Vst Audio Plugin Slobs
A list of open source VST (and other format) plugin/app projects. The intention of this list is to catalog open source plugins or apps which are fully featured or are useful examples which have non-trivial features.
VST 4 FREE - Free Audio Plug-ins and Archives Free audio plugins archive - Instruments and effects for audio software. Plugins for Cubase, FL studio, Reaper, Ableton and other VST/AU platforms. Virtual Studio Technologies (VSTs) serve as an interface between an audio processing program and any other application that supports them, like OBS. You can get VSTs that act as instruments for music production software, but the ones that matter for OBS users are VSTfx plugins, which act as audio effects.
The main benefit of having Open Source plugins/apps is that the code itself is preserved for the future, so when the author(s) stop updating it the community can continue using and developing the software. Open Source projects are also a great way to learn how different audio FX/instruments are created.
https://openaudio.webprofusion.com
Please contribute links!
Audio Plugins
| Plugin | Description | Type | Framework |
|---|---|---|---|
| ADLplug | FM Chip Synthesizer — OPL & OPN | Instrument | JUCE |
| andes | Sound synthesiser plugin based on Perlin noise | Instrument | JUCE |
| Airwindows | Various small and experimental effect plugins | Effect | |
| amsynth | Analog-modelling (virtual analog) synthesizer | Instrument | GTK |
| Argotlunar | Real-time delay-line granulator | Effect | JUCE |
| Audio Effects | Plugins implemented from the explanations in the book “Audio Effects: Theory, Implementation and Application” | Effect | JUCE |
| BinAural VST | Mono-to-stereo plugin that positions sound in a 3D space using Head-Related Transfer Functions | Effect | JUCE |
| BlackBird | Analog-inspired software synth with its own voice | Instrument | JUCE |
| Calf Studio Gear | Many LV2 and Jack audio plug-ins | Effects | GTK |
| CHOW | A maximally truculent distortion effect | Effect | JUCE |
| Cloud Seed | Algorithmic reverb for emulating huge, endless spaces and modulated echoes | Effect | |
| Cocoa Delay | Warm and lively delay | Effect | WDL-OL |
| Convolver | Impulse-response reverb | Effect | VSTGUI, JUCE |
| Dexed | DX7 FM plugin synth | Instrument | JUCE |
| Digits | Phase-distortion synth inspired by Casio CZ series | Instrument | VSTGUI |
| Distrho glBars | OpenGL bars visualization plugin (as seen in XMMS and XBMC/Kodi) adapted from jack_glbars | Effect | DPF |
| Distrho Juice Plugins | Misc | DPF | |
| Distrho Kars | Simple karplus-strong plucked string synth based on the karplong DSSI example synth | Instrument | DPF |
| Distrho Mini-Series | Collection of small plugins based on LOSER-Dev Plugins | Effect | DPF |
| Distrho MVerb | DPF-based version of MVerb | Effect | DPF |
| Distrho ndc Plugs | DPF-based versions of some of ndc Plugs | Effect | DPF |
| Distrho Nekobi | Simple single-oscillator synth based on Roland TB-303 | Instrument | DPF |
| Distrho ProM | Music-visualizer plugin based on projectM | Effect | DPF |
| Dragonfly Reverb | Hall-style reverb based on Freeverb3 algorithms | Effect | DPF |
| Element | Advanced Audio Plugin Host | Misc | JUCE |
| Eurorack | Diverse set of physical modeling sources, organic processors, wavetable oscillators, waveshapers, granular synths, and utility modules | Misc | |
| Flutterbird | Simple pitch fluctuation | Effect | iPlug 2 |
| Gverb/Gigaverb | Reverb | Effect | VSTGUI |
| Helm | Polyphonic synth with lots of modulation | Instrument | JUCE |
| hexter | Yamaha DX7 modeling FM synth for DSSI | Instrument | DPF |
| HiLoFilter | Simple hipass/lopass filter controlled with a single knob | Effect | JUCE |
| JuceOPLVSTi | FM synth based on Yamaha OPL2/3 emulation from DOSBox | Instrument | JUCE |
| Juno 6 | Roland Juno 6/60 Synthesizer | Instrument | |
| keithhearne/VSTPlugins | A collection of VST plugins | Effect | JUCE |
| K-Meter | Implementation of a K-System meter according to Bob Katz’ specifications | Effect | JUCE |
| KickMaker | Synth specifically to create kick-drum sounds | Instrument | VSTGUI |
| LameVST | LameMP3 as an effect | Effect | |
| Magical8bitPlug 2 | Old 8bit game console style synth | Instrument | JUCE |
| mda | FX and virtual instruments for PC and Mac | Misc | (no GUI) |
| Mika Micro | Simple subtractive synth | Instrument | WDL-OL |
| MVerb | Studio-quality reverb using the Dattorro’s figure-of-eight reverb structure | Effect | VSTGUI |
| NotNotchFilter | Performance-oriented filter designed to replace the mid-EQ found in a standard 3-band DJ mixer | Effect | JUCE |
| ndc Plugs | VST plugins for Windows and OSX | Misc | |
