Roland, Xils Lab, Universal Audio: 3 Strong Plugin Deals for Polysynth Pads, CS-80 Brass, and API Sound
Two Synth Legends and an API Channel Strip on Sale
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Roland, Xils Lab, Universal Audio: 3 Strong Plugin Deals for Polysynth Pads, CS-80 Brass, and API Sound · Source: GEARNEWS
Roland is putting the JUPITER-8 on the table for 68.43 Euro, roughly a third of its regular price. Xils Lab follows with The Eighty, a plugin take on the Yamaha CS-80, for 55 Euro. And if you’d rather tweak a signal path than a synth patch, there’s the API Vision Channel Strip Native from Universal Audio: a full console channel from the famous desk for 26.90 Euro. Three plugins that couldn’t be more different, all aimed at a bigger mix.
Software Deals of the Week
Roland JUPITER-8: Now 66% Off
What makes a Jupiter-8 sound like a Jupiter-8 in the first place? Roland has a technical answer: Analog Circuit Behavior, or ACB for short. Instead of playing back samples, the plugin simulates the circuits of the 1981 eight-voice original, and it models each of the 16 analog oscillators on its own. The price of 68.43 Euro holds through October 31st, which is 66% below the regular price.
Eight voices, each with two oscillators, cross-modulation, and oscillator sync, make up the core, just like the original. On top of that come extras the hardware never had: velocity, an extended oscillator range, a full effects section, and an arpeggiator that syncs to your tempo. The Circuit Mod function is a nice touch, since it simulates the trimmers technicians once used to adjust analog components by hand. The Condition knob then lets the synth sound like anything from factory-fresh to worn out.
If you’re after fat pads, strong basses, and emotional leads, you’re in the right place. More than 300 additional presets from sound designers like Brothertiger get you going fast. And if Roland’s SYSTEM-8 is sitting in your studio: the Roland JUPITER-8 runs there as a PLUG-OUT and can be controlled straight from the hardware. Very cool!
Through October 31, 2026, grab the Roland JUPITER-8 here at Plugin Boutique* for 68.43 Euro instead of 202.30 Euro with 66% off.
Xils Lab The Eighty: Now 72% Off
The 1977 Yamaha CS-80 gave players a pressure-sensitive keyboard and a ribbon controller for polyphonic pitch bends, plus the sound Vangelis made famous with the music for “Blade Runner.” Xils Lab rebuilds it with The Eighty, and with three synthesis lines instead of the original two. You’ll find more details in our introduction to The Eighty. The price of 55 Euro, a 72% discount, runs through November 2nd.
Each of the three synthesis lines has an oscillator with an LFO, a high-pass and a low-pass filter, and two envelopes. The first two lines recreate the classic linked CS-80 filter behavior, and you blend in the third through an animated 2D mixer. A ring modulator with its own envelope, chorus, delay, phaser, reverb, and EQ, plus an arpeggiator that can modulate parameters per step, round out the package. Over 500 presets come along for the ride, including the twelve original sounds from the hardware.
Brass? Of course. Strings? Obviously. Add expressive basses and leads, and thanks to the ring modulator, bells and metallic effects too. Sonically, The Eighty sits miles away from the Roland JUPITER-8 in the first block. The plugin has a character all its own.
Through November 2, 2026, grab Xils Lab The Eighty here at Thomann* for 55.00 Euro instead of 199.00 Euro with 72% off.
Universal Audio API Vision Channel Strip Native: Now 82% Off
API desks shaped records like Stevie Wonder’s “Innervisions” and Radiohead’s “In Rainbows.” Universal Audio packs the entire channel of the Vision console into one plugin: preamp, filters, gate, compressor, and two selectable EQs. The native version runs without any UA hardware. Right now the plugin costs 26.90 Euro, 82% less than usual, through November 1st.
The centerpiece is the 212L preamp with the famous 2520 op-amp and API transformers. Behind it sit the 215L filters, the 235L gate/expander, and the 225L compressor, where you switch between the old feedback and the new feedforward circuit, each with a soft or hard knee. On the EQ side, you pick either the four-band 550L or the ten-band graphic 560L. A global module with master fader, level meter, and a sidechain link for stereo material wraps up the signal path.
What would you use it for? Drums and backing vocals that could use more bite, for one, or the gate on kick and bass synth to shape ambience and attack. It also tames rattling drum kits and noisy guitar amps. Artist presets are on board, and at this price there’s not much to think about.
Through November 1, 2026, grab the Universal Audio API Vision Channel Strip Native here at Thomann* for 26.90 Euro instead of 149.00 Euro with 82% off.
*Note: This article about this week’s software deals with the plugins Roland JUPITER-8, Xils Lab The Eighty, and Universal Audio API Vision Channel Strip Native contains affiliate links that help us keep Gearnews running. The price for you always stays the same! If you buy something through these links, we receive a small commission. Thanks for your support!
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