AudioThing has launched the SX1000, a virtual synth plugin available for Windows, Mac, and Linux. This new plugin is a faithful emulation of the JEN SX1000, a vintage Italian synth from 1978, with added features to enhance its capabilities.
The SX1000 plugin by AudioThing expands the capabilities of the original JEN SX1000 by introducing features such as a polyphonic mode, a sub-oscillator that can go down to -3 octaves, and additional controls for legato modes. It also includes an arpeggiator borrowed from a vintage classic polysynth and four effects with flexible routing.
The JEN SX1000 Synthetone, introduced in 1978 by Italian company JEN Elettronica S.r.l, is an analog monophonic synthesizer. It was one of the first affordable synthesizers widely available in Europe, making analog synthesis accessible to a broader range of musicians during a time when such technology was often prohibitively expensive. The original JEN SX1000 was a monophonic synth with a single oscillator capable of sawtooth, square, and pulse waveforms, complemented by a noise generator with white and pink sources.
The SX1000 plugin has expanded these features with a full polyphonic mode, sub-oscillator (up to -3 octaves), additional controls for legato modes, velocity, and more. The filter section features a 24dB/octave resonant low-pass filter, with a distinct and organic sound and classic self-oscillation. It includes basic modulation capabilities: an LFO for vibrato, tremolo, or filter modulation, which has been expanded with additional waveforms and sync mode. It also features two ADSR envelopes for controlling the volume and the filter.
The SX1000 was notably easy to modify. In fact, AudioThing modded theirs nearly 20 years ago by adding a sub-oscillator using a simple flip-flop circuit. The principle is the same as in the divide-down organs. Since the original version had only one oscillator, this mod was essential for adding more sonic possibilities.
The SX1000 plugin fully emulates the infamous MM5837 digital noise source (white/pink noise), also found in other classic analog synths like the Sequential Prophet 5, Korg MonoPoly, and Oberheim OB-X. However, users can choose to disable it, as this chip has a very short 17-bit LFSR (Linear Feedback Shift Register), which means the noise it produces repeats every few seconds. This repetition is audible and has been described as sounding like a steam train puffing, rather than smooth white noise.
The original SX1000 did not feature an arpeggiator, so AudioThing decided to borrow and expand an iconic arpeggiator by a classic analog poly-synth: the Roland Juno 60. It features up, up & down, down, random mode, a 4 octave range, adjustable rate and sync, hold/latch mode, note order (pitch, key pressed), and chord mode.
The SX1000 includes a set of four high-quality effects, inspired by classic gear and designed to complement the synth’s character. The effects section features Tape Echo, based on AudioThing’s Space Echo emulation, Spring Reverb for adding classic vintage reverb, Wave Folder for rich harmonic distortion inspired by the legendary Serge Wave Multipliers, and Flanger, BBD based, capable of everything from subtle modulation to swirling textures. Users can rearrange the effects in any order using drag and drop.
The SX1000 is available for macOS, Windows, and Linux in formats such as VST, VST3, AU, AAX, CLAP, and Standalone. It is also available on the App Store for iOS and iPadOS (AUv3 and Standalone).
The plugin is priced at €69, but is currently on offer for €49. The expiry date of this promotional discount is unknown.
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