Cherry Audio Pro Soloist Virtual Synthesizer Plug-In

Cherry Audio 1316-1052 Overview

Bring it all the way back to the zenith of analog synths with the Pro Soloist from Cherry Audio, an exacting reproduction of the classic 1972 ARP preset synth. Sporting all the beloved features of the original, including aftertouch and 30 paddle presets, but with its voice architecture cracked wide open, Pro Soloist offers a powerhouse synth that maintains its vintage heritage.

Along with its perfectly recreated 30 paddle presets, Pro Soloist also ships with 450 easily accessible presets created by a talented team of sound-design veterans. When you want to get granular and dive deep into the synth's unique sound architecture, you can precisely program patches across two simultaneous layers with VCO, VCF, and VCA controls, as well as the classic resonator bank, featuring five adjustable band-pass filters. Throw in a sophisticated modulation matrix and 12 studio-quality FX, and you're off to the races to generate stunning patches. And with typical Cherry Audio MIDI features like DAW automation controls, automatic mapping, and their popular Focus zoom-in feature, Pro Soloist will easily slip into any digital workflow. This software supports both standalone and plug-in operation, with support for AU, VST, VST3, and AAX plug-in formats on macOS and Windows computer platforms (64-bit only).

An Early '70s Synth Gem

At the beginning of the 70s, analog synthesizers were just making their way into the hands of working musicians, and their operation was still a mystery to most folks outside of a college music lab. To avert potential user intimidation and bring synthesis to the masses, manufacturers introduced simple monophonic preset synths that were intended to sit atop an organ.

In 1972, ARP released the Pro Soloist, updating analog preset controls with revolutionary digital read-only memory chips (which improved tuning stability) and expanding the preset selection from 15 with Soloist to 30 with the Pro Soloist. Most impressive was the introduction of an innovative touch sensor keyboard (now commonly known as aftertouch), where pressing harder after playing a note introduces changes to the sound, allowing highly expressive playing.

Three Panels for Different Scenarios

With its distinctive three-panel interface, this Pro Soloist is far more than a preset synth. In Performance mode, each original paddle preset has been precisely recreated with MIDI-mappable switches. In Edit mode, Cherry Audio has exposed all of its unique analog synthesis architecture parameters, most notably, the fully variable, five-parallel-bandpass-filter Resonator Bank-the key to the Pro Soloist's realistic acoustic orchestra timbres.

Additionally, they've revealed the LFO and ADSR/AR envelopes used to create the presets, and elevated the sound design and performance possibilities with a Super Wave oscillator and a powerful six-slot modulation matrix. The Arp/FX mode rounds it out with a syncable arpeggiator and a dozen studio-quality effects for distortion, phaser, flanger/chorus, echo, and reverb.

Evolved Voice Architecture

Not only does the Pro Soloist include all of the features and voicings of the original 1972 classic, it also reveals the inner workings of the sound architecture for an evolved, modern instrument:

• Dual-layer (bi-timbral) voice architecture with 16 voices per layer
• Keyboard splits and stacks with discrete controls for layer volume
• Resonator Bank with 5 parallel 2-pole bandpass filters, expanded with individual frequency curves
• VCO with sawtooth and pulse waves, plus a Super Wave option for fatter tones
• VCO modulation with ADSR PWM (pulse-width modulation), AR PWM, LFO PWM, and LFO FM (frequency modulation)
• 24 dB/oct VCF with filter invert and ADSR, AR, LFO, Growl (special low-frequency oscillator), and velocity modulation, plus keyboard tracking
• VCA with ADSR, AR, LFO, and velocity modulation, and independent per-layer control over volume and panning
• Tempo-syncable LFO with sine, ramp, sawtooth, and square waveforms
• Resonant high-pass filter with adjustable 20 to 1300 Hz cutoff frequency
• ADSR and AR envelope generators
• Mod matrix with six slots, 22 sources and 58 destinations including integrated FX
• Arpeggiator with MIDI tempo sync and Down, Up, Up/Down, and Random modes

Integrated Effects

Pro Soloist integrates 12 studio-quality effects, including:

• 2-, 4-, 6-, and 8-stage phaser with synchronization
• Flanger/chorus effect with sync
• Three types of stereo echo/delay with sync
• Five types of reverb effect
• Easy-to-access global and layer settings