3 free MIDI effect plugins for structured unpredictability (PhaseCanon, ArpStacker, EnTrain) — Windows VST3

[whiskeytreats]

I built three MIDI effect plugins that all orbit the same idea: give a simple input, get back something that sounds composed but isn't entirely predictable. All free on GumRoad which does require an email but I'm not using it for anything, that's just a requirement from them. Just download and go.

PhaseCanon — 4-voice MIDI looper/manipulator. You play a riff, it plays it back through four independent playheads, each running at different speeds, directions, and transpositions, all locked to key and scale. A single melodic phrase turns into interlocking counterpoint. Think Steve Reich phase music as a real-time MIDI engine.

ArpStacker — 4-voice arpeggiator where three voices silently churn through independent chords at irrational rate ratios, feeding a shifting note pool to a fourth voice that fires on a quantized grid with Euclidean rhythm and probability filtering. The rhythm is locked. The notes never quite repeat. Controlled chaos with a pulse.

EnTrain — This one I haven't seen done before. It's a drum-driven chord rhythm generator. Feed it held chords on one MIDI channel and a drum pattern on another. It analyzes the drum energy across three zones (kick/low, snare/mid, hats/high) and probabilistically fires chord tones that groove with the beat without directly mirroring it. Four output voices across separate MIDI channels. The output breathes with the performance.

Usage tip for EnTrain: the most interesting results come from feeding it a drum pattern that's completely different from the actual beat in your song. Use a bossa nova pattern against a four-on-the-floor kick. Feed it a halftime trap beat while the song runs breakbeat. The energy curves land in unexpected places and the chord rhythm starts pushing against the main groove instead of just following it. That's where it gets musical.

All three are Windows VST3, verified in Reaper. They're MIDI effects (MIDI in, MIDI out, no audio processing), so DAW compatibility depends on how your host handles MIDI FX routing. Reaper handles it natively.

Downloads and details: https://brettdooley.com/midivst/

I'm not selling anything. I built these because I wanted them and they didn't exist. I'd genuinely like to hear what people make with them. If any of these end up in a track, drop a link. I'm curious what happens when other people push them in directions I didn't think of.

[VariKusBrainZ]

Ooh shiny

[eLawnMust]

'Structured Unpredictability'........

[sinkmusic]

Thank you, it seems very interesting !

[Cuauhtli]

Tried the phrase cannon, I mean phase canon. Pretty cool.

[whiskeytreats]

Ooh shiny

Did you give it a try?

[whiskeytreats]

Tried the phrase cannon, I mean phase canon. Pretty cool.

Awesome! Did you get anything usable?

[whiskeytreats]

'Structured Unpredictability'........

That seemed to fit LOL

[whiskeytreats]

Thank you, it seems very interesting !

Happy to, did you give it a try?