Just wanted to wish everyone a happy, productive and prosperous new year!

Anyone care to share their overall plans and goals for the coming year?

My main goal is to start releasing HISE plugins. I've been learning HISE for a while and it's time to start exporting my efforts!

1. A series of 4 free synth plugins, first one Sublime posted here for design feedback, and another 3, each based around one simple preset concept. Sublime is all about bass.

2. Then I have 2 collaborations I want to work on, both with UK house music producers. One is a multi-output drum plugin based on a series of expansions, the other is a chord synth with some interesting features.

3. I also have a lot of vintage reverb impulses recorded and processed, which I'd like to turn into a suite of free reverbs.

My user base is mostly house music producers & related genres - rave, techno, classic house, etc. I've built a decent brand and I think my customers will love the move from Maize-based ROMpler plugins to way more fully-featured HISE-based plugins.

What are your goals?

I like using overlay images to ensure my Figma design is translated properly to HISE. Currently, the only way I know to toggle the image visibility is to select/unselect the image, or quickly slide the alpha slider, which is difficult because of the 'invert' half of the slider.

This PR adds a toggle button between the image dropdown and the alpha slider. It uses an existing image icon for the button and respects the alpha slider value.

This allows me to toggle the image without taking my eyes off the interface, making it easier to spot changes.

PR here: https://github.com/christophhart/HISE/pull/825

@David-Healey I just had a go at fixing this. Is that what you mean?

HiseSnippet 1112.3ocsVs2aaaCDmJIJKwacqEne.H7e4roYH+pIcACMO8pwxCi4rhMDDTPKcxhKRjFRTMwXneH12z8MH6ndXKO6klZfI.av6Eue2wi2w9QRGHNVFQLpb0jw.w3qLGLQn7O1mwEjdmPL9ZyyYwJHhlw5nIiYwwfKwvX8eRyvX6MHoe+8aNhEvDNvLVDx6jbG3LdHWMia+C9YdPPWlKbEOrj1sOnmiTbrLPlf3YcSaxXlysrQvELsZqYRdKK1mX7sl1scX60zqSqVu9061wcH330.FtqCytCyqCC41l0tSi1DiMO0kqjQCTLEDia5QR2IC7k2Ixbv63w7gAflnAY.54L1ji84At8KRNwDhwF8mkpVOKU8Ryy4t7o7mkxddp.5LKJmzLV6wfTiOCHYTBRajAoWXNvIhOVMShFOeoYOAdB5wvylxPISWxZ+05lGKQMDp5gragtQHwTKp0z11hh+sy9UpfmOwJZ.yi9izBSbh.LRNS5vBNSJu8PgaW.BpoUGUrdDLhqqe5lHbTbonVU2H1c8kiSFeNHRNBOhGEISDtUsndE5LxhJG9G6T4OqPwuQ0iAUVcQsp12am+UEcQlXOrd5W.GUsqssrsz.F+cCJ9iOQTzSAg+29+CrHJCiXjUcFFs3dVvdLy8PjCJ7Z1012P+NZSKJ65FSW07F52SaqW0Jc0M6uPHo2Vd7a4i7CveJvk9FZln35ih.PP+gozCCRf4CacpCb0QOSLJ.pkiHK5d6TBmJ3dUAPy0HCt6YUDCHnmsNE1Md0LFstYIHu.U24yUyfEJuKVaTq5IfGKIPgI1FsqaOUtNyeHFpBv8JDVowuFeVSQoEsZ.3opVbBlU1crLbn7H48MJU7MRikvwRAnc3TMzVNkPCnEJOwhhc1u37lJEWHUvkhZ5i7sq7wJz+sHOukJSiiHYP.DsTw5FbQOlg0DIgCgHK7PRexVnHdgd9tDa9z5R3jkVJonTzSvUWNFxo6JCb0290qWrmBIOup6tjiPTUUZukmm2aoHuR3t5VKSSyjzPnbyexu16DlhUrY39h9ZLDo35Px3D3C3vgrFWaadBDeqRNF6yO8.kXrUlqeVQaMl.BR86VloqaPturCmTl.KICKFlr8lDxCOLO2lkYeG2U4OyZ9A9f9tXYNjR35KdhoDDclFMyPlowKwEgrTdqunO+8CzXCSLei4kBnxU2IqbkOd8GGXtPedbBizMIfoleridfbt.rJatd8594hXtZR4A1eFyhrezYQOUH9By9bki+xw3ZKAiXsy+GXLeB9yLO0yC6bNCfaX182V0w0eB2icpUbwnyYpHttF3hjvAXYnCfdWf0xw55h0z2Ayns0z5Lv.P3lR7.9kKrgl1HWXiBgX0kSj78NY2b0uQXqTNHlDougZa7wbHMcIWVCwmr7dGm42pELr4pZXqU0v1qpgcVUCe0pZ3tqpg68oMT+hxCSTxvrqMDx48OMs4pgwoBFVAlVsR9GztgJYG

