Three oscillators and a noise
Saw, square, triangle or sine on each oscillator, each with its own octave, detune and level. Stack two saws a few cents apart for a fat lead, add a sine an octave down for weight, a touch of noise for breath.
Flagship synthesizer · Free · No account
SX-1 Silverline - the flagship synth, online
A synthesizer that exists nowhere else: a modular system in a walnut case, with brushed aluminium modules, patch cables, amber VU meters and chrome toggle switches, wired to the LED knobs of today's flagship synths. Turn a knob, plug a pin, and watch your sound draw itself on the oscilloscope.
3 OSCILLATORS
8 VOICES
4 FILTER MODES
2 VU METERS
0 INSTALL
What you get
A flagship synth, wired for fun
Every module sits in one walnut case, like the great modular systems: no menus, no pages, a knob for every job, and patch cables that show what modulates what.
A four-mode filter with its own envelope
In LP 24, two low-pass stages in series give the steep, round slope of the classic ladder filters; LP 12 is gentler, BP keeps only the middle, HP thins the sound out. The envelope on its four faders opens the filter on every note, key tracking keeps high notes bright, and resonance sings when you push it.
A modulation matrix you can see
Four sources - LFO, filter envelope, velocity and the mod wheel - against six destinations: pitch, cutoff, oscillator 2, amplitude, pan and echo. Click a pin to cycle off, low, medium and full, and a patch cable appears between the two modules, from the LFO output to the filter cutoff input for example.
An oscilloscope that draws your sound
The green screen in the middle reads the output live. In X-Y mode it draws the sound against itself a moment later, so a pure tone becomes an ellipse, two detuned oscillators a slowly turning loop, and a fifth a Lissajous knot. Switch to Wave to see the waveform itself.
Six programs
From a silver lead to Lissajous bells
Press the lit buttons 1 to 6 under the display, then make them your own with the knobs, faders and switches.
01
Two detuned saws and a high saw, a little drive, vibrato on the mod wheel.
02
A slow filter attack opened by the envelope, velocity on the brightness: hit harder, play louder.
03
Slow swells, chorus and echo, the LFO sweeping the filter and the stereo field.
04
Square and saw one octave down, a sub sine, a resonant filter that snaps on every note.
05
Sines in octaves with a quick decay: draws clean loops on the oscilloscope.
06
A slow triangle LFO on a very resonant filter, a breath of noise, wide chorus.
Getting started
From the first note to your own sound
Play a note
Click a key, touch it, or use your computer keyboard: the middle row plays the white keys, the row above the black keys, Z and X change octave.
Pick a program
Press one of the six lit program buttons under the display, or step through them with the arrows.
Turn the knobs
Drag a knob or a fader up or down, use the mouse wheel, or the arrow keys once it is focused. Hold Shift for fine moves; double-click to reset it. The display shows the value you are changing.
Wire the matrix
Click a pin to send a source to a destination, and a patch cable joins the two modules: LFO to cutoff for a wah, velocity to amp for dynamics, wheel to pitch for vibrato.
Specifications
The full sheet
| Type | Virtual analog polyphonic synthesizer, playable on this page, free |
|---|---|
| Modules | VCO 1, 2 and 3, mixer, VCF, two envelopes (filter, VCA), LFO, effects, oscilloscope, patch matrix, arpeggiator, output |
| Voices | 8 in poly mode, the oldest released note is reused first; mono mode with legato glide up to 1 s |
| Oscillators | 3 (saw, square, triangle, sine), on/off, octave -2 to +2, detune ±50 cents, level; noise |
| Filter | LP 24 (two 12 dB stages), LP 12, BP, HP; cutoff 40 Hz to 16 kHz, resonance, envelope amount, key tracking |
| Envelopes | Filter ADSR and amplitude ADSR, on faders |
| LFO | Sine, triangle, square, saw, 0.05 to 20 Hz; its lamp pulses at the LFO rate |
| Matrix | LFO, filter envelope, velocity, mod wheel to pitch, cutoff, oscillator 2, amp, pan, echo |
| Wheels | Pitch bend ±2 semitones with spring return, modulation wheel |
| Effects | Drive (soft saturation), stereo chorus in two modes, echo with time and repeats |
| Master | Bass and treble shelving controls ±12 dB, volume, power switch |
| Arpeggiator | Up, down, up-down, random; 1/4, 1/8, 1/16; 1 to 3 octaves; hold; tempo 60 to 200 BPM |
| Display | Oscilloscope in X-Y, waveform or spectrum mode; two VU meters; fluorescent display; power, gate, LFO, arp, tempo and clip lamps |
| Input | Mouse, touch (play lower on a key for a louder note) and computer keyboard by key position (QWERTY, AZERTY, QWERTZ) |
| Requirements | Any modern browser with Web Audio - Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Safari |
Why a synth that does not exist
The most sought-after synthesizers are expensive, rare, or both. The SX-1 takes what makes them special - a panel where every function has its own knob, a steep ladder-style filter, a modulation matrix - and dresses it in the brushed aluminium, walnut and green phosphor of the high-end hi-fi of the seventies. It is a GOONS design from top to bottom: the panel, the sound engine and the programs.
Watch the sound on the oscilloscope
Seeing a sound teaches you more about synthesis than any manual. Play one note on the Lissajous Bells program and the screen draws a clean loop; detune oscillator 2 and the loop starts to turn; add resonance and its edges ripple. In Wave mode you see the saw, the square and the filter rounding them off.
From the SX-1 to a whole track
The SX-1 is free and needs no account. In GOONS Studio, the VA-1 Vintage Analog, Bassline Studio, drum machines and a sequencer share one tempo, so the sound you design here becomes a track - with a 7 days free trial, no card required.
Questions
Frequently asked
Is the SX-1 synthesizer really free?
Yes. The SX-1 at the top of this page is free, with no account and nothing to install. It runs in your browser with the Web Audio API.
Is the SX-1 a copy of a real synthesizer?
No. It is an original GOONS design: the look borrows the materials of 1970s hi-fi - brushed aluminium, walnut, green phosphor screens - and the features those of today's flagship synths, but no real instrument has this panel or this sound engine.
What does the oscilloscope show?
The sound coming out of the synth, live. In X-Y mode it plots the signal against itself a fraction of a second later, which turns periodic sounds into loops and Lissajous figures; in Wave mode it shows the waveform over time.
How do I play the SX-1 with my computer keyboard?
The middle row of letters plays the white keys and the row above the black keys, starting from C; Z and X move down or up an octave. Keys are read by position, so it works the same on QWERTY, AZERTY and QWERTZ keyboards.
What is a modulation matrix?
A grid that connects modulation sources, such as an LFO or an envelope, to the things they change, such as pitch or filter cutoff. On the SX-1, each cell has three amounts, shown by its colour.
Keep exploring
Other apps in the studio
Ready when you are
Design a sound, then build the track
The SX-1 is free, with no account. GOONS Studio adds synths, drum machines and a sequencer that play together - free for 7 days, no card required.
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