Under The Hood
Built to run real-time-safe.
GhostWare engineers the boring parts obsessively so the fun parts never glitch. GhostInTheMachine's DSP core is a standalone C++17 engine with zero allocations, locks or exceptions on the audio thread — the same code path in your DAW and on the test bench.
JUCE-free DSP engine
All 34 modules, the chain, the analysis engine and the macro layer live in a portable engine that builds and tests independently of any UI framework.
No audio-thread surprises
No heap allocation, no locks, no exceptions where samples flow. Heavy kernel rebuilds are amortized across blocks so parameter moves never stall the stream.
Click-free everything
Reordering modules double-buffers an atomic swap with a crossfade; kernel changes blend old to new. You hear the new chain, not the transition.
Host-abuse hardened
When a host sends an oversized render block — a bounce or freeze — the engine chunks it to the prepared size instead of overrunning into audible static.
Locale-proof persistence
Every saved number is written and parsed in a fixed locale, so a co-loaded plugin flipping the process locale can never corrupt your presets or sessions.
41,041 automated checks
A JUCE-free test harness plus a realtime benchmark runs on every build — DSP upgrades, chain logic, tap designers, the AI payload validator and more.
Quality Modes
Trade CPU for fidelity, on demand.
Four modes let you track light and bounce heavy. Set it once; renders can automatically take the highest-quality path so your export always sounds its best.
- Live — lowest latency for tracking and performance.
- Standard — the everyday balance of CPU and quality.
- HQ — more oversampling and headroom for mixing.
- Render — no-compromise fidelity for the final bounce.
| Formats | Audio Unit (AU), VST3, Standalone |
|---|---|
| Platform | macOS (Apple Silicon & Intel) |
| Modules | 34 user-addable, fully reorderable |
| Smart chains | GhostMode — 20 analysis-driven styles |
| Macros | 10, post-chain zero-latency enhancer |
| Presets | 633 factory: 123 chain presets + 510 module presets (15 per module) + 13 chain templates |
| Side inputs | External sidechain + host MIDI targets |
| Precision | Sample-accurate, click-free reordering |
| Updates | SHA-256-verified, delivered in-plugin |
Engineered to disappear.
The best DSP is the DSP you never think about. Put the ghost to work.