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EigenD : Free and Open Music Performance Environment

EigenD is a general purpose music performance environment that is now completely freely available and has been open-source for a few years. It has been created for the Eigenharp instruments, but was from the get-go designed as a common platform for all digital music instruments and controllers.

EigenD can be downloaded from:
http://www.eigenlabs.com/downloads/releases/

EigenD’s sources are available on GitHub:
https://github.com/Eigenlabs

Here’s a demo video of how I use EigenD to configure a live performance environment for my electric guitar, combining the power of my favorite plugins into a single comprehensive configuration.

Posted in Configuration, Demonstration, Software.

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13 Responses

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  1. Mathew says

    I wouldlike to use EigenD in a similar way as demonstrated in the video. I’ve installed both the runtime and the application – alas when I start it, it merely shows me the load screen but no matter which setup I try to use it never opens anything. But there is no error message of any kind either. Additionally, when I try to scan for plugins and point it to the folder, it finds no plugins (there are a ton installed)
    Is there a step-by-step tutorial on how to go through installation and setup up to a first working session? I could not find anything and it’s getting frustrating because I can’t even tell if I’m doing anything wrong or if EigenD is simply not working correctly.

    • Geert Bevin says

      Yes, you’re right that there are tutorials missing for non-Eigenharp users. I’ll try to get some recorded in the coming weeks. In the meantime you might just want to open the Workbench application and take a look at the tutorial for Eigenharp users: http://www.eigenlabs.com/wiki/2.0/Workbench/

      • Mathew says

        Thanks for the response, Geert!
        I think that something must be wrong – the “Workbench” item in the Tools menue is greyed out.
        So just to recap – I downloaded and installed a) the Python runtime and b) the EigenD application. Is there anything else I need to do before I should be able to use EigenD?
        Are there any .ini files I need to edit or special permissions I need to give?

  2. Geert Bevin says

    Hmmm, it should just be available. Which version of EigenD did you download, and was it for Windows or for Mac?

  3. Mathew says

    I’m using 2.0.74-stable for Windows (on Win 7, 64 bit)

    • Geert Bevin says

      You need the Pro version to use Workbench. This is now available for free on the website, you must have downloaded the standard version beforehand.

  4. Mathew says

    Hmm, I believe I did – this is the link where I got it from:

    http://www.eigenlabs.com/downloads/latest/pro/

    I did not realize thatthere was a “pro” and “standard” version, so Ididn’t mention it in my last post – but this should be the Pro, at least that’s the version number..
    Just to make sure though – Is there a way to see if you’re running “pro” from within the application?

  5. Geert Bevin says

    If Workbench is installed, it’s Pro. Since this was released for free a few weeks ago, the only downloads now left should be Pro. I tried it out and uninstalled every EigenD from my Windows machine, downloaded the current EigenD Pro 2.0.74 and EigenD Runtime 1.0.0, and it all works fine. Make certain that the installation if fully complete though, maybe there’s some window hiding behind others, this happens sometimes on Windows. Maybe try redownloading the current version and installing it again?

  6. Mathew says

    Thank you Geert for going through the hassle of uninstalling and re-installing!
    I did what you suggested uninstalled and reinstalled (this time I picked the experimental build) and it seems to be working, yay!
    I haven’t had a chance to test it beyond the basic “open workspace”, simply because I don’t yet know how it works, but it does open Workbench and lets me create nodes now, which looks promising…
    Thanks again for your help!

    So what do you suggest should be my next steps in order to get started – let’s say something really simple – like plug in a guitar and have it run through 2 sequential VSTs? I looked at the tutorials, but they seem to be geared more towards MIDI setups for virtual instruments, not really a pure audio processing chain.

  7. Mathew says

    Thank you!

  8. David says

    hi do you know how to work this with alchemy? I am lost

    • Geert Bevin says

      You create an Audio Unit agent in workbench and select Alchemy as the plugin (can be VST or AU). Then wire it up to the input and the output.



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