VCV Rack 2 Pro and Free versions available now!

30 Nov 2021 by Robin Vincent | Approximate reading time: 2 Minutes

VCV Rack 2 · Source: VCV Rack

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After a huge amount of development, the long-awaited version 2 of VCV Rack has just been released in a Free standalone version and a Pro VST plugin version.

VCV Rack 2

There are a lot of new features but the most important one is that it can now run as a VST plugin if you buy the Pro version – that’s the upgrade everyone has been waiting for. There’s a new Dark Room mode to make the interface less bright and the whole interface has had some work done. The browser is better and the ability to move modules and groups of modules is much smoother. The real-time audio engine has been optimized in every way imaginable.

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VST

As a VST plugin you can now save patches within your DAW, integrate it easily with other projects and other instruments and use it as both an effects processor and a virtual instrument. You get up to 16 audio inputs and outputs and 16 MIDI channels. There’s parameter automation with control over up to 1024 knobs if can you imagine that?

Rack 2 Free Standalone

There will always be a free and open-source version of VCV Rack. While it benefits from all the enhancements of version 2 it will continue to be standalone only just like it always has been. I think that’s terrific and a wonderful resource for anyone wanting to get into modular or discover the world of synthesis.

The Free version is available for macOS, Windows and Linux and can run on Apple ARM via Rosetta 2.

Rack 2 Pro

For professional support and VST2 compatibility alongside the standalone version then you need to come up with some cash. It’s $99 up until the end of the year and then $149 after that. You can buy it in a bundle with VCV Drums and VCV Sound Stage for $139.

I think that’s terrific value considering the immensity of the project, the usefulness of VCV Rack and what it’s brought to the community.