<s>
Virtual	B-Application
Studio	I-Application
Technology	I-Application
(	O
VST	O
)	O
is	O
an	O
audio	B-Application
plug-in	I-Application
software	O
interface	O
that	O
integrates	O
software	B-Application
synthesizers	I-Application
and	O
effects	O
units	O
into	O
digital	B-General_Concept
audio	I-General_Concept
workstations	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
VST	O
and	O
similar	O
technologies	O
use	O
digital	B-General_Concept
signal	I-General_Concept
processing	I-General_Concept
to	O
simulate	O
traditional	O
recording	O
studio	O
hardware	O
in	O
software	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Thousands	O
of	O
plugins	B-Application
exist	O
,	O
both	O
commercial	O
and	O
freeware	B-License
,	O
and	O
many	O
audio	O
applications	O
support	O
VST	O
under	O
license	O
from	O
its	O
creator	O
,	O
Steinberg	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
VST	B-Application
plugins	I-Application
generally	O
run	O
within	O
a	O
digital	B-General_Concept
audio	I-General_Concept
workstation	I-General_Concept
(	O
DAW	B-General_Concept
)	O
,	O
to	O
provide	O
additional	O
functionality	O
,	O
though	O
a	O
few	O
standalone	O
plugin	B-Application
hosts	O
exist	O
that	O
support	O
VST	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Most	O
VST	B-Application
plugins	I-Application
are	O
either	O
instruments	O
(	O
VSTi	O
)	O
or	O
effects	O
(	O
VSTfx	O
)	O
,	O
although	O
other	O
categories	O
exist	O
—	O
for	O
example	O
spectrum	O
analyzers	O
and	O
various	O
meters	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
VST	B-Application
plugins	I-Application
usually	O
provide	O
a	O
custom	O
graphical	B-Application
user	I-Application
interface	I-Application
that	O
displays	O
controls	O
similar	O
to	O
physical	O
switches	O
and	O
knobs	O
on	O
audio	O
hardware	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
(	O
often	O
older	O
)	O
plugins	B-Application
rely	O
on	O
the	O
host	O
application	O
for	O
their	O
user	O
interface	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
VST	B-Application
instruments	I-Application
include	O
software	O
simulation	O
emulations	B-Application
of	O
well-known	O
hardware	O
synthesizers	O
and	O
samplers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
VST	B-Application
instruments	I-Application
receive	O
notes	O
as	O
digital	O
information	O
via	O
MIDI	O
,	O
and	O
output	O
digital	O
audio	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Effect	O
plugins	B-Application
receive	O
digital	O
audio	O
and	O
process	O
it	O
through	O
to	O
their	O
outputs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
(	O
Some	O
effect	O
plugins	B-Application
also	O
accept	O
MIDI	O
input	O
—	O
for	O
example	O
,	O
MIDI	O
sync	O
to	O
modulate	O
the	O
effect	O
in	O
sync	O
with	O
the	O
tempo	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
MIDI	O
messages	O
can	O
control	O
both	O
instrument	O
and	O
effect	O
plugin	B-Application
parameters	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
released	O
it	O
at	O
the	O
same	O
time	O
as	O
Steinberg	B-Application
Cubase	I-Application
3.02	O
,	O
which	O
included	O
the	O
first	O
VST	O
format	O
plugins	B-Application
:	O
Espacial	O
(	O
a	O
reverb	O
)	O
,	O
Choirus	O
(	O
a	O
chorus	O
effect	O
)	O
,	O
Stereo	O
Echo	O
,	O
and	O
Auto-Panner	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
One	O
addition	O
was	O
the	O
ability	O
for	O
plugins	B-Application
to	O
receive	O
MIDI	O
data	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
supported	O
the	O
introduction	O
of	O
Virtual	B-Application
Studio	I-Application
Technology	I-Application
Instrument	O
(	O
VSTi	O
)	O
format	O
plugins	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
VST	B-Application
Instruments	I-Application
can	O
act	O
as	O
standalone	O
software	B-Application
synthesizers	I-Application
,	O
samplers	O
,	O
or	O
drum	O
machines	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Neon	O
was	O
the	O
first	O
available	O
VST	B-Application
Instrument	I-Application
(	O
included	O
with	O
Cubase	B-Application
VST	O
3.7	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
free-software	O
replacement	O
was	O
developed	O
for	O
LMMS	B-Language
that	O
would	O
be	O
used	O
later	O
by	O
other	O
free-software	O
projects	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
