AURA

Audio Unified Rust Architecture
(DE-Gag: AUdio RAhmenwerk)

CLAP-first plugin framework for LX Audiolabs.
Runtime + formats + build + CLI live here. Agent orientation: agal.


Status	0.11.x — basis complete; used in production LX plugins (lx-audiolabs-plugins)
Dependency	path / git deps (`publish = false`); crates.io deferred until API refinement
License	GPL-3.0-or-later — see docs/licensing-compliance.md
Rust	1.92+ MSRV (stable channel in `rust-toolchain.toml`), edition 2024

Commercial LX product plugins (aether, lucent, meridian, …) are not in this repository. The official public catalog is lx-audiolabs-plugins. This repo is the framework only — smoke examples prove the ship path.

Scope (hard)

AURA is intentionally narrow. Wrong stack → use another framework.

We commit to	We do not ship
UI: Slint only, via `aura-baseview` (+ `aura-editor` host adapter)	egui, iced, Vizia as first-class UIs
Formats: CLAP primary; VST3 / LV2 only on the OS cells below	Audio Units (AU), AAX, VST2; “every format everywhere”
Hosts: Bitwig-first, then REAPER and other real CLAP/VST3/LV2 hosts	Pro Tools / Logic-only AU pipelines as a goal; Wine workarounds as product path
Platforms: Windows, Linux, macOS	iOS / embedded plugin hosts in v1

Slint + baseview (always)

Always: Slint UI + baseview host window (embed, scale, keys, clipboard, …).
Choose renderer (features / project config), not toolkit:
- FemtoVG (OpenGL) — default
- Skia — optional
- Software / wgpu blit — optional
There is no “raw egui editor” mode and no second UI framework in AURA.

Required UI path: aura-baseview (window/renderer) + aura-editor (host adapter) + aura-build (compile-time).

CLAP first (formats)

Same rule as Slint: one primary format, no kitchen-sink matrix.

CLAP primary — one native path on Linux, Windows, macOS (cargo aura new, CI validator, Bitwig-first).
VST3 second path: Windows and macOS only. Linux VST3 (Wine etc.) unsupported.
LV2 = Linux only (process/params/state/UI). No Win/mac ship path.

Ship matrix (what CI installs / what we call a supported host path):

Format	Linux	Windows	macOS	Role
CLAP	yes	yes	yes	Primary — always
VST3	—	yes	yes	Secondary — Win/mac hosts
LV2	yes	—	—	Secondary — Linux

Wrappers may still compile on other OSes for unit tests. Product support = the table above.

Looking for egui, iced, AU, or every-format-everywhere?

Use another project:

Need	Go here
Flexible Rust plugins, egui / iced / multiple UI styles, broad format matrix	nice-plug (NIH-plug successor)
CLAP-centric Rust ecosystem / lower-level CLAP work	clack (and related CLAP crates)
Full multi-format framework including AU/AAX paths, egui/iced/Vizia options	truce · truce.audio

AURA = Slint + baseview + CLAP-first, with thin VST3/LV2 only on the ship matrix. Credit: clack, nice-plug, truce, clap bindings.

Quick start

# 1) Clone + install the CLI (from this repo)
git clone https://github.com/LX-Audiolabs/aura.git
cd aura
cargo install --path tools/cargo-aura --locked

# 2) Point cargo-aura at the framework (path deps)
export AURA_PATH="$(pwd)"          # PowerShell: $env:AURA_PATH = (Get-Location).Path

# 3) Scaffold a plugin (CLAP always; add --vst3 / --lv2 if needed)
#    kind: effect (default) | effect-mono | analyzer | instrument
cargo aura new my-plugin
cd my-plugin

# 4) Build & install into the host search path
cargo aura install --clap --release

# 4b) Or stay in the loop: rebuild + reinstall on save
cargo aura watch --clap --hot

# 5) Check toolchain / AURA_PATH / clap-validator
cargo aura doctor

# 6) Optional: clap-validator on the installed .clap
clap-validator validate path/to/my-plugin.clap

# 7) Optional: regenerate the agal orientation mesh
cargo aura mesh

In-repo smoke examples

Prove formats + UI without leaving this tree:

export AURA_PATH="$(pwd)"
cargo install --path tools/cargo-aura --locked

cargo aura install --clap --release -plug smoke-gain
# also: smoke-sidechain, smoke-midi-fx, smoke-synth

