Overview

bx_subsynth is the Holy Grail for Bass Fanatics!

Integrating a mix of classic and modern processing, this 10-ton beast gives music tracks, cinematic special FX and DJs’ sound systems a bottom end that goes all the way to the Earth’s core!

In developing bx_subsynth, Brainworx initially made a meticulous model of the legendary dbx 120XP Subharmonic Synthesizer’s Waveform Modeling™ engine, which generates discrete bass frequencies one octave below what you feed in to it. They then supersized the 120XP’s feature set to create much tighter, clearer, bigger and resonant bass.

For starters, bx_subsynth generates subharmonics in up to three discrete frequency bands versus the 120XP’s two—the addition of a higher bass band for re-synthesis lets you capture and nosedive the fundamental frequencies of a much wider variety of instruments, including snare drum and acoustic guitar.

The Tight Punch control creates crystal-clear, body-thumping bass by adding a resonant sub-bass peak and filtering out unwanted lows below its cutoff frequency. Powerful Edge processing lets you select from two modes of operation—Smooth and Harsh—that compress and saturate your tracks, alternately delivering super-compact or explosively trashy drums and throbbing, in-your-face bass guitar.

Let’s Be Clear
Bass EQ can’t do what bx_subsynth does. The discrete frequencies bx_subsynth generates leave more space across the bass-frequency band for other instruments, letting you jack up subsynth’s bass without muddying your mix. Plus, EQs can’t boost bass in a thin track that doesn’t have any bottom to begin with. bx_subsynth doesn’t just boost—it adds new bottom! And whereas psychoacoustic bass processors trick your brain into hearing phantom subharmonics that don’t actually exist—and which you can’t feel—bx_subsynth adds real sub-bass that will shake your body like an earthquake!

The applications are limitless. Retune your drum tracks: Dial in higher subharmonics for rack toms and lower ones for the floor tom for colossal, pounding drum fills. Boost different subharmonics on a kick drum and bass guitar to separate their sounds in the mix, for increased clarity and punch. Add subterranean thunder to sustained left-hand octaves on piano tracks. Automatically generate a perfectly synchronized bassline from the bottom strings played on an arpeggiated acoustic guitar track; two knob twists are all it takes to focus the bassline’s image dead-center and massively widen the guitar’s stereo image up to 400%.

Remastering engineers can use bx_subsynth to add a fat bottom end to thin vinyl masters and old recordings made on narrow-gauge multitrack tape recorders. Sound designers can pump up weak cinematic FX with terrifying lows. DJs can turbocharge their sound systems’ low end to woofer-shattering extremes. This is bottom end you can feel in your rattling bones.

bx_subsynth. Feel the bass.

Activate the fully functional 14-day demo with your Plugin Alliance account today to hear for yourself (no dongle required)!

Legal Disclaimer: dbx 120XP and Waveform Modeled Synthesis are registered trademarks of Harman International. The bx_subsynth was developed by Brainworx based on its own modeling techniques. dbx, Harman, nor any of their affiliate companies have endorsed or sponsored the bx_subsynth in any manner, nor licensed any intellectual property for use in this product.

Features

 

  • Models the dbx 120XP Subharmonic Synthesizer’s elemental sound, with dramatically expanded processing capabilities and controls
  • Generates thunderous lows to music tracks, cinematic FX and sound systems
  • Tight Punch provides resonant high-pass—with adjustable cutoff frequency—for accentuated punch while taming excessive low end
  • Low End control adjusts total bass output for perfect balance with mids and highs
  • Two types of Edge processing—Smooth and Harsh—can be shaped with Low Cut and High Cut filters and fine-tuned with individual controls
  • Mono Maker control sums bass band to mono below user-adjustable corner frequency for laser-like focus

Audio Examples

Industry Reviews

  • David Arnold

    David Arnold

    Composer (Casino Royale, Independence Day, Sherlock)

    There's so much specific bottom end available on this thing you'd be advised to keep a spare set of speakers around... It fills your room and anchors the bass.

