Element modular VST plugin host by Kushview is now open-source and completely free to download and use.
Kushview has announced that the Element modular VST and AU plugin host is now open-source. The software was previously available in two different versions, Element Free (which we covered in our news section some time ago) and Element Pro. As of now, the developers are relying on Patreon as the source of income for further development of the project.
Element is not a digital audio workstation but rather a plugin host application optimized for use during a live performance. It offers the ability to freely link third-party audio plugins as modules. Different setups can be saved as presets for later use. These presets are referred to as “Sessions” inside the software.
The feature that used to be the biggest difference between the Free and Pro editions of Element was the ability to load it as a plugin in a different host application. Now that the software is open-source, all users can load Element as a VST or AU plugin in their DAW of choice. This means that Element can be used as a powerful modular plugin environment right inside your favorite music production software. To test this functionality, we loaded Element as a plugin using the freeware NanoHost by Tone2 as the host application.
Kushview Element running as a VST plugin in Tone2’s free NanoHost.
To get your free copy of Kushview Element simply visit the product page link below and download the installer. Patreon supports (minimum pledge is $1) will get additional perks such as bleeding-edge updates and priority support. Free users will get the same functionality but with minimal support and less frequent updates. Previous Element Pro customers will get the same level of support as the Patreon supports until version 2.0 of the software.
Do you use a modular VST plugin host in your setup? Are there any other freely downloadable modular VST hosts you would recommend? Let us know in the comments section below.
Download: Kushview Element (14.6 MB download size, EXE installer, standalone software, 32-bit & 64-bit VST/VST3 plugin for Windows & MacOS)
17 Comments
Choko
onThis is absolutely unreal. Solved lots of things i couldn’t do before with my DAW. Super quality software here.
Tomislav Zlatic
onYeah, easy way to build complex FX chains and even multi-instruments within the DAW.
Almark
onBuzzmachines returns, minimally.
bmovie
onVery generous from Kushview to make it open source! That’s a great gift to the community. I think it can also be used as a VST2/3 32/64bit bridge, which is fantastic for me as I’m still with Live 9, who doesn’t support VST3 plugins.
Another modular VST host plugin that became free lately is the good old VSTForx :)
Adam
onBridge functionality is not yet avaible , but it’s on list for future updates :)
bmovie
onCool! Thanks for the info
Tomislav Zlatic
onExciting! Do you know of any freeware bridge applications that are available at the moment?
Jamez Horton
onNope, been looking for years for a replacement/work around Blue Cat’s “Patchwork” & the “Jbridge” developers plugin’s lol.. I will mention that i did hear of one other (plugin rapper) type platform but it was very complex in how you had to set it up.. It involved messing with the coding, specific settings to work, & function properly..
But nothing off hand that (works) to the same degree.. Best deal is the (Jbridge) bkz it’s only $40-50 bucks opposed to Blue Cat’s $10.. Hopefully “Element” will be the answer and put an END to the strong/strangle hold that BC Patchwork/ & Jbridge have on the market lol fr fr, bkz they stubborn as hail ahah, they NEVER do sales/reduced pricing on Plugin wrappers, ever smh ah, they want every dime!!
To the developers credit they don’t charge a more explicit price (3,400 dollar etc) tho 50, to $100 starts to go into the pricier end with plugins for budget producers..
Considering, for what the “Wrappers” can do for you CPU wise, and opening up a whole new type of (Synth, Instrument, EFX chains) as you can combine many VST’s into one powerful Machine.. So it’s truly worth it ultimately, namely bkz >>It allows you to PLAY ANY device (plugin regardless of 32/64 bit arch.) that won’t work on every, any system.. That alone is worth the fee ahah. But if Element makes it free the more power to em/us
The Sound Of Lex
onFantastic Plugin!
Tomislav Zlatic
onIndeed!
Tomislav Zlatic
onMany thanks to our reader Wing Yee for the info about this release.
Wing Yee
onMy pleasure!
Mark
onCan this be used outside of the DAW – as a stand-alone app? I want an app that allows me to dump some plugins into a lightweight host – without needing to assign tracks and the sort. Essentially, a featureless daw
Choko
onYes it has a stand-alone app. Great for a guitar amp. :)
OK1
onA few years ago I discovered that the free version of Tracktion (then it was version 5, but this feature has been retained in all the free versions up to and including Tracktion Version 7,. which I think is an awesome freeware host), had a modular feature by which you could group a whole bunch of plugins and the routing between them, into a single mega plugin block, which you could then use as a single custom plugin in the effects chain.
IIRC you could also save this mega plugin block, so it was recallable and reusable..
The only thing missing was I could not use it in another DAW.
I also cherish Cantabile which has a free version, as an excellent tool for live playback, as a VST hos which has an excellent free version. But the issue with this also was that all the work I did in Cantabile, was not reusable in another DAW.
When I 1st met Element, when it was 1st released, the cost of the paid version put me off, not that I do not like to pay for music software, which I do and have spent a tidy sum on over many years, but having to pay to fully try out the product was a step too far, to test its ability to also be used as a VST.
I am encouraged to try it out especially as it is pretty much similar to the best features of Tracktion’s modular environment.
Obviously there is not much demand for tools like this, cos not too many people work in multiple DAW’s, or have need to want to switch from a studio DAW to a live host DAW(which has usually special features to support set changes, patch changes, etc)., but the new Element release enables the possibility of switching all the hard work I put into designing a plugin chain, straight from a Studio DAW like Reaper, into a Live DAW like Cantabile, without losing anything.
Very promising, I will check it out…..
OK1
onWhat I actually forgot in all of this is that Element is also a host, so I may not need another host like Cantabile, we’ll see. !
Atme
onBrilliant and very useful. Thanks a lot Kushview!