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Using the effects in REAPER (Linux)

This guide takes you from a downloaded plugin to a track in REAPER. It applies to every effect in the kit; the examples use BassPreamp. It assumes a mono input, such as a DI or an instrument input on your interface. For other hosts, see Loading in a host.

1. Download and install

Download the effect, unpack it and run ./install.sh in a terminal in the unpacked folder. It installs the CLAP, VST3 and LV2 plugins into ~/.clap, ~/.vst3 and ~/.lv2. REAPER loads all three, and CLAP is the best choice in REAPER: ./install.sh --clap installs only that one.

To build from source instead (see Build from source):

make clap install-clap FX=basspreamp   # CLAP, into ~/.clap
make vst3 install-vst3 FX=basspreamp   # or VST3, into ~/.vst3
make lv2 install FX=basspreamp         # or LV2, into ~/.lv2

Leave out FX=… to build and install every effect. The install targets replace only this repository's own bundles; anything else in those folders is left alone. The LV2 build prints “bad port property” messages. They are harmless.

2. Let REAPER find the plugins

  1. Open Options → Preferences → Plug-ins and choose the page for your format: LV2, VST or CLAP.
  2. Check that the folder (~/.lv2, ~/.vst3 or ~/.clap) is in the path list. If not, add it.
  3. Click Re-scan. REAPER only scans at start-up or on request, so do this even if REAPER was already open.

3. Set up the track

  1. Create a track and arm it for recording from your instrument input. Choose a mono input.
  2. Open the track's FX chain (the FX button) and click Add.
  3. Under LV2, VST3 or CLAP, choose the effect by name (for example "BassPreamp") and click OK.
  4. Leave the track's channel count at 2 (the default). The effects are mono. REAPER feeds a mono plugin channel 1 and sends its output to channels 1 and 2. If you are using a stereo source, open Pin Connector in the plugin window and route the channel you want to input 1.
  5. Turn on input monitoring, or record-monitor, to hear the effect while you play.

If an LV2 plugin doesn't appear, run jalv urn:pedalkit/<name> (for example jalv urn:pedalkit/basspreamp) in a terminal. If that loads, the bundle is fine and the problem is REAPER's scan.

4. Set the input level

The models treat 0 dBFS as 1 V peak at the circuit input, so your interface gain decides how hard the drive controls hit the clipping stages.

  1. Set the interface gain so that your loudest notes peak around −12 dBFS on REAPER's meter before the plugin.
  2. Start from the effect's defaults, or from its suggested starting settings (see the effect's page, for example BassPreamp). If the drive consistently sounds too clean or too dirty, adjust the interface gain, not the plugin constants.

Every effect ends in a safety limiter, so the output never exceeds 0 dBFS. If it sounds squashed, lower the effect's output level control.

5. Latency

Effects that oversample report a fixed latency, which REAPER compensates for automatically during playback: 32 samples (0.67 ms at 48 kHz) for BassDrive and 64 samples (1.3 ms) for BassPreamp. The effects table lists every effect's latency. While monitoring through the plugin, you hear that delay on top of the audio buffer. Use a smaller buffer in Options → Preferences → Audio → Device to reduce the total.

6. Presets and saving your settings

Effects that ship factory presets list them in the preset box at the top of the plugin window. BassPreamp, for example, has "Clean DI", "Growl" and "Grind", loudness-matched so that you can switch between them without a jump in level; its page lists every preset's settings. The presets are built into all three formats. The CLAP version lists them through CLAP preset discovery, which needs a REAPER recent enough to load CLAP factory presets. If its preset box is empty, update REAPER or use the LV2 or VST3 version.

Save your own settings as an FX preset with the + button next to the preset box. Or save the chain as a track template (Track → Save tracks as track template…).

What to check by listening

The effects are judged by measurement, not by ear. Each effect's page has a What to tune by ear section naming the controls and constants a listener should check, for example BassPreamp's.