Jove

Analog-inspired polysynth for macOS — AU, VST3, and Standalone. Five oscillators (BLEP morphing + a 64-table wavetable bank), seven filter models including a Moog-style ladder and a Steiner-Parker, a 32-slot modulation matrix, four step sequencers, an EMS-style audio patchbay that rewires the voice topology, MPE, and 140 factory presets. Built on JUCE 8 with a React WebView UI that is two-way bound to every parameter.

Features

Voice engine

• 5 oscillators: band-limited BLEP morph (sine → tri → saw → pulse with PW) or wavetable mode scanning a 64-table bank, per-oscillator footage, detune, bit-crush, and sample-rate reduction
• Sub oscillator (-1/-2 oct), noise, ring mod, osc2→osc1 FM, hard/soft sync
• Poly / mono / unison (up to 7 voices per note with detune + stereo spread), up to 16-voice polyphony, glide with legato mode, analog-style drift
• MPE support (per-note bend, pressure, timbre) with configurable bend range

Filters

• Two filters with single / serial / parallel routing
• Models: Moog-style 24 dB ladder, SVF LP/HP/BP/Notch, low-pass gate, Steiner-Parker — cutoff-matched so switching models keeps the brightness
• Keyboard tracking, filter drive, dedicated filter envelope

Modulation

• 3 envelopes (amp / filter / aux), 3 LFOs (6 shapes, tempo sync, fade/delay, per-voice or global phase)
• 32-slot modulation matrix edited as a source × destination grid with live modulation glow, painted onto the destination knobs as range arcs + moving dots
• 4 step sequencers (16 steps, melodic or curve mode, swing, direction modes) usable as matrix sources

Patchbay

• EMS-inspired audio-topology matrix: 11 source nodes × 11 destination buses with bipolar gains. Rewires the actual signal path — FM any oscillator from any node, chain filters in series, patch feedback loops (1-sample delayed, safe to patch)

Effects & performance

• Drive (5 models, loudness-neutral so drive adds harmonics, not volume), multiband saturation, chorus/ensemble, phaser, tempo-synced delay (digital/BBD/tape colour), reverb
• Arpeggiator: 12 modes, ratcheting, swing, latch, host-transport lock
• A/B compare with copy, patch randomizer (DICE = new patch from a musical archetype, VARY = perturb the current sound), revert-to-preset, unsaved-edits indicator
• 140 factory presets in 12 categories, loudness-matched across the whole bank (K-weighted peak momentary loudness, ±1 dB) with a per-preset TRIM control; selectable via MIDI program change and the host program list; user presets with category tags and in-browser delete
• Audition mode: browse presets by ear with category-appropriate demo phrases in the host tempo
• Eco / HQ / Ultra quality (1× / 2× / 4× oversampling of the whole voice path)

Screenshots

Building

Requires CMake 3.22+ and a C++20 toolchain (Xcode on macOS).

git clone --recurse-submodules <repo-url> jove
cd jove
cmake -B build -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release
cmake --build build -j

If you cloned without --recurse-submodules: git submodule update --init --recursive.

The build installs the AU and VST3 into ~/Library/Audio/Plug-Ins by default; pass -DJOVE_INSTALL_LOCAL=OFF (CI) to skip that. For fast local iteration on Apple silicon add -DCMAKE_OSX_ARCHITECTURES=arm64.

Tests (JUCE-free engine audit over every factory preset + an APVTS↔patch round-trip):

ctest --test-dir build --output-on-failure

MIDI implementation

Message	Function
Note on/off, velocity	Voices (velocity routable in the matrix)
Pitch bend	Global bend (configurable range); per-note in MPE mode
CC 1	Mod wheel (matrix source)
CC 64	Sustain pedal
CC 74	MPE timbre (per-note, MPE mode)
CC 123	All notes off
Channel / poly pressure	Aftertouch (matrix source); per-note in MPE mode
Program change	Factory preset 0–139 (bank 0)

Presets

User presets are stored as XML at ~/Library/Application Support/DatanoiseTV/Jove/Presets (macOS). Factory presets are compiled in; the browser shows each factory patch's MIDI program number.

License

GPL-3.0-or-later. See LICENSE.