A thing of analog beauty
Originally meant as a companion module to sequencers and other synths, the SEM sported a multi-mode filter and two tremendous oscillators that made it unlike anything else. Combining multiple SEMs into 2, 4, and 8-voice systems took things to another level - just ask Rush or Herbie Hancock. SEM V puts all this power, and more, right in your DAW.
Sounds Analog
True Analog Emulation® technology brings all the fat and warmth in a way no sampled version can. You’ll hear the difference and so will your audience.
Team Player
From synthpop to hip-hop, almost every musical style can use some of the burbling bombast of the SEM.
Vault of Voices
Set polyphony up to 32 voices for massive brass, swelling strings, and ponderous pads.
That Filter
The 12dB/octave multimode filter that sounded unlike anything else, eventually shaping the identity of Oberheim®, exquisitely recreated.
The monophonic synth that
launched a polyphonic revolution
Tom Oberheim had already enjoyed success building effects and a sequencer — and as the Los Angeles dealer for ARP synthesizers. He first conceived the SEM as an add-on, but it became a centerpiece.
Tom’s purpose was twofold: A sonic expander for synths like the 2600 and the Mini, and a stand-alone synth module for pairing with his DS-2A sequencer. Of course, you could also add SEMs to each other. Tom Oberheim himself said, “The SEMs were the beginning of synths being able to do polyphonic orchestration.”
Discover the history of Sem
An SEM for Today
and Tomorrow
We faithfully modeled the core controls of the SEM, then added a few tricks of our own to make it more SEM than ever.
Its sound ranges from creamy to downright bossy, serving up leads, basses, pads, brass, strings, and special FX with gusto. Our additions give it a big boost while staying entirely within the spirit of the original.
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01. Multi-Mode Filter
The SEM’s calling card was its 12dB-per-octave filter, which was continuously variable between lowpass, bandpass, and highpass.
02. Bring the Boom
A sub-oscillator one or two octaves below the two VCOs allows for sounds with floor-shaking low end.
03. Extra LFO
The SEM had a single LFO. SEM V adds another and lets you modulate VCO frequency or pulse width from either. Of course, both LFOs sync to tempo.
04. Classic Arpeggiator
Generate retro riffs with the tempo-syncable Arpeggiator, which features a Random mode, Hold, and up to a four-octave range.
05. Here’s the Mixer
Mix the volume of sawtooth or pulse waves, as well as the sub-oscillator or white noise, heading into the Filter section.
06. Built-in Effects
Quickly dial in the perfect amounts of Overdrive, Chorus, and Delay to put the final sheen on your SEM V sound.
Expander
Expanded
Open up SEM V’s Advanced Panel to access a treasure trove of creative sound design features.
The magic of software is that once we’ve gotten the original sound exactly right, we can add functionality that would be a lot more costly in hardware. The SEM is already a powerhouse, but these extras make it a powerhouse with a Ph.D.
The Programmer controls six parameters for up to eight virtual SEMs as you play notes. It’s like having a more sophisticated Oberheim Eight-Voice.
We’ve greatly enhanced the SEM’s modulation capability with eight independent routings. Go nuts with eight sources and 26 destinations!
Six settings of your choosing can change based on the note played according to a user-definable curve. It’s the most surgical keyboard tracking on any synth.
Tweak and tempo-sync the built-in FX here, then dial in each. The Delay even features a stereo ping-pong mode.
Hear it
in action
From Brit prog to American pop to Berlin acid, these original compositions from some of our most talented users show just a few of the places SEM V can take your musical ideas.
Berlin School
Drew Neumann
This musical piece is in memory of the brilliant Synth DIY Engineer/Musician Jürgen Haible.
Dirty Orchestra
Noritaka Ubukata
This demo, in the fashion of 70's krautrock improvisations, shows typical Oberheim® orchestral sounds generated only by one instance of 8 voices.
Berlin Berlin
Pierce Warnecke
This track, in the techno vein, uses 3 different presets from the SEM V: a classic acid bass line, a smooth arpeggiated melody and a full, rich pad using the SEMV's hard synced oscillator.
Pad Filter Sweep
Noritaka Ubukata
This rich pad mixes a sawtooth with pitch modulation and pulse wave with pulse width modulation. You can hear the characteristic SEM filter sweep through band-pass, low pass, notch and hi-pass modes.
Klamb
Kevin Lamb
All sounds from this cinematic track come from the factory presets by Kevin Lamb. No external FX or channel EQ were used. Mod wheel and aftertouch used amply to morph sounds and show off features.
Stereo Arpeggio
Noritaka Ubukata
The Arpeggiator is used in combination with the 8-Voice Programmer module in order to create this lively and organic arpeggio.
Artistscorner
PressClippings
Sound On Sound
On SEM V
“[The SEM V] will be an excellent complement to other synths and soft synths - beautifully simple to use in the first instance, while offering greater depth when you're ready to take advantage of it. Oh yes, and then there's that sound !”
Future Music
On SEM V
“An awesome synth which takes the Oberheim® classic and expand it into a versatile all-rounder”
Future Music
On SEM V
“As a straight emulation of the classic SEM sound, the SEM V ticks all the boxes, but the software has so much more to offer when you explore it in greater depth : small but effective additions to the SEM design, advanced voice editing features and, of course, an excellent polyphonic mode. The range of sounds available is much greater than the SEM name might suggest, covering classic Oberheim® ground and much more, and this makes the SEM V a great synth in its own right.”
