Brainworx bxoberhausen is an exceptional emulation of a classic synth, with two oscillators offering 32 voices of polyphony. Its Tolerance Modeling Technology introduces random analogue character that puts it up there with some of the best soft-synths, and with fantastic modulation options to spark interesting ideas. Basically, this is the best midi software for Windows and as well as best free midi software too. The convention actually seems to be able to make the version with two iterations before the present one is available for download without any kind of charge. Two years and still feature-packed totally and completely.
I received an email from a blog reader who had recently bought a MIDI keyboard so they could start practicing a bit of piano at home.
My previous blog posts on MIDI keyboards had all said something along the lines of “plug in your MIDI device and open up you DAW software to play”. But what if you don’t want to purchase any expensive software for writing and producing whole musical tracks? What if you just want some free software for practicing piano or messing around?
So following that I set out to find the best FREE MIDI keyboard software out there on each of the most common platforms Windows, Mac/ Apple and Android so you can plug in your MIDI keyboard and start playing straight away. This article summarises what I found.
But first, some context:
How does MIDI Work?
First things first, I always find it useful to briefly explain how MIDI works. If you, like me, came from playing a traditional acoustic instrument such as a piano or guitar, the world of MIDI and digital music production may be a little confusing. If you already know how it works feel free to skip this section!
MIDI is a digital signal, basically a series of 1s and 0s that allows different electronic devices to communicate with one another (I know, it sounds very dystopian!). This code communicates all manner of things from the note pressed, to how hard it is pressed and when it is released.
This is different to traditional instruments that produce an audio signal you can hear either straight away for acoustic instruments or through an amplifier for electric ones. Foxit reader 5 1 software, free download.
With a MIDI keyboard or other MIDI device not producing an audio signal, it needs to be plugged into another device which can convert the code into something we can hear. In the modern era this is usually a laptop or computer.
Modern MIDI devices pretty much always plug in and communicate via a USB connection. But simply connecting the device isn’t enough. The computer will receive the code but to produce a sound it will need software of some sort.
That is where I hope this article will help.
Best Free Midi Keyboard Options – Windows
1) Piano Time for Windows 10
Piano time is a nice option if you simply want to plug in and play the piano.
It is an “app” but that doesn’t mean you need a tablet or phone to use it. Windows is changing to become more similar to Apple in the way they present software creating less of a disconnect between computers, tablets and phones. This means if you have Windows 10, you can now head to the Microsoft store and download apps to your computer.
There are paid apps in the windows store but as with the Apple and Android “stores” that you may be more familiar with on your phones and tablets, many of the apps are free to download and use.
Ease of Use
Piano time is really easy to plug in and get going. I plugged in my Novation Impulse MIDI keyboard and it instantly recognized it without me having to go into the settings.
Features
![Best Best](https://flypaper.soundfly.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/midi-header.png)
Piano time is meant to be simple and for mimicking the sound of a piano. For this reason, you can’t really adjust the sound. You won’t find different instrument sounds, reverb or delay for example. But this might be a good thing if all you want to do is play the piano.
You can record and save clips of what you are playing which is a nice feature, and this allows you to record one part, play it back and then play something else over the top. Handy if you are doing a bit of songwriting. However, be warned, on the free version these clips will only remain in place whilst the program is open, to save or export the tracks you record as MP3 files you will have to pay a small fee to upgrade.
It comes pre-loaded with a few very basic tracks for you to play along with, think Amazing Grace or Mary Had a Little Lamb. The keys will light up and show you how to play along and you can slow it down or speed it up to suit. Perhaps this is most suitable for the absolute beginner or for a child learning the piano. Also useful for anyone using this to learn the piano are a few basic scale exercises you can play along with.
Other features include a metronome that can be adjusted. I did find the clicking a bit annoying but it does the job.
As with most pieces of MIDI software, you can use your computer keyboard to play if you don’t own a MIDI keyboard. I would not recommend this as it is very hard to do, but Piano Time does have a feature called “key mapping” which will show the corresponding keyboard letters above the relevant keys to help you play.
