pbTechLab Primitive Fx Library is a collection of 17 lightweight audio effect plug-ins for Windows and macOS. Every plug-in ships as a VST3 and an AAX (Pro Tools) plug-in, with a shared WebView-based editor and a self-contained native DSP core.
The plug-ins were migrated from the original JUCE 8 implementation to iPlug2 with a WebView UI (WebView2 on Windows, WKWebView on macOS). The migrated, build-ready projects live under iplug2/. Each plug-in is an independent iPlug2 project with its own product name, 4-character plug-in code, parameter set, DSP, and embedded HTML/CSS/JavaScript editor.
Latest release: v2.0.0 — the complete migration to iPlug2 + WebView, with AAX (Pro Tools) added alongside VST3.
| Platform | Installer | Installs |
|---|---|---|
| Windows (x64) | pbTechLab_PrimitiveFxLibrary_..._Windows_Setup.exe |
VST3 + AAX to the common plug-in folders |
| macOS (universal — Apple Silicon + Intel) | pbTechLab_PrimitiveFxLibrary-...-macOS.pkg |
VST3 + AAX, signed & notarized |
The macOS installer is code-signed (Developer ID), notarized, and stapled; AAX is PACE-signed for Pro Tools on both platforms. Installers ship only through GitHub Releases — they are never committed to the repository.
The plug-in/installer internal version string remains
1.0.0; thev2.0.0tag denotes the iPlug2 + WebView rebuild and the AAX addition.
| Format | Windows | macOS | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| VST3 | ✅ | ✅ | Scanned from the common VST3 folder by every DAW |
| AAX Native | ✅ | ✅ | Pro Tools. Requires PACE signing for release distribution |
| Standalone | ✅ | ✅ | For development / quick checks |
The macOS release plug-ins are code-signed, PACE-signed (AAX), notarized, and stapled. Distribution installers ship only through GitHub Releases — they are not committed to the repository.
| Plug-in | Code | Main controls | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|
| pbPFL Reverb | PrRv |
Size, Damping, Diffusion, Mod, Width, Dry/Wet, Output | Algorithmic stereo reverb (Freeverb-style comb/allpass network). |
| pbPFL Delay | PrDl |
Time, Feedback, Tone, Spread, Mod Rate, Mod Depth, Dry/Wet, Output | Stereo delay with feedback coloration, spread, and modulation. |
| pbPFL Distortion | PrDs |
Drive, Bias, Tone, Shape, Dry/Wet, Output | Saturation / distortion for harmonic edge and tone shaping. |
| pbPFL Compressor | PrCp |
Threshold, Ratio, Attack, Release, Makeup, Dry/Wet, Output | Feed-forward dynamics with parallel-compression mix. |
| pbPFL Limiter | PrLm |
Input, Ceiling, Release, Dry/Wet, Output | Peak limiting / loudness control with envelope smoothing. |
| pbPFL 3BandEQ | Pr3E |
Low/Mid/High gain + freq + Q, Dry/Wet, Output | Three-band RBJ-biquad equalizer. |
| pbPFL 4BandEQ | Pr4E |
Low shelf, two bells, high band, Dry/Wet, Output | Four-band RBJ-biquad equalizer. |
| pbPFL PitchShifter | PrPs |
Semitone, Cents, Grain, Crossfade, Tone, Dry/Wet, Output | Time-domain pitch shifting. |
| pbPFL Chorus | PrCh |
Rate, Depth, Delay, Feedback, Spread, Dry/Wet, Output | Stereo chorus (modulated fractional delay). |
| pbPFL Phaser | PrPh |
Rate, Depth, Center, Feedback, Dry/Wet, Output | Moving all-pass phaser with feedback. |
| pbPFL Flanger | PrFl |
Rate, Depth, Delay, Feedback, Spread, Dry/Wet, Output | Stereo flanger with short modulated delay + bipolar feedback. |
| pbPFL StereoEnhancer | PrSE |
Width, Enhance, Focus, Bass Mono, Dry/Wet, Output | Stereo enhancement and bass-mono management. |
| pbPFL StereoWidth | PrSW |
Width, Mono, Balance, Rotation, Dry/Wet, Output | Stereo width / mono blend / balance / rotation utility. |
| pbPFL MidSideProcessor | PrMS |
Mid Gain, Side Gain, Width, Balance, Dry/Wet, Output | Mid-side gain and width processing. |
| pbPFL AutoPan | PrAP |
Rate, Depth, Phase, Shape, Offset, Dry/Wet, Output | Tempo-sync-capable auto panner. |
| pbPFL Tremolo | PrTR |
Rate, Depth, Shape, Phase, Dry/Wet, Output | Amplitude modulation for pulse / rhythmic movement. |
| pbPFL Vibrato | PrVB |
Rate, Depth, Delay, Shape, Spread, Dry/Wet, Output | Pitch-modulation vibrato. |
Manufacturer code: PbTL.
