Using Vst Plugins Live
It's been several months since 'googol analytics' posted a question regarding using VSTs in a live setting. If you're still looking for a solution, take a look at the Muse Research Receptor standalone unit. This is a dedicated unit for VST plugins. I have a couple of keyboard midi controllers hooked up to the unit. I use it on all my live gigs.
VST plug-ins are instruments and effects from third party manufacturers which can be installed and used in Live. VST2 plug-ins use the.dll file extension. VST3 plug-ins use the.vst3 file extension. How to install and activate VST plug-ins on Windows. The idea is to have the audio from the VST plugins in the AVB stream and that you can control the software parameters from the Universal Control software. Currently VST-Plugins can only be managed from Studio One. This software is powerful but has not an ideal layout for a live situation (too much small buttons). This video will show you how to create professional audio in your streams by adding VST3 plugins.vMix Forum on VST3 plugins- https://forums.vmix.com/default. OBS (Open Broadcaster Software) is a free and open source software for video recording and live streaming. This is a simple tutorial on how to open and use VST plugins and use them in OBS Studio: All you need to do is click on the Settings icon after adding the Source for your audio capture channel (or right-click on the channel). Minimal System Group Plugins run on Windows based PC’s using a suitable VST host or DAW. Our plugins have been fully tested within Ableton Live, Adobe Audition, Cakewalk Sonar, FL Studio, Energy XT, Presonus Studio One, Renoise, and Cubase. Using VST plugins live on stage (guitar) 12 posts Mr. Ars Scholae Palatinae Registered: Nov 7, 1999. Posted: Thu Sep 18, 2014 11:51 am.
Plug-ins bring many benefits. Current digital audio systems are not only stable but they often sound as good or even better than their analog counterparts. Find out how to integrate plug-ins into your live mix set-up and what to pay attention to when doing so.
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Follow this link if you want to learn about the advantages of using plug-ins in a live setup:https://www.sonible.com/blog/benefits-plug-ins-live/
What do you have to watch out for when using plug-ins live?
The use of digital audio plug-ins makes many things easier, but it also brings new challenges. It can be difficult to gain an overview of all the processes. Sources of problems can be hidden deep inside a digital rack. The preparation time required should not be underestimated either. Here are a few points to be aware of:
Step by step – Gain Staging & Gain Structure
Digital mixing allows detailed sound design of each instrument. Four to five effects per channel are not uncommon. The flip side is that gain staging becomes very sensitive at the same time. If even one effect in the chain is overdriven, this has far-reaching consequences. Looking for the cause of this sonic mess and its correction takes time. Every change inside the gain staging changes the whole structure.
Using Vst Plugins Live Encoder
PROTIP: Pay close attention to the gain staging during soundcheck and stage rehearsals. You will appreciate it later during the live gig.
The show must go on – Stability & reliability
The challenge in creating a stable live mix environment is not that great anymore. Reliability can be achieved by having a back-up computer system. This can also be done by applying similar effect processors to the mixing console’s internal group tracks.
Note: Practice has shown that the physical connections of the network, Firewire and USB cabling pose a greater stability problem than do the plug-ins themselves.
Waiting for Godot – Watch out for latency
Using Vst Plugins Live
Latency plays a subordinate role in the FOH. There are delays in the millisecond range due to the distances alone, especially at larger locations. Nevertheless, every piece of software also brings a little latency into the system. Therefore, not every plug-in or host is suitable for live use. The monitor mix engineer has to pay special attention to very low latency levels.
How to integrate plug-ins in your live set-up?
We have broken down the most common options for integrating plug-ins into your live setup. You can implement digital audio processing into your mix at different levels. Here are the building blocks you need:
- A computing unit to perform the audio processing of the plug-ins.
- A control unit to serve as an interface to control the plug-ins.
- A mixing console that can communicate with both analog (Sends, Aux) and digital (e.g. MADI, Dante, Network) signals
Live set-up 1
In this set-up, the computing unit can be for example a Waves SoundGrid Server or a DSP unit from UAD. An additional computer, usually a laptop connected via Firewire, USB or CAT5, controls the plug-ins running on the computing unit. The connection to the mixing console (digital or analog) determines how you can integrate the effects into your live workflow.
Live set-up 2
The control and computing unit can also be combined in one device. You need suitable software, such as Waves MultiRack, audioström LiveProfessor or another suitable plug-in host (pay attention to latency and stability!). The audio connects to the mixing console work via a sound card and can also be both digital (network, USB) and analog (via Aux on the mixing console).
Live set-up 3
With certain manufacturer combinations it is also possible to control plug-ins directly from the mixing console. Only the computing power is outsourced in this set-up. DiGiCo/Waves or AVID/Waves offer such combinations. Most of times an additional option card is necessary.
Live set-up 4
Fully integrated systems are a bit less common. These are mixing consoles that also have the full computing power on board. In this case, the selection of plug-ins may be limited to selected manufacturers or special formats (as with AVID S6L). However, the entire control is carried out directly via the touch screen of the mixing console. Fully integrated systems are the nonplus ultra – unfortunately this often also applies to the price.
Here Toni „Meloni“ Loitsch briefly explains the live setup which he uses with the German punk band Donots:
The topic of Live Plug-ins (and Live Sound!) is vast and it’s easy to get lost in the details. Nevertheless, we hope we were able give you either a solid starting point or maybe even some new ideas for your existing live setup.
Special thanks go to Andreas Kapfer from audiotope Studios Graz, who was the main research contributor for this article.
There are a few different way to use VST and AU plugins in Pro Tools 12. It’s even possible to use VST/AU plugins in Pro Tools First, the free version of Pro Tools 12.
One of the things that separates Pro Tools from other DAWs is the proprietary AAX format that it uses for plugins. Vengance vst plugins.
Not all plugins are available in AAX, especially some really good free ones, so Pro Tools users have to find workarounds to get their favorite VST and AU plugins to work.
Luckily there are a few methods that can get the job done.
Using Vst Plugins Live Download
Unfortunately none are free, but they all have demos to try for free, and each offers a number of other features as well.
Not all of these options will work with Pro Tools First since one of the main limitations with the free version is you have to get all the plugins through Avid’s marketplace.
Pro Tools First does supports ReWire, though, and that’s a big plus because that means it can run other DAWs that support ReWire. It can use Ableton Live’s built-in instruments, for example, and if you ReWire with Reaper it can run VST plugins within Pro Tools. Bidule is another option that works with Pro Tools First.
Using Reaper in Pro Tools to Host VST Instruments and Plugins
Reaper is a good option to use VST plugins in Pro Tools because it has a 60-day free fully-functioning demo and it only costs $60 to purchase. Plus it’s a full DAW and not just a plugin like the other options.
How To Use Any Virtual Instrument Plugin in Pro Tools First
The folks at Pro Tools Expert uploaded the helpful video above showing how to use Bidule with ReWire to load VST instruments into Pro Tools First. Bidule sells for $95 and can be used for a number of other things as well.
How To Use VST/AU in Pro Tools 12 with Blue Cat Audio Patchwork
Another option to run VST and AU plugins in the full version of Pro Tools 12 is with the Blue Cat Audio Patchwork plugin. It’s capable of hosting up to 64 VST, VST3 or Audio Unit plugins in one instance. It sells for $99 (79 euros).
Pro Tools 12 and Metaplugin – Wes Renaud
The Metaplugin is an AAX plugin that can host VST and AU plugins in the full version of Pro Tools. It supports up to eight individual channels and sells for $49.