| Odin2 | Polyphonic Synth | Instrument | JUCE |
| OwlBass | Additive bass synth | Instrument | JUCE |
| OB-Xd | Based on the Oberheim OB-X | Instrument | JUCE |
| Oxe FM Synth | Multitimbral 8-operator FM synth (VST 2.4; Windows, Linux, macOS) | Instrument | VSTGUI |
| PulseDelay | Timed delay effect | Effect | (no GUI) |
| QtVST | VST plugins with a Qt interface | Effect | Qt |
| Regrader | Degenerative delay | Effect | VSTGUI |
| Roth-AIR | Mixing tool for easily adding airy, crispy presence to audio | Effect | JUCE |
| ScorchCrafter Guitar FX | Audio DSP FX and plugins, mostly for guitar (amp sim) and other FX | Effect | VSTGUI |
| sfizz | SFZ parser library and instrument plugins | Instrument | VSTGUI |
| ShoutVST | VST for streaming sound into Icecast/Shoutcast directly from VST hosts | Effect | VSTGUI, FLUID |
| Sound Analyser | Real-time audio analysis to allow anyone to quickly set up and experiment with different algorithms | Effect | JUCE |
| Surge | Subtractive wavetable synth | Instrument | VSTGUI |
| Synister | Subtractive synth | Instrument | JUCE |
| Syntage | VST 2.4 .Net Study Synth | Instrument | |
| Temper | Digital distortion targeting VST, VST3, and AU for OS X and Windows | Effect | Faust, JUCE |
| Tunefish | VST virtual analog synthesizer | Instrument | JUCE |
| traKmeter | Loudness meter for correctly setting up tracking and mixing levels | Effect | JUCE |
| VCV Rack | Virtual modular synth | Misc | RtAudio |
| VSTSID | SID synthesizer instrument | Instrument | |
| VST2413 | FM synth based on emulator of YM2413 (OPLL) chip used in Sega Master System and FM-PAC MSX expansion | Instrument | (no GUI) |
| Wolf Shaper | Waveshaper plugin with spline-based graph editor | Effect | DPF |
| YK Chorus | Chorus audio effect plugin based on DSP code by TAL | Effect | DPF |
| zam-plugins | LADSPA/LV2/VST/JACK audio plugins for high-quality processing | Effect | DPF |
Collections
- Linux Synths - a list of linux based synths, some of which are open source
- SFZ Instruments - a list of SFZ instruments, most of which are free
- VCV library — a library of plugins compatible with VCV Plugin Manager
Open Source Audio Apps
| Software | Source | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Ardour | Ardour/ardour | DAW |
| ASIO2WASAPI | levmin/ASIO2WASAPI | Universal ASIO driver for Windows |
| Audacity | audacity/audacity | Audio editor |
| Carla | falkTX/Carla | GNU/Linux Plugin Host |
| Element | Kushview/Element | Advanced Audio Plugin Host |
| FlexASIO | dechamps/FlexASIO | Universal ASIO driver for Windows |
| Giada | monocasual/giada | Loop machine |
| Guitarix | SourceForge → guitarix | GNU/Linux Virtual Amplifier |
| Helio Workstation | helio-fm/helio-workstation | Sequencer |
| HISE | christophhart/HISE | Cross-platform framework/application for building sample-based virtual instruments (VST, AU, AAX) |
| Hydrogen | hydrogen-music/hydrogen | Drum machine |
| NewMixer | jatinchowdhury18/NewMixer | Mixing Software |
| LMMS | LMMS/lmms | DAW |
| OpenMPT | OpenMPT/openmpt | Popular tracker (formerly ModPlug Tracker) for Windows with support for IT, XM, S3M, MOD modules, VST plugins and ASIO |
| OwlPlug | DropSnorz/OwlPlug | Audio plugin manager |
| orDrumbox | SourceForge → ordrumbox | Drum machine |
| Psycle | SourceForge → psycle | Modular music tracker |
| StudioRack | github.com/studiorack | Audio plugin manager |
| VCV Rack | VCVRack/Rack | Modular synth |
| Zrythm | zrythm/zrythm | DAW |
Open Source Software Development Libraries
| Library | Source | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Cabbage | rorywalsh/cabbage | Framework for developing audio plugins and standalone instruments with Csound |
| Csound | csound/csound | Programming language for sound and music synthesis |
| DPF | DISTRHO/DPF | C++ framework for creating cross-platform audio plugins |
| Faust | grame-cncm/faust | Functional programming language for real-time signal processing |
| FluidSynth | FluidSynth/fluidsynth | Real-time synth based on the SoundFont 2 specifications |
| iPlug 2 | iPlug2/iPlug2 | Simple-to-use C++ framework for developing cross-platform audio plugins/apps |
| JUCE | WeAreROLI/JUCE | Cross-platform C++ framework for developing desktop and mobile apps and audio plugins |
| jVSTwRapper | SourceForge → jvstwrapper | Wrapper to write audio plugins in Java (VST 2.4, AU, LADSPA; Windows, Linux, macOS) |
| libopenmpt | OpenMPT/openmpt | Cross-platform C/C++ module-playback library based on OpenMPT |
| PortAudio | Assembla → portaudio | Cross-platform audio I/O library |
| RtAudio | thestk/rtaudio | C++ classes for cross-platform real-time audio I/O |
| rust-vst | rust-dsp/rust-vst | VST 2.4 API implementation in the Rust language |
