Plugin comparison
Specs, price and the Dubspot Score, side by side — with our verdict on which synth to buy.
Independent score / workflow fit / buying signal
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Contenders
Rob Papen Blue III by Rob Papen. Cross-fusion synthesis (FM, phase distortion, waveshaping, subtractive) with Rob Papen's preset-first philosophy.
Hive 2 is a u-he subtractive/wavetable software synthesizer with two stereo oscillator pairs, dual multimode filters, and onboard effects.
Score verdict
On the Dubspot Score, u-he Hive 2 comes out ahead (8.7). That said, the right pick depends on your workflow and budget — read both reviews before deciding.
Technical matrix
| Signal | Rob Papen Blue III | u-he Hive 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Price | €149 | €149 |
| Dubspot Score | 8.3 | 8.7 |
| Formats | VST3, AU, AAX | CLAP, VST3, AUv2 (macOS), AAX (64-bit) |
| Type | Cross-fusion hybrid synthesizer | — |
| Developer | Rob Papen | — |
| Oscillators | — | 2 pairs of stereo oscillators, 9 waveforms each, plus wavetable option (140 wavetables included), up to 16x unison per oscillator, tunable sub-oscillators |
| Filters | — | 2 multimode filters (lowpass, highpass, bandpass, bandreject, peaking, comb, reverb, dissonant, sideband) |
| Polyphony | — | Up to 16 voices; mono, legato and duophonic modes |
| Modulation | — | 2 LFOs, 2 pairs of ADSR envelopes, 12x2 modulation matrix slots with modifiers, shape sequencer, function generators |
| Effects | — | 7 onboard effects (distortion, chorus, delay, phaser, EQ, reverb, compressor) |
| Presets | — | 2400+ NKS-ready factory presets |
See the full plugin database for more comparisons.