Cherry Audio Pentaphonic
Cherry Audio’s plugin recreation of the 1981 Gleeman Pentaphonic, built in fewer than 70 units: three DCOs per voice, up to 16 voices, $59.
| Manufacturer | Cherry Audio |
|---|---|
| Year | 2026 |
| Polyphony | Mono, unison or 2 to 16-voice polyphony |
| Engine | Software (Gleeman Pentaphonic emulation): 3 DCOs per voice, 4-pole 24 dB/oct or 2-pole 12 dB/oct filter |
| Launch price | $59 (Cherry Audio list price, October 2026) |
Cherry Audio’s Pentaphonic is a virtual instrument that recreates the Gleeman Pentaphonic, a polysynth designed in 1981 by brothers Bob and Al Gleeman and built in fewer than 70 units. Announced on October 6, 2026, it keeps the original architecture: three DCOs per voice (digitally controlled oscillators, which hold their tuning better than analog VCOs) and a Curtis CEM 3320 4-pole low-pass filter. It then goes further than the original, which stopped at 5 voices.
Highlights
- Mono mode (last or high note priority, retrigger), unison, or polyphony adjustable from 2 to 16 voices.
- Eight waveforms per oscillator (Complex 1 and 2, 3%, 12% and 50% pulse, ramp, triangle, sine), sync and pulse-width modulation.
- The original 4-pole (24 dB/oct) filter or a 2-pole (12 dB/oct) mode, with polarity and key tracking; two LFOs.
- A four-mode arpeggiator (Arp, Leap, Order, Random), a 16 × 4 polyphonic step sequencer and the Parameter Animator, a second sequencer for parameters.
- 22 effects, up to five at once, and more than 375 presets in 14 categories.
List price: $59, with a free 30-day demo. AU, VST, VST3, AAX and standalone formats; macOS 10.13 or later (native Apple Silicon) and Windows 7 or later, 64-bit, 196 MB of disk space; activation requires an internet connection. The story of the original and the plugin’s competitors are in our Pentaphonic release story. Full specs on Cherry Audio’s Pentaphonic page.