Pop music as a cultural phenomenon is an amazing thing. Perhaps more than any other meta-genre, it's ready to absorb and adapt any influences into its whole. Pop music has made use of many subcultures. This happened particularly with such a relatively isolated phenomenon as chip-tune music.
It would seem that 8-bit music, after the recent revolution in all kinds of microchip production, including audio processors, should have been forgotten by now. After all, its sound was not just imperfect, but downright lo-fi—not for artistic reasons, but because of engineering difficulties. Yet millions of people have retained a nostalgic memory of the sound of old personal computer audio processors like Atari and Commodore 64 and game consoles, such as Game Boy, Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), and others.
Alongside pixel graphics, the musical aesthetic of the old chips from the 1970s-1980s has been reproduced in the 21st century. And this is not about preserving the art of manipulating sound samples using specific trackers programs. This area belongs to the global computer subculture known as Demoscene. And it must be said that its representatives deal with quite hardcore technical practices.
The point is that new generations of musicians, who grew up on relatively new software instruments like Virtual Studio Technology (VST), unexpectedly expressed demand for imitating chiptune sounds and music in today’s music production environment.
In the 2000s, enthusiasts of "pixel" music created quite a few VST tools for emulating the sound of NES and other devices. With this software, one could work in any DAW at the time—such as Cubase, Logic, and others. And it was easier than doing true chip tune.
For some reason (and this requires its own cultural study), fake chiptune began to make its way into the music production of the 21st century. And if only this phenomenon had become a small subculture itself—no, it seeped first into indie music, then pop music, then production music, and even movie trailer music.
No one knows for sure why this happened. But some culturologists, journalists, and representatives of the music industry suggest that several generations of people, who encountered computer and console games in their childhood, were so captivated by them that they preserved this memory for life. Specifically, 8-bit music now reminds both those aged 40-50 years and 20-year-olds (who experienced late gaming consoles with 8-bit sound) of those strong impressions from their childhood and youth.
Another hypothesis suggests that 8-bit music is part of a rather strange retro-futurist fashion—with all its naïveté, its science fiction predictions that came true only partially, its diverse visual array from the 1970s-1980s, and of course—with its pixel graphics.
Whatever the case may be, the modern video game industry occasionally turns to retro aesthetics and uses chip-tune music imitation in its soundtracks. For example, American internet band Anamanaguchi, which also serves as a community of composers for games and media, mixes 8-bit melodies with live instrumentation. This was done notably in the soundtrack for the game Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. Their work became popular both within and outside of the gaming culture. However, members of Anamanaguchi also perform as artists, releasing purely musical releases—instrumental ones and sometimes in collaboration with singers.
Other notable examples include the soundtracks for games like Super Mario Bros. and Mega Man 2, which inspired numerous remixes and chip-tune compositions.
Interestingly, many popular songs have been reworked into 8-bit style. For instance, tracks like "Yellow" by Coldplay and "Kashmir" by Led Zeppelin received 8-bit remixes with that recognizable retro sound.
Starting in the 2000s, 8-bit music penetrated indie and pop music. In popular culture, this style is also known as "bitpop." At one point, Kesha's song "Tik Tok" garnered significant public attention and influenced other musicians. Nelly Furtado and producer Timbaland used quintessential chip-tune sounds in their song "Do It." (This composition sparked controversy due to accusations of plagiarizing the track "Acidjazzed Evening" by demoscener Janne Suni.)
The Canadian band Crystal Castles attracted considerable interest between 2006 and 2016, partly because they heavily incorporated chip-tune aesthetics into their melancholic tracks.
In 2023, the music for the Tetris film trailer prominently featured quintessential 8-bit sounds, paying homage to hits like '80s classic "Final Countdown" by the band Europe and the Russian folk song "Korobeyniki."
Of course, today's music producers rarely engage in actual chip-tune sound—it's too hardcore. Instead, they use either commercial sample libraries compiled from recordings of real NES audio processors and other hardware or virtual synthesizers in VST format or other popular formats.
