Designing Audio Effect Plug-Ins in C++ 1st Edition

I've only had this book for about a week. First I read through the first several chapters just to get a feel for the theory, and this book is incredibly useful even if you only use it for the algorithm design and conversion to C++ understanding. I have a Mac so at first I didn't have a desire to use RackAFX (the custom software by the Author used in the book, which is Windows only). But in my struggles trying to integrate these concepts using Juce and XCode I decided to fire up Parallels and get RackAFX (I can confirm this works in Parallels Desktop 14 running Windows 10, and VSC++17).For me personally, learning Juce, audio DSP design, while being pretty weak with my C++ was too much to learn all at once - so getting RackAFX allowed me to follow along with the books very detailed tutorials so I can focus on just the DSP side at this stage. The first couple tutorials in the book were a breeze to get running, and I anticipate the rest of them will be as well. Just like Juce, RackAFX handles a lot of the back-end coding so you can focus on the core topic of this book: Audio Plugin design in C++. Apparently RackAFX has ways to easily export the code so you can further process your plugin algorithm and GUI, which implies you can use RackAFX as a tool to quickly prototype a design and then outside of RackAFX fine tune your GUI and build it for AU, VST, and more. Perhaps experienced users of Juce (or other frameworks) could quickly rig up some tools for prototyping, but for a beginner RackAFX includes every tool you could imagine from the beginning to help you both understand the concepts, and how exactly your algorithm is working. The GUI designer seems pretty powerful, but will only take the aesthetics so far, so you probably wouldn't release any plugins developed in RackAFX as-is. Will's website seems to have examples of how you can take it further to make beautiful GUI's once you get to that level.My opinion might change in the future when I get to more advanced topics of the book, but my impression of the book so far is that is an invaluable resource for anyone wanting to understanding Audio Plugin development (even just for the DSP theory alone). The RackAFX software takes the book to another level by helping complete beginners understand the concepts much more easily, and skip a lot of the busy-work in having to write a custom GUI. The analysis tools included are very helpful so you can see your waveform, see the frequency spectrum, and design your filters in a graphical manner (when I took a control theory class in grad school, we used similar tools in Matlab and Simulink to design filters, and the tools in RackAFX are similar - incredibly helpful!).

I have a large library of DSP-related books, including all the classics (Proakis, Oppenheim, Mitra, etc), and also quite a few 'intro' books, each with their own approach. This book truly stands out for several reasons. DSP is a very specialized and rarified realm, with its own particular language and mathematical set. Even the simplest concepts are blocked by the initial barriers presented by sampling theory and development of the basic tools. How does someone simply code a delay or chorus? The initial step can seem like a brick wall for even the most experienced engineers and programmers until that very steep on-ramp can be navigated.Many standard DSP texts are barrages of hard math and theory that are terrific catalogs for those with prior understanding. These are deemed 'rite of passage' by DSP experts, who justifiably take pride in their specialized expertise and craft. But they inevitably leave neophytes grasping for ways to get their footing. How does someone new to the field break through that barrier? Some texts do indeed attempt that with various degrees of success. But even those promoted as entry-level tutorials often seem either oversimplified, lacking any roadmap to writing functional code, or they are riddled with interspersed fragments that require more advanced knowledge.I've often thought it would be possible to emphasize hands-on rather than pure theory, as a way of introducing the subject to programmers from other fields. With the right approach and sequencing, I felt that a DSP book could be structured for those with determination and reasonable coding skills. This is that book.Pirkle has apparently put equal effort into content, and toward making sure that content is understood. Usual trouble spots are treated carefully. Code includes a platform for testing small fragments and working up to more and more complex programs. This is the logical way to develop intuition.Another point that often weakens otherwise strong texts (in many fields, not just DSP): Sequence. Foundation->walls->then roof. This is another place where Pirkle shines. He seems to have great intuition for areas that will be troublesome or vague, and takes care to be very clear in those foundation subjects. Knowledge is built incrementally and methodically toward a practical working view of how the internal gears turn.DSP, by its nature, will never be easy, and even Pirkle's book will require effort. But all the components are here. In case it isn't crystal clear by now, this book is highly recommended.

I remember when quadraphonics first came out, the promise of surround sound was as exciting as color organs. The stumbling block was 4-channel sources, there just wasn't much available. The solution was synthesizing the rear channels and there were several competing synthesizers available to convert stereo to surround sound.Fast forward to the present, modern soundboards all have 5.1 connections. So where were the synthesizers? Why can't I buy a stereo to 5.1 converter? After a little research, I found it's because modern sound cards have synthesizers built in. They're great, professionally great, at synthesizing sound as in a theater, but they don't handle anything except stereo. Current sound cards can't handle a WAV file with 5 channels. I can't send my game's audio content to a specific speaker. Probably because there aren't a lot of WAV files with 5 channels available.The only solution I found was to drop another sound card into my computer and generate the rear channels myself. Music sounds great, I left the front channels unmodified and made the rear channels tweakable. Next step is opening two sound cards in Unity for my game. Maybe. I'm not sure my game's worth a custom hardware installation for anyone but me.

This book is amazing. If you are like me and have a practical grasp of basic electronics both analogue and digital, somewhat shaky maths and no idea how a digital filter works other than a vague notion that it has something to do with "Fourier" then this book is a godsend if you want to understand them, even if you have no intention of coding them. I went from clueless to having both an intuitive and mathematical understanding within the first five chapters. Some basic background in maths and digital theory is needed - the author assumes you know what complex numbers and complex planes are, you are aware of simple digital ideas such as sampling rates and Nyquist's theorem and have some facility with algebra. Given those requirements, the author really does lead you by the hand through the basics where a Wiki page would throw you into university level maths from the start. I feel like a firmly bolted door has just been opened wide for me.

This book is for everyone who want to dive quickly into audio DSP programming. The way Will Pirkle explain thing are very easy to understand. Reader of this book are expect to have basic math knowledge and should have basis with C++ programming. There is also a companion site where you can get application note and RackAFX, the API used for learning DSP. Learning RackAFX is really easy after this you will be able to learn other DSP API, like VST. This book is a must.

Hervorragendes, umfangreiches Werk wenn man nach einem Einstieg in die DSP / VST Programmierung sucht. Toll, verständlich geschrieben und didaktisch klasse aufgebaut. Nebenbei wird auch noch einiges an Grundlagenwissen über DSP Theorie vermittelt.

A fluent and exhaustive book, that cover all the basic concept that you need for the audio dsp area. Several concepts that I studied before reading the book, are explained clearly as I had never read anywhere before. The software RackAFX is very useful in order to ignore the GUI part of the VST development and just focus on the core of the application.Considering that at the State-of-the-art there are very few books about these concepts, I'm very happy to have bought it!

This book is beautifully written and an irreplaceable resource. It is undeniably one of very few books of its kind which actually accomplishes its purpose because of having found the perfect balance between DSP theory and extremely relevant practical applications. I personally have gone through this book from front to back multiple times and still come back to it for reference.