Cherry Audio - Ensoniq ESQ-1

Ensoniq ESQ-1 by Cherry Audio is an officially licensed recreation of the 1986 Ensoniq ESQ-1, a hybrid digital and analogue polysynth, for glassy digital pads, bells, complex evolving textures and classic late-80s sounds.

The architecture

Cherry Audio licensed the original 32 waveforms from Creative Technology, the current owner of Ensoniq's IP, a first for an ESQ-1 plugin. There are three digital oscillators per voice with sync and amplitude modulation, feeding a model of the Curtis CEM3379 24dB/oct low-pass filter, now joined by 12dB low-pass, high-pass and band-pass options. Modulation is deep: three LFOs and four multistage envelopes per layer, and a mod matrix with 41 sources and 85 destinations.

The sound

Crisp digital attacks with a warm analogue filter underneath, which is exactly what made the ESQ-1 so popular. Dual layers of up to 32 voices each, polyphonic aftertouch and MPE make it far more expressive than the original. Per-layer arpeggiators and 16x4 step sequencers add motion, and SysEx import and export works with the hardware. Nearly 400 presets, including the 40 original factory patches.

Features

• Officially licensed original 32 ESQ-1 waveforms
• Three oscillators per voice with sync and AM
• CEM3379-based 24dB/oct filter plus 12dB LP, HP and BP options
• Dual layers with up to 32 voices each
• Three LFOs and four multistage envelopes per layer
• Mod matrix with 41 sources and 85 destinations
• Arpeggiators and 16x4 polyphonic step sequencers
• Polyphonic aftertouch and MPE support
• SysEx import and export
• Three effects chains, 20 effects
• Nearly 400 presets, including the 40 original factory patches

System requirements

• Version: 1.0.12
• Mac: macOS 10.13 or later, native on Apple Silicon. AU, VST2, VST3, AAX and standalone (64-bit)
• Windows: Windows 7 or later, including Windows 11. VST2, VST3, AAX and standalone (64-bit)
• Quad-core CPU and 8GB RAM recommended
• Internet connection needed for activation

SOUND7 is an authorised Cherry Audio reseller. Digital delivery: licence activation code sent by email. See How to Activate Your Cherry Audio Plugins.

Demo