Sound and Performance
I found the sound to be ok. A nice bit of sustain and reverb make it sound quite realistic. However, the lower notes can sound a bit quiet compared to the higher notes and chords don’t sound that great. This is annoying if you are trying to play notes with the left and right hand, as the right hand notes tend to drown out those of the left.
This can be frustrating as a quick ‘stacatto’ press of a key isn’t any different from when you hold it down. This makes notes merge together when you don’t want them to or not ring out for as long as you might have hoped.
For me, the app had virtually no latency (time between pressing a key and hearing the sound). This is partly due to the app, but will also be due to your computer. If you are trying to use it with a computer or laptop that doesn’t have much RAM or has a slow processor then this may not be the case. If you are experiencing MIDI delay check out this article.
Other people have noted that when adverts load it can cause the app to crash. This did happen to me once which was a pain. You can get rid of the ads by paying just a small fee so this might be worth doing if you are having this issue.
2) Piano 10 for Windows 10
Piano 10 is very similar in many ways to Piano Time. It is available for download from the Windows app store on any windows device.
Ease of Use
I plugged my keyboard in and it didn’t work straight away this time. The menus in the app are also not the easiest to find with a series of symbol buttons to press, so I had to do a bit of random clicking to find out how to do it.
A button saying “general MIDI” brings up a menu when clicked where you should be able to turn MIDI support on and then select your MIDI keyboard from the list.
So once you figure out what each button symbol means it isn’t too hard to use.
Features
Different to Piano Time, Piano 10 has a few different effects and amazingly 126 different sounds for you to chose from. Including reverb, sustain and echo but unfortunately only one of these can be turned on at once.
An auto-chords function is pretty cool and is a great way to help learn different chords and chord types as the keys of the chords light up whilst you play.
As with piano time you can record short clips of yourself playing. You can save these clips but only as .xscore files to re-open in Piano 10 another time.
A metronome is also included with adjustable bpm.
Sound and performance
When testing the default piano sound it was ok, but pressing the keys too lightly meant no sound was played. So if you are trying to practice playing softly you may find this frustrating.
However, when the sustain effect is turned on I thought it sounded much more realistic and it felt nice to play.
Although it is cool having 126 different sounds to choose from, be warned, most of them sound pretty terrible. Fun to mess around with but you would never want to use them in a performance.
Probably the most annoying thing about Piano 10 is the fact you can’t change the key size or get more keys to show on the screen. The whole keyboard will still play but you won’t see all the keys light up on screen.
Being a free app it also has a banner with ads at the top but these are fairly standard and don’t really interfere with the usability.
3) MidiEditor
If you want something a bit more advanced which will allow you to edit and export your MIDI tracks then MIDI Editor is free software that is a great introduction to some more advanced techniques.
Ease of Use
In terms of downloading and installing things are fairly simple. However, unlike the previous two options, this is a more traditional piece of software that you download from a website rather than the Windows App Store.
Once downloaded the settings are easy to find and here you can select your MIDI device and connect.
You should then hear a basic piano sound.
So in terms of getting a sound, it is fairly simple. However, if you are not familiar with MIDI you may find the software slightly confusing due to the more advanced features it has….
Features
The screen shows what is known as a ‘piano roll’. This is something to get familiar with if you plan on using MIDI in production.
As you play on your MIDI keyboard and press record you will see lines appear on the screen. This is a visualization of the digital code for each note. You can see it shows which note was played, how long for and other parameters such as velocity (how hard you played that note).
This is what separates digital MIDI data from a traditional audio recording. It is stored as a series of numbers (note, note length, etc) and then a sound is ‘overlayed’ on top of that. So you could play the original notes with a piano sound but then change that to strings or a flute for example.
Features such as quantize, which automatically moves mistimed notes onto the correct beat are cool to mess around with.
Sound and performance
As a basic free introduction to MIDI editing software, MidiEditor does a pretty good job.
There are a couple of things that frustrated me though.