Keyboard US
On SEM V
“I'm impressed by how well SEM V captures the sound of Oberheim® hardware, and its extended features make it more flexible than its namesake [...] SEM V is one of the most genuinely analog-sounding soft synths yet. If you love the sound of vintage synths, SEM V should be a part of your virtual rig.”
MusicTech
On SEM V
“The SEM V is a gorgeous-sounding synth and, crucially, like the original it’s fairly easy to get to grips with. You don’t have to be a synth wizard to tweak and design sounds, and it’s a lot of fun when you play around […] The new features – arpegiattor, sub-oscillator and three modules - extend the functionality of the instrument even further, and will surely help you get more out of what is already an excellent synth.”
Included in
V collection
Legendary Keyboards Reinvented
This instrument is also part of the V Collection -your complete dream line-up of the legendary synths, organs, pianos and more that made keyboard history. They’re modeled with the most advanced technologies for authentic realism, and enhanced with new creative options. Whether you use it as DAW plugins in the studio or standalone at gigs, V Collection puts the greatest keys of all time at your fingertips for instant inspiration.
Learn More
Die Features
Du brauchst
Integrierte In-App-Tutorials führen dich durch jeden Aspekt des Instruments, von individuellen Parametern bis hin zu Tipps unserer Sounddesigner, damit du dich auf deinen kreativen Moment konzentrieren kannst. Das kann doch nicht so einfach sein, ist es aber!
Mit dem Arturia Software Center kannst du deine Arturia Software an einem Ort herunterladen, organisieren und aktualisieren und alle deine Lizenzen für mehrere Geräte verwalten. Einfacher geht es nicht!
Unsere virtuellen Instrumente und Plug-Ins wurden so entwickelt, dass sie problemlos direkt in dein Setup passen. Unabhängig von deinem Style kannst du jeden Sound erkunden und gleichzeitig die volle Kompatibilität mit den wichtigsten DAWs sowohl unter Windows als auch unter macOS genießen.
Finde sofort den richtigen Sound mit dem intelligenten & optimierten Preset-Browser. Suche nach Schlüsselwörtern, nach Instrumentenart, Musikstil und nach vielem mehr - du kannst sogar deine Favoriten speichern, um diese später schnell aufzurufen.
Egal, ob du mit einer Vollbilddarstellung in unsere klassischen Instrumentenemulationen eintauchen oder kostbaren Bildschirmplatz sparen willst – die Bedienoberflächen für alle virtuellen Arturia-Instrumente können beliebig skaliert werden – ganz nach deinem Geschmack.
Unsere Instrumente sind für den nahtlosen Einsatz mit der Arturia KeyLab-Serie vorkonfiguriert - aber sie funktionieren natürlich auch mit anderen MIDI-Controllern. Und mit dabei: Makros für direkte Sound-Optimierung, einfache DAW-Integration und Standalone-Betrieb.
TAE® Powered
The exclusive analog modeling technology that makes our emulations indistinguishable from the originals.
By accurately mimicking the characteristics of analog oscillators, filters, and soft clipping, we can provide astonishing component-accurate detail and authentic analog charm in equal measure.
Learn more
Gallery
Main Features
All the original parameters of the Oberheim® SEM : two oscillators, each offering sawtooth wave and variable-width pulse wave with PWM, sine wave LFO, 12dB/oct multi-mode Filter with low-pass, high-pass, band-pass and notch, two ADS envelope generators.
Added functionalities : New LFO, Noise, Sub oscillator, on board effects (overdrive, chorus and delay), Arpeggiator, Portamento.
Polyphony up to 32 and 8 Voice Multitimbrality
New 8 Voice Programmer module
Advanced Keyboard Follow module
Modulation Matrix module
Works in Standalone
Now compatible with iSEM Preset export/import
Polyphony parameter to limit the polyphony of the plugin
20 new factory presets from Ian Boddy
21 new factory presets from Erik Norlander
35 new factory presets from Richard Courtel
11 new factory presets from Kevin Lamb
14 new factory presets from Drew Newmann
"Forward Retrigg" mode for the 8-Voice Programmer (for easy use of sequences using the Arpeggiator)
"Reassign" mode for the 8-Voice Programmer (like in the original one, the SEM V will first use the boards that are not gated in its voice assignment)
Sustain pedal is now active on all systems
Platform specifications
Windows
- Win 10+ (64bit)
- 4 GB RAM
- Vierkern-CPU, 3.4 GHz (4.0 GHz Turbo-boost)
- 3GB freier Festplattenspeicher
- OpenGL 2.0 kompatible GPU
- ARM Prozessoren werden unter Windows nicht unterstützt
Systemvoraussetzungen
- Arbeitet als Standalone, VST, AAX, Audio Unit, NKS (nur mit 64-Bit DAWs).
Apple
- Mac OS 11+
- 4 GB RAM
- Vierkern-CPU, 3.4 GHz (4.0 GHz Turbo-boost) oder M1 CPU
- 3GB freier Festplattenspeicher
- OpenGL 2.0 kompatible GPU
Arbeiten mit dem ASC
- Eine elegante und einfache Lösung, die dir bei der Installation, Aktivierung und Aktualisierung der Arturia-Softwareinstrumente hilft.
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