Redux vs Vaporizer 2

Redux is a sample-based instrument that combines a phrase sequencer with MIDI implementation. Its tracker notation lets users enter notes and control sample playback precisely, while the sequencer creates phrases using notes and program-change events. Redux can send MIDI note events to its host so the tracker interface can trigger instruments in a DAW. Effects and a quasi-modular system let devices modulate one another. The waveform editor can adjust volume, remove leading or trailing silence, apply effects, and slice samples; those edits are saved with the preset. A built-in recorder and draw tool support sample creation, and drag-and-drop import accepts common audio formats, including SFZ multisamples. Users can save and recall presets by section, add content libraries by dragging and dropping, and connect eight global macro controls to multiple parameters and functions. Redux is a plugin, not a standalone app, and runs in a DAW that supports VST3 or Audio Unit. It is available for Linux, macOS, and Windows. The demo is otherwise fully functional but generates a subtle hiss. A Redux license costs $5,600 as a one-time purchase and covers versions 1.4.4 to 2.4.4.

Vaporizer 2 is a free, open-source synthesizer and sampler workstation for Linux, macOS, and Windows. It brings together wavetable, additive, FM, subtractive, and sample-based sound generation, with a granular mode. Four alias-free wavetable oscillator banks support up to 24-oscillator unison. The editor can draw wavetables with Bezier curves, edit cycles, and import Serum- and Icarus-format files. Sampling supports WAV, AIFF, OGG, and MP3, as well as loop points, key tracking, and sample-to-wavetable resampling. The product page lists more than 780 wavetables and single cycles and more than 410 factory presets. Modulation offers 25 sources, 220 destinations, five MSEG envelopes, and five LFOs; MIDI Polyphonic Expression is supported. It is available as a standalone app and in plugin formats including VST2, VST3, AU, AAX, CLAP, and LV2. The README specifies at least 1 GB RAM and a CPU supporting AVX or SSE2. The maker lists lifelong free updates.