VST3 PLUGINS

Plugin discovery is configured in Settings → Plugins. Glitch scans a single VST3 folder; by default it points at the system location at /Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/VST3.

• Choose a folder — click Choose… next to VST3 Plugin Folder and pick the directory that contains your .vst3 bundles.
• Rescan — click Rescan Plugins after changing the folder or installing new plugins. A spinner shows while the scan runs in the background.
• Verify the scan — once it finishes, the settings panel shows the last scan time and the number of plugins found (e.g. Last scanned: 1 hour ago · 12 plugin(s) found). Each detected plugin is listed with its name, vendor, and categories.

Glitch remembers your folder choice across launches and rescans on startup. There is no need to re-pick the folder every session.

Every detected VST3 plugin — instrument and effect alike — lives in the dedicated Plugins tab in the library on the left. VST3s do not appear under the built-in Instruments or Audio Effectstabs; those tabs are reserved for Glitch's own Sampler, DrumRack, and built-in effects.

Each plugin declares its own type in its category metadata — synths and samplers identify as instruments; EQs, compressors, reverbs, and the like identify as effects. Glitch reads this on scan and uses it to decide what the plugin does once you drop it on a track:

• Instrument plugins load into a MIDI track's instrument slot and respond to the track's MIDI clips.
• Effect plugins join the effect chain on any audio, MIDI, group, or master track.

The classification is per-plugin and fixed — you do not toggle a plugin between instrument and effect modes inside Glitch.

Open the Plugins tab in the left library to see every detected VST3 plugin. To use one:

• As an instrument — drag the plugin onto a MIDI track. It loads into the instrument slot and immediately receives MIDI from any clips on that track. Dragging a new instrument onto an occupied slot replaces the existing one.
• As an effect — drag the plugin onto the effect chain of any track. It joins the serial chain at the drop position and processes audio flowing through that track.

Once loaded, the plugin's row in the inspector shows the plugin name, vendor, bundle filename, and total parameter count. Click Open GUIto bring up the plugin's native window — floating, resizable with the plugin's aspect ratio locked. Close the window without removing the plugin; the instance and its state remain on the track.

If a plugin can no longer be found on disk (you moved the folder, uninstalled the plugin, or opened the project on another machine), the slot keeps its saved state and shows a warning so you can reinstall or repoint without losing the configuration.

Plugins sit in the same serial chain as built-in effects. There is no separate plugin bus — a VST3 reverb on a vocal track is processed in line with the EQ before and the compressor after.

For a MIDI track running a VST3 instrument, the signal path is:

For an audio, group, or master track running a VST3 effect, the path is the standard one — the plugin is just another node in the chain, processed before the track's fader and pan. Reorder plugins by dragging within the chain; bypass any slot individually without removing it.

VST3 plugins are processed as stereo. Mono sources are widened to stereo before they hit the plugin, and the plugin's stereo output is fed to whatever comes next in the chain.

Every parameter the plugin exposes is automatable through the same lane system used for built-in effects and the track's own volume/pan controls. There is no separate VST3 automation surface — automation lanes for plugin parameters render alongside the rest of the track.

• Pick a parameter — every parameter the plugin reports during scanning is selectable from the automation lane menu on the track.
• Draw or edit — place breakpoints on the lane to shape the parameter over time. Lanes are lock-free at the audio thread and interpolated per-sample with smoothing applied.
• Touch from the plugin's own UI — while the plugin's native window is open, Glitch polls the plugin sixty times a second to detect knob and slider movement. When you grab a knob, the corresponding automation lane is temporarily overridden so you hear your hand instead of the recorded curve. Release to return to lane playback.

Plugin state — every parameter value, every internal setting the plugin chooses to serialize — is captured in the .gpf project file when you save the session. Reopening the project restores each plugin to the exact state it had on save, including any automation recorded against its parameters.

Glitch does not maintain its own preset library for VST3 plugins. Use the plugin's native preset menu (typically inside its own GUI) to save and recall sounds — those presets are then stored wherever the plugin keeps them.