As we mentioned before, during the 2000s, enthusiasts who were both programmers and musicians created a noticeable number of free plugins that allowed for chip-tune emulation. Unfortunately, most of these plugins have since become outdated and haven't been updated by their authors to 64-bit compatibility.
Today, commercial software synthesizers are primarily available for mimicking 8-bit music. However, there are a few exceptions—namely, 64-bit and completely free synthesizers that can allow you to experiment with paying homage to the computerized 1980s.
Some music producers achieve 8-bit music simulation in a rather brutal manner that often yields interesting results. Namely, they employ bitcrushing plugins, artificially reducing the bit depth of contemporary synthesizer sounds. Bitcrushers can also convincingly sound on vocal and guitar samples.
To begin, let's examine a couple of synthesizers that weren't designed as plug-ins for 8-bit music emulation but can mimic chip-tune quite convincingly. One of these is TyrellN6, built on the engine of renowned virtual synthesizer maker u-He.
Initially, Tyrell was a project by the German online magazine Amazona.de. Its editorial team conducted a reader survey, carefully reviewed forum posts, and collected ideas for creating an affordable analog hardware synthesizer. Essentially, in the conceptualization of the synthesizer, engineer Mic ‘Moogulator’ Irmer and... over 8,000 readers of the website participated.
However, it soon became clear that developing a real hardware synthesizer would take years. Hence, the idea arose to transform the basic design into a free software synthesizer. u-He experts joined the project, and in 2010, the plugin was released for beta testing under the name TyrellN6. The final version, after fixing errors and fine-tuning, became available in April 2011.
In 2013, Version 3 of the plugin was released. It supports 64-bit operating systems and runs very stably with modern DAWs.
In Scott's iconic film, there was the ominous Tyrell Corporation, manufacturing androids indistinguishable from humans. The most advanced model was called Nexus 6 (which explains the N6 in the plugin's name). The style of the film's score is clearly linked to electronic futuristic aesthetics. Nowadays, this is considered retro-futurism. Presumably, it inspired the creation of a synthesizer capable of mimicking the sounds of world-renowned hardware devices like the Juno-60 and Minimoog.
TyrellN6 does this well. However, note that this plugin partially "ventures into the territory" of chip-tune music. Among its factory presets, you'll find a few that clearly emulate 8-bit sound. Additionally, with TyrellN6, you can create your own sounds that, after some effort, will closely resemble the sought-after chip-tune.
Note: The plugin is available for free download only on the corresponding page of the Amazona.de magazine.
TAL-NoiseMaker is the brainchild of a small Swiss company named TAL Software GmbH. This free synthesizer also evokes the sounds of the 1970s and 1980s and makes for an excellent tool for musical nostalgia and styling reminiscent of the never-existent world of "Blade Runner." Like TyrellN6, TAL-NoiseMaker doesn't claim to be a "chiptune synthesizer," but certain presets and their sound hints that using it as an 8-bit sound emulator is entirely feasible.
For instance, the bass preset "C64 Octavebass FM" signifies its connection to the exceedingly popular home personal computer Commodore 64 from the 1980s through its very name. Similarly, three kick drum presets labeled "DR 8bit Kick"; the lead preset "3D Game Boy TAL"; and some others carry the same spirit.
TAL-NoiseMaker is a splendid synthesizer in its own right, requiring minimal CPU resources from your computer while still delivering great sound. With it, you can immerse yourself in the era of synthesizers' intense popularity—visiting the worlds of disco, sci-fi film scores, and imagining yourself as Jean-Michel Jarre.
Purists might argue that this synth doesn't do "8-bit" music authentically enough. It should sound worse, cruder, and harsher. Nevertheless, TAL-NoiseMaker provides a gateway into a fake yet charming "chip-tune" universe. Furthermore, why not pair the plugin with a bitcrusher?
Download here (TAL-NoiseMaker).
The NES gaming console and its pirate clone, the Dendy, which sounded worse, are sort of an 8-bit music benchmark for casual listeners, who, unlike diehard Chiptune fans, don't care much about how the "special" sound of, say, Atari or ZX Spectrum felt.