October	O
2011	O
,	O
Celemony	O
Software	O
and	O
PreSonus	O
released	O
Audio	B-Architecture
Random	I-Architecture
Access	I-Architecture
(	O
ARA	O
)	O
,	O
an	O
extension	O
for	O
audio	B-Application
plug-in	I-Application
interfaces	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
VST	O
,	O
allowing	O
greater	O
integration	O
between	O
audio	B-Application
plug-ins	I-Application
and	O
DAW	B-General_Concept
software	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
includes	O
a	O
preview	O
version	O
of	O
VST3	O
for	O
Linux	B-Application
platform	O
,	O
the	O
VST3	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
SDK	O
gets	O
a	O
dual	O
license	O
:	O
"	O
Proprietary	O
Steinberg	O
VST3	O
"	O
or	O
the	O
"	O
Open-source	O
GPLv3	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
are	O
three	O
types	O
of	O
VST	B-Application
plugins	I-Application
:	O
</s>
<s>
VST	B-Application
instruments	I-Application
generate	O
audio	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Better	O
known	O
VST	B-Application
instruments	I-Application
include	O
Discovery	B-Application
,	O
Nexus	O
,	O
Sylenth1	O
,	O
Massive	O
,	O
Omnisphere	O
,	O
FM8	O
,	O
Absynth	O
,	O
Reaktor	O
,	O
Gladiator	O
,	O
Serum	O
and	O
Vanguard	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
VST	B-Application
effects	I-Application
process	O
rather	O
than	O
generate	O
audio	O
—	O
and	O
perform	O
the	O
same	O
functions	O
as	O
hardware	O
audio	O
processors	O
such	O
as	O
reverbs	O
and	O
phasers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
VST	O
MIDI	O
effects	O
process	O
MIDI	O
messages	O
(	O
for	O
example	O
,	O
transpose	O
or	O
arpeggiate	O
)	O
and	O
route	O
the	O
MIDI	O
data	O
to	O
other	O
VST	B-Application
instruments	I-Application
or	O
to	O
hardware	O
devices	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
VST	O
host	O
is	O
a	O
software	O
application	O
or	O
hardware	O
device	O
that	O
VST	B-Application
plugins	I-Application
run	O
under	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
host	O
application	O
presents	O
the	O
plugin	B-Application
UIs	O
and	O
routes	O
digital	O
audio	O
and	O
MIDI	O
to	O
and	O
from	O
the	O
plugins	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Examples	O
of	O
VST	O
hosts	O
include	O
media	O
players	O
such	O
as	O
JRiver	B-Operating_System
Media	I-Operating_System
Center	I-Operating_System
and	O
foobar2000	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Stand-alone	O
dedicated	O
hosts	O
provide	O
a	O
host	O
environment	O
for	O
VST	B-Application
plugins	I-Application
rather	O
than	O
use	O
the	O
plugins	B-Application
to	O
extend	O
their	O
own	O
capabilities	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
VST	B-Application
plugins	I-Application
can	O
be	O
hosted	O
in	O
incompatible	O
environments	O
using	O
a	O
translation	O
layer	O
,	O
or	O
shim	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
example	O
,	O
FL	B-Application
Studio	I-Application
only	O
supports	O
its	O
own	O
internal	O
plugin	B-Application
architecture	O
,	O
but	O
an	O
available	O
native	O
"	O
wrapper	O
"	O
loads	O
VST	B-Application
plugins	I-Application
,	O
among	O
others	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
FXpansion	O
offers	O
a	O
VST-to-RTAS	O
(	O
Real	B-Operating_System
Time	I-Operating_System
AudioSuite	I-Operating_System
)	O
wrapper	O
that	O
lets	O
VST	B-Application
plugins	I-Application
run	O
in	O
Pro	B-Application
Tools	I-Application
,	O
and	O
a	O
VST-to-Audio	O
Units	O
wrapper	O
lets	O
VST	B-Application
plugins	I-Application
run	O
in	O
Logic	B-Application
Pro	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Hardware	O
VST	O
hosts	O
can	O
load	O
special	O
versions	O
of	O
VST	B-Application
plugins	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Other	O
hardware	O
options	O
include	O
PCI/PCIe	O
cards	O
designed	O
for	O
audio	O
processing	O
,	O
which	O
take	O
over	O
audio	O
processing	O
from	O
the	O
computer	O
's	O
CPU	B-Device
and	O
free	O
up	O
RAM	B-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
hardware	O
hosts	O
accept	O
VSTs	O
and	O
VSTis	O
,	O
and	O
either	O
run	O
Windows-compatible	O
music	O
applications	O
like	O
Cubase	B-Application
,	O
Live	O
,	O
Pro	B-Application
Tools	I-Application
,	O
Logic	O
etc.	O
