KVR Audio

Blue Cat Audio · Post by **Blue Cat Audio** » Thu Sep 18, 2014 6:38 pm

Hi,

We are happy to announce the release of Blue Cat's Plug'n Script, a new scripting plug-in that can be programmed to quickly build custom audio and MIDI effects or virtual instruments, without quitting your favorite Digital Audio Workstation (DAW).

With this plug-in, it is possible to write your own real time or offline processors or instruments, with very little knowledge about programming: it is a very simple way to start learning audio and MIDI processing. Experienced audio software developers will also find it convenient to quickly prototype algorithms right into a DAW and drastically reduce development costs. It can also be used by non-programmers as a multi-purpose processor, thanks to the 46 scripts and 120 presets that are included in the package.

A special introduction price (25% off the plug-in) is offered to new customers until October 15th, while existing Blue Cat Audio customers will receive by email special offers to purchase the plug-in.

Demo versions are available for download on http://www.bluecataudio.com, in VST, RTAS, AAX, Audio Unit and DirectX formats, for both Mac and PC (32 and 64-bit).

Main Features:
- Audio and MIDI scripting plug-in.
- Build your own Audio and MIDI effects or virtual instruments.
- Simple scripting syntax, using the AngelScript language (similar to C++, Java or JavaScript).
- The user interface adapts to scripts automatically. Build your own using Blue Cat's KUIML language.
- Up to 48 input parameters and 32 outputs, with full MIDI and automation control.
- Use your favorite Integrated Development Environment (IDE) for editing.
- Integrated JIT (Just In Time) compiler for optimal performance (scripts are not interpreted but compiled).
- Includes 46 scripts and 120 presets for sound synthesis, MIDI FX, audio FX (comp, gate, tremolo echo, filters...), waveform generation and more.
- Surround support (up to 8 audio channels).
- Integrated undo/redo.
- Use the included user interface or write your own for your own scripts.

System requirements:
- Intel Mac running Mac OS 10.5 or newer.
- PC running Windows XP or newer.

Pricing:
Blue Cat's Plug'n Script: 59 EUR or $74 (instead of 79 EUR or $99), until October 15th.

chroma · Post by **chroma** » Thu Sep 18, 2014 8:29 pm

that's quite cool, kind of a way more approachable csound in plugin form.

is there a way to change which editor pops up when you click 'edit script'? most programmers are going to want to use something other than notepad (i use gvim myself)...

was going to ask for a list of included scripts etc. but just installed it to get that instead

i noticed that i got 6 folders for data, each of them identical... i.e. one for 'BC Plug'nScript', one for 'BC PlugnScript (mono)', ... one for 'BC PlugnScript Synth(stereo)'. is that expected? i'm on win64 VST.

Blue Cat Audio · Post by **Blue Cat Audio** » Thu Sep 18, 2014 8:40 pm

Yes, you can definitely choose your application. From the user manual:

The Preferences Pane

In the preferences pane, you can select the applications that can be used to edit the script files and open the error log from the user interface of the plug-in:

To change the application, click on its path or on the button at the right and select the appropriate application in the file browser.

The preferences pane can be opened by clicking on the spanner icon.

The plug-in comes in two flavors: effect or synth. That's to be used as an instrument or effect in most hosts.

The VST version (only) provides 3 versions for each, because not all hosts support variable audio i/o properly. The generic "BC Plug'n Script VST" is 8 channels (and will be configured with the appropriate number of channels in hosts that support it), so there is also a mono and a stereo version that force the host to use one or two channels. This avoids being forced to process 8 audio channels on non-surround tracks , to save (lots of) CPU...

Blue Cat Audio · Post by **Blue Cat Audio** » Thu Sep 18, 2014 8:42 pm

BTW your own scripts should be placed in your documents folder as explained in the manual. The "data" directories for each plug-in are part of the install and should not be modified if you do not want to lose your data when upgrading the plug-in.

satYatunes · Post by **satYatunes** » Thu Sep 18, 2014 9:32 pm

Congratulations BC team.