Content.makeFrontInterface(200, 200);

const laf = Content.createLocalLookAndFeel();

laf.registerFunction("drawPopupMenuBackground", function(g, obj)
{
    g.setColour("0x00000000"); // any transparent colour
    g.fillRect([0,0,200,200]);
});

laf.registerFunction("drawPopupMenuItem", function(g, obj)
{
    var a = obj.area;

    var padArea = [a[0] + 2, a[1] + 2, a[2] - 4, a[3] - 4];
    g.setColour(obj.isHighlighted ? Colours.green : Colours.blue);
    g.fillRoundedRectangle(padArea, 8);

    var textArea = [padArea[0] + 8, padArea[1], padArea[2] - 16, padArea[3]];
    g.setColour(Colours.white);
    g.setFont("Default", 14.0);
    g.drawAlignedText(obj.text, textArea, "left");
});

const ComboBox1 = Content.getComponent("ComboBox1");
ComboBox1.setLocalLookAndFeel(laf);

The drawPopupMenuBackground object should probably include an area, and the popup menu items still have a subtle drop shadow. But they're both fixes for another day.

PR here, if it's useful: https://github.com/christophhart/HISE/pull/805

@bendurso Today I learned that right-clicking a module in edit mode shows a different context menu to right-clicking not in edit mode.

Posting this in case it helps anyone else. I just banged my head against a brick wall for too long before I realised how simple this was!

When using a Floating Tile with content type Waveform (to display the waveform of Sine Wave Generator or Waveform Generator, for example) the default waveform path is a filled shape.

You can override this with LAF function drawAnalyserPath and draw a line path instead of a filled path:

laf.registerFunction("drawAnalyserPath", function(g, obj)
{
	g.setColour(Colours.white);
	g.drawPath(obj.path, obj.area, 5);
});

However, this means that the path is clipped at the bounds of the floating tile, especially at wider line thicknesses:

To prevent the clipping, I fudged around with it for longer than I want to admit before I realised the answer is to simply reduce the area that the path is drawn in, by half the thickness of the path:

laf.registerFunction("drawAnalyserPath", function(g, obj)
{
	g.setColour(Colours.white);
	g.drawPath(obj.path, obj.area.reduced(2.5), 5);
});

Voila! No more clipped paths! Top row is using obj.area, bottom row is using area reduced by half line thickness:

You might want the left/right of the path to bleed out of bounds, in which case change the reduction from all-round to y-only:

obj.area.reduced(5) 👈 all-round
obj.area.reduced(0, 5) 👈 y-only

Note: you might need to compile with HISE_USE_SCRIPT_RECTANGLE_OBJECT=1 for the reduced and other Rectangle helper functions, as per the docs: https://docs.hise.dev/scripting/scripting-api/rectangle/index.html. Not sure if it's still the same, or if it's built-in to all new builds.

Don't know if this has been posted before, but it's a good read from Moonbase:

State of the Independent Audio Plugin Companies PDF
https://moonbase.sh/reports/state-of-audio-plugin-companies-2025/

Not too many shocking conclusions in there. Mostly what you'd expect, but good as sanity check.

@Lindon Fixing regression issues seems like it should be high(est?) priority.

PR that adds StartPhase1 and StartPhase2 to Waveform Generator.

Coded for my own needs but someone else might find it useful.

Works great for setting a random phase offset on MIDI note-on.

