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Tweakbench, a developer from the early VST era, is back after a 20-year hiatus with all its synths and effects – Tendril the latest addition.
When Tweakbench reborn its plugins and made them cross-platform, these were primarily re-releases. Now, many new plugins are included, which are part of the bundle at no extra cost.
There’s another one now: Tendril, a new generative algorithmic instrument. Again, free of charge for bundle users.
Tendril is a new generative algorithm instrument that is part of the Tweakbench bundle.
At its core is a Euclidean melodic sequencer and a sound engine. The latter uses subtractive synthesis with a single oscillator, a tweakable multimode filter, and an ADSR envelope.
This is fed through a granular processor with an amp and reverb effects chain built-in. The sequencer is described as a one-note or one-run Euclidean melodic sequencer that is fully programmable with various settings found in the dedicated sections.
The generative part, for example, offers probability, random, cycles, and a melodic generator with a chord option. It also allows for per-note parameter locks.
It can create very monome-style looping melodies with slight variations, and the overall tone is bright, digital, plucky, and ethereal. This looks like another fun addition to the bundle. Not deep, but interesting for a quick bit of inspiring fun.
Tendril is now available for $10 as a standalone plugin. For existing Tweakbench bundle users (macOS, Linux, Windows, and iOS), it’s a free update. The iOS version is out soon.
More information here: TB
It’s Tweakbench time again. After the Shrapnel instrument and Obstacle FX were released in May, the next new instrument is now available as a free update.
It’s already the 40th device in the bundle.
Bastion is a new kick bass combo Synthesizer plugin. It consists of two all-synthesis instruments.
The kick synth offers three layers: body, click, and sub with a pitch envelope and per-layer drive. Each layer features dedicated controls, including a pitch envelope and per-layer drive.
On the right side of the UI is the bass synth with three synthesis modes: analog (saw, triangle, pulse, sine), 2-OP FM, and wavetable (9 tables).
The sounds are shapable with a Moog ladder filter and an ADSR envelope. There is also a glide control and a master drive for punch and density.
Both instruments can be triggered by a dual-track step sequencer with polymetric lengths, swing, and per-step gate, velocity, accent, pitch, octave, glide, and probability controls, allowing you to create versatile kick bass lines.
The sequencer also features 303-style accents that open the filter and per-step slides. A neat extra feature is the built-in automatic kick-to-bass sidechain ducking, which can be routed to the amp or to both the amp and the filter.
Other features include global and per-section randomizers, and the ability to export the kick and bass sounds as WAV and the patterns as MIDI files.
At first glance, a great new instrument for the bundle. I tried it out right away; it sounds decent and versatile.
Bastion is now available for $10 as a standalone plugin. For existing Tweakbench bundle users (macOS, Linux, Windows, and iOS), it’s a free update.
More information here: TB
Since the return of the Tweakbench plugins at the end of 2025, the developer has consistently updated the plugins and added new ones to the bundle for free.
The latest update adds two new plugins to the bundle (Shrapnel and Obstacle), bringing the total to a whopping 39. These two additions are again free for existing bundle owners. 
Since my last article update, two new plugins (macOS, Linux, Windows, and iOS) have been added.
Shrapnel is a new 8-voice breakbeat slicer instrument plugin with 20 built-in loops. Like a traditional breatbeat slicer, you can slice, chop, trigger, and warp these samples. The plugin allows you to slice samples by transient detection or equal divisions.
You can playback the slices manually or sequence them across a 16-step grid with per-step pitch, velocity, and gate settings. Time-stretching with tempo sync is onboard. Built-in multi-mode filter, delay, and reverb let you shape your beats right in the plugin.
There is also a one-knob randomizer for instant inspiration and a MIDI learn function on every parameter.
The second new plugin is Obstacle, a triple filter gate plugin. It features three parallel filter bands (HP, BP, LP), each with a drawable step sequence. On top of that, each band has amp and filter envelopes and tempo-synced modulation.
Obstacle is a neat plugin if you want to turn static material (drones, pads…) into rhythmic patterns. These sounds can be refined with a built-in delay, filtering, and a ping-pong option. Two great additions.
