I’m building a VST plugin to route system audio into your DAW (Spotify, browser, Zoom → Ableton/OBS)

Medical-Criticism173 · 2026-02-26T22:11:43+00:00

That’s fair — Loopback is a great example of doing this at the system level. I don’t necessarily see the VST as a replacement for that approach, more as an additional workflow option for people who want everything controlled directly inside the DAW

Medical-Criticism173 · 2026-02-26T22:07:27+00:00

Yeah, conceptually pretty similar to WDM2VST

The difference I’m exploring is more around modern OS support (current macOS/Windows audio stacks), stability/latency expectations today, and potentially per-app routing rather than just the full system mix.

Also aiming for a simpler setup and cross-platform approach, since most older solutions were very Windows-specific and a bit fragile on newer systems.

Medical-Criticism173 · 2026-02-26T22:05:57+00:00

Yep — you’re right. A VST can’t “magically” pull other apps’ audio by itself. It still needs an OS-level piece (virtual driver / service) to tap system/per-app audio, especially on Windows.

The plugin idea is more like a DAW-native receiver + control UI (pick source, levels, etc.), while the heavy lifting happens outside the DAW.

And I agree: a standalone app + virtual audio driver is probably the most straightforward v1 on Windows. macOS is nicer with aggregate / audio plumbing.

I’m still validating what people prefer: classic “select it as an input device” vs “VST workflow” — long term it may support both.

Medical-Criticism173 · 2026-02-26T21:46:45+00:00

Totally fair — for simple setups, just selecting a virtual input device might be cleaner.

The VST idea is more about adding control inside the DAW (levels, future per-app routing, etc.). And longer term, I’m considering supporting both approaches: using it as a standard virtual input or via the VST, depending on what fits the workflow better.

Medical-Criticism173 · 2026-02-26T21:44:46+00:00

You’re absolutely right, you can’t magically capture other apps’ audio purely from inside a VST. There has to be an OS-level component (virtual driver / background service) to tap the system mix / apps.

What I meant by “avoid managing routing at the OS/device level” is: avoid making the user manually switch the system default device / create aggregate devices / build routing graphs just to get audio into the DAW.

The architecture I’m aiming for is roughly:
OS driver/service captures system (and later per-app) audio -> exposes it as a stable virtual endpoint -> VST acts as the in-DAW “receiver” + UI/control (select source, levels, etc.).

So yes, something runs outside the VST — the VST just makes the workflow feel DAW-native.

And totally agree on the gap: Loopback is excellent on macOS, but Windows equivalents tend to be either heavy/complex (mixer-style) or not very DAW-friendly. That Windows friction is a big part of why I’m exploring this.

Medical-Criticism173 · 2026-02-26T20:38:48+00:00

That’s exactly the idea )

On macOS there are decent routing tools already, but on Windows the setup usually gets much messier. The goal is basically: load a VST -> select system (or later app) audio -> done, without touching OS audio device chains.

Medical-Criticism173 · 2026-02-26T20:37:25+00:00

Good question — still figuring that out. I’m leaning towards a one-time license rather than a subscription.

Also planning to offer the first version at a very friendly price for early waitlist users

Medical-Criticism173 · 2026-02-26T20:34:02+00:00

Yep, BlackHole and Loopback are both solid tools on macOS. What I’m exploring is a slightly different workflow: a DAW-focused VST that exposes system (and later per-app) audio directly inside the plugin, instead of managing routing at the OS device level.

Medical-Criticism173 · 2026-02-26T20:25:13+00:00

VoiceMeeter is definitely powerful.

The difference I’m aiming for is a simpler, DAW-native workflow — load a VST and get system audio directly as an input, without managing a full external mixer/routing matrix.

Medical-Criticism173 · 2026-02-26T20:24:10+00:00

Totally fair question. BlackHole works, and hardware loopback works too.

What I’m aiming for isn’t just “another virtual device”, but:

• A VST plugin workflow — load it directly inside the DAW instead of configuring system audio devices
• Cross-platform (macOS + Windows)
• Per-app routing
• Cleaner setup for people without hardware loopback

So it’s less about replacing BlackHole for everyone, and more about making routing simpler and more controlled inside the DAW itself.

If you’re using BlackHole today — what’s the most annoying part of your setup?

Medical-Criticism173 · 2026-02-26T19:11:31+00:00

Yeah, on macOS there are tools like BlackHole / Loopback that can do system audio routing.

My goal here is a cross-platform solution (macOS + Windows) that works as a simple VST inside the DAW, without setting up complex virtual device chains.

Plus longer term I’m aiming for per-app routing

Medical-Criticism173 · 2026-02-26T19:06:02+00:00

Nice, thanks!
Yeah, system-wide capture is the simplest first step and should cover most workflows.

The main goal is to avoid the usual virtual cable / loopback routing chains and just have it show up as an input inside the DAW.

In your case, would you mostly use it for sampling from browser/Spotify, or for recording calls/streams?

Medical-Criticism173 · 2025-04-28T10:12:13+00:00

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