Blue Cat Audio · Post by **Blue Cat Audio** » Fri Sep 19, 2014 9:00 am

In case you don't want to go thru the entire manual and haven't found enough information in the announcement, we have written a short post on our blog to give a bit more details about the plug-in and what you can expect from it:

Blue Cat’s Plug’n Script: Bringing MIDI and Audio Scripting into your DAW

chroma · Post by **chroma** » Fri Sep 19, 2014 12:49 pm

Blue Cat Audio wrote:Yes, you can definitely choose your application....
The preferences pane can be opened by clicking on the spanner icon.

ahh, perfect - i didn't see that for some reason. is there a reason that isn't in the menu? first place i looked, and saw 'plugin options' and 'global options', neither of which included this - weird there is two 'preferences' places. also, it was gray, not blue (unlike the other icons), and turned blue when I clicked on it - this makes it kind of look like it's 'grayed out' and not clickable.

The plug-in comes in two flavors: effect or synth. That's to be used as an instrument or effect in most hosts....

sure... was just asking why I got a separate data folder for each version.

another question: started looking at the scripts. is there a concept of an include directory? i noticed that some of the factory scripts do things like #include "..\factory\SomeModule.hxx". but scripts are supposed to go in my documents folder, so is there a recommended way to include the standard factory modules (which i'm sure will expand over time)?

Blue Cat Audio · Post by **Blue Cat Audio** » Fri Sep 19, 2014 1:29 pm

There is no other include path than the current script directory ("./").

The "library" folder should be copied to your Documents directory by the plug-in on first run, so you should be able to include the library files without problem from your custom scripts. If you don't want to bother changing the relative path when reusing factory scripts, you can save them in a sub directory inside the Scripts folder (since that's the way all factory scripts have been done).

And as explained in the manual:

The 'library' folder contains some header files provided with the plug-in to help you write your own scripts. Do not modify these files or create your files in this folder, as they may be updated with the plug-in in the future.

wesleyt · Post by **wesleyt** » Fri Sep 19, 2014 10:12 pm

Is a Logic MIDI FX version in the works? It doesn't show up there.

Blue Cat Audio · Post by **Blue Cat Audio** » Sat Sep 20, 2014 2:16 am

Yes. Actually, we already have it in beta and it is planned for the next update, probably pretty soon!

wesleyt · Post by **wesleyt** » Sat Sep 20, 2014 2:33 am

Wonderful; thanks!

TheKid · Post by **TheKid** » Sat Sep 20, 2014 5:48 pm

Being a hobby c# coder this is pretty interesting.

I just wonder: how does this work with plugin delay compensations with daws? I don't know how this works internally but I imagine that the delay might vary depending on the coded content. Is the correct delay value passed to the DAW?

And of course where is the difference to NI Reaktor (beside the great price)? Maybe you can explain your product a little more.

Blue Cat Audio · Post by **Blue Cat Audio** » Sat Sep 20, 2014 6:09 pm

There is no additional delay added by the plug-in. But if your script adds delay, you can just implement the getLatency() function:

Code: Select all

int getLatency()
{
    // return the latency in samples
    return myLatency;
}

Dynamic latency compensation is supported (you can change the latency over time). However not all hosts do support it.

This plug-in is definitely based on scripting and does not offer graphical modular capabilities, so I guess it is pretty different from NI Reaktor. Also, currently the libraries available in the plug-in are still limited, but we intend to expose more components in the future.

sagetone · Post by **sagetone** » Mon Sep 22, 2014 2:01 am

Blue Cat,

This looks very interesting. I am not a coder, but have been curious to learn some basics and this might be a good entry point. You mentioned that you "intend to expose more components in the future". Can you comment at this time on how these would be made available to purchasers? Would they be updates at no additional cost?

Thank you,

Todd

TB-ProAudio · Post by **TB-ProAudio** » Mon Sep 22, 2014 5:46 am

Hi Blue Cat,

very nice release, congrats

Compared to other plugins i like the support for both Win and Mac OSX platforms.

What i cannot see during my quick review:

- is there any inter-script communication like global mem?
- is there a gfx object where i can put text, lines, points with mouse support?

Thank you

Regards
Thomas

Blue Cat's Plug'n Script Unleashed, with Audio & MIDI Scripting