JUCE is an open-source cross-platform C++ application framework for desktop and mobile applications, including VST, VST3, AU, AUv3, LV2 and AAX audio plug-ins.
Start a JUCE program, e.g. BespokeSynth: plugins listed in VST3_PATH are not taken into account.
What is the expected behaviour?
The PATH to search for LV2/VST3 should honor the LV2_PATH/VST3_PATH environment path (colon separated list of folders to search for the VST plugins). This is already done for the LADSPA format here and VST here so it should not be to hard to modify (actually any reasons why on MacOS you don't read this variable as well?):
Plugins can be located in various places on the system. While LV2 proposesLV2_PATH to search for the paths, the spec for VST3 only mentions fixed paths: unfortunately, sometimes these paths can be impossible to use, either because the OS does not provide such path for security or purity reasons (e.g. Flatpack or NixOs) or because the programs are run without installing them (e.g. nix provides nix run that can run a program without installing it, and I know some people trying to build around it a whole linux music portable installation this way, like https://codeberg.org/PowerUser/universal-studio that actually bundles BespokeSynth… except that it can't detect the plugins for the reasons explained here).
Multiple people reported this as an issue here, and some of them started to use VST3_PATH including Ardour and Carla. It would be great to see BespokeSynth here as well!
Detailed steps on how to reproduce the bug
Start a JUCE program, e.g. BespokeSynth: plugins listed in
VST3_PATH
are not taken into account.What is the expected behaviour?
The PATH to search for LV2/VST3 should honor the
LV2_PATH
/VST3_PATH
environment path (colon separated list of folders to search for the VST plugins). This is already done for theLADSPA
format here and VST here so it should not be to hard to modify (actually any reasons why on MacOS you don't read this variable as well?):LV2_PATH
)VST3_PATH
.Motivation
Plugins can be located in various places on the system. While LV2 proposes
LV2_PATH
to search for the paths, the spec for VST3 only mentions fixed paths: unfortunately, sometimes these paths can be impossible to use, either because the OS does not provide such path for security or purity reasons (e.g. Flatpack or NixOs) or because the programs are run without installing them (e.g. nix providesnix run
that can run a program without installing it, and I know some people trying to build around it a whole linux music portable installation this way, like https://codeberg.org/PowerUser/universal-studio that actually bundles BespokeSynth… except that it can't detect the plugins for the reasons explained here).Multiple people reported this as an issue here, and some of them started to use
VST3_PATH
including Ardour and Carla. It would be great to see BespokeSynth here as well!Related: https://github.com/BespokeSynth/BespokeSynth/issues/1063
Operating systems
macOS, Linux
What versions of the operating systems?
All of them (tested on NixOs, but the code is explicit)
Architectures
x86_64, ARM, Other, 64-bit, 32-bit
Stacktrace
No response
Plug-in formats (if applicable)
VST3, LV2
Plug-in host applications (DAWs) (if applicable)
All (tested in Bespokesynth)
Testing on the
develop
branchThe bug is present on the
develop
branchCode of Conduct