Synthesis types in plain words
Answer in brief
Each synthesis type is a different way to make the raw tone. Subtractive filters a rich wave, wavetable moves through stored shapes and FM lets one wave bend another. Granular rebuilds a sound from tiny slices, additive stacks pure tones and physical modeling imitates a vibrating object.
Subtractive
Start with a bright wave such as a saw or a square and take part of it away with a filter. Sweep the filter and the sound opens and closes. This is how classic analog synths work and it is the easiest type to learn. u-he Diva models the oscillators and filters of classic hardware, and the Surge project calls Surge XT a subtractive hybrid.
Wavetable
A wavetable is a row of single-cycle waves stored in order. The synth plays one at a time, and moving through the row changes the tone while the note plays. Xfer Serum 2, Vital and Native Instruments Massive XL are built around it. wavetablesynth.com explains how it works in full.
FM
Frequency modulation uses one wave to wobble the pitch of another very fast. The result can be glassy bells, metallic hits, punchy basses or electric-piano tones that are hard to get any other way. Kilohearts Phase Plant can modulate frequency and phase between its sources, and Surge XT has dedicated FM oscillators.
Granular
A granular engine chops a sample into tiny grains and plays them back in new orders, speeds and pitches. It can turn a short recording into a pad, a cloud or a stutter. Xfer added a granular oscillator to Serum 2, and Arturia Pigments has a granular engine.
Additive and harmonic
Additive synthesis builds a tone from many pure sine waves, each at its own level. Change those levels over time and you shape the tone one harmonic at a time. The Harmonic engine in Arturia Pigments belongs to this family.
Physical modeling
Physical modeling imitates the thing that vibrates, such as a string, a plate or a tube, and how it is struck or bowed. It suits plucks, mallets and bowed tones that respond to how you play. Pigments has a Modal engine, and Surge XT includes a String oscillator.
Sample-based and hybrid
Many synths now play recordings as well as waves. Spectrasonics Omnisphere pairs synthesis with a large library of deep-sampled sources, and Serum 2 can play multisampled instruments. A hybrid like this helps when you want a real-world texture under a synth tone.
Sources for this page
- Studio 56: Studio 56’s official website, the publisher of this reference.
- Xfer Serum 2: Xfer Serum 2’s official page, the source of its description here.
- Vital: Vital’s official page, the source of its description here.
- Arturia Pigments: Arturia Pigments’s official page, the source of its description here.
- u-he Diva: u-he Diva’s official page, the source of its description here.
- Kilohearts Phase Plant: Kilohearts Phase Plant’s official page, the source of its description here.
- Native Instruments Massive XL: Native Instruments Massive XL’s official page, the source of its description here.
- Spectrasonics Omnisphere: Spectrasonics Omnisphere’s official page, the source of its description here.
- Surge XT: Surge XT’s official page, the source of its description here.
The practical advice here is our own. A maker's description of its product is not a test of how it performs.
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Cite this page
Best Synth VST. “Synthesis types in plain words.” Studio 56 Reference. Content reviewed November 8, 2026.
https://bestsynthvst.com/synthesis-types/