitable to remain a commercial product, we feel that anyone should get the opportunity to enjoy this sometimes heavily underestimated synthesizer.

Please feel free to download, share and enjoy this freebie, which should provide you with a nice introduction to our products, as well as many more years of musical inspiration.

What's new in v2.1?

• Contains 70 additional sounds by Xenos. To load them click on 'setup' and load the factory bank 'condemned'.
• Contains a fix for a rarely appearing crash.
• Updated installer.
• More responsive GUI.
• Slightly enhanced performance.
• Fixed a rarely appearing glitch.
• Several other minor enhancements.

Firebird+ Unique & innovative

Firebird+ is not just another subtractive synthesizer, it uses a unique synthesis architecture to deliver next-generation sounds. Its innovative user interface provides you with the tools to create impressive sounds with a minimal amount of effort.
Featuring an impressive selection of 437 build-in sounds, representing both highly sought-after VA sounds, as well as sounds more specific to Firebird and characterized by its Harmonic Content Morphing synthesis, breathing both life and dynamics into the sounds.

Harmonic Content Morphing (HCM™) synthesis

Harmonic Content Morphing synthesis is based on a large, expandable repertoire of standard waves, like saw, pulse, as well as more complex wave material, like multi-waves, trumpets, organs, pads, pianos and voice samples.
These waves are modified in real-time, by for example transposing the wave by one or two octaves and adding it to the original wave, altering its harmonic structure, syncing, compressing or even expanding the frequency domain of the spectrum. Making the wave for example sound more fat using only one oscillator, transforming each wave into a hyper-wave or selecting some cycles of a sample and moving through them over time (comparable to wavetable synthesis). Any modification of a wave can be modulated producing lively shimmery sounds (remember: using only one oscillator!) With a total of more than 18,000 different spectra available for combination and modulation, Firebird+ gives an almost unlimited amount of timbres to experiment with.

Highlights

• Very easy to program and easy to use
• A unique sounding synthesis: Harmonic content morphing (HCM)
• High sound quality: Warm, transparent
• 437 hand picked presets included, over 1000 sounds available
• 84 oscillator types containing 18,000 morphable waveforms
• 38 different filter types
• True stereo mode, 4x unison mode, and up to 8 oscillators per voice
• Can sound like other synthesis methods - additive, subtractive, AM, FM, phase distortion, supersaw, vocoder, sync
• Can sound like natural instruments like piano, brass, organs...
• 23 spectral manipulations or “modifiers” can be applied to the oscillators
• 21 arpeggiator types
• 13 effect types
• Skinable user interface

For more info and download link, please visit the Tone2 website: http://www.tone2.com