Every plug-in shares one HTML/CSS/JS editor rendered in a platform WebView (WebView2 / WKWebView). The visual language matches the original ImGui design and is reproduced pixel-faithfully — the knob is a 1:1 port of the ImGui procedural knob shader, drawn to an HTML canvas.
- Procedural LED knobs (
knob-render.js): cyan LED ring (270°), dark cap, white pointer + blue tip, bipolar ring for ±parameters, and an animated LFO ring. - LFO chip popup on tempo/rate parameters (Type / Rate / Depth + waveform icon).
- Tempo sync (
S) with note↔Hz conversion, driven by host BPM. - A/B slots, Undo/Redo (64-deep), 10 factory presets, Bypass, Help.
- Knob interaction: drag, fine-drag (Shift), wheel, double-click reset, direct numeric entry.
- One UI asset set drives both the iPlug2 build and the legacy JUCE WebView build via a host-abstraction bridge in
script.js.
Each plug-in re-implements its signal processing with self-contained, permissively-licensed algorithms (no JUCE, no proprietary DSP libraries): RBJ biquads (EQ), a Freeverb-style network (Reverb), a feed-forward compressor, an all-pass cascade (Phaser), and linear-interpolated fractional delay lines (Flanger / Chorus / Delay / Vibrato). The signal flow is faithful to the original: per-sample processing → dry·(1−wet) + processed·wet → output gain → bypass passthrough, plus input/output peak metering.
Requirements: CMake 3.14+, a C++17 compiler, an iPlug2 checkout, Visual Studio 2022 (Windows) or Xcode (macOS), the Avid AAX SDK (for AAX), and the WebView2 SDK (Windows, fetched by iPlug2).
Each plug-in is its own project under iplug2/<plugin>/. Windows example:
cd iplug2/pbPFL_Flanger
cmake -B build -G "Visual Studio 17 2022" -A x64 -DIPLUG2_DIR="path/to/iPlug2"
cmake --build build --config Release --target pbPFL_Flanger-vst3 # VST3
cmake --build build --config Release --target pbPFL_Flanger-aax # AAX (needs AAX SDK)macOS example (universal):
cd iplug2/pbPFL_Flanger
cmake -B build -G Xcode -DCMAKE_OSX_ARCHITECTURES="arm64;x86_64" -DIPLUG2_DIR="$HOME/iPlug2"
cmake --build build --config ReleaseOverride the AAX SDK with -DAAX_SDK_DIR=.... The VST3 is deployed to the system VST3 folder and the AAX to the Avid Plug-Ins folder automatically.
The original JUCE 8 implementation (shared Common/ core + per-plug-in mock/ UIs) remains in the repository for reference.
This repository intentionally excludes build trees, installer artifacts, signing/PACE credentials, private keys, machine names, server scripts, API tokens, and local handover/log files. Release binaries are distributed only through GitHub Releases.