Eidolon is a hybrid software synthesizer, built across an eight-week independent learning contract as a cross-platform audio plugin. It folds three synthesis architectures, subtractive, additive, and wavetable, into one instrument with a built-in effects section. This site collects the weekly reports, each documenting one stage of the build, alongside a standing disclosure of the tools used.
The instrument
The work translates hands-on experience with hardware modular systems, Eurorack and the Buchla 200 series, into real-time C++ on the JUCE framework. The signal path runs from the three-mode oscillator section through filters, envelopes, and modulation into an effects chain, and the whole instrument builds as VST3, AU, and CLAP plugins plus a standalone app. Each week below builds one layer of that path and reports the milestone that proves it works.
The eight weeks
- Week 1Environment Setup
- Week 2Subtractive Oscillator
- Week 3Additive Oscillator
- Week 4Wavetable Oscillator
- Week 5Modulation and Filter
- Week 6Effects Section
- Week 7Plugin GUI
- Week 8Wrap-up
Tooling
The development tools used in this contract, and the verification discipline under which they are used, are set out in the Tooling Disclosure, which applies to the whole project.