manual/include/working-with-plugins.html

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<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 few
<a href="@@bundled-plugins">come bundled with Ardour</a> (some are only
available in official builds distributed from ardour.org). 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>
<table class="dl">
<tr>
<th><abbr title="Linux Audio Developers' Simple Plugin API">LADSPA</abbr></th>
<td>
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).</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th><abbr title="LADSPA Version 2">LV2</abbr></th>
<td>
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.
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th><abbr title="Audio Unit">AU</abbr></th>
<td>
OS X only, full featured, audio and MIDI, plugins can provide their own
GUI
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th><abbr title="Virtual Studio Technology">VST</abbr></th>
<td>
Plugins using Steinberg's VST2 and VST3 plugin standard.
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<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>