Spectrasonics has released Omnisphere 2.5, a massive new update that adds hardware synth integration, a new sound library and expanded synthesis…

The new version marks a big step for not only Spectrasonics, but for soft synths as Omnisphere 2.5 becomes the first of its kind to offer hardware synth integration, which transforms over 30 well-known hardware synthesiser into hands-on controllers.

There’s plenty more to play with in the new update too! 2.5 includes a hi-resolution interface, support for Windows Multitouch, new Granular Synthesis capabilities and over 1000 brand new sounds, knocking the total to over 14,000 sounds.

“Since the beginning of computer-based music, the biggest limitation of software synthesizers has been the lack of physical interaction. It’s hard to beat the immediacy of a physical synthesizer that you can touch! We are very excited to be able to finally eliminate that problem by utilizing the world’s finest hardware synthesizers to fully control Omnisphere.” said Eric Persing, President of Spectrasonics. “We’ve never felt that the worlds of software and hardware synths should be divided into different ‘camps’. Our virtual instrument users can now experience the joy of the hardware synth workflow and hardware synth users can now fully expand their capabilities into the vast sonic world of Omnisphere!”

Omnisphere 2.5 key features:

• Hardware Synth Integration!
• New Hardware Library adds over 1,000 new patches for all users:
  • Over 14,000 Sounds total now included
• Vastly Expanded Synthesis:
  • Four Layers per patch
  • Doubled Mod Matrix
  • Over 100 New Wavetables
  • New State Variable Filters
  • 8 LFOs, 12 Envelopes
• New Hi-res, Resizable Interface
• New Granular Layout
• Improved Live Mode Page
• New Shared Signal Path routing
• New System Tuning/Scale functions
• Windows Multitouch support
• FREE for all Omnisphere 2 users!

Pricing and Availability:
Omnisphere 2.5 is a free upgrade for all registered Omnisphere 2 users. For new users, it’s available here to download for $499, and for Omnisphere 1 users $249 to upgrade.