In the orchestral family of strings, the violin is undoubtedly the most virtuosic when compared to the likes of the viola, cello, and the bass. The violin is capable of achieving very difficult and technical passages that keeps the audience in awe. The violin is so difficult in fact, that at one time Paganini was accused of selling his soul to the devil because of how good he was.
Today, we take a look at the 7 Best Violin VSTs on the market that will add that extra flair to your music. Whether you’re producing hip-hop or composing a classical work, these violin VSTs will get the job done.
Best Violin VSTs Worth Your Money
Here’s our list of recommendations for the best violin VSTs for you:
- Joshua Bell Violin – Smooth feathery tones
- Nocturne Violin – Great range
- Bohemian Violin – Crisp lows and highs
- Hollywood Solo Violin – Full sound
- Solo Violin 2 – Bright lows, mids and highs
- Chris Hein – Soft and warm yet robust
- Swam Violin – Best of all worlds
What To Look For When Choosing a Violin VST
When making this list, we are looking for the best violin VSTs that can capitalize the complete range and elegance of a real violin. We look for sound quality, use of legato, vibrato, staccato, and how easy it is to implement these articulations. Each Violin VST is completely unique featuring actual violinists so make sure to take a listen through all of them to see what may fit your style of music best.
Pricing
In terms of pricing, some of these Violin VSTs may seem quite expensive but I like to look at it like this: you spend $99 for a violin VST recorded by a real professional violinist or you can hire a real professional violinist that will charge $99 (at least) for one recording session.
With that one time purchase of $99, you now have the sounds of a real professional violinist for life. Being a classical musician myself, these VSTs are most certainly worth it and their quality has me completely blown me away.
Compatibility – System Requirements
All violin VSTs on this list are compatible with OS and Windows operating systems. VSTs will take up some space on your hard drive so be sure to check your computers available space in conjunction with the specs of the violin VST links provided in the list.
DAW Compatibility
In the year 2024, it is rare to find VSTs or plug-ins that are not compatible with today’s more popular DAWs. With that said, all violin VSTs featured today are compatible with all the popular DAWs such as LogicProX, Cubase, Pro Tools, Studio One, BitWig, Ableton, REAPER, and FL Studio.
Be sure to click the links provided on the list to check if your DAW is compatible with these plug-ins.
Frequency of Use
In my opinion, the violin is one of the most versatile instruments in the world and can be implemented in most compositions and music productions. Even though violin is known more as a classical instrument, it fares very well in country music, jazz, bluegrass, and even rock!
AMP Features & Tone
As mentioned earlier, this list was created to capitalize on the different sounds and articulations you can achieve depending on these violin VSTs. Every plug-in on this list was recorded by real professional violinists and as you may or may not know, no violin sounds the same. That is the beauty behind every type of voice that various violins make.
Skill Level
It can be difficult to maximize your efficiency with these types of plug-ins depending on what you are trying to achieve. If you are trying to reach the most realistic approach with different articulations and sounds efficiently, then I highly suggest looking into using a physical MIDI controller. When using VSTs like these, a MIDI controller will lighten your workload tremendously since you can plug in those articulations and use them much quicker.
7 Best Violin VST Software Today
Now that we know what we are looking for, we will break down each violin VST by who should be using them, what tone you’re looking to accomplish, pricing, system requirements, DAW support, and more.
1. Joshua Bell Violin by Embertone
- Who’s it for? For advanced composers of any genre.
- Tone: The tone is smooth and feathery.
- Price: $199
- DAW Support: All popular DAWs supported, good for Steinberg’s Cubase.
Recorded by virtuoso violinist Joshue Bell comes this ultra-realistic sounding VST that’s quite staggering.
With this VST you get the sound of a priceless Stradivarius, 12+ true legato styles, flexible performance modes, natural and modeled vibrato, ricochets, ponticello, harmonics, and the list goes on.
System Requirements:
| MacOS | Windows | |
| System | Mac OS 10.8 to mac OS 10.15 Catalina (64-bit) | Windows 8 to Windows 10 (64-bit) |
| Memory | 4GB RAM (8 GB+ highly recommended) | 4GB RAM (8 GB+ highly recommended) |
2. Nocturne Violin by Orchestral Tools
- Who’s it for? Great for composers in classical music.
- Tone: Bright with deep lows. Great range.
- Price: $280
- DAW Support: All popular DAWs supported, good for FL Studio.
Orchestral Tools did a magnificent job recording violinists from the Berlin Philharmonic. With this VST, you get wonderful realistic tones and articulations that the violin itself can achieve.
The dynamics, different speeds, expressions, and various techniques are limitless here. This VST is bit pricey but comes with 9 GB of samples.