For example, when you record a track you can’t see the notes appearing on the screen, you have to wait till you have finished recording and then they will appear. This just felt weird compared to the MIDI input I’m used to in a Digital Audio Workstation (DAW).
There are also no other built-in sounds to test apart from the piano and I couldn’t find a way to import my own sounds either. Perhaps I’m expecting too much from free software.
Best Free Midi Keyboard Software on Mac (and Apple devices)
1) Garageband
Garageband has to be my favorite of all the free music making software available. I’ve written entire songs on the bus using this software on my iPad and have been happier with the sound than some tracks I spent weeks on in the studio!
It comes pre-installed on most Apple products but if not it can be downloaded from the app store for free.
Ease of Use
Garageband is quite a bit more advanced than some of the simple piano apps already mentioned in this article.
It is the closest you are going to get to proper a DAW without having to pay. A DAW is a Digital Audio Workstation. It is where all song artists create songs by piecing together tracks. There are many different ones with different people having different preferences. But if you are new to the music recording world then Garageband is a great place to start.
For this reason, it has massive potential but it does make it a bit confusing for the beginner. For example, when I connected my keyboard, it didn’t work straight away. I had to navigate to preferences and select my device and I also had to change the output so I could hear the sound.
It is a similar process when connecting to an iPad, however, you will have to buy a USB to lightning adapter (such as this one).
All that said it is still very easy to get started in comparison to most DAWs which can be very overwhelming. There are plenty of great videos on Youtube to help you if you get lost.
Features
This is where Garageband excels over the other simpler apps. The possibilities are almost limitless.
You can choose from hundreds of pre-loaded MIDI sounds. There are pre-made drum loops to add in and play along to. Then when you want to add even more sounds or effects you can download free ‘plug-ins.
Because it is a DAW you can layer up multiple tracks, MIDI or Audio to create full songs and there are great built-in features such as EQ and compression so you can even try your hand at mixing!
Sound and Performance
The pre-loaded sounds do sound quite robotic and it is hard to compose a full song that will sound professional using just the MIDI samples. That does, of course, depend on your genre, for some electronic music you can do a pretty good job.
This may not bother you if you just want to practice the piano.
The performance is pretty good, I rarely ever experience any latency when playing. This is dependent on your laptop age and spec.
2) Pianu.com
This option technically applies to Windows too but I couldn’t find another free app on the Apple app store that wasn’t either terrible or tried to give me a virus.
![Free midi synth Free midi synth](https://www.synthanatomy.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Polyend-Tracker.001.jpeg)
So Pianu.com is actually a web-based MIDI keyboard and is a great option if you don’t want to mess around downloading software and just want to get playing right away.
Ease of Use
This software is so simple to use (at least it was for me anyway!) Just head to pianu.com/keyboard-page and there you will see a big yellow button that says “Detect My Keyboard”. Press this and you will see the following screen.
You are then ready to start playing
Features
Pianu is not very complex and won’t give you all the features of Garageband. But many people have written to me to say they don’t want something as complicated as that and just want to play some piano. For this it is perfect.
What Pianu is really meant for though is learning the piano. For this it has lots of built-in lessons, starting with the absolute basics and building you up from there. What I like most is you can play along with a lot of contemporary songs (Coldplay, Taylor Swift etc.) rather than the usual Ode to Joy or Amazing Grace which you get on most apps.
Sound and Performance
You would never want to use this piano for recordings or live performances, but it sounds fine for learning. The one annoying thing is the notes don’t fully ring out and eventually just stop suddenly. But this is a minor issue when you are just practicing.
For a web-based application I expected performance to be dodgy, but it really wasn’t. In fact I would say I noticed less latency than many other apps and my laptop fan was whirring away.
Best Free Midi Keyboard Software on Android
Yes, that’s right, these days you don’t even need a computer to use a MIDI device. You can now plug your MIDI keyboard directly into your phone or tablet and use that to create music.
I bought this simple USB C to USB adapter for under $10 and it allows me to play my 49 key MIDI keyboard through my phone.
As with the other devices mentioned above, you will need to download some software (an app) to do this and there are plenty of great free options to choose from.
