The Plug-In Manager Window

Scanning your computer for VST plug-ins is a two-stage process: first, you need to tell Acid where your plug-ins are installed, and then you can scan those folders for plug-ins.

NOTE You don't need to scan for DirectX or ReWire plug-ins. These plug-ins are registered with Windows and are detected automatically.

1. From the View menu, choose Plug-In Manager if the window isn't already visible.

2. Click the Configure VST button at the top of the Plug-In Manager window. The Plug-In Configuration dialog is displayed. The dialog displays a list of folders where Acid looks for VST plug-ins.

3. Indicate where your plug-ins are installed:

   • If you want to add a new folder, click the Add button and then browse to the folder where your plug-in is installed.

   • If you want to edit an existing folder path, select a folder in the Search Folder column, click the Edit button, and then browse to the folder where your plug-in is installed.

   • If you want to remove an existing folder, select a folder in the Search Folder column and click the Remove button.

4. Click the Scan button to start scanning your folders for plug-ins.

When you open the Plug-In Manager window, an Explorer view is displayed with separate folders for your plug-ins.

The toolbar at the top of the window helps you navigate the Plug-In Manager window and adjust its display.

The Audio FX , ReWire Devices, and Soft Synths folders contain subfolders to help you organize your plug-ins. Several folders are displayed by default, and you can add your own folders. Each plug-in can be assigned to multiple folders, but audio plug-ins and soft synths can be assigned to only one category.

If you want to create a folder to group your plug-ins, select a folder and click the New Folder button on the toolbar (or right-click a folder and choose New Folder from the shortcut menu).

To add a plug-in to a folder, drag the plug-in from the right-hand pane to a folder.

To remove a plug-in from a folder, navigate to the folder, select the plug-in, and click the Delete button on the toolbar.

Displaying audio plug-in folders in the Mixing Console window

You can use folders and categories to organize plug-ins in the Mixing Console window.

To simplify the Plug-In Manager, you can choose to hide specific folders.

You can hide the following folders (default folders cannot be hidden):

• User-created folders

• Failed, Unavailable, and Ignored folders

• DirectX, VST, and Track Optimized folders

Hiding a folder

Right-click a folder in the Plug-In Manager and choose Hide from the shortcut menu.

Showing hidden folders

1. Right-click a folder and choose Properties from the shortcut menu.

2. Click the Show all Hidden Subfolders button. All hidden folders below the selected folder are shown.

Categories help you organize your plug-ins by type. The Audio FX folder contains several default categories, and the Soft Synths folder contains an Instruments folder with default instrument categories. You can also create your own categories to help you organize your plug-ins.

Each plug-in can be assigned to only one category.

If you want to create a new category, select the Categories folder and click the New Folder button on the toolbar. To add a plug-in to a category, perform either of the following actions:

• Drag the plug-in from the right-hand pane to a category.

• Right-click a plug-in in the right-hand pane, choose Assign to Category from the shortcut menu, and then choose a category from the menu.

To change a plug-in's category, perform either of the following actions:

• Navigate to the folder, select the plug-in, and drag it to a different category folder.

• Right-click a plug-in in the right-hand pane, choose Assign to Category from the shortcut menu, and then choose a category from the menu.

If you want to edit a category, right-click its folder and choose Properties from the shortcut menu. You can edit the category's name (only for user-created categories), short name, and description. Default categories are locked, but you can clear the Locked check box to edit them.

If you want to change a plug-in's name, right-click the plug-in in the Plug-In Manager window and choose Rename from the shortcut menu. You can then type a new name in the edit box.

To reset a plug-in's default name, right-click the plug-in and choose Reset Name from the shortcut menu.

If you want to prevent Acid from using a plug-in, but you don't want to uninstall the plug-in, you can ignore it: just right-click a plug-in and choose Ignore from the shortcut menu.

To re-enable an ignored plug-in, right-click a plug-in and choose Ignore from the shortcut menu to deselect the Ignore command.

Right-click a plug-in and choose Properties from the shortcut menu to display a Properties dialog. You can use the plug-in properties dialog to change the name, vendor, or category of a plug-in or to add it to the Favorites folder.

Right-click a folder and choose Properties from the shortcut menu to display a Properties dialog. You can use the folder properties dialog to change the name or description of a folder, show hidden folders, lock/unlock a folder, or show the folder on Insert FX submenu in the Mixing Console.

When viewing plug-ins in the Audio FX folders, the following icons are used to represent your plug-ins:

To add plug-ins to your project, you can drag them from folders in the Plug-In Manager window to tracks or channel strips in the Mixing Console window.

When viewing ReWire devices in the ReWire Devices folders, the following icons are used to represent your plug-ins:

To add a ReWire device to your project, select a ReWire device in the left-hand pane to display its outputs in the right-hand pane. You can then right-click an output and choose Insert Rewire Device Bus from the shortcut menu to add a soft synth bus to the Mixing Console window.

When viewing soft synths in the Soft Synths folders, the following icons are used to represent your plug-ins:

To add a soft synth to your project, right-click a soft synth in the right-hand pane and choose Insert Soft Synth from the shortcut menu. A soft synth bus is added to the Mixing Console window.