Polyphonic SID-Inspired Synth

false Anode Labs releases Bitcrust v1.0.7 for macOS, iPadOS, Windows, and Linux 12/05/26

Anode Labs has released Bitcrust v1.0.7, which they describe as a polyphonic SID-inspired synthesizer plugin shipping on macOS, iPadOS, Windows, and Linux. This is what they have to say about it..

12 voices, 3 oscillators per voice (36 independent chip instances), in-house clean-room C++ DSP modeling both the MOS 6581 and 8580 SID revisions, with a continuous crossfade between their filter curves. 8-slot modulation matrix with 65 destinations, 6-slot effects rack, 16-step sequencer, arpeggiator, 115 factory presets, 14 themes, and 7 real-time monitor displays.

Bitcrust's DSP is written from scratch in C++, against public datasheets and general DSP literature. The 6581 / 8580 architecture is the starting point, not the destination. Oscillators, envelope, filter, and the glue between them are designed to capture the SID's character (the bit-crushing, the leaky integrators, the resonant bite) without trying to be a bit-accurate or cycle-accurate emulation. Where the silicon is interesting, we lean in. Where it gets in the way of a usable instrument, we don't.

Pricing and Availability:
macOS / iPadOS, AU / AUv3 / VST3 / Standalone: $1.99 universal
Windows x64, VST3 / Standalone: €1.99
Linux x64, VST3 / LV2 / Standalone: free:

More information: Bitcrust

Source: https://sonicstate.com/news/2026/05/12/polyphonic-sid-inspired-synth/

 

Can't argue with the price here!

I was expecting a raw SID but this is... not it. It sounds very smooth but admittedly I've only skimmed through some presets. I wish everybody doing a chiptune synth would allow the arpeggio to run at multiples of emulated screen refresh rate to get those wild chord arps used in so many C64 tunes. As far as I know only the inSIDious Reaktor ensemble does that.

But this one is pretty good for funky (not grungy) pad and bass sounds, and well... I'm now convinced that every plugin should have a built in stereo correlation meter.

*edit* I take some of that back, starting from zero and dicking about with the filter brings out some graininess that we know and love. It's good man.

 

Last edited: May 12, 2026 at 8:46 PM

what do you think of this? https://socalabs.com/synths/commodore-64-sid/

 

It's alright, a bit too clean and it's just the synth. You need to bring in a lot of automation to make it SID and it's lacking the arpeggiator.

 

These ones here sound more authentic and good to me.

Plouge - ChipSynth
reFX - quadraSID v1.6.2 VSTi

reFX QuadraSID - Abandoned Commodore 64 SID chip Emulation With Advanced Features In Its Time

 

Plogue Chipsynth and InSIDious are all you need (both are still updated)

They sound beautiful and authentic yes but i'm not obsessed enough to choose any of them for actual use, all the while any synth can sound like 8bit by just rocking the basic waveforms. It's not the same but close enough. But i do listen to SID music still, cant get enough of it really, making playlists and whatnot.

 

Last edited: May 13, 2026 at 6:46 AM

Oh, some good news actually, just in This almost deserves it's own thread but SID is kinda small tbh, i'll leave it here in this relevant-enough thread.

DiscoDSP just added SID to their Retromulator:
And it can load GoatTracker songs/instruments. SID files ofc have their highly curated HVSC, unfortunately there's no similar alternative for GT files afaik so you'll be hunting those, there are a few example files with GT itself. IMAGINE if one could load actual SID files into this thing instead. Instant access to all SID sounds ever made. One can dream...

 

Last edited: May 13, 2026 at 8:43 AM

I enjoy playing around with something new every now and then, but I keep coming back to wavetable + Vital/Surge XT/any advanced synth because of the greater flexibility and easier programmability (Arps, PWM, NTSC/PAL refresh rate, drift, disto, filter types ..) => easier to implement authentic sound.

 

sid: the most overrated chip

 

the entirety of Retromulator is ripped off of people's open source emulations and are entirely worse versions, the originals are 1000% better

 

You have point ofc but (at least) resid is open source afaik and if someone can use it to add functionality and availability to it, i'm all for it.
I sent an email to discodsp and asked if they had considered adding support for the .sid file format, they replied it's coming for 1.4.2. I dont know if that was already in the works, or how well it will actually work, but oh my yes i do want all sid instruments ever made conveniently available.

 

You have to take time into consideration.
From 1982 on the sid tought 17 million people what a synthesizer is.
For a very low price and a home computer attached.