Well-known wavetable synths from the PPG line to today
Answer in brief
Six wavetable synths in software and hardware, each described from its maker’s page. The full buying comparison is at bestwavetablesynth.com.
This explainer reflects what Studio 56 does and the sources cited on each page. It is not a measured ranking of every wavetable synth.
Every entry side by side
| Name | What it is | Price | Runs on |
|---|---|---|---|
| Studio 56 | Builds one to your description | Free trial, then Pro | Mac, Windows |
| Waldorf PPG Wave 3.V | Software heir to the PPG Wave | 149 €, 30-day trial | Mac, Windows |
| Waldorf Microwave 1 Plugin | Recreation of Waldorf’s first synth | 149 €, trial available | Mac, Windows |
| Xfer Serum 2 | Hybrid synth built around a wavetable oscillator | $249, demo available | Mac, Windows |
| Vital | Spectral warping wavetable synth | Free Basic tier, paid Plus and Pro | Mac, Windows, Linux |
| Korg modwave mkII | Hardware wavetable synth | Paid hardware | Hardware, with a software version for Mac and Windows |
| Waldorf Iridium Keyboard | Hardware multi-engine synth | 2,833.95 € in Waldorf’s EU shop | Hardware with 49 keys |
What each one does
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Studio 56
Describe a sound and Studio 56 builds an instrument for it from verified blocks, a wavetable oscillator among them, with its own controls and presets. Studio 56 publishes this site, so this is our editorial choice, not an independent review.
Free trial, then Pro · Mac, Windows
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Waldorf PPG Wave 3.V
Waldorf calls the PPG Wave the reason the company exists, and version 2.0 adds an editor for your own wavetables, new factory tables and the Mutator patch randomizer.
149 €, 30-day trial · Mac, Windows
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Waldorf Microwave 1 Plugin
Waldorf says it recreated the original Microwave down to its custom chip, which Wolfgang Palm helped design, and runs the synthesis at 250 kHz whatever rate your DAW uses.
149 €, trial available · Mac, Windows
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Xfer Serum 2
Xfer says Serum began as a wish for a wavetable synth with a visual workflow, and version 2 adds sample, multisample, granular and spectral oscillators beside it.
$249, demo available · Mac, Windows
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Vital
Vital’s page describes warps that act on a wave’s harmonics, converters that turn your own samples into wavetables and an editor for building tables from scratch.
Free Basic tier, paid Plus and Pro · Mac, Windows, Linux
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Korg modwave mkII
Korg lists over 200 wavetables of up to 64 waveforms each, 13 Morph Types for reshaping them as you play and 60 voices of polyphony.
Paid hardware · Hardware, with a software version for Mac and Windows
-
Waldorf Iridium Keyboard
Waldorf calls it a direct descendant of the PPG Wave series, with five synthesis modes on each of its three oscillators, wavetable among them, and polyphonic aftertouch.
2,833.95 € in Waldorf’s EU shop · Hardware with 49 keys
How entries were picked
Apart from Studio 56, which publishes this site, every entry is a well-known name among wavetable synthesizers that its maker describes on an official page we could check. Each description says only what that page says. The order is not a ranking, and being listed does not mean a maker knows about or endorses this site.
Prices and systems change. Check the official page before you buy or install anything. Every page linked here was opened on November 8, 2026.
Sources for this page
- Studio 56: Studio 56’s official website, the publisher of this reference.
- Waldorf PPG Wave 3.V: Waldorf PPG Wave 3.V’s official page, the source of its description here.
- Waldorf Microwave 1 Plugin: Waldorf Microwave 1 Plugin’s official page, the source of its description here.
- 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.
- Korg modwave mkII: Korg modwave mkII’s official page, the source of its description here.
- Waldorf Iridium Keyboard: Waldorf Iridium Keyboard’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.
Keep reading
Cite this page
Wavetable Synth. “Well-known wavetable synths from the PPG line to today.” Studio 56 Reference. Content reviewed November 8, 2026.
https://wavetablesynth.com/directory/