Waldorf PPG Wave 3.V 2.0 – Too Late or Best in Class?
4,8 / 5,0 | 
PPG Wave 3.V 2.0 Mutator · Source: Waldorf
PPG Wave 3.V 2.0 · Source: Waldorf
PPG Wave 3.V 2.0 Graph · Source: Waldorf
Waldorf finally update their software version of the wavetable classic as their PPG Wave 3.V gets a 2.0 upgrade!
In what seems like an eternity, Waldorf has finally decided to update their much loved and very accurate software version of the synth that, some would say, they owe their very existence to! Waldorf sprang out of the ashes of PPG after its demise in 1987.
In the Beginning
Wolfgang Düren, a PPG distributor, founded Waldorf and with Wolfgang Palm’s assistance, produced the first Microwave. This synth would become as loved and as unique as its forebear and still exists today in software and within various pieces of Waldrof hardware.
For people like me, it was their PPG Wave plugin that got my attention. Along with the Fairlight and Synclavier, the original PPG Wave was one of those mythical instruments of the 80s and one I knew I would most likely never afford. And then came the plugin revolution.
PPG Wave 3.V came, conquered and then proceeded to stagnate whilst other pretenders to the gritty wavetable crown came in both software and hardware form. The Waldorf plugin rapidly began to look old, out of date, and the interface seemed to get smaller and smaller as our screens got bigger and bigger.
PPG Wave 3.V 2.0 – The Wait is Over!
But now, my countless emails to Waldorf, begging for an update, seem to have paid off! Today sees the arrival of PPG Wave 3.V 2.0! But don’t get too excited. Things haven’t changed drastically. And that’s a good thing!
First up, we now have a fully scalable interface. We are no longer required to squint at the screen and hope we’ve clicked on the right thing. We can make PPG Wave 3.V as big as our screens allow. The UI remains virtually the same, but at least we can see it and interact with it safely!
And I think that’s all I ever wanted. I didn’t want a fancy new UI, nor superfluous functionality. I just wanted a usable and faithful recreation of the original. But there is more, and it’s good stuff too. Aside from being able to resize the UI, we’ve got some cool, useful and fitting additions.
More Than Just a UI Update
First up, there are over 100 new wavetables, created by the legend himself, Wolfgang Palm. Danke schön, Herr Palm! And as if that wasn’t enough, PPG Wave 3.V now allows you to edit and import your own wavetables! And finally, there’s a new ‘Mutator’ function that, like its Microwave counterpart, allows you to randomise your patches.
The rest of PPG Wave 3.V is identical to the previous version. We still have two wavetable oscillators, sample playback from 8 to 32-bit, authentic aliasing as per the original hardware Waves or a cleaned up 21st century no-aliasing feature and all the other bits of PPG Wave 3.V we’ve come to know and love.
So we now have a plugin that seamlessly and faithfully bridges the gap between the instrument that made PPG’s mark and the instrument that Waldorf introduced in its wake. PPG Wave 3.V now finally feels like it ought to and is proudly reinstalled as my number one wavetable plugin!
More Information
PPG Wave 3.V will retail for an introductory price of €99 until the 14th of September 2025 for new users, rising thereafter to €149. Existing owners of PPG Wave 3.V can get the 2.0 Update at an introductory price of €29 until the same date, rising thereafter to €49.
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3 responses to “Waldorf PPG Wave 3.V 2.0 – Too Late or Best in Class?”
It’s a pig of an interface (the original’s). If ever a classic called out for a redesign (but with the original limitations), it’s the PPG. The more faithful the clone, the more you realize what a pig it was to program on!
no more real PPG logo = looks like shit. wouldn’t touch it with a 10 foot pole, but that’s just me.
The PPG brand was bought by Brainworx in 2020, and since then, the Waldorf PPG Wave 3.V has not sported the PPG logo, so this is nothing new. Native Instruments then bought Brainworx, and so the rights to the logo are now owned by NI.