Free effect plugins for bass and guitar¶
Overdrive, distortion and preamps for Linux, as CLAP, VST3 and LV2 plugins. Download one, run the installer and play. There is no account, licence key or root password.
The effects¶
Each download holds the effect as CLAP, VST3 and LV2 plugins, with an installer, so one file suits any Linux DAW.
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BassDrive · bass overdrive
Grit on top, with a solid low end underneath. A clean/driven Balance, Gain, and Bass and Treble controls.
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BassPreamp · bass preamp and DI
A tube-voiced preamp that you can plug straight into a desk: drive, Presence, a clean blend and a three-band EQ with shiftable Bass and Mid.
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MidHump · overdrive
A mid-forward overdrive that keeps the lows tight. Blend brings back the full-range clean sound, and Bloom lets the distortion change as each note rings.
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BassEras · bass preamp and DI
One Character knob takes the preamp from deep and scooped, through flat and warm, to pushed and growling, with hard notes blooming as they ring.
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BassGrit · distortion
Heavy hard-clipping distortion on the upper band only. The lows stay clean and tight, with a Crossover and Low Blend to set how much.
Not released yet.
Install in three steps¶
- Download an effect from its card above or from the Download page.
- Install it. Unpack the file, open a terminal in the folder and run
./install.sh. It copies the plugins into~/.lv2,~/.vst3and~/.clapin your home folder and needs no root. - Play. Rescan plugins in your DAW and add the effect to a mono track. The host guides show where to click in REAPER, Ardour and Carla.
The plugins need 64-bit Linux with glibc 2.35 or newer: Ubuntu 22.04, Debian 12 or later, or any current rolling distribution such as Arch or Fedora.
Make your own sounds¶
Every effect here is one short Faust file, with notes that say where each value came from and tests that measure the result. The kit is also a workshop for designing new effects.
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Design in your browser
Build an effect from blocks, wire them up and hear it straight away, with nothing to install. The designer writes the Faust code for you.
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Build and change the effects
Build the plugins from source, retune the named constants, or add an effect of your own with its notes, tests and measurements.
How the effects are made explains the rules every effect follows: clean-room research, a confidence level for every value, and judging by measurement before tuning by ear.