For those who were previously put off by the bundle price on iOS, there’s good news. Tweakbench has changed its iOS pricing model. The bundle is now free, and the plugins can now be purchased via in-app purchase with a new 7-day trial.
Individual Tweakbench plugins are available now for $4,99 to $9,99 each on the Apple App Store. The plugins are also available for macOS, Linux, and Windows for $5 – $10.
More information here: TB
At the end of 2025, Tweakbench returned to the plugin world after a 20-year hiatus. It brought back an epic number of plugins, almost 30 to be precise.
In the new year, it released several updates with even more plugins, all of which are cross-platform and available on Linux and iOS as well. This week, the developer released update 4.0 for the Tweakbench bundle, featuring Revenant, a new algorithmic reverb.
Update 4.0 is a free update and introduces Revenant, a new algorithmic reverb based on the Dattorro allpass loop topology.
It features 8 different reverb modes: Hall, Plate, Room, Chamber, Cathedral, Space, Nonlinear, and Ambient. Besides this, you can give them a distinct character with three era modes: Vintage (1970s), Retro (1980s), and Modern (Now).
The reverbs are fully customizable in five steps. You have a main section with classic controls like a pre-delay, decay, and size. Then, you can shape it with attack, tweak the early reflection, and the late reflections.
In the mod section, you can infuse modulation. The dampening section lets you filter the reverb effects with hi damp, hi shelf, bass FQ, and bass x parameters in detail. And lastly, you have an EQ with high- and low-cut filters to give it the final polish.
The new Tweakbench Revenant reverb ships with 10 factory presets. It’s great to see the bundle continue to grow, and that these added plugins are also free for existing buyers.
The new Tweakbench 4.0 bundle with 37 plugins is available now as a free update for existing users on macOS, Linux, and Windows. The update is also available on iOS.
More info here: TB /App Store
Shortly before the end of last year, Tweakbench made an impressive comeback, re-introducing more than 20 plugins. Then, at Christmas, four more new plugins were added as a free update for existing bundle customers.
And he doesn’t stop. Tweakbench has released two more plugins: a new synth and a sample slicer, both now also included in the bundle. Even better: Tweakbench plugins are now available as AUv3 plugins for iOS.
Pressure is a monophonic bass Synthesizer plugin that Tweakbench created for a KVR forum competition. This is a complete remake with a recoded engine, new UI, and more.
At its core is a thick 7-voice Virus-style superasaw, a sub-oscillator, and filtered noise. They are then run through a Moog-style ladder filter with a drive parameter.
You shape the sound with 12 drawable tempo-synced modulation envelopes, each with independent loop points for evolving sounds. There are also three stereo widening modes (Haas, unison, and mid-side) that turn the mono synth into a wide stereo bass synth.
The second new plugin is Looms, a polyphonic sample slicer and beat mangler. Simply load an audio file (from the factory library or via sample import), then slice, sequence, and reshape it into something new.
It features a variable-step sequencer with per-step pitch, gate, and reverse controls, plus an ADSR envelope with optional lowpass gate mode for west-coast-style pluck sounds. It also hosts a multi-mode filter, stereo panning, and a built-in delay/reverb.
Alongside these, the developer also released Tweakbench Studio for iOS, a bundle with 28 plugins with AUv3 support. As of now, there are still some bugs, but they will be fixed in the next update, which has been submitted and is awaiting approval.
The new Tweakbench Pressure and Looms are available now for $10 each. They run as a VST3, AU, and CLAP plugin on macOS, Linux, and Windows. Yes, the plugins are now available for Linux as well.
No information on whether the new plugins are included in the bundle. Tweakbench Studio is available now for $69,99 on the Apple App Store with all 28 plugins. They run as AUv3 plugins on macOS and iOS.
In mid-December, the developer Tweakbench returned after a 20-year hiatus and re-released more than 20 plugins with compatibility for modern systems.
On Boxing Day, the developer followed up by releasing four additional synth and effects plugins. 
Saffron is a 6-operator FM Synthesizer plugin with DX-7 compatibility and a built-in serial effects chain of stereo chours, a light compressor, a tape delay, and a simple reverb.
