manual/_manual/11_working-with-plugins.html

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---
layout: default
title: Working With Plugins
---
<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>Ardour does not come with any built-in signal processors of its own
(other than volume faders) and it also generally doesn't ship with any
plugins. They are written by 3rd parties, though we do provide <a href="/working-with-plugins/getting-plugins/">some
information on how to get them</a>.
</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</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><dt>(native) Windows VST plugins fully supported (VST2.4)</dd>
<dt>on OS X</dt><dd>Not supported, unless you use a VST&lt;&gt;AU
bridge plugin. Similar to Apple's Logic DAW.</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="/working-with-plugins/windows-vst-support">Read
more...</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="/working-with-plugins/processor-box">Processor
Box</a> page.</p>
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