noahdominic / nsimplecrusher

A minimal bit crusher audio plugin capable of distortion from subtle air to total audio destruction

NSimpleCrusher

NSimpleCrusher is a basic bit-crusher/quantizer VST plugin designed for audio processing.

Installation

You can download the x64 VST3 file from the Releases page. Installation instructions vary depending on your digital audio workstation (DAW). Generally, you should place the VST3 file in C:\Program Files\Common Files\VST3 as most DAWs search for plugins there. In any case, please refer to your DAW's documentation for specific instructions.

Usage

NSimpleCrusher features the following parameters:

• Pre-Gain: Adjusts the input gain level before saturation.
• Crush: Sets the crush level of the audio signal.
• Post-gain: Adjusts the output gain level after clipping.
• Mix: Controls the blend between the dry and wet signals.

Simply adjust these parameters according to your preferences to shape the processed audio signal.

How crushing works

The algorithm for NSimpleCrusher uses a floor function manipulated by two parameters to limit the number of possible values in a given signal. The equation is as follows:

$$ h(x) = a^b \empheqbiglfloor \frac{x}{a^b} + 0.5 \empheqbigrfloor $$

where $x \in [-1,1]$ is the raw signal, $a \in [0,1]$ is the crush level, and $b \in \Re+$ is what I call the 'linearity inertia factor'. At $a=0$, $h(x)$ is a completely linear, unprocessed signal, and as $a$ approaches $1$, the number of possible values for $h$ decreases to three: ${-1, 0, 1}$. The linearity inertia factor $b$ controls how 'fast' the possible values for $h$ decreases to three. The interplay between the two factors can be hard to express in pure text form, so I encourage readers to play with the function and these variables in a graphing calculator.

Currently only $a$ is controllable with a VST parameter. Control of $b$ is being considered for future versions. Alternative relationships between $a$ and $b$ are also being considered (Currently $b$ serves as an exponent to $a$. Maybe we can consider other forms, like $a * b$?).

Compatibility

NSimpleCrusher has been tested on 64-bit Windows 11 with PreSonus Studio One and Ableton Live. While compatibility is not guaranteed, this plugin should be compatible with most DAWs. Currently, I do not have the resources to test this on macOS.

Licence

This plugin is distributed under the GPLv3 licence. See the LICENSE file for details.

Contact

For support, bug reports, or feature requests, please send me an email.