,	O
or	O
run	O
their	O
own	O
DAW	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
Other	O
are	O
VST	O
Hosts	O
only	O
and	O
require	O
a	O
separate	O
DAW	B-General_Concept
application	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Origin	O
from	O
Arturia	O
is	O
a	O
hardware	O
DSP	O
system	O
that	O
houses	O
several	O
VST	O
software	B-Application
synthesizers	I-Application
in	O
one	O
machine	O
,	O
like	O
Jupiter	O
50/80	O
from	O
Roland	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Using	O
appropriate	O
software	O
,	O
audio	O
data	O
can	O
also	O
be	O
sent	O
over	O
a	O
network	O
,	O
so	O
the	O
main	O
host	O
runs	O
on	O
one	O
computer	O
,	O
and	O
VST	B-Application
plugins	I-Application
on	O
peripheral	O
machines	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
VST	B-Application
plugin	I-Application
standard	O
is	O
the	O
audio	B-Application
plugin	I-Application
standard	O
created	O
by	O
Steinberg	O
to	O
allow	O
any	O
third-party	O
developers	O
to	O
create	O
VST	B-Application
plugins	I-Application
for	O
use	O
within	O
VST	O
host	O
applications	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
VST	O
requires	O
separate	O
installations	O
for	O
Windows	O
,	O
Mac	O
OS	O
X	O
and	O
Linux	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
majority	O
of	O
VST	B-Application
plugins	I-Application
are	O
available	O
for	O
Windows	O
only	O
due	O
to	O
Apple	O
's	O
competing	O
proprietary	O
Audio	B-Operating_System
Unit	I-Operating_System
technology	O
being	O
used	O
on	O
OS	O
X	O
(	O
Audio	B-Operating_System
Units	I-Operating_System
is	O
a	O
core	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
OS	O
X	O
operating	O
system	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
short	O
history	O
of	O
commercial	O
environments	O
for	O
Linux	B-Application
means	O
few	O
developers	O
have	O
targeted	O
this	O
platform	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
VST	B-Application
plugins	I-Application
often	O
have	O
many	O
controls	O
,	O
and	O
therefore	O
need	O
a	O
method	O
of	O
managing	O
presets	O
(	O
sets	O
of	O
control	O
settings	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Steinberg	B-Application
Cubase	I-Application
VST	O
introduced	O
two	O
file	O
formats	O
for	O
storing	O
presets	O
:	O
an	O
FXP	O
file	O
stores	O
a	O
single	O
preset	O
,	O
while	O
an	O
FXB	O
file	O
stores	O
a	O
whole	O
bank	O
of	O
presets	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
formats	O
have	O
since	O
been	O
adopted	O
by	O
many	O
other	O
VST	O
hosts	O
,	O
although	O
Cubase	B-Application
itself	O
switched	O
to	O
a	O
new	O
system	O
of	O
preset	O
management	O
with	O
Cubase	B-Application
4.0	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
VST	B-Application
plugins	I-Application
have	O
their	O
own	O
method	O
of	O
loading	O
and	O
saving	O
presets	O
,	O
which	O
do	O
not	O
necessarily	O
use	O
the	O
standard	O
FXP/FXB	O
formats	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Steinberg	O
's	O
VST	O
SDK	O
is	O
a	O
set	O
of	O
C++	B-Language
classes	O
based	O
around	O
an	O
underlying	O
C	O
API	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
addition	O
,	O
Steinberg	O
has	O
developed	O
the	O
VST	O
GUI	B-Application
,	O
which	O
is	O
another	O
set	O
of	O
C++	B-Language
classes	O
,	O
which	O
can	O
be	O
used	O
to	O
build	O
a	O
graphical	B-Application
interface	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Note	O
that	O
these	O
are	O
low-level	O
C++	B-Language
classes	O
and	O
the	O
look	O
and	O
feel	O
still	O
have	O
to	O
be	O
created	O
by	O
the	O
plugin	B-Application
manufacturer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
VST	O
GUI	B-Application
is	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
VST	O
SDK	O
and	O
is	O
also	O
available	O
as	O
a	O
SourceForge	O
project	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
commercial	O
and	O
open-source	O
VSTs	O
are	O
written	O
using	O
the	O
Juce	B-Language
C++	B-Language
framework	O
instead	O
of	O
direct	O
calls	O
to	O
the	O
VST	O
SDK	O
because	O
this	O
allows	O
multi-format	O
(	O
VST	O
,	O
Audio	B-Operating_System
Units	I-Operating_System
and	O
Real	B-Operating_System
Time	I-Operating_System
AudioSuite	I-Operating_System
)	O
binaries	O
to	O
be	O
built	O
from	O
a	O
single	O
codebase	O
.	O
</s>
