OctaSine VS vst-rs

Since I last posted here, I've implemented multiple features for OctaSine, a free and open source frequency modulation synth plugin (VST2, CLAP), some of which were heavily requested.

I just released version 0.8.2 of OctaSine, my free and open source frequency modulation synth (source code on GitHub). It is available as a VST2 plugin for macOS, Windows and Linux.

Then I'd heavily recommend trying out a free FM synth VST before spending any money ;). Dexed is popular, but maybe a bit too much (6 operators), this one or this one might be a bit easier (4 operators) - and your DAW probably already has its own FM synth, like Abletons Operator or FL Studios Sytrus.

OctaSine. The dev posts updates on r/synthesizers regularly.

Source code: https://github.com/greatest-ape/OctaSine

I just released a version 0.8.0 of my free and open source FM (frequency modulation) VST synth OctaSine. The main improvements are:

I would like to add it, but not having Apple Silicon hardware to test it makes it more complicated. If you create an issue in the GitHub repository, you will get an email if I add it.

OctaSine, a digital frequency modulation synthesizer

I am the developer of aquatic, a BitTorrent tracker with world-leading performance, and OctaSine, a frequency modulation digital synthesizer (both written in Rust).

I have been working in Rust for about 4 years, mainly as the developer of aquatic and OctaSine and as a contributor to baseview. I have prior experience in web development using technologies such as actix-web, TypeScript, React, Django and PostgreSQL.

https://github.com/RustAudio/vst-rs this what you mean?

I hate to "uhhmm ackchyually" this, but unless you need native VST3 support* (which uses the C++ ABI directly) other options are available, a favourite of mine would be Rust!

VST2 bindings exist (https://github.com/RustAudio/vst-rs) but the VST3 and AU situation is rougher around the edges. There is work being done on abstracting over different plugin standards and easing parameter handling, notably https://github.com/wrl/baseplug and https://github.com/robbert-vdh/nih-plug, but nothing completely stable yet.

One limitation that they mention is "Only one GFX and one LFX APO can be registered for an output device and only one LFX APO can be registered for an input device." which could be a problem for people who are already using one like Equalizer APO. What you could do is make a VST version of your limiter using vst-rs and use Equalizer APO to handle the APO part.

I agree with the first half. For the second half, I think for beginners, the examples are very important. From this perspective, many Rust projects comes with examples:

https://github.com/RustAudio/vst-rs

Once following the readme, it is very easy to get it work in your own machine. Then beginners can edit things while learning new stuffs with books or online resources.

Rust audio has also got a very helpful Discord community where beginners can always ask questions.

For the GUI part, I am not an expert, but there are more and more Rust GUI libraries (egui, iced, druid, rui): among them, egui-rs and iced-rs can all be used for VST. Still, there are some examples to get started with.

https://youtu.be/yFKH9ou_XyQ

If you want your own vst (with your name on the author and you can sell),you can start with vst-rs:

https://github.com/RustAudio/vst-rs

Wanna some GUI, here is a template:

When I came across the vst-rs, I realised that I could try out writing an audio plugin. Since I was already familiar with FM synthesis from Elektron Monomachine and FM8, I decided to go with it. It has worked out pretty well.