Isla Electronics / Software synthesizer
VANIX
The AN1x,
recreated as a plugin.
The architecture and sounds of the original instrument, recreated in software. Use it in your DAW, or as a standalone instrument on macOS and Windows.
- 32 voice
- 28 effects
- AU / VST3 / Standalone
TBA · Coming soonPerpetual licence · Up to 3 computers · All future versions included
Windows 10+ (64-bit)macOS Big Sur+ (Intel / Apple Silicon)Linux (Debian/Ubuntu, x86-64)Systems & formats
The instrument
Less menu.
More synthesizer.
The main sound-shaping controls share a single panel. The display handles the detail, from envelope curves to modulation routes, while the architecture stays in front of you.
Oscillators, sync & FM
Two oscillator sections put waveform, pitch, fine tuning, edge and pulse width together. The sync/FM controls sit alongside them, rather than behind a separate editing matrix.
The whole signal path
Oscillators, ring modulation, noise and feedback feed the mixer. Filter type, cutoff, resonance and the filter envelope are grouped together, with the signal-flow diagram always in view.
Envelopes you can see
The display brings amplitude, filter and pitch shaping into focus. A graphical envelope sits beside the instrument’s main controls, keeping the shape and the settings together.
Scenes & performance
Scene selection, voice and layer modes, unison detune, glide and pan controls occupy a dedicated performance section. Eight assignable controls and a ribbon complete the panel.
Movement & modulation
Dedicated display pages bring LFOs, modulation routes, Free EG and the arpeggiator/sequencer into the same workspace. Switch pages without losing sight of the synth itself.
Two ways to look at it
Inspired and Graphite are two themes for the same instrument. Choose the colour-coded panel or the restrained charcoal finish; the controls stay where you expect them.
The patch library
Comprehensive Patch Management
Bring your AN1x programs and banks into one library. Find the sound you want, organise your banks, and keep favourites close at hand.
Keep your collection in VANIX, build banks for your own sessions, and use AN Link when you want to move sounds between the software and the original instrument.
Original patches / AN Link
Your sounds.
Across both instruments.
AN Link is bidirectional. With MIDI connected in both directions, the AN1x’s controls can work with VANIX. Enable live parameter sending to work the other way: changes made in VANIX are sent to the hardware. This works with compatible voice parameters, so you can edit from either interface.
Import original AN1x SysEx programs and banks, or An1xEdit (.an1) files, into the library. Send programs and banks back to the hardware. Patch and bank transfers are separate from live parameter editing.
Keep your library in VANIX, and prepare a bank for the AN1x when you need a hardware transfer. The software and the original keyboard can share a place in the same setup.
Compatibility
Systems & formats
Windows
Windows 10 or later
64-bit
VST3 / Standalone
macOS
macOS Big Sur or later
Intel / Apple Silicon
AU / VST3 / Standalone
Linux
Debian/Ubuntu
x86-64 · .deb installer
VST3 / LV2
VANIX
Get notified.
TBAComing soon
- Perpetual licence
- Use on up to 3 computers
- All future versions included
- Inspired and Graphite themes
Before you ask
A few details.
Can I buy VANIX now?
Not yet. VANIX is coming soon. Price TBA. Use Notify Me to hear about the release.
What is AN Link?
AN Link is VANIX’s bidirectional connection to the Yamaha AN1x, bringing the software and original hardware together.
Are Inspired and Graphite different versions?
No. They are two visual themes for the same VANIX instrument, not separate editions or purchases.
Which systems and plugin formats will be supported?
VST3 and Standalone on Windows 10 or later (64-bit); AU, VST3 and Standalone on macOS Big Sur or later (Intel and Apple Silicon); VST3 and LV2 for Debian/Ubuntu x86-64.
The original instrument / Yamaha AN1x
A different kind
of analogue.
At the end of the 1990s, digital synthesis was finding new ways to revisit analogue design. The AN1x put that idea in a blue keyboard with a ribbon controller, eight knobs and far more going on beneath the panel than its modest layout suggested.
Its story is as much about control as it is about sound: two Scenes inside a voice, movement recorded into a patch, and a synthesis engine built for exploration.
1997. Analogue, modelled.
The AN1x arrived in 1997, a year after Yamaha’s CS1x. Its approach was different: instead of relying on sampled analogue sounds, its digital engine modelled oscillator behaviour and the small instabilities that help give an analogue synthesizer its character.
A voice with two Scenes.
The original instrument stored two Scenes within each voice. Players could recall either, layer them or use Scene Control to move between them. A patch could become a starting point for a performance, rather than a sound that stayed fixed after the first note.
Movement was part of the sound.
Eight control knobs, a ribbon, an arpeggiator and a step sequencer made the AN1x a hands-on instrument. Its four-track Free EG could record knob movements and replay them as part of a voice: a way to draw changes over time without keeping a hand on every control.
Beyond the blue keyboard.
Yamaha carried the AN virtual-analogue engine into the EX5, alongside other synthesis methods. For VANIX, the point of returning to the AN1x is the instrument itself: the way its controls, Scenes and movement invite you to keep changing a sound as you play.
ISLA Electronics and VANIX are not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by Yamaha. All product names and trademarks belong to their respective owners.