Baby Audio BA-1
Synthesizer Virtual Instrument
A Synth With A Soul
BA-1 is Baby Audio's modern re-imagination of a cultish 1982 analog synth that looked like a toy but sounded like a beast.
It brings you pure and authentic textures that are fast to program and dripping with color.
Features
The first proper analog-modeled emulation of the CS01, a beloved and cultish 1982 monosynth
- Vastly expands the sonic palette of the original, thanks to careful upgrades and new features
- Includes a colorful FX section inspired by budget 1980s hardware
- Fun and easy to program, yet surprisingly versatile
- 500+ high-quality presets and a Re-Gen function for instantly generating new patches
- If you want authentic, lofi-leaning, synth textures in a plugin, this is it
The Legacy
BA-1 is based on a portable 1980s synth with a toylike appearance and a gritty sound. Despite its small size, it left a big mark on music history, while still flying somewhat under the hype radar.
The original has been used as a secret weapon for bubbly synth textures by some of Sweden’s most successful pop producers of the past two decades.
It was also a staple of 1990s digital dancehall and beloved by the indietronica scene for its raw lo-fi quality.
The 'CS01' - as the original is called - has never been properly captured in software form. So for our first-ever synth, we started there.
The Sound
In keeping with our motto "it's an evolution, not an emulation", we modeled the hardware with the greatest possible accuracy, before carefully upgrading it with new and useful features.
A second analog-modeled oscillator, FM, polyphony, and more, help to vastly expand the sonic palette of the original.
All while keeping it's signature sound unspoiled.
Additionally, BA-1 lets you drain the battery, bend the circuits, and use the built-in speaker, for an authentic lo-fi aesthetic you could normally only get with hardware.
The Effects
If you know Baby Audio, you'll know that effects are their specialty.
So we've treated BA-1 with an FX section worthy of its own plugin.
The effects chain is inspired by budget 1980s rack hardware and captures the lo-fi charm of the home studio scene of the era.
The overdrive is modeled after a guitar pedal, while the delay, reverb, and chorus effects are based on cheap, but amazing, digital rack units.
In BA-1, the effects are not an afterthought but an ingrained part of the sonic signature. So tweak, use, and abuse them.
The Simplicity
BA-1 is simple, but surprisingly tweakable.
We've put great effort into tuning all parameters to be in the perfect sweet spot.
This results in a rewarding programming workflow where tweaking BA-1 is a lot of fun and you’ll create new patches on repeat.
And if a simple interface is not fast enough, you can always use the smart 'Re-Gen' feature.
Hit Re-Gen and BA-1 will automatically create new and musically tuned patches with every click.
Included Preset Packs
BA-1 comes loaded with 500+ presets, including specialty packs created by some of the top sound designers in the industry:
- BA-1 Factory Presets
- Sami Rabia 90s Nostalgia Pack
- Michael Oakley Synthwave Pack
- Pegboard Nerds Bass Music Pack
System Requirements
- MacOS 10.7 Lion and above
- Windows 7 and above (64-bit only)
- Intel, AMD, or Apple Silicon CPU
Plugin Formats
AAX Native, AU, VST2, and VST3
User Manual