  • Simon Franglen

    Simon Franglen

    Composer & Producer (Avatar, Titanic, Michael Jackson)

    The dbx120 was basically the .1 in 5.1 until we went purely digital. I've missed it. The bx_subsynth brings back a flavour unlike any other for low end. Essential.

  • Deniz Koyu

    Deniz Koyu

    DJ & Producer (Spinnin' Records, Nicky Romero, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike)

    There are a lot of plugins out there that can add upper harmonics to your signal in various ways, but being able to add subharmonics which actually sound great and natural as if they came from the… Read More

  • James Wiltshire

    James Wiltshire

    Producer (Freemasons, F9 Audio)

    At last, a subsonic processor with the level of control needed for contemporary electronica, club and cinematic productions. Another perfectly future-retro release from Brainworx that will be… Read More

  • Josh Newell

    Josh Newell

    Producer, Engineer, Mixer (Linkin Park, Anthrax, Avril Lavigne)

    This plugin lets you to add some beef to your kick drum all the way up to turning it into a sub destroyer!

Customer Reviews

  • Easy to use, great results

    ★★★★★
    by MS
    If you want/need a subsynth this one delivers great results with very little fuss. Has nice flexibility for this type of tool.
  • Absolutely astonishing

    ★★★★★
    by Swisha G
    First time I used this was on a r&b/soul track, acoustic guitar and vocal only. The result literally brought tears to my eyes, lol. It was perfect and added a completely new dimension to the song.… Read More
  • Orchestral Pit

    ★★★★★
    by Macmac
    Although unconventional, the subsynth is very useful for adding weight and definition to low-end orchestral instruments so they cut through mix without muddying up the space. It works great on Celli,… Read More
  • Tame Your Low End!

    ★★★★★
    by Ga Rodriguez
    bx_subsynth is a must go plugin for treat and shape your low end frequencies!
    Definitively usefull in my electronic music projects. I ever use it on my Kick and Bass, the improvement is… Read More
  • Wow

    ★★★★★
    by Vern
    I recently had an EDM mixing project and on the first mix did not have this plugin installed. The artist (of course) requested more subsynth, so I purchased bx_sybsynth to try out. And I'm… Read More

Specification

Supported Plugin Formats
AAX DSP, AAX Native, AU, VST2, VST3

Supported Operating Systems
macOS 12 down to macOS 10.11
Windows 11 down to Windows 8

Mac
Intel, or Apple Silicon (except for AAX) architecture

PC
x64-compatible CPU

System Requirements
Display resolution: 1440 × 900px or 1280 × 960px or higher
Memory: 2 GB RAM

Downloads

With the Installation Manager you can select, download & install all the Plugin Alliance products. Select any and all formats you need for your system! Mac & PC.

ChangeLog

bx_subsynth

Brainworx bx_subsynth - Changelog

Version 1.8.1 (Jun 28, 2022)
- General: Fixed potential blacklisting of VST2 on Windows
- General: Fixed potential crashes on Windows
- General: Fixed processing being Mono with VST2 in FL Studio
- General: Fixed value readouts not being present when clicking knob

Version 1.8 (Mar 15, 2022)
- General: added native Apple Silicon compatibility for VST3, VST2 and AU
- General: added macOS Monterey support
- General: added Windows 11 and Windows 10 21H1 support
- General: discontinued Windows 7 support
- General: discontinued macOS 10.9 and 10.11 support
- General: fixed metering behavior in block sizes of 2048 samples and higher

Version 1.7 (Mar 22, 2021)
- General: Compatibility with Logic on Apple Silicon devices via the Rosetta-2 layer
- General: Fixed possible artefacts when freezing or bouncing tracks in Pro Tools
- General: Fixed automation highlighting disappearing in Studio One
- General: Improved license dialog visibility in dark mode