1) Perfect Piano
Ease of Use
You may already know how to connect your android device to a MIDI keyboard, but if you don’t it is very simple (you can find out in this step by step guide).
Once plugged in the Perfect Piano app should automatically detect that a MIDI keyboard is connected and it should work straight away without you having to mess around with any setup! A real bonus for those who just want to plug in and play.
Features
The app has a keyboard that is set as default to a piano sound. But additionally, you get the choice of many more from strings to synths and loads of additional free sounds to download.
There is a sustain button to create the effect of using a piano pedal and you can record your efforts either in MIDI format or in audio format.
The app has some nice additional features such as ‘learn to play’. Where you can play along as notes descend on the screen, very similar to guitar hero (if you remember that game) except you are actually learning a real instrument.
Sound and Performance
Free Midi Synth
With my android phone (which is a few years old now) I had no noticeable lag which amazed me. I’ve experienced many issues with MIDI latency using computers and laptops over the years. I can’t guarantee you won’t have issues but if your phone is newer than mine I’m sure it will be fine!
The sounds are really quite impressive. The piano does have that programmed sound but no more so than most other MIDI pianos out there. The synths and strings are great fun to mess around too.
I like how you can adjust the number of keys on the screen. A feature often lacking from many mobile MIDI apps.
Concluding Remarks
Nowadays there are plenty of free MIDI apps and software programs to choose from. The key thing is to ask yourself, what do I need the software to do? If it is to simply practice piano or mess about then stick to something simple. But if you think you might want to create full tracks or use more advanced techniques there is probably something out there for you too.
Once you are ready to progress the best option is to move to a DAW of your choice. I personally use Ableton Live which is particularly good for MIDI. But there are loads of others to choose from. My suggestion would be to download a free trial, watch a few ‘how-to’ videos and see which one you find best.
The possibilities of music production using MIDI are pretty endless!
Article Content
It’s been a while since I surveyed the market for free software synths, so I thought I’d give it go and see what’s new and what has stood the test of time. Some of these instruments were released as prototypes or were the early experiments of developers just entering the market.
Free stuff is not always actually free. Often you will follow a link only to find out that it’s a free “demo”. Aren’t all demos supposed to be free?? In other cases, free software is dangled like a carrot in order to get your email address or to entice you into buying other products, preset libraries, add-ons, etc.
Well, business is business, and I suppose everyone needs to make a buck. I really don’t mind spending a few dollars for some shareware now and again to support a budding developer. But it behooves even the most experienced consumer to proceed with caution when the word free is thrown around.
What follows are some awesome sounding instruments in no particular order that are indeed free with very few strings attached. And if you can stomach a little extra spam, some of these may prove valuable additions to your stockpile of synths.
1. TyrellN6 by u-he
- Virtual analog with classic architecture, plus extras.
- Two oscillators, noise, ring modulator.
- Two LFOs with eight waveforms that are host-syncable.
- Audio source mixer with authentic overdrive and filter feedback.
- Twin filter related to Diva (early model).
- Unison with up to eight voices.
- Analog-type ADSR envelopes, loopable or LFO-triggered.
- Small modulation matrix with depth modulation from a second source.
- Chorus effect with three modes.
- MIDI learn / unlearn for hardware control.
- Resizable UI from 70% to 200%.
- Skinnable UI.
- Over 580 factory presets.
This thing is responsive as hell and sounds sweet! I love the stained and grungy aesthetic of the interface. It’s really hard to believe it’s free. But it serves its purpose I suppose because it truly whets the appetite for more stuff from u-he.
2. Dexed
Dexed is an emulation of the classic FM synth: Yamaha DX7.
From the Github page:
“Dexed is a multi-platform, multi-format plugin synth that is closely modeled on the Yamaha DX7. Dexed is also a midi cartridge librarian/manager for the DX7. Do not expect this to be a perfect clone of a DX7 since this will take years in the open source world and multiple collaborators before getting there … Since Dexed is modeled on the DX7, the Yamaha DX7 Operating Manual can be used as a reference documentation.”
