# Swarm

**Swarm** is an audio effect plugin that makes your tracks get out of
each other's way, all by themselves.

Drop one instance of Swarm on each track, link them together with a
Link Slot, and they form a swarm that self-regulates in real time:
clashing frequencies move apart, levels converge, the stereo image
opens up. The mix breathes and balances itself, without you automating
a single EQ or sidechain.

## How it works

Every Swarm instance listens to its own track (where it sits in the
spectrum, whether it is loud or quiet, where it is in the stereo
field). All instances in the same group then talk to each other in real
time through shared memory, and each one subtly adjusts its own EQ,
gain and pan so the whole stays coherent and clear.

Four rules govern the swarm:

- **Separation** — tracks that collide in the spectrum move apart
  (emergent anti-masking through dynamic tilt EQ).
- **Alignment** — levels converge gently towards a shared motion (the
  mix breathes together).
- **Cohesion** — each track's timbre is pulled towards a tonal centre
  of gravity, without losing its identity.
- **Pan Spread** — tracks piling up in the centre spread out across the
  stereo image (mono-compatible, no delay, no phase colouration).

## Quick start

1. Insert one instance of Swarm on each track.
2. Give every instance the same **Link Slot**.
3. Raise **Intensity** to 100% and listen.

That's it. Everything else is optional.

## Formats

- **VST3** — Windows, Linux, macOS
- **CLAP** — Windows, Linux, macOS
- **AU** — macOS (Logic Pro, GarageBand)

macOS: universal Intel + Apple Silicon.

## Documentation

The full user manual lives in [`docs/Swarm-Manual.md`](docs/Swarm-Manual.md)
(and `docs/Swarm-Manual.pdf` inside the installers).

## Download

Grab the latest version from the
[releases page](https://github.com/xenicle/Swarm/releases).

## Building from source

```bash
nix develop
cmake -B build -G Ninja
cmake --build build
```

Auto-deploys to `~/.vst3/Swarm.vst3` and `~/.clap/Swarm.clap`.

## Repo layout

```
Swarm-iPlug2/   # Plugin source (DSP, SHM, UI)
cmake/          # Build helpers (toolchain, OSMesa, MinGW fixes)
dist/           # Windows NSIS installer script
patches/        # iPlug2 + pugl patches applied by CI
scripts/        # macOS DMG builder, version bumper, keygen
docs/           # User manual
```

## License

Proprietary. Copyright 2026 Xeni Audio.
