20 Free Linux VST Plugins (Ubuntu)

Vital offers a spectral warping wavetable engine that reshapes sound in bold and creative ways. It changes waveform harmonics to produce new tones and textures, letting you turn samples or even text into wavetables using built-in conversion and editing tools.

This synth is fully visual, showing how filters, LFOs, and modulations shape your sound in real time. With drag-and-drop modulation, wide stereo effects, and audio-rate control, Vital helps sound designers and producers explore detailed, evolving tones across music styles.

Related: Free Vital Presets

Surge XT offers a powerful hybrid synthesizer engine that combines different types of synthesis for creative sound design. It includes three oscillators per scene, many filter options, and a rich modulation system. With over 2,800 presets and 700 wavetables, it gives producers many sound possibilities.

Surge XT also supports special features like MPE, microtuning, and multiple scene modes for layered or split setups. Its open-source design allows regular updates and community input. With flexible routing and a wide range of effects, it’s useful for crafting both modern and classic synth sounds.

Zebralette is a free synthesizer plugin that gives music creators a strong set of tools for sound design. It uses a single oscillator with a wavetable editor, offering hundreds of presets and flexible modulation features. With 16-voice polyphony, it allows for rich and layered tones.

Zebralette offers modulation options, spectral shaping, and built-in effects like chorus, delay, and EQ. Its clear layout helps explore evolving pads, deep basses, and sharp leads. The plugin works on Windows, Mac, and Linux, making it a solid tool for creative sound exploration.

Odin 2 is a free virtual synth created by The Wave Warden for Windows, Mac, and Linux. It offers three oscillators, three filters, and a range of analog-style waveforms for creating powerful leads, basses, and effects. The plugin includes modulation options, distortion control, and built-in sound effects.

Odin 2 provides 24-voice polyphony, flexible modulation tools, and customizable filters modeled after classic analog gear. With features like an arpeggiator, ADSR envelopes, LFOs, and an XY pad, it gives music creators deep control over tone shaping for modern or vintage-style sounds.

Graillon 2 offers real-time vocal tuning and creative tone shaping for producers and singers. It combines pitch correction, formant shifting, and pitch-shifting to achieve both natural and robotic sounds. Its built-in compressor, gate, chorus, preamp, and bitcrusher give more polish and control.

It includes three pitch engines, letting users choose between classic and updated tones. Optional tools like Pitch-Tracking Modulation, keyboard tuning, and a doubler expand vocal styles. Graillon 2 works across major systems and plugin formats, making it reliable for studio or live use.

OB-Xd offers the classic analog warmth of the vintage Oberheim OB-X with modern features for today’s music makers. It delivers a wide and lively tone through micro detuning, unison voices, and blendable filters that shape everything from smooth pads to bold leads.

The plugin includes enhanced oscillators, adjustable filters, and support for MTS-ESP micro-tuning to refine pitch and tone. With simple controls for modulation, envelopes, and noise, OB-Xd helps producers craft expressive sounds that fit many styles, from retro synthwave to modern electronic tracks.

Chow Tape Model offers a realistic emulation of reel-to-reel tape sound using a detailed physical model. Based on the Sony TC-260, it recreates the warmth, saturation, and imperfections of analog tape. Music creators can shape tone and texture through adjustable tape speed, bias, and drive settings.

The plugin includes controls for tape hiss, compression, and stereo processing, allowing fine-tuned control over sound character. It can produce gentle analog warmth or heavy tape distortion, making it useful for mixing, mastering, or sound design. Chow Tape Model is available free for Windows, macOS, Linux, and iOS.

Chow Centaur offers a digital recreation of the classic Klon Centaur guitar pedal, giving players access to both traditional and AI-driven modeling. The plugin includes two modes: “Traditional” for authentic circuit-based tone and “Neural” for a machine-learned recreation of the original pedal’s gain stage.

With simple controls for gain, tone, and level, Chow Centaur makes it easy to shape everything from subtle boosts to rich overdrive. Visual tools like the wave display and switches for mono or bypass add quick flexibility for guitar tones on Windows, Mac, and Linux systems.

Chow Phaser offers a classic phasing sound modeled after the rare Schulte Compact Phasing ‘A’, updated with modern digital control. It includes mono and stereo modes, adjustable LFO skew, and nonlinear filters that bring warmth, depth, and character to your tracks.

With controls for Drive, Thrash, Dirt, and Feedback, Chow Phaser moves easily from smooth movement to gritty textures. The flexible modulation options and selectable stages let you shape tones from gentle motion to bold, warped effects, making it useful for both subtle polish and creative sound design.

TyrellN6 offers a classic analog-style sound in a compact and free software synthesizer. It includes two main oscillators, filters related to u-he’s Diva, and a built-in chorus for added depth. The synth keeps everything on one screen, making sound design smooth and direct.