Arsenal is an 8-source 8-bit retro percussive machine based on DrPetter’s sfxr sound generator. Each source is an independent instrument and is fully synthesized using various drum types: coin, laser, jump, explode…
It also includes a handy sound randomizer feature, providing instant new percussive sounds. Play with repeats, duty cycles, and a phaser to create wild sounds. There are also two new effects reboots.
Toaster is a warm tape saturator with a single-knob control. It uses 4x oversampling for clarity, soft saturation, low-frequency resonance at around 80Hz, high-frequency loss with saturation, hysteresis simulation, and output gain compensation.
The fourth new addition is Cobweb, a vintage-inspired multi-FX processor with noise, wobble, saturation, reverb, and tape degradation in your signal chain. Each effect features four easy parameters to tweak your sounds.
The new Tweakbench plugin additions are now available: Saffron ($10), Arsenal ($10), Cobweb ($10), and Toaster ($5). They are also included in the $50 bundle.
With code KVR2025, you get an additional 20% OFF through the end of the year. Existing customers of the v3 bundle can ask for an upgrade price.
The first VST plugins were released by Steinberg with Cubase 3.0.2 in 1996. This was a game-changer for the music production industry. An actual avalanche of plugins rolled into the audio world, and this continues unabated to this day.
Many developers emerged during this time. Many of them stayed, while others disappeared without a trace. Among the last to disappear was Tweakbench, an early player in the VST game, which vanished in the early 2000s. 
After a 20-year hiatus, Tweakbench is back with the plugins they originally made, but revamped for modern systems.
The company was active when I was busy gaming, attending school, and listening to music. Therefore, I have no memory of the plugins. Many who have been around longer still remember them. As some write: “a blast from the past”.
One thing is for sure: Tweakbench has a large number of plugins in its old and now new plugin arsenal—all at very reasonable prices between $5 and $10. In total, there are 22 plugins, spanning synthesizers, virtual instruments, and effects.
According to the developer, these are rebuilds with improved sound quality and performance. Please excuse me if I don’t describe the plugins in detail; otherwise, the article would be enormous. 
New demos aren’t available. Here is one from 2012.
22 plugins at once is quite a release. Okay, they’re re-releases. It’s great that Tweakbench is bringing them back to modern systems after so many years. A little retro charm is always welcome.
However, one shouldn’t forget that, even with the new compatibility specifications, the features remain somewhat outdated. What was once innovative, like granular, is now commonplace. Technology has advanced, as evidenced.
Perhaps that’s one reason the plugins are so inexpensive. However, the developer states that the plugins offer improved sound quality and performance. Nevertheless, there are some fun synths and effects included.
Tweakbench plugins are now available and priced between $5 and $10. You can also get all 22 plugins in the bundle for $50.
With code KVR2025, you get an additional 20% OFF through the end of the year. Existing customers of the v3 bundle can ask for an upgrade price.
They run as VST3 and AU plugins on macOS (native Apple Silicon + Intel) and Windows with no DRM.
More information here: TB website
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Ohhh, I remember these. Had them way back when I was using Fruityloops before it became FL studio. I loved the Peach synth.
I love Tweakbench plugins, they definitely have a unique character to their sound! Before this awesome announcement, I have just used the old version of TB Peach on a new album I’m recording – really awesome stuff. I switched to a Mac recently so I’m super happy I can now use it all there – just bought the whole bundle (thanks for the extra discount code!). First Absynth 6, now Tweakbench – awesome end to the year for music producers.
i loved these from back in the day. hell i visited the website just last week! [i love that song example for the pippo pluggin] – i still have the old versions from back then on a cd-r somewhere. lol.
The desktop bundle (purchased in December) does include new plugins (Pressure, Toaster, Arsenal, and Saffron). While there are changelog notes on Looms, the Mac installation package doesn’t install Looms plugins.
https://www.tweakbench.com/products/tweakbench-bundle
The iPadOS/iOS bundle is a separate product (70USD/100CAD).
As an update: sounds like Looms is now called Fates. (Easier to differentiate with AIR Music Tech’s additive synth and Aodyo’s revived hardware.)
on mac/win/linux it still Looms and on iOS it’s Fates
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