Released in January 2022, Magical 8bit Plug 2 claims to replicate the sound of Nintendo/Dendy, and it largely succeeds. Japanese developer Takashi Yokemura, who created the synth, naturally faces criticism from some users. They say it sounds very close to the NES chip but isn't quite spot-on.
These critics might need to try programming a free plugin, supporting it, and updating it for 17 (!) years, leading it to open-source version 2. That's exactly what Yokemura did, and he did it really well.
Magical 8bit Plug 2 is specifically geared towards specialized 8-bit music emulation. The plugin offers three waveform types: Pulse/Square, Triangle, and Noise. With some minor tweaking, each can be coaxed into sounding like a typical virtual instrument in NES games.
The Envelope section allows adjusting the ADSR volume envelope. You can assign auto bend (pitch sweeping downwards to the main tone) and set values for the initial note and the duration it takes for the sound to "drop" to the root note. There's also a customizable vibrato feature in the synth.
Essentially, these simple tools suffice to cover the entire musical palette of NES/Dendy. Drums and hats come out beautifully from noise waves, cymbals from triangle waves, and typical Chiptune arpeggios from square waves. All of this comes out so recognizably that it gives you goosebumps.
Magical 8bit Plug 2 operates in monophonic and polyphonic modes, can play legato (with portamento) and non-legato, and mimics quick ascending and descending arpeggios, which was typical for old console music. Back then, game soundtrack composers used fast arpeggios to simulate polyphony, something absent in modern synthesizers.
The synth can work in "coarse" resolution and high resolution. We prefer "coarse" because we're emulating obsolete chips. However, note that Magical 8bit Plug 2 covers almost the entire audible frequency range. Therefore, when mixing our "Chiptune" music, it's advisable to cut ineffective highs and lows for each track using equalizers.
To avoid sonic chaos, approach arrangement similarly to how game soundtrack composers did in the 1980s. Back then, no software equalizers existed for NES/Dendy, so authors ensured that parts of different tracks overlapped as little as possible in the same temporal points. These limitations in polyphony forced similar approaches. Applying this method today adds not only clarity but authenticity to "pixel" music.
Essentially, with just one Magical 8bit Plug 2, you can build a very convincing "8-bit" track in a DAW without using samples or other plugins.
Download here (Magical 8bit Plug 2)
Another free 64-bit VST in the Chiptune style is Sora Boy, initially conceived as a simulator of the monophonic sound of the mini-console Game Boy, evolving into a universal "8-bit" instrument by version 1.1 (though retaining the flavor of that "Tetris" device).
This synthesizer essentially does nearly everything its "older" counterpart above can do. It enables making an authentically sounding "8-bit" soundtrack without resorting to additional virtual instruments.
Unlike Magical 8bit Plug 2, Sora Boy is monophonic, has a more acidic sound, and genuinely recalls the horribly shrill Game Boys of yesteryear. In a DAW, though, it will still occupy the entire frequency spectrum with its patches, necessitating the use of equalizers during mixing.
The synthesizer boasts its unique identity. It excels at producing super-fast arpeggios, plays arpeggiated octaves, fires piercing risers straight into your brain, features customizable vibrato on any sound, and adequately mimics the average "console" sound of a kick drum.
While the controls of the synth aren't as immediately apparent as those of Magical 8bit Plug 2, they are still intuitively comprehensible. The plugin includes a limited number of presets, but they allow exploring what it can and cannot do.
Download here (Sora Boy).
Unfortunately, in the 2020s, the musical community has access to very few truly free virtual instruments capable of assisting in creating "8-bit" music. However, the synthesizers listed in this article address virtually all the needs of a composer or pop producer aiming to create something that references "chiptune" music.
With a bit of skill, the authenticity of the sound won't be questioned by casual listeners or many music producers. Only die-hard, longtime fans of real chiptune, whose ears are well-trained to recognize it, will likely detect the fakeness of VST chiptune.
