V-ConvoLive

Fwuzeem Audio C-Series

What it is

V-ConvoLive is a live convolution reverb for loading, auditioning, and switching impulse responses. It uses partitioned FFT convolution, decodes and normalizes IRs on a background loader thread, and exposes dry, wet, mix, and makeup controls. When a new IR engine is installed, JUCE’s convolver crossfades from the old engine to the new one over about 50 ms rather than clicking; the previous convolution tail fades out during the handoff instead of being hard-truncated. V-ConvoLive does not add a separate plugin-level gain crossfade around the dry/wet path, and its parameter changes remain block-quantized.

Controls & parameters

IR management

Control	Function
`Load IR`	Opens the IR file chooser. The editor lists WAV, AIFF, FLAC, MP3, and Ogg files.
`<` / `>`	Loads the previous or next alphabetically sorted IR in the current directory. Directory cycling scans WAV, AIF, AIFF, and FLAC files.
IR status	Shows the current IR name or a loading/failure status.
`Bypass` / `bypass`	Bypasses all processing and returns the input without convolution. This is the zero-CPU path. Default is false.

The decoder reads the first channel of the file into a mono IR, validates it, limits it to 10 seconds at the current engine sample rate, and normalizes it to a 50% peak. The normalization gain is capped at 100x. A silent or non-finite IR is rejected.

Audio controls

Parameter ID	Display name	Range	Default	What it does
`dryGain`	Dry	-16 to 0 BS, step 1	0 BS	Applies `2^BS` to the dry path. This range is attenuation only.
`wetGain`	Wet	-16 to 0 BS, step 1	0 BS	Applies `2^BS` to the input before convolution.
`mix`	Mix	0 to 100%, step 1%	50%	Sets the final balance: 0% is all dry and 100% is all wet.
`makeupGain`	Makeup	-16 to +16 BS, step 1	0 BS	Applies `2^BS` after dry/wet mixing.
`dryEnabled`	Dry On	Boolean	true	Enables the dry contribution.
`wetEnabled`	Wet On	Boolean	true	Enables the wet input and wet contribution.

BS means bit shift. +1 BS is exactly x2, -1 BS is exactly x1/2, and one step is 6.0206 dB of ratio change. The final dry contribution is dryGain * (1 - mix). The final wet contribution is the mix ratio; wetGain is a separate pre-convolution input trim.

Workflow / how to use it

Insert V-ConvoLive on a mono or stereo audio path. The input and output layouts must match.
Choose Load IR and select an impulse response. Decoding and normalization happen asynchronously; the IR becomes active after the loader publishes it.
Use < and > to browse the sorted WAV, AIF, AIFF, and FLAC files in that IR’s directory. Loading a new file hands the response to JUCE’s convolver, which crossfades the old engine to the new one over about 50 ms once installed.
Set Mix for the dry/wet balance. Use Dry and Wet BS as ratio trims around that balance. At 0 BS, the corresponding trim is unity; at -1 BS, it is half level.
Use Makeup after the blend when a final power-of-two correction is needed. Start conservatively, especially with positive values.
Turn off Dry or Wet when that contribution is not wanted. Use the main Bypass control when the entire effect should be taken out of the processing path.
For a live set, prepare a directory of alphabetically sorted IRs and use Previous/Next to audition alternatives. Expect the previous reverb tail to fade out during the roughly 50 ms handoff, and check the full dry/wet transition at performance level before relying on it.

Use cases

Live reverb switching. Keep a folder of room, plate, spring, or other IRs and cycle through it during a performance. The convolver’s roughly 50 ms old-to-new handoff lets the previous tail fade out, but the dry path has no separate plugin-level gain crossfade, so rehearse the complete transition.
IR browsing and auditioning. Load one response, use Previous/Next to compare neighboring files, and use Mix plus Makeup to level-match them. The browser order is alphabetical.
Hardware-style dry/wet staging. Think in halves and doubles rather than dB. Use -1 BS for half-level dry or wet trim, -2 BS for quarter level, and Mix for the actual balance.
Parallel reverb return. Put V-ConvoLive on an effect return, set Mix to 100%, keep Wet On, and turn Dry Off so the return contributes the convolved signal. Use Wet BS and Makeup as power-of-two return trims.
Zero-CPU comparison. Use Bypass to compare the source and reverb without the convolution stage running. This is separate from disabling only the Wet checkbox.

Specs & requirements

Brand: Fwuzeem Audio; manufacturer code Fwzm.
Formats: AU and VST3. No Standalone target is declared for V-ConvoLive.
Audio I/O: Mono or stereo; input and output layouts must match. No MIDI input or output.
IR formats: WAV, AIFF/AIF, and FLAC are supported by the cycling path. The file chooser and decoder also expose MP3 and Ogg, but those formats are not included in directory cycling.
Convolution: Partitioned FFT convolution with separate mono processing paths for left and right in stereo use. A stereo IR is read from its first channel by the current decoder.
IR length and rate: Up to 10 seconds at the engine/session sample rate. The processor accepts the host’s prepared sample rate; it does not publish a fixed 44.1 to 192 kHz restriction.
Processing precision: FP32 internal processing. FP64 host callbacks are converted through a pre-allocated float bridge.
Latency and tail: The plugin does not publish a fixed documented latency value; actual timing is determined by the convolution engine’s internal partitioning. getTailLengthSeconds() reports 0 even though a loaded IR can be up to 10 seconds long.
Programs and state: One host program; APVTS parameters and the current IR path/name are saved in XML state. A missing saved IR is reported as IR Not Found and is not published to the convolver.
Platform: The workspace audio-toolbox build guidance targets macOS 10.15 or later.

Notes / caveats

IR engine handoff. When JUCE’s convolver installs a replacement engine, it crossfades old to new over about 50 ms. The previous tail fades out rather than being hard-truncated. V-ConvoLive does not add a separate plugin-level gain crossfade around the dry path, so the handoff is not an all-path gain crossfade.
Controls are block-quantized and unsmoothed. The seven DSP parameters are refreshed every 8 processBlock callbacks. A change can wait almost eight block durations, then applies as a hard step with no slew or interpolation.
Makeup has a very large positive range. +16 BS is x65536, or about +96 dB. Use positive Makeup values with care to avoid clipping or unexpectedly large levels.
Wet Off does not remove the convolution workload. The wet input is zeroed and the convolver still runs. Main Bypass is the zero-CPU processing bypass; disabling Dry or Wet is not equivalent to it.
IR normalization is not transparent level matching. Every valid IR is scaled toward a 50% peak, with a 100x normalization cap. Very quiet IRs can therefore receive substantial boost, while silent IRs are rejected.
Stereo IRs are currently reduced to channel 0. Left and right convolver instances receive the same mono IR derived from the file’s first channel.
Tail reporting is conservative but incomplete. Hosts receive a zero-second tail report even when the active response contains a long reverb tail.