Works independently for Osc1 and Osc2.

https://github.com/christophhart/HISE/pull/792

EDIT: from this conversation https://forum.hise.audio/topic/13720/free-running-or-randomised-phase-for-waveform-generator-oscillators/9

I'm fortunate that I started with a (small) audience, and I'm selling to a focussed crowd. My plugins serve a very specific niche and the producers there are always hungry for more authentic products.

I've never done any paid ads. I might do an experiment on Instagram one day. I see a lot of adverts for plugins in my feed and I'm curious how effective they are.

I sell on Gumroad. They take about 15% fee, then you pay payment processor fees. I haven't done the maths for the total cut but I'd say it's less than 20%.

It's a good deal for me because it includes basic web presence, file hosting, secure delivery, payment processing (cards, Apple Pay, Google and PayPal), email marketing and analytics.

I started selling in September 2022. I'd done a couple of free plugins before that through various platforms like SimpleGoods and SendOwl but didn't take it seriously until later.

When I started selling I posted each new product on my Facebook and Instagram accounts. The engagement was pretty good to start with but I noticed that over time, I got more results from sending emails to my ever-growing email list. When I launch a new product now, I only send it to my email list at first. Then later I post short clips to Instagram but they're supplemental to the email list.

You NEED an email list. They say "the money's in the list" and in my experience, that's 100% correct.

Free products are a great way to build your email list. Most people stay subscribed and as long as you don't flood them with emails, they're happy to receive them.

This is my email strategy:

• Launch email for every new product with 20% discount code, valid for 2 weeks
• Reminder email 48 hours before the launch discount ends
• One email per month with 20% discount off a single product, valid for 2-3 days

That's it. I don't like to bombard my list with too many emails. I'm on some Gumroad seller lists where they send continual discounts, sometimes daily. This would be way too much for me as a customer.

Gumroad includes email marketing, which is a bonus because when your list gets large things like Mailchimp, ConvertKit, etc get into the $100's/month.

I can target emails to people who have or haven't bought specific products. Very handy for offering a discount only to those who haven't bought something. Or offering a discount for a product Y to those who have already bought product X. You can also target by how much someone has spent, so you can offer extra discounts or free stuff to your most loyal customers.

Gumroad also includes extra features like affiliates (having others push your products for a % split), collaborators (where you can split a products revenue with someone else), email automations (for sending drip emails to customers - I don't use those) and upsells (recommended products at checkout).

It does have some downsides. The download links in the receipt emails sometimes don't work and you have to send a link manually to the customer (Gumroad have so far refused to acknowledge this as an issue). I also find their fees to be expensive compared to other services, but for what I get built-in I still think it's worth it for now.

Something else that might be of interest is that Gumroad recently made the source code available, so if there's a feature you want to add and you're handy with Ruby on Rails and JavaScript you might be able to contribute.

Don't know if this has been posted before, but it's a good read from Moonbase:

State of the Independent Audio Plugin Companies PDF
https://moonbase.sh/reports/state-of-audio-plugin-companies-2025/

Not too many shocking conclusions in there. Mostly what you'd expect, but good as sanity check.

@ustk The videos I'm using for the ads are the full-length demo videos I made for YouTube.

They were never really meant to be short and impactful, or even used as ads. They were meant to show the breadth of presets included in the plugin. So they don't really suit being edited down to the typical social media attention span.

Long-term I need to make videos specifically for ads, which have a stronger visual component, given that quite a high percentage of Instagram users scroll with the audio muted.

Or get someone much younger and more in-touch with social media to make them for me!

@ustk I uploaded the videos directly into the Ads Manager. Although all the same videos are already posted on my Instagram, I don't actually boost existing posts. I don't really understand the difference between boosting a post and creating an ad in Ads Manager.

I know I need to trim/split some of the videos, they're way too long. But never quite have the time to look at it

I've got a new series of free synths launching soon, so I'm looking forward to creating some new, more dynamic ads.

I think I'm also moving to Moonbase, so my tracking and attribution should be easier.

Hopefully I can come back here after that and give more details.

@David-Healey Yep, we talked about it here https://forum.hise.audio/topic/12926/question-about-ms-encode-decode-order-in-stereo-widener-example/3?_=1779473723375

@David-Healey @Christoph-Hart Is all the talk about JUCE8 and the Moonbase HISE integration related only to licensing?