System Requirements:
| MacOS | Windows | |
| System | Mac OS X 10.10 or higher (i5 CPU or higher) | Windows 7, Windows 8, or Windows 10 (latest Service Pack, 32/64-bit) Intel Core 2 Duo or AMD Athlon 64 X2 |
| Memory | Minimum 8GB RAM Recommended | Minimum 8GB RAM Recommended |
3. Bohemian Violin by Virharmonic
- Who’s it for? Great for film-scoring, pop-production, and song-writing. MIDI controller recommended.
- Tone: Crisp lows and highs, feathery, mysteriously whispery.
- Price: $229
- DAW Support: All popular DAWs supported, good for Pro Tools.
This violin VST is your go-to for more contemporary works. Not only can it achieve your more somber approaches, but its assertive capabilities is probably one of the best on this list. If you’re looking for crisp, sharp, and lively, this is the VST for you.
System Requirements:
| MacOS | Windows | |
| System | Mac OS 10.12 – 10.15 | Windows 7, Windows 8, or Windows 10 |
| Memory | Minimum 8GB RAM Recommended | Minimum 8GB RAM Recommended |
4. Hollywood Solo Violin by EastWest
- Who’s it for? Perfect for film-scoring.
- Tone: Full sound, epic dynamics, and great mid-range tone.
- Price: $212
- DAW Support: All popular DAWs supported, good for Steinberg’s Cubase.
Want to be a film composer? This is the VST for you. While it is reminiscent of the Bohemian Violin VST, this VST packs more of an epic punch that you would hear more in action and adventure films. EastWest has done an amazing job with all their VSTs including the solo cello and harp. Definitely worth a look!
System Requirements:
| MacOS | Windows | |
| System | Mac Pro Late 2013 edition (model with round enclosure) or above | Intel Core 2 Quad, or AMD Quad Core 2.66GHz or higher |
| Memory | 8 GB recommended | 8 GB recommended |
5. Solo Violin 2 by Vienna Symphonic Library
- Who’s it for? Excellent for all genres. MIDI controller is highly recommended.
- Tone: Bright through lows, mids, and highs.
- Price: $167.66
- DAW Support: All popular DAWs supported, good for StudioOne.
For the price, I believe this violin VST by Vienna Symphonic Library is one of the best on the list. With ease, you can achieve some amazing contemporary articulations. Realistic vibrato, strong dynamics, staccato, pizzicato, trills, the whole package.
System Requirements:
| MacOS | Windows | |
| System | Mac Pro Late 2013 edition (model with round enclosure) or above | Intel Core 2 Quad, or AMD Quad Core 2.66GHz or higher |
| Memory | 8GB RAM or more | 8GB RAM or more |
6. Chris Hein Solo Violin by Chris Hein
- Who’s it for? Great for all genres. MIDI controller recommended.
- Tone: Soft and warm yet robust.
- Price: $259
- DAW Support: All popular DAWs supported, good for LogicProX
Chris Hein is a recording artist known for his spectacular string recordings. This violin VST contains over 10,000 samples, 38 articulations, and 4 different legato transitions. Play smooth passages to ‘screaming loud’ sounding completely natural.
System Requirements:
| MacOS | Windows | |
| System | Mac OS 10.12 – 10.15 | Windows 7, Windows 8, or Windows 10 |
| Memory | Minimum 8GB RAM Recommended | Minimum 8GB RAM Recommended |
7. SWAM Violin by Audio Modeling
- Who’s it for? Perfect for all genres. MIDI controller high recommended.
- Tone: Best of all worlds.
- Price: $120
- DAW Support: All popular DAWs supported, good for Steinberg’s Cubase.
SWAM Violin is based on ‘physical modeling’ making it possible to control the sounds of the violin in real time. You can even assign bow position to knobs on your MIDI controller. Contains ultra-fine tuning parameters.
System Requirements:
| MacOS | Windows | |
| System | Mac OSX 10.7 – 10.11 (El Capitan), macOS 10.12 (Sierra) – 10.15 (Catalina) | Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10 |
| Memory | 4 GB recommended | 4 GB recommended |
Bravo, Bravo!
We sincerely hope you enjoyed reading about the top 7 Violin VSTs on the market today. From the comfort of your own home, you are now able to create in-depth violin music from the recordings of professional violinists. From Joshua Bell Violin to SWAM Violin, the range of what these violin VSTs are capable of is nothing short of miraculous.
Here’s our list one more time with comparable prices:
| Name | Manufacturer | Type | Price |
| Joshua Bell Violin | Embertone | Single Plugin | $199 |
| Nocturne Violin | Orchestral Tools | Single Plugin | $280 |
| Bohemian Violin | Virharmonic | Single Plugin | $229 |
| Hollywood Solo Violin | EastWest | Single Plugin | $212 |
| Solo Violin 2 | Vienna Symphonic Library | Single Plugin | $167.66 |
| Chris Hein Solo Violin | Chris Hein | Single Plugin | $259 |
| SWAM Violin | Audio Modeling | Single Plugin | $120 |
“Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything.”