Example	What it proves
`examples/smoke-gain`	Stereo gain, Slint GUI, state, CLAP/VST3/LV2
`examples/smoke-sidechain`	Main + one optional sidechain bus
`examples/smoke-midi-fx`	MIDI in/out (transpose thru)
`examples/smoke-synth`	Instrument / note path

UI preview (no DAW)

cargo aura preview
# or: cargo run -p aura-preview -- path/to/ui/main.slint
cargo aura preview --component 1      # pick component N (multi-UI files)
cargo aura preview --no-watch         # one-shot render, no hot reload

CLI reference

cargo aura new <name> [--vst3] [--lv2] [--kind <k>]   # scaffold a plugin workspace
cargo aura init [path] [--vst3] [--lv2] [--kind <k>]  # scaffold into an existing empty dir
cargo aura add <name> [--vst3] [--lv2] [--kind <k>]   # add another plugin under plugins/<name>/
cargo aura add-ui <name>                              # shared Slint UI crate under crates/<name>/
cargo aura build  [--clap|--vst3|--lv2] [--release] [-plug <crate>…]
cargo aura install [--clap|--vst3|--lv2] [--release] [--hot] [-plug <crate>…]
cargo aura watch  [--clap|--vst3|--lv2] [--release] [-plug <crate>…] [--no-install] [--hot]
cargo aura preview [path] [--component N] [--no-watch]
cargo aura run [-plug <name> | path.clap] […]        # aura-host: load .clap, audio, MIDI, GUI
cargo aura preset list  [-plug <name> | path.clap]   # factory presets (discovery)
cargo aura preset pull  [-plug <name> | path.clap] --key <K> --out <file>
cargo aura mesh [agal-args…]                         # run agal orientation mesh
cargo aura doctor                                    # toolchain / AURA_PATH / clap-validator

kinds: effect (default) · effect-mono · analyzer · instrument. CLAP is always on; --vst3 / --lv2 add the extra format. install --hot writes the aura-hot proxy (Name.clap + Name.impl.*) so watch can replace DSP under a loaded host.

Build / test the framework

cargo build --workspace
cargo test --workspace          # on non-Linux: --exclude aura-lv2
cargo clippy --workspace --all-targets

Design principles

Slint + baseview only — renderer is a backend choice (FemtoVG / Skia / software); toolkit is not.
CLAP first, thin formats — one plugin logic API; VST3/LV2 only on the ship matrix; no format-shaped core.
Framework layout — crates/ · examples/ · tools/ (product catalogs keep their own plugins outside AURA).
One CLI: cargo aura — new, init, add, add-ui, build, install, watch, preview, run, preset, mesh, doctor
KISS for humans and agents — aura.toml, boring paths; orientation in agal.

Workspace map

Layer	Name
Product name	AURA
Umbrella crate	`aura` → `use aura::prelude::*`
CLI package	`cargo-aura` → invoke as `cargo aura …`
Config	`aura.toml`

Crate / tool	Role
`aura`	Umbrella re-exports + features `clap` / `vst3` / `lv2`
`aura-core`	`PluginLogic`, process, buffer, state, host fence
`aura-params` + `aura-derive`	Params, smoothers, `#[derive(Params)]` with explicit `id = N`
`aura-clap` / `aura-vst3` / `aura-lv2`	Thin format wrappers
`aura-baseview` + `aura-editor` + `aura-build`	Slint window stack + host adapter + `@aura` widgets
`aura-dsp` + `aura-midi`	Portable DSP / MIDI helpers
`aura-hot`	CLAP hot-reload proxy (`cargo aura watch --hot`)
`aura-host`	Standalone dev host — load `.clap`, MIDI in, params, plugin GUI (CLI + Slint shell)
`lx-aura-test` (`aura_test`)	State round-trip + process smokes (`[dev-dependencies]`)
`cargo-aura`	Scaffold, build, install, watch, doctor, preview, run, mesh
`aura-preview`	Slint UI preview (`cargo aura preview`)

Cross-plugin shared-memory IPC (spectrum/relay + CV) moved out of AURA — it now lives in the product catalog as lx-shm (lx-audiolabs-dev).