The 2025 beta update improves performance and adds features like CLAP and MTS-ESP microtuning support. It also introduces a modern preset browser, easier soundset installation, and updated scaling options. TyrellN6 continues to deliver warm tones and flexible controls for creating rich, expressive sounds.

LoudMax offers clean and transparent loudness control designed to make your tracks sound full without adding unwanted distortion. Its look-ahead limiting keeps peaks under control while preserving punch and clarity, even at high levels of gain reduction.

This plugin is ideal for mastering or keeping audio levels steady in broadcasts. With simple threshold and output controls, plus inter-sample peak detection, LoudMax helps you achieve professional loudness in an easy and reliable way across Windows, macOS, and Linux systems.

Podolski is a free virtual analog synthesizer made by U-He. It focuses on simplicity, offering one oscillator, one filter, and one envelope, supported by an arpeggiator/sequencer and built-in effects. Despite its minimal design, it delivers warm tones and clear, expressive sound control.

Podolski offers useful tools like WaveWarp for smooth waveform shaping, flexible filter drive, and two LFOs for modulation. With over 300 presets, NKS support, and a resizable interface, it’s a solid choice for crafting basses, leads, or rhythmic patterns across most major music platforms.

LSP Spektrumanalysator offers detailed real-time spectrum monitoring for up to 16 channels at once. It works without changing the audio signal, making it handy for tracking frequency balance during mixing or mastering. It also supports stereo and Mid/Side modes for more focused analysis.

The plugin includes options to freeze graphs, zoom in, adjust display styles, and fine-tune response speed. Developers and engineers can compare multiple signals, check tonal balance, and view precise frequency data. Its clear layout and flexible controls suit both simple and complex project setups.

Nils‘ K1v offers an accurate software version of the classic 1988 Kawai K1 synthesizer. It includes over a thousand presets, covering both factory and ROM card sounds. With edit options for singles and multis, it gives producers access to authentic late?80s digital tones.

This plugin supports SysEx for easy data exchange with the original hardware. Its four?source engine, modulation tools, and resizable interface let users shape sounds precisely. Available for Windows, macOS, and Linux, Nils K1v is a free and practical way to capture vintage synth character.

Flying Phaser offers a smooth, classic phaser sound with modern reliability. It creates sweeping, analog-style movement using time-varying filters that stay in sync with your track’s tempo. Designed to be clean and aliasing-free, it brings warmth and motion to any sound source.

Depth, frequency, feedback, and mix controls give you precise shaping over the tone, from gentle modulation to bold, swirling sweeps. With support for Windows, Mac, and Linux in VST and AU formats, Flying Phaser fits easily into any music setup.

fircomp offers clean, precise compression with a punchy attack and smooth musical release. Its fast controls make it easy to shape dynamics on individual tracks or full mixes. The lookahead mode provides accurate timing and clear gain control without adding unwanted distortion.

This plugin includes flexible sidechain filtering, soft or hard knee options, and adjustable attack and release for detailed control. At extreme settings, it can add gentle warmth while keeping transients sharp. fircomp’s simple layout helps producers manage dynamics quickly and maintain clarity across instruments and vocals.

OS-251 offers a digital take on classic synthesizer sounds, delivering warm, lo-fi tones crafted through its unique DSP design. Inspired by the JUNO-106, it blends old-school character with modern reliability, using digital alias noise to create rich textures and punchy presence.

With up to 24 voices of polyphony, flexible filters, an LFO section, and built-in chorus and unison modes, OS-251 keeps things simple yet powerful. Every control is clearly laid out, helping music creators shape sounds quickly and stay focused on what matters most—making music.

MT Power Drum Kit offers realistic acoustic drum sounds that fit easily into pop, rock, and metal tracks. Its samples are pre-processed with compression and EQ, giving them a clear and punchy tone that blends well in a mix without extra tweaking.

The built-in Groove Library includes thousands of rhythms and fills that let you build smooth and natural drum parts in minutes. With detailed cymbal recordings and lifelike hi-hat dynamics, MT Power Drum Kit delivers professional-quality drums for any studio project.

GVST GTune offers a simple and accurate way to tune your instruments inside your music software. It automatically detects pitch, shows the nearest note, and displays whether the sound is flat or sharp using clear LED-style indicators and a frequency readout.

Musicians can adjust the reference pitch, view exact frequencies in hertz, and fine-tune their sound with visual feedback. GTune works well for guitars, vocals, or any tuned instrument, making it a dependable tool for recording, mixing, and live performance setups.

TAL-Reverb-4 offers a rich plate reverb sound with a smooth, vintage 80s tone. Its modulated character adds depth and texture, making it great for drums, synths, and vocals. The plugin builds reverb quickly and blends well into many styles of music.

With simple controls for size, diffusion, and tone shaping, TAL-Reverb-4 makes it easy to dial in anything from subtle space to deep ambience. It works on stereo tracks across Windows, Mac, and Linux, giving creators a classic reverb feel with modern flexibility.