The interface is a little cluttered and is more functional than it is aesthetically pleasing, but there are a ton of sonic possibilities with this for those willing to dig in.
3. MiniSpillage
“MiniSpillage is a free professional quality drum synthesizer plugin featuring high-resolution 64-bit DSP processing.
MiniSpillage includes three exclusive drum synthesis algorithms along with distortion effects and resonant filters.”
MiniSpillage includes three exclusive drum synthesis algorithms along with distortion effects and resonant filters.”
- Bass Drum – Single oscillator bass drum synth with pitch sweep, internal FM and harmonic controls.
- Wood Drum – Flexible wooden drum model synthesizes natural and synthetic timbres from log drums to toms.
- Hi-Hat – Six oscillators closed and open hi-hat generator with a noise source and dual resonant filters.
This is a great free option for those that want to create their own drum sounds with modulation, filtering and distortion effects.
4. Crystal Synth by Green Oak
This is one is a bit frustrating and takes a while to get anything remotely usable. The interface is on the clunky side. But a little patience can be rewarding.
5. Lokomotiv
Lokomotiv is an analog retro synthesizer that is impressive from the first launch. Its austere interface is surprisingly responsive and sounds immediately great.
Oscillator:
- Mathematically generated high definition Oscillator without using wavetable or interpolation.
- Silky smooth 9X detuned sawtooth wave.
- Pulse wave with self PWM.
- Shape morphing sub-oscillator.
Filter:
- MG ladder modeling multimode filter featuring Zero Delay Feedback technology.
- Routable filter Drive (Pre/Post).
Modulator:
- Natural Curved ADSR Envelope generator.
- One-shot LFO which can be used as envelope.
Specification:
- 1X OSC (Saw+ Pulse) + One Sub OSC, Noise Generator.
- 1X multimode Filter with Drive.
- 1X LFO, 1X Envelope Generator.
- Eight polyphonic voices, Mono and Legato mode supported.
- 64 Factory presets included.
- Native 64-bit, Mac and Windows OS supported.
6. Digits from Extent of the Jam
This one sports a subdued color palette with beefy growls, preset chords and brass sounds. A bit of crackling when parameters are modified, but worth the time to download for sure.
7. Spitfire Audio – LABS
Not long ago, Spitfire Audio released an ongoing series of completely free instruments called LABS. These are very, very simple sampled instruments with just a handful of controls and they sound really, really good. So far the collection includes:
- Charango
- Electric Piano
- Amplified Electric Cello Quartet
- Drums
- Strings
- Soft Piano
If you’ve used any of the Spitfire Sample Libraries before, you know how well they’re recorded, and these instruments are no exception. While you won’t get the flexibility or deep sampled variety of a full-scale library, you will get a great sound that can be slightly varied to taste. While these are sampled instruments as opposed to synths, they’re free and so good that I felt they warranted inclusion.
8. TAL NoiseMaker
This is one my of favorite choices. Best free midi recording software. The interface is accessible, clean and to the point and thick, beefy sounds are possible from the get-go. Really nice!
From the developer: “TAL NoiseMaker is an improved version of TAL-Elek7ro and has a completely new synth engine and a lot of improvements in sound and usability. The synth also includes a small effect section with a reverb, chorus and a simple bit crusher effect. A display shows the knob and slider values. This allows more control over the synth. A ring modulator and a syncable triangle are also part of this synth.”
TAL NoiseMaker includes new filter types and the self-resonating 6 dB low pass and notch filter. Its improved amplitude ADSR is very suitable for slow pads and for really fast envelopes. 128 factory presets included, 80 made by Frank “Xenox” Neumann.
Features:
- Three Oscillators. Osc 1, +/- 24 semitones, fine tune, phase control (saw, pulse, noise). Osc 2, +/- 24 semitones, fine tune, phase control (saw, rectangle, triangle, sine). Sub Osc (rectangle).
- Osc 1 PM for pulse waveform.
- Osc 2 FM controlled by Osc 1.
