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Kiwisynth on Linux

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Kiwisynth manual

Kiwisynth on Linux

Kiwisynth runs on Linux as a VST3 plugin and as a CLAP plugin. This page covers what you need and how to install it. Everything else in this manual applies without change. The instrument is the same on every platform.

What is and is not available

The VST3 plugin and the CLAP plugin are the two Linux formats. There is no AU version. AU is an Apple format and does not exist on Linux. There is no graphical installer yet. You copy one file into place by hand, as described below.

What you need

A 64-bit Linux desktop from roughly 2022 onward. The plugin is built against glibc 2.35, so it runs on Ubuntu 22.04 and later, Debian 12 and later, and recent releases of Fedora and Arch. An older system refuses to load the plugin rather than running it incorrectly.

A graphical desktop that uses X11. The plugin draws its window through the standard Linux desktop libraries, which any system already running a DAW has.

A host that scans VST3 or CLAP plugins. Most modern Linux DAWs scan both, so either format works. Pick whichever your host prefers.

Installing the VST3 plugin

The download for this format is a .tar.gz archive. Unpack it, then copy the Kiwisynth.vst3 folder into one of the two places a Linux host looks for VST3 plugins:

  • For yourself only, the .vst3 folder in your home directory.
  • For everyone on the machine, the system VST3 folder, usually under /usr/lib/vst3.

Then open your DAW and rescan plugins. Kiwisynth appears as an instrument.

Installing the CLAP plugin

The download for this format is also a .tar.gz archive. Unpack it, then copy the Kiwisynth.clap file into one of the two places a Linux host looks for CLAP plugins:

  • For yourself only, the .clap folder in your home directory.
  • For everyone on the machine, the system CLAP folder, usually under /usr/lib/clap.

Then open your DAW and rescan plugins. Kiwisynth appears as an instrument.

Both archives are .tar.gz rather than .zip, because tar keeps the executable bit and any symlinks inside the bundle that the instrument needs to load. Use your file manager or tar -xzf to unpack.

If it does not appear

If your DAW does not list Kiwisynth after a rescan, the usual cause is a system older than glibc 2.35. Check your distribution version. A system that old refuses to load the plugin rather than running it incorrectly.