Cherry Audio's Pentaphonic synthesizer is a breathtaking virtual instrument that revives one of the rarest synthesizers ever made: the 1981 Pentaphonic by Gleeman Instruments. With fewer than 70 units ever produced, this synthesizer is legendary for its rich tone, distinctive design, and pioneering sequencing capabilities.

To honor both its sound and aesthetics, we have expertly replicated the thick, rich sound quality of its unique DCO (digitally controlled oscillator) and analog filter architecture, ensuring that the essence of the original is fully realized. Our visual makeover offers a choice of stunning designs inspired by the various looks it sported during its brief existence. Beyond preserving every original option, we have dramatically expanded its capabilities in ways previously unimaginable. Cherry Audio's Pentaphonic synthesizer is not just an emulation of a lost classic; it is a celebration of the innovative spirit behind the original, proving that the most groundbreaking ideas don't always come from the biggest names.

Cherry Audio Pentaphonic - Born for the Spotlight

In the pioneering spirit of the small, ambitious outfit that built something genuinely unique for its time, Cherry Audio has taken the Pentaphonic beyond what was possible at the time, while preserving the original design's unique qualities.

We have included three UI themes to capture the Pentaphonic's full chronology: the standard black look, plus stunning transparent and "Audities" clear themes with click-and-drag opacity. Polyphony (including unison with detune) has expanded to 2-16 voices, and we've also added retrigger and note priority to monophonic mode.

We added pulse width modulation to each oscillator, introduced a noise generator, and implemented oscillator sync. We also added an additional LFO, and each now includes all eight waveforms found in the DCOs: Complex 1, Complex 2, 3% Pulse, 12% Pulse, 50% Pulse, Ramp, Triangle, and Sine.

We've expanded the 4-pole (24 dB per octave) low-pass filter with a 2-pole (12 dB per octave) mode and keyboard tracking, and the amplifier section now includes a limiter. We've also introduced true performance expression to Pentaphonic, including velocity, channel and polyphonic aftertouch, and 14 parameters that can be modulated through keyboard pressure.

The advanced arpeggiator and 16x4 programmable polyphonic step sequencer are both syncable and transposable. They offer flexible humanization settings for patterns and sequences that surpass the original hardware. Additionally, it features a Parameter Animator that can be routed to cutoff, resonance, oscillator pitch mod, and oscillator gain. Alongside the original chorusing effect, Pentaphonic now includes a global effects chain with 22 studio-quality, modulatable effects to choose from.

Pentaphonic Synthesizer Features

• Based on the early-80s Pentaphonic synthesizers by Gleeman Instruments that originally featured a five-voice polyphonic digitally-controlled oscillator (DCO) synth engine.
• Three UI Themes inspired by the history of the Pentaphonic case: black, clear, and "Audities" clear, with click-and-drag opacity.
• Expanded voice options: monophonic mode with last/high settings and retrigger, Unison and Polyphonic voice options with 2 -16 voices.
• Three oscillators per voice based on the DCOs of the original, with the original stair-stepped waveforms for Complex 1, Complex 2, 3% Pulse, 12% Pulse, 50% Pulse, Ramp, Triangle, and Sine.
• Oscillator sync and pulse-width modulation added.
• A second LFO has been added, now offering the same stair-stepped waveform options (beyond just triangle) as the oscillators.
• LFOs can now be applied to oscillators, filter, and amp.
• Original fast/slow chorusing included.
• Velocity added to filter and amp.
• Keyboard pressure with bipolar amount trimmers that provide discrete expressive control for pressure/aftertouch: modulation rate; oscillator 2 sync; oscillator gain and pitch; filter cutoff, resonance, and modulation; and amp modulation and volume.
• The VCF now provides both 12dB 2-pole and the original 24dB 4-pole options, with polarity and key tracking.
• Assignable range for pitch bend and a dedicated mod stick control.
• Dynamic arpeggiator with four pattern modes – Arp, Leap, Order, Random – with swing, chance, and feel to add degrees of randomness to arpeggiated patterns.
• Syncable and transposable 16x4 pattern polyphonic step sequencer with Start, Stop, Auto Start, and humanize options, with accurate DAW clock and step synchronization.
• Parameter Animator, an additional per-layer sequencer that acts as a 16-step x 4-pattern parameter modulation source for cutoff, resonance, pitch modulation, and oscillator gain.
• 22 studio-quality effects for the Effects panel (up to five effects) with a chain that can be arranged, saved, and recalled: BBD Flanger, Compressor, DCO Chorus, Digital Delay, Digital Reverb, Distortion & EQ, Dual Delay, Dual Ensemble, Dual Phaser, Envelope Filter, Flanger & Chorus, Galactic Reverb, Lo-Fi, Lushverb, Panner, Pulser, Ring Modulator, Rotary Speaker, Seven Band EQ, Spring Reverb, Tape Echo, and Wide Phaser.
• Effects control tray for on/off, solo, bipolar modulator amount slider, and dry/wet mix for each effect. Global FX on/off, level, and stereo expand.
• Over 375 presets in 14 categories, including the original 50 factory patches.
• Standalone virtual instrument and plug-in versions included
• User-adjustable oversampling control
• Complete MIDI control and DAW automation for all controls, with easy-to-use MIDI learn and mapping (Preset and Global)
• Cherry Audio's Focus zoom-in feature, as well as standard UI zoom and resize via drag
• Complete documentation available directly online from the instrument or in downloadable PDF format

Also available, exclusively from Cherry Audio (sold seprately): the Translucent Preset Pack for Pentaphonic is a set of 100 additional presets created by James Dyson. Translucent explores tranquil, hypnotic soundscapes across eight categories, utilizing Pentaphonic's advanced modulation routing, expressive performance features, the arpeggiator and sequencer, and studio-quality integrated effects.

Pentaphonic is available in AU, VST, VST3, AAX, and standalone formats, and a free 30-day demo is available.

macOS Requirements: 10.13 or above. macOS 13 Ventura supported. 64-bit required. Native Apple M1 or greater processor support, including Ultra. 3.4 GHz Quad-Core or M1 CPU with 8GB of RAM is recommended. Hard disk space: 196 MB

Windows Requirements: Windows 7 or above (including Windows 11), 64-bit required. Quad-core computer with 8GB of RAM is recommended. Hard disk space: 196 MB

An internet connection is required for product activation.