Version 1.6 (May 27, 2020)
- General: Qualified for use with the Windows 10 May 2020 Update
- General: VST3: Fixed potential hangs in a DAW upon loading
- General: Fixed logical issues in undo / redo behavior
- General: Fixed UI resizing issues in Ableton Live on Windows
- General: Fixed audio processing initialization issues on amp and delay products

Version 1.5 (Nov 06, 2019)
- General: Qualified for use with macOS 10.15 Catalina
- General: Qualified for use with Windows 10 November 2019 Update
- General: Fixed plugin validation in Logic under macOS Catalina
- General: Fixed preset name restore in Logic when reopening a session
- General: Fixed opening authorization dialog triggering automation
- General: Improved instantiation times for plugins
- General: Improved license functionality and branding for subscription
- General: Removed 32-bit support on macOS and Windows

Version 1.4 (Jul 10, 2019)
- General: macOS 10.14.5 Update compatibility
- General: Windows 10 1903 Update compatibility
- General: Fixed activation issue in Windows hosts set to non-English language (e.g. Cakewalk)
- General: AU: Fixed issue with increased CPU and memory on reopening UI
- General: VST3: Fixed issue with adapting to host knob mode, and now prioritizing linear
- General: VST3: Fixed issue with VST3 preset permissions
- General: VST3: Improved synchronization between parameter states and some UI functions, e.g. toolbar reset


Version 1.3 (Nov 16, 2018)
- General: macOS Mojave compatibility
- General: Windows October 2018 update compatibility
- General: adding Windows High DPI support for VST2/3 plugins
- General: Fixed potential crashes in Cubase and other VST2 / VST3 DAWs
- General: Fixed potential CPU spikes and audio dropouts
- General: Fixed rendering in Pro Tools on the start of a session
- General: Fixed missing presets in Wavelab and other VST3 DAWs
- General: Improving keyboard control, fixing issues with catched keys preventing it from passing through to DAW
- General: Fixed parallel use of host sessions (e.g. with Live)

Version 1.2 (May 24, 2018)
- General: Microsoft Windows Redstone 4 compatibility
- General: Added computer keyboard control for plugin parameters
- General: Fixed Mouse scroll wheel not working in Windows 8
- General: Fixed an issue where plugins will not validate or load after a certain amount of plugins have been loaded (Windows)
- General: Fixed visual GUI freezes when adjusting DAW parameters, meters, analyzers (Mac)
- General: Fixed possible issue with Pick Pack licenses
- General: Small licenser stability fix
- Fixed bug that lead to noise when reopening a session where the plugin is bypassed

Version 1.1 (Oct 23, 2017)
- General: Mac OS High Sierra compatibility
- General: Fixed possible crash on online activation (Mac OS High Sierra)
- General: Fixed Logic Pro X not validating AU plugins (Mac OS High Sierra)
- General: Fixed CPU spikes and crashes with Cubase (Windows)
- General: Fixed bug that could lead to "AAE -6 error" in ProTools (Windows)
- General: Fixed crash with FL Studio
- General: Fixed crash when cross-opening plugins in various hosts
- General: Fixed crash when using mixdown in Audition
- General: Fixed crash in Final Cut Pro
- General: Fixed delayed parameter handling and crackling issues in Cubase with VST3
- General: Fixed bug where plugin settings were not saved in Harrison Mixbus
- General: Fixed bug that led to AAE error -9317 in ProTools when instantiating plugin
- General: Fixed bug where plugins did not render properly when "x ray" option is enabled in Sonar
- General: Modifications to factory presets were lost when reopening session
- General: Fixed mouse wheel behaviour with second monitor setup (Windows)
- Some plugins: Value labels do not appear every time when clicking on parameter in UI
- General: Faster instantiation time for plugins (Windows)
- General: Adding support for automation highlighting in Presonus StudioOne
- Fixed typo in manual

Version 1.0 (Mar 1, 2017)
- Release version