| Soundpipe | PaulBatchelor/Soundpipe | Lightweight music DSP library written in C; over 100 modules, many ported from Csound |
| VSTGUI | steinbergmedia/vstgui | User-interface toolkit mainly for audio plugins |
| WDL-OL | olilarkin/wdl-ol | Simple-to-use C++ framework for developing cross-platform audio plugins (superseded by iPlug 2) |
Code Samples
- KlangFalter — a convolution audio plugin (e.g. for usage as convolution reverb)
- FFTConvolver — an audio convolution algorithm in C++ for real-time audio processing
Open Data Resources
- OpenAIR — the Open Acoustic Impulse Response Library (Convolution Reverb Impulse Responses to recreate reverb character of space and equipment/recordings)
No matter what your skill level is, there is a way for you to make your own audio plugin.
In this article, I’ll be sharing multiple ways for you to start developing your own audio plugins in no time.
Ways to make a VST plugin:
Drag-And-Drop Plugin Makers
A plugin maker will take all, if not most, of the coding out of making an audio plugin. Synth makers are especially useful for prototyping.
Coding
Coding a plugin will involve downloading a special sdk for VST development. This is how all the big names in the audio plugin industry make their plugins.
If you want to learn how to develop any type of effect imaginable, I highly recommend this book. It teaches you how to develop plugins in C++ and comes with A TON of example code for professional plugins. It is written very well and makes a huge effort to stand out from the other programming books.
I believe the book is well worth the price. It’s the only resource you’ll ever need to learn how to code plugins.
You don’t even need a full understanding of c++! This book starts at the very beginning and works it’s way up to more advanced material. I’d rate this book a 10/10 any day!
At least give it a look and read some of it’s reviews. It is an extremely helpful resource.
If you are leaning more towards creating software instruments, this book might be more your speed.
It is by the exact same author, Will Pirkle, and offers a ton of great information for you to get started.
Audio Vst Plugins Free
Synth Makers/Prototypers:
1. SynthEdit
This has to be the most well known program for creating audio plugins on the fly. It is a lot more simple to jump into than writing code and is very understandable.
Keep in mind there is no mac version.
You can export plugins so they run on mac just not use the SynthEdit program.
2. Flowstone
Flowstone was Formerly known as Synth Maker. Best free vst plugins for fl studio 20. Flowstone allows you to create a virtual synth visually and then add code to create more advanced plugins. What stands out with this plugin is the design and intuitiveness. There are many features to this software including the ability to “connect to the outside world”. That means that you can connect to external hardware including any usb device.
3. Reaktor 5
Reactor is an audio plugin that allows you to make audio plugins. Reaktor is almost like a giant plugin library within a plugin. Many producers use this as an easier way to publish quality synths instead of having to learn how to program synths all buy themselves.
You might also like: Best free and paid VST Plugins
Programming
Programming a synth, or plugin, will most likely be a very steep learning curve if you have never programmed before.
There are many different ways to code plugins. I will be sharing 4 different ways to get started.
The most popular way to code is with C++. Most plugins nowadays are coded that way.
Coding Plugins:
1. Using C++ and Visual studio
C++ is a language a lot of people choose to learn. It is used in most commercial software. It can be a bit tricky to learn so make sure you get the basics down before you try building a VST plugin with it.
2. Using Java:
Obs Vst Audio Plugins
I love Java because it is fairly simple to get into. Maybe it is just me, but when I started learning Java, it felt easier and more natural than other programming Languages.
3. Using Ruby:
I have never used ruby, but I heard it was a really simplified programming language. I found out that there is an add-on for Ruby called Opaz-Plugdk. It allows the creation of vst plugins in Ruby. I couldn’t find too much info on this, but I’m sure if you dig deep enough you could find some helpful sites.
New Free Vst Plugins
4. Using C++ in Xcode:
Free Vst Plugins Download
This or Java is the way to go if you are on a mac. The information I found was once again from teragonaudio. They seem to have a lot of good info on plugin development, so defiantly check them out.
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