I don't need to integrate Moonbase into HISE if I'm not using license, right?

I've got a demo call booked with Moonbase on Thursday this week and wondering who in this forum is using them.

If you use them, why do you use them? And if you looked at it and decided not to move, why not?

I'm looking forward to hearing more about how their system works and what advantages it can offer may business.

Context:

• I don't do software licensing and may never do it
• I currently sell only on Gumroad
• I'm a decent Ruby on Rails and, if pushed, JS developer so I'm happy building web applications, backends, etc.

@David-Healey I think the OP has one panel and 4 buttons in different places, and each button needs to show/hide the panel.

Like a global Settings panel that can be opened by a button in the main UI, or a button on the Effects page, or a button on the Arpeggiator page.

@Yannrog is this what you're trying to do? If so, something like this will work:

const pnlSettings = Content.getComponent("pnlSettings");
const btnSettings = Content.getAllComponents("btnSettings");

for (b in btnSettings) b.setControlCallback(btnSettingsControl);

inline function btnSettingsControl(component, value) {
	if (value) {
		for (b in btnSettings) {
			if (b != component) b.setValue(0);
		}
	}

    pnlSettings.showControl(value);
}

Your buttons can be btnSettingsMain, btnSettingsEffects, etc.

Or, simpler: btnSettings1, btnSettings2, etc. as long as they all start with btnSettings

Same code, but fully commented, in case it helps:

# Find the panel you want to show/hide
const pnlSettings = Content.getComponent("pnlSettings");

# Find all the buttons that need to toggle the panel:
# btnSettingsMain, btnSettingsEffects, etc.
const btnSettings = Content.getAllComponents("btnSettings");

# Set the function that is called when any of the buttons are clicked
for (b in btnSettings) b.setControlCallback(btnSettingsControl);

# The function that shows/hides the panel when a button is clicked
inline function btnSettingsControl(component, value) {
    # If the button is clicked 'on', turn off all the other buttons
	if (value) {
        # Check every button in btnSettings
		for (b in btnSettings) {
            # If it's a different button, turn it off
			if (b != component) b.setValue(0);
		}
	}

    # Set the panel visibility to the value of the button:
    # Button on gives value of 1, which shows the panel
    # Button off gives value of 0, which hides the panel
    pnlSettings.showControl(value);
}

@David-Healey Yeah, I keep meaning to look at the stats for gender. I doubt I need my age range to go up to 65 either

@CassD I don't see my ads as a direct path to purchase. I do them to raise awareness of my brand and products. So I'm not too concerned about tracking ROAS.

I don't do any special offers, sales or shouty stuff in the ads. They're just simple videos showing the plugins playing through some of the presets. I just want to put them in front of people who might like them. Then let the plugins do the rest.

Targeting

I originally had quite a few DAWs and other very specific niches in there but a few months ago Meta did away with most of them and folded them into more generic categories.

Here's the targeting, same for both my ad sets (images and videos).

Meta is pushing everything towards fully automated targeting and audience selection anyway, so I'm not fighting it.

I do turn off all of the AI-assisted ad 'improvements' though. I don't want them putting different audio on my ads or any of their visual additions.

Here's the link to my ads in the Facebook Ads Library, so you can see how boring they are.

Response

I started on £10/day to test the waters. I saw an uptick in revenue after 2 weeks, so I doubled to £20/day. Saw another uptick so after another 2 weeks I doubled again to £40/day. It's been on that for almost a year now.

I did a test in Feb where I increased to £60/day for a month, but saw no significant change. So I dropped it back down to £40/day.

Part of me wants to spend more time creating new ads and testing different campaigns, and the other part of me is completely icked out by the whole thing!

I think when I've moved from Gumroad to my own site, or Moonbase (looking more and more likely) I'll revisit the whole ads setup and get a bit more involved. But for now, the £40/day budget gets me a decent amount of revenue, so I'm happy leaving it as is.

Hope all this is helpful in some way, and possibly even encouraging that ads can work and don't have to be complicated.

@ustk I made a PR that might help: https://github.com/christophhart/HISE/pull/759

TL;DR use itemColour3 for the 'over' colour.