In computer music and professional audio creation, a DirectX plugin is a software processing component that can be loaded as a plugin into ''host applications'' to allow real-time processing, audio effects, mixing audio or act as virtual synthesizers. DirectX plugins allow the replacement of traditional recording studio hardware and rack units used in professional studios with software-based counterparts that can be connected together in a modular way. This allows host manufacturers to focus on the conviviality and efficiency of their products while specialized manufacturers can focus on the

digital signal processing Digital signal processing (DSP) is the use of digital processing, such as by computers or more specialized digital signal processors, to perform a wide variety of signal processing operations. The digital signals processed in this manner are ...

aspect. For example, there are plugins for effects boxes, such as reverbs and delays, effects pedals, like guitar distortion, flange and

chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song) or refrain, line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in which all verse ...

, and for mixing and mastering processors such as compressors, limiters, exciters, sub bass enhancers, stereo imagers and many more.

Overview

Similar to Virtual Studio Technology and later,

Audio Units Audio Units (AU) are a system-level plug-in architecture provided by Core Audio in Apple's macOS and iOS operating systems. Audio Units are a set of application programming interface (API) services provided by the operating system to generate, ...

in Apple Mac OS X, DirectX plugins have an open standard architecture for connecting audio synthesizers and effect plugins to audio editors and hard-disk recording systems. DirectX plug-ins are based on Microsoft's Component Object Model (COM) which allows plugins to be recognised and used by other applications via common interfaces. Plugins connect to applications and other plugins with pins via which they can pass and processes buffered streams of audio (or video) data. Architecturally, DirectX plugins are DirectShow filters.

Types and compatibility

DirectX plugins are also of two types, ''DirectX effect plugins (DX)'' and ''DirectX Instrument plugins (DXi)''. Effect plugins are used to generate, process, receive, or otherwise manipulate streams of audio. Instrument plugins are MIDI controllable DirectX plugins, generally used to synthesize sound or playback sampled audio using virtual synthesizers, samplers or drum machines. DirectX effect plugins were developed by Microsoft as part of DirectShow. DirectX instruments were developed by Cakewalk in co-operation with Microsoft and are available on Windows. Several ''wrapper'' plugins are available so that DirectX plugins can be used in applications which only support VST and vice versa. Others such as ''chainer'' plugins are also available which allow chaining multiple plugins together.

Programmability

DirectX plugins can be developed in C++ using Microsoft's

DirectX Microsoft DirectX is a collection of application programming interfaces (APIs) for handling tasks related to multimedia, especially game programming and video, on Microsoft platforms. Originally, the names of these APIs all began with "Direct", ...

SDK, Sony's Audio Plug-In Development Kit or Cakewalk's DirectX Wizard. There is also a

Delphi Delphi (; ), in legend previously called Pytho (Πυθώ), in ancient times was a sacred precinct that served as the seat of Pythia, the major oracle who was consulted about important decisions throughout the ancient classical world. The oracle ...

SDK available.

DirectX plugin hosts

* ACID Pro (version 3.0 or later) * Adobe Audition (Formerly Cool Edit 2000 and Cool Edit Pro 1.0, 2.0) *

Cakewalk Sonar Sonar was a digital audio workstation created by the former Boston, Massachusetts-based music production software company Cakewalk (company), Cakewalk. It was acquired by Singaporean music company BandLab Technologies and renamed Cakewalk by B ...

(version 2.0 or later) * MAGIX Samplitude * REAPER * Sony VegasSony's Audio Plug-In Development Kit
/ref> * Sound Forge * Steinberg Wavelab *

Steinberg Nuendo Nuendo is a digital audio workstation (DAW) developed by Steinberg for music recording, arranging, editing and post-production. The package is aimed at audio and video post-production market segments (marketed as an 'Advanced Audio Post-Productio ...

Steinberg Cubase Cubase is a digital audio workstation (DAW) developed by Steinberg for music and MIDI recording, arranging and editing. The first version, which was originally only a MIDI sequencer and ran on the Atari ST computer, was released in 1989. Cut-dow ...

* OpenMPT

Future

DirectX plugins are superseded by

DMO DMO may refer to: * Dilute Magnetic Oxide, a type of functional semiconducting oxide with applications in Spintronics * Debt Management Office, an executive agency of the United Kingdom government * Defence Materiel Organisation, a former agenc ...

-based signal processing filters and more recently, by

Media Foundation Transform Media Foundation (MF) is a COM-based multimedia framework pipeline and infrastructure platform for digital media in Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, Windows 10, and Windows 11. It is the intended replacement for Microsoft DirectS ...

References

External links

All types of audio plugins, effects and instruments

Hitsquad Musician Network: Collection of DirectX plugins

{{DEFAULTSORT:Directx plugin Plugin DirectX plugin Microsoft application programming interfaces Music software plugin architectures