AY-3-8912 (VST3 / AU)
🕹️ The Authentic Sound of the ZX Spectrum, natively inside your DAW.
The Story
Welcome to the AY-3-8912. This plugin brings the gritty, iconic sound of the classic General Instrument sound chip directly into your modern production workflow.
Designed for producers who appreciate the raw character of vintage hardware but prefer a streamlined, native software configuration, this plugin bridges the gap between retro chiptune tracking and modern music production. It faithfully emulates the architecture of the AY-3-8912, utilizing a sample-accurate 1.7734 MHz internal clock to deliver true-to-era tones, noise, and hardware envelope generation.
Whether you are recreating the exact soundscapes of the 1990s demoscene or injecting aggressive, lo-fi hardware textures into modern electronic and rock tracks, the AY-3-8912 puts a complete 8-bit retro sound engine right inside your DAW.
What You Get
- The AY-3-8912 Plugin: Native VST3 and AU formats.
- The Comprehensive User Manual (PDF): A deep-dive guide covering the interface, PT3 workflow, memory management, and practical tips & tricks.
Key Features
- 100% Native Emulation: No audio samples. Just pure mathematical emulation of the original AY-3-8912 chip.
- Pro Tracker 3 Workflow: Built entirely around classic tracker logic, featuring 16 Sample Slots and 16 Ornament Slots per instance.
- 64-Step Grid Editor: Rapidly draw your volume and noise envelopes directly inside the plugin interface.
- All PT3 commands to use with Automation: Tone Up/Down, Tone Portamento, Envelope Up/Down and others.
- Modern resizable UI.
Watch it in Action
Release Notes
v1.0.321 July 2026
- Linux version is available.
v1.0.218 July 2026
- Demo version is available.
v1.0.116 July 2026
- Issue: Fix the bug with the plugin being not recognizable by a DAW.
v1.0.015 July 2026
- Initial release.
Try the Demo
Limitations:
- The device state is not restored after reloading the project
- Save/Load functionality for Samples and Ornaments is disabled
Requirements
Any DAW supporting VST3 or Audio Units (macOS, Windows, Linux). Linux version compiled on Ubuntu 22.04.5 LTS. Not compatible with Pro Tools. Not compatible with Studio Pro on Linux.
Current Version
v1.0.3 (Updated 21 July 2026)