manual/include/working-with-plugins.html

<p>
  <dfn>Plugins</dfn> are bits of software that get loaded by Ardour in order to:</p>
<ul>
  <li>Create various audio or MIDI effects</li>
  <li>Generate audio by functioning as "software instruments"</li>
</ul>

<p>
  They are usually written by 3rd parties, though <a href="@@plugins-bundled-with-ardour">a few come as part of a standard Ardour install</a>. The sources for plugins are many and varied; see <a href="@@getting-more-plugins">here</a> for some information on how to get them.
</p>

<p>
  Ardour supports a variety of different plugin standards:
</p>

<dl class="narrower-table">
  <dt><abbr title="Linux Audio Developers' Simple Plugin API">LADSPA</abbr></dt>
  <dd>An early, simple, lightweight plugin <abbr title="Application
  Programming Interface">API</abbr>, audio effects only,
  plugins have no editors/GUI of their own (Ardour provides one, however).</dd>
  <dt><abbr title="LADSPA Version 2">LV2</abbr></dt>
  <dd>An extensible, full-featured plugin API, audio and <abbr
  title="Musical Instrument Digital Interface">MIDI</abbr>, plugins can provide their
  own  <abbr title="Graphical User Interface">GUI</abbr>s but may use the
  one Ardour provides instead.</dd>
  <dt><abbr title="Audio Unit">AU</abbr></dt>
  <dd>OS X only, full featured, audio and MIDI, plugins can provide their own GUI</dd>

  <dt><abbr title="Virtual Studio Technology">VST</abbr></dt>
  <dd>Plugins using Steinberg's VST plugin standard. Varies by platform:
    <dl>
    <dt>on Linux</dt><dd>(native) Linux VST plugins fully supported (VST2.4)</dd>
    <dt>on Windows</dt><dd>(native) Windows VST plugins fully supported (VST2.4)</dd>
    <dt>on OS X</dt><dd>(native) macOS VST plugins fully supported (VST2.4) since Ardour 5.5</dd>
  </dl>
  </dd>

  <dt>Windows VST Plugins on Linux</dt>
  <dd>VST plugins for Windows, but being used on Linux. <em>Not
  supported by normal builds of Ardour. <a href="@@using-windows-vst-plugins-on-linux">Read
  more&hellip;</a></em>
  </dd>
</dl>

<h2>Adding/Removing/Copying Plugins</h2>

<p>
  Within Ardour, plugins are just another type of <dfn>Processor</dfn> and so
  the techniques for adding/removing/copying/moving processors apply to plugins
  as well. These techniques are covered on the
  <a href="@@processor-box">Processor Box</a> page.
</p>