Ctrl-E

Ctrl-E is a free plugin from Expressive E that hosts a curated set of synthesis engines and expressive presets in one environment, built to drive the Osmose CE keybed and other MPE controllers. It runs as an AU or VST3 plugin on Mac and PC, with no standalone version. The software bundles instruments from several developers behind a single preset browser, so a player can audition and switch sounds across different synthesis methods without loading each plugin separately.

Ctrl-E is aimed at musicians using Osmose CE or another MPE controller who want a ready-to-play sound set mapped to gestural input. Presets are organized by instrument type, tone, playing style, and synthesis method, and each carries a compact set of macros for real-time control. The browser handles filtering, searching, favoriting, and saving custom presets to a personal library. Sounds span analog modeling, wavetable and digital synthesis, physical modeling, and Expressive E's own hybrid and expressive engines, covering keys, mallets, strings, pads, basses, leads, textures, and cinematic effects.

The included library totals 980 MPE presets drawn from nine engines: Vital (353), Zyklop by Dawesome (201), Noisy 2 by Expressive E (201), Multiphonics by AAS (51), Phase Plant by Kilohearts (40), MAP by GForce (37), Myth by Dawesome (35), Kontrast by Dawesome (32), and Dune 3 by Synapse Audio (30). The bundled presets play without owning the source plugins, but opening a full instrument view for deeper editing requires a license for that plugin. Ctrl-E is also compatible with the wider Expressive Suite and Expressive E plugin ecosystem for additional presets and sound packs, again gated by plugin license. Osmose synthesizer support is listed as coming soon.

Features

• Free AU / VST3 plugin hosting multiple synthesis engines in one browser.
• 980 MPE presets across nine instruments from Vital, Dawesome, Expressive E, AAS, Kilohearts, GForce, and Synapse Audio.
• Sound categories spanning analog modeling, wavetable and digital, physical modeling, and hybrid expressive engines.
• Compact macro set per preset for real-time control.
• Browse, filter, search, and favorite presets; save and organize a personal library.
• Deep integration with the Osmose CE keybed for hardware-side control.
• Full instrument editing views available with the relevant plugin license.
• Compatible with the Expressive Suite and Expressive E plugin ecosystem for expansion.
• Osmose synthesizer support coming soon.

{See video at top of page}