[linux-audio-dev] Is ladspa actually la-dsp-a? Is JACK the ultimate solution?

Dave Robillard drobilla at connect.carleton.ca
Thu Jun 10 16:14:04 UTC 2004


On Thu, 2004-06-10 at 06:07, torbenh at gmx.de wrote:
> On Wed, Jun 09, 2004 at 11:35:38PM +0200, Marek Peteraj wrote:
> > On Wed, 2004-06-09 at 11:04, Pelle Nilsson wrote:
> > > Marek Peteraj <marpet at naex.sk> writes:
> > > 
> > > > ...
> > > > Second thing is that the way you percieve them shouldn't change as you
> > > > switch applications. Which is what VST perfectly fulfills - it provides
> > > > its own UI.
> > > 
> > > If I have 100 LADSPA plug-ins installed and 3 LADSPA hosts, I'd rather
> > > spend my time learning the guis of the 3 host-applications than
> > > learning the different guis of 100 plug-ins. That a plug-in then has
> > > three different interfaces depending on in which application I use it
> > > isn't a problem. 
> > 
> > Well, no. As hosts only provide a slider for each parameter, there is
> > absolutely no layout, controls aren't organised in a logical way. No
> > visual clues - except a slider. All the parameters in all existing 
> > ladspa plugins can be (and usually are) fundamentally different, but
> > you're only providing - a slider.(or a knob?) So you end up with 3x100.
> > Look at the tape delay ladspa plugin for instance.
> 
> thats why the galan library needs to be extended :)
> you can build custom UIs for all LADSPAs....
> 
> http://galan.sourceforge.net/eq-shot.png
> 
> if the gfx is not painted by me it looks like:
> 
> http://galan.sourceforge.net/anti-aliased-knobs.png

FWIW, galan doesn't get enough recognition around here.  As far as I'm
concerned galan (potentially anyway) makes the whole LADSPA plugin GUI
debate irrelevant (for my purposes).

I'd rather build a synth out of "building blocks" (oscillators and
envelopes and whatnot) and build a proper synth front panel for it after
the fact (that looks like a virus C or whatever) than have a VSTi style
synth plugin with a built-in candy GUI.

Galan being modular means you can modify the synth to do anything you
want, which is nice.  If all you have is a synth front panel flexibility
is pretty limited (think trying to do FM synthesis in amSynth - you
can't)

The same applies to ams, but my computer is too slow to run it fast
enough. :D

-DR-




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