If you've ever wanted the sound of Mutable Instruments Plaits without building a Eurorack rig, there's a new free option. Japanese developer Push and Groove has released MICRONIX, a free monophonic synth plugin built on the original open-source Plaits DSP code, with all 24 synthesis models from the module.
MICRONIX is available now as a VST3 plugin for 64-bit Windows and as AU and VST3 for macOS (Universal, Intel and Apple Silicon). Version 1.0 launched on October 15, 2026.
All 24 Plaits models in your DAW
Plaits is one of the most popular macro-oscillator modules ever made, and its appeal is range. MICRONIX carries over every model, covering virtual analog, FM, wavetable, granular, physical modeling, and percussion synthesis in one instrument.
Each model is controlled with the three familiar Plaits macros, Harmonics, Timbre, and Morph. A nice touch for anyone who hasn't memorized the Plaits manual is that MICRONIX relabels those knobs to describe what they actually do in the selected model. You can also blend the module's original OUT and AUX signals instead of picking one, which opens up extra tonal variations.
According to Bedroom Producers Blog, developer Takahiro Oishi compared MICRONIX against his own hardware Plaits during development and found the sound and parameter response very close.
Modulation and envelopes
Push and Groove has added the kind of control you'd normally patch in with extra modules:
- An LFO with five waveforms (sine, triangle, square, saw, and sample-and-hold) that can run free or sync to your DAW tempo.
- A four-slot modulation matrix with bipolar amounts, routing sources like the LFO, amp envelope, velocity, mod wheel, aftertouch, and key tracking to pitch, the engine macros, and other controls.
- A choice between a conventional ADSR amp envelope and a low-pass gate mode with Decay and Color controls, which keeps the plucky, percussive character of the original module.
For playing, there are retrigger and legato modes, glide, octave shifting, pitch bend, and an on-screen keyboard with Hold. A Randomize button picks a new model and macro settings, and Restore takes you back one step if the result isn't useful. The resizable interface includes a real-time waveform display and output meters.
MICRONIX vs. MICRONIX PRO
The free version plays one engine and one note at a time. Push and Groove also offers MICRONIX PRO, which adds two independent engines with polyphony, ring modulation and AM between the engines, an analog-modeled filter derived from the company's FILTRONIX plugin, two LFOs, two modulation envelopes, step sequencing, and a preset browser.
MICRONIX uses Plaits DSP code by Emilie Gillet under the MIT license, and Push and Groove notes that it is an independent product not affiliated with or endorsed by Mutable Instruments.
For bass lines, leads, and quirky percussion, it's an easy one to add to your plugin folder. You can hear a demo and download MICRONIX from the Push and Groove MICRONIX page. The download goes through a $0 checkout that asks for an email address.
Images in this article are from Push and Groove.