- Osc 1 & Osc 2 sync to sub osc (saw, pulse, rectangle, triangle (bipolar sync)).
- Adjustable master tune and transpose.
- Up to six voices.
- Portamento in mono and poly mode (off, auto, on).
- Ringmod modulates Osc 1 with Osc 2.
- Self resonating 4x oversampled filters (24 dB LP, 18 dB LP, 12 dB LP, 6 dB LP, 12 dB HP, 12 dB BP, Notch).
- Filter ADSR (negative and positive).
- Volume ADSR
- Routable ADSR, modulates Filter, Osc 1, Osc 2, PW, FM (negative and positive)
- Two LFO’s with different running modes: free, sync to host, triggered by note. Modulates filter, Osc 1, Osc 2, FM, PW, LFO rate, Panorama and Volume. Sine, Triangle, Saw Square, S&H, Noise. Positive and Negative modulation. Phase control.
- Adjustable Velocity-dependent control over volume filter contour and cutoff.
- Adjustable Pitch Wheel control over Cutoff and Pitch.
- One pole HP filter.
- Detune, detunes notes randomly.
- Juno chorus with different modes.
- A built-in reverb and delay.
- Adjustable filter drive.
- Bitcrusher affects Osc 1 and Osc 2. It’s a pre-filter stage effect.
- MIDI Learn for all knobs.
- Panic button.
- Easy to use, no hidden panels.
- 256 great presets (Presets by Frank “Xenox” Neumann, The Unshushable Coktor, Alexandra Sendy, TAL, Patrick Kunz).
9. Thump by Metric Halo
Thump is a unique audio processor that allows you to synthesize low-frequency audio to add low end to a track or generate another sound entirely. Thump looks at the pitch and dynamics of its audio input and uses this information to control its oscillators. You can add low end to drums, augment a bass or even create synthetic drones.
Thump is ideal for beefing up a kick drum, adding low end to percussive tracks, recreating classic drum synth sounds and more. You can use Thump’s envelope driven, percussive sub-harmonic synth for the following things (among others):
- Build low-octave support for bass drum, tom, snare and other percussive tracks.
- Create kettle drum sounds from regular drum tracks.
- Recreate the sounds of classic drum synths like the TR-808.
The effect of Thump is similar to generating a sine wave or other waveform on a gated track that is side-chained to a transient on another track such as a kick. But Thump allows more control, two oscillators that can be changed on the fly and more pitch specific envelope control. If you like kicks that are thick as hell and challenge the range of human hearing, you will like Thump a lot.
NOTE: the instrument requires a transient input to be activated so you would use it like an insert rather than a standalone synth.
10. Synth 1 by Daichi Laboratory
While the interface is a bit nasty and pixelated, Synth 1 by Ichiro Toda is modeled after the Nord Lead 2 Red Synth and sounds decent. It doesn’t take long to get a few usable sounds and the onboard arpeggiator is great for experimenting. (Manual)
11. PG-8X by Martin Lüder
Blender software reviews 2015. “The PG-8X is a virtual synthesizer, inspired by the Roland JX-8P with the PG-800 programmer. The synth architecture is a standard 2-oscillator -> Filter -> VCA design. These elements can be modulated by a common LFO and one of two envelopes. The PG-8X is patch compatible with the JX-8P and can read and write JX-8P Sysex data”. (Manual)
Best Free Midi Controller Software
Conclusion
While these instruments may not be the best things in life — they are free. And it has been my experience that there is something to be learned from every piece of software, as there is from all types of music. Experimentation and exploration yield untold rewards for the adventurous, and freeware is a great place to start your journey or a means to unshackle yourself, at least temporarily, from the financial constraints that plague us all.
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Check out my other articles, reviews, interviews and my video tutorial series, Synthesis 101 available exclusively on The Pro Audio Files.
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It’s been a while since I surveyed the market for free software synths, so I thought I’d give it go and see what’s new and what has stood the test of time. Some of these instruments were released as prototypes or were the early experiments of developers just entering the market. Free stuff is not al
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