Author surface (minimal)

use aura::prelude::*;

#[derive(Params)]
pub struct GainParams {
    #[param(id = 1, name = "Gain", range = "linear(-24, 24)", default = 0.0, unit = "db")]
    pub gain: FloatParam,
}

pub struct MyGain;
pub struct DspState;

impl PluginLogic for MyGain {
    type Params = GainParams;
    type DspState = DspState;

    fn info() -> PluginInfo { /* clap_id, vst3_id, … */ }

    fn process(
        _ctx: &mut PluginContext,
        params: &GainParams,
        _state: &mut DspState,
        buf: &mut AudioBuffer,
        _pc: &ProcessContext,
    ) -> ProcessStatus {
        // realtime-safe DSP here
        ProcessStatus::Continue
    }
}

#[cfg(feature = "clap")]
aura::export!(MyGain);

Param IDs are required and wire-stable — reordering fields does not renumber automation.

More detail: crate docs (cargo doc -p aura --open), docs/versioning.md, docs/dsp-layout.md, docs/aura-host-idea.md, crates/aura-clap/README.md.

Status & maturity

Area	State
`PluginLogic` + `#[derive(Params)]`	done
CLAP process / params / state / GUI	done (Bitwig host smoke)
Sample-accurate automation + mono mod	done
Sidechain (one optional bus) + MIDI I/O	done
Aux out (one optional bus)	done (`BusLayout::with_aux`, `smoke-aux`)
Latency / remote-controls / tail / render	done
VST3 (Win/mac)	done (host smoke)
LV2 (Linux) process + UI extension	done (UI host smoke depends on host)
crates.io publish	last — after framework test pass; path/git only until then
`clap.preset-load` + factory discovery	done (`factory_presets`)
Poly mod / note expression	done (CLAP → `ProcessContext.notes`; `NoteVoiceTable` + `NOTE_END`)
Native MIDI 2 process	done (`ProcessContext.ump` / `ump_out`; 7-bit `midi` remains)
notes_out / arp-seq path	done (CLAP native; VST3/LV2 map On/Off/Choke)
`aura-host` standalone dev host	done (CLI + Slint shell; MIDI in, params, plugin-GUI embed)

Changelog: CHANGELOG.md. Releases are tagged vX.Y.Z.

Contributing

Issues and PRs welcome on this framework repo.

Keep the scope (Slint + CLAP-first ship matrix). Do not add AU/egui/AAX “just in case.”
Prefer small, tested changes. One assert for non-trivial logic.
Match workspace versioning: single version in root Cargo.toml + CHANGELOG.md.
CI: Framework (build/install smokes per OS matrix) + Quality (fmt, clippy, tests).

cargo fmt --all
cargo test --workspace
cargo clippy --workspace --all-targets

Acknowledgments

aura-dsp draws ideas from:

Project	Link	Notes
naad (rust-old)	MacCracken/naad	DSP graph / Faust-like ops
fundsp	SamiPerttu/fundsp	Composable / SIMD-friendly AudioUnit graphs
infinitedsp	infinitedsp	Typed compile-time DSP graphs

Also: truce, CLAP, Slint, and the Rust audio community.

License

This project is free software under the GNU General Public License v3.0 or later.
Distributing plugins that link AURA implies GPL obligations for that combined work. Selling with source is fine; closed-only ships are not the goal.

Third-party notes (including Slint triple license — default ship path GPLv3):
docs/licensing-compliance.md.

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AURA

Scope (hard)

Slint + baseview (always)

CLAP first (formats)

Looking for egui, iced, AU, or every-format-everywhere?

Quick start

In-repo smoke examples

UI preview (no DAW)

CLI reference

Build / test the framework

Design principles

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Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
.github		.github
.slint		.slint
.vscode		.vscode
.zed		.zed
agal		agal
crates		crates
docs		docs
examples		examples
tools		tools
.gitignore		.gitignore
.mcp.json		.mcp.json
CHANGELOG.md		CHANGELOG.md
Cargo.lock		Cargo.lock
Cargo.toml		Cargo.toml
LICENSE		LICENSE
NOTICE		NOTICE
README.md		README.md
agal.toml		agal.toml
aura.toml		aura.toml
rust-toolchain.toml		rust-toolchain.toml

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AURA

Scope (hard)

Slint + baseview (always)

CLAP first (formats)

Looking for egui, iced, AU, or every-format-everywhere?

Quick start

In-repo smoke examples

UI preview (no DAW)

CLI reference

Build / test the framework

Design principles

Workspace map

Author surface (minimal)

Status & maturity

Contributing

Acknowledgments

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