Hello! This is Jooyoung Kim, an audio mixing engineer and music producer.
Recently, I found a very interesting filter effect plugin called the Filter Ark, made by Korg. Therefore, I requested an NFR (Not for Resale) code from Plugin Boutique for this review.
It was a really fancy and neat plugin. I think it is great to introduce this to music producers, electronic music makers, and electric guitar players.
If you purchase the plugin through the link included in this post, I’ll receive a small commission that helps support my work.
Ok.. Let’s start!
It’s quite difficult to download and register the product. You need to download the KORG Software Pass first, and then register the code you have.
After registering, you can download your plugin. They don’t use iLok, the common passkey used by many plugin companies. Therefore, you should not delete the KORG Software Pass program.
Looking over the plugin, you can see its clean, modern design. There are several modules at the bottom of the interface that resemble guitar pedals. Interestingly, these are all different types of filters!
Simple descriptions of these pedals are shown in the table below.
| Filter Name | Category | Key Characteristics |
| MS-20 | Legendary Analog | Recreates the iconic 12dB/oct filter with distinctive distortion and powerful resonance. |
| Polysix | Legendary Analog | A warm and smooth 24dB/oct Low Pass Filter known for its musicality. |
| miniKORG 700S | Legendary Analog | Features the unique “Traveler” sliders (HPF/LPF) for thick, vowel-like textures. |
| ARP Odyssey | Legendary Analog | Includes all three revisions (Rev 1/2/3) with sharp, aggressive resonance characteristics. |
| Modal | Modern / Physical | A physical modeling resonator that simulates the vibration of strings or metal plates. |
| Vowel | Modern / Formant | A formant filter that morphs between three vowels to create human-like vocal sounds. |
| Wave Guide | Modern / Physical | Based on volca drum algorithms, ideal for creating metallic tubes or string-like plucks. |
| Spectrum Tracer | Modern / Experimental | Captures frequency characteristics from audio files and applies them to the input signal. |
| Morphing | Modern / Variable | Allows seamless morphing between Low Pass, Band Pass, High Pass, and Band Reject modes. |
| Stereo | Utility / Stereo | Independent filter settings for Left and Right channels to create wide stereo imaging. |
| Drift | Utility / Stereo | Features dual LPF/HPF with a ‘Delta’ parameter to add organic, drifting movement. |
| IR (Impulse Response) | Modern / Convolution | Loads IR files to simulate realistic spaces, speaker cabinets, or Lo-Fi equipment. |
| All Pass | Modern / Phase | Shifts the phase of the signal to create Phaser-like notches and unique tonal shifts. |
| Multi Mode | Versatile / Utility | A flexible filter capable of everything from precise EQ-ing to aggressive sound shaping. |
Four slots are available, and their routing can be adjusted.
Clicking the VIEW (SIMPLE) button displays the frequency response graph. This interface allows you to intuitively adjust macro controls and modulation assignments.
These functions help composers shape their sounds with greater precision and nuance. Modern composers often utilize multiple filters to create dynamic movement in their music. From this perspective, the wide array of filters and features in Filter Ark streamlines the sound design process, saving composers the time and effort typically required to craft complex textures.
It is hard to analyze all the filters, but you can listen to the sounds via the link above.
At just $53.9 (tax included), it’s quite affordable. I highly recommend this plugin to composers and music producers who work with heavy synthesizers or complex sound design.
That’s all for today! See you in the next post.
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