The Casio Tone VL-1 Emulator is a Free PC VSTi that accurately recreates the sound, feeling, and most importantly the cheese of the venerable Casio VL-1. You remember that Volkswagen commercial with that “da da da” song? Have you ever heard someone sing a cheesy ballad at an open mic with something that resembles a keyboard calculator? If so, you’re already familiar with the VL-1 sound. Digital, harsh, synthetic, but with lots of character.
Casio Tone VL-1 Emulator [Windows VST]
The VST version is scarily good. It doesn’t just playback the VL-1 sounds, it emulates the entire device to the point where it captures all of the original’s hidden features. Remember the old calculator and ADSR sound trick? Do you still have those 8 digit VL-1 presets you wrote on the back of your calculus notebook in highschool? Dig those out man, because the VL-1 is back, and this time you can save more than a single custom preset.
The only thing you can’t do is play like an uncoordinated idiot on a tiny ass plastic keyboard.
(At least in the ironic hipster sense.)
For those wanting to know more about the VL-1, and the magical sounds that can be made with it, check out the Maximum Cheesecore site, and the text version of the VL-1 manual.