Scaler 3 is working great with all my third part VST’s. Yesterday I added a third party VST to my Mac but unfortunately Scaler 3 does not load this VST in the Instruments/Manufacturer list. The VST is loaded in the VST3 and Component folders in the plugins folder. This new VST is also available in the Logic Pro X instrument options.
What am I doing wrong?
Thank you
Robert
Did you rescan your plugins in the Settings, Preferences dialog? Preferences can be accessed with the icon of three short lines in the upper right corner of the scaler window.
Hi, How are you?
I did a rescan of my plugins but still not recognized the new VST. Then I restarted the Scaler 3 app. with Rosetta followed by a complete rescan. This time Scaler 3 loaded the new VST.
I really appreciate your help
Regards,
Robert
I’m having an issue with my VSTs as I do not store them in the default directories, and from my first encounter with Scaler 3, I cannot stipulate a specific directory.
All the more reason to never change the standard locations - especially VST3 - which is managed and set by the OS and stipulated within the VST SDK from Steinberg to be an industry standard location for ALL plugin developers.
I must admit - I do not understand why anyone would need to do this as there is zero benefit whatsoever in installing a VST3 anywhere but in the default location.
S
Unless the user wanted to lump similar function VSTs into easier to manage categories because not all developers follow strict conventions to categorize their tools.
Edit: did I just fall into a baiting?
If you have small SSD with OS, and a lot of plugins, you need to put them elsewhere e.g on the external SSD. This is my case. In Reaper i have several "paths " and it finds them all, but I needed to set them manually.
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Just confirming we are adding the ability to add custom VST folder paths in the settings menu - that will be here in 3.1, expected mid to late April
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Respectfully - I would love to know what a “small” SSD is - here in 2025. It would have to be something like 64GB (or less) to have to put anything on another drive.
The actual plugin files (.vst3, .dll etc) are tiny. I have 420 VST3 installed right now, and it uses 17GB total.
Now if you are installing VST instruments like say - Spectrasonics Omnisphere and allowing it to install its libraries to your system drive - that is a vastly different conversation.
Most users install the plugin (and only the plugin) to the system drive and install all content libraries to another much larger drive or an external for space considerations.
S
Well, for me, small system drive is 256 GB, but I want it as empty as possible. I have so many applications, instruments and other stuff that I have 80 GB free and I install my libraries and plugins, when asked , on my 1 TB SSD. But I am not asked every time 
Moreover, I want have everything centralized. If not, i don’t know what and where is installed.
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Because I want to have them in one place. When Windows OS decides some of them go into one folder, some in another.
All my other software can cope with this easily; Scaler can’t
Thanks - my breath is bated
This would make sense - if it were true. Windows uses one (and only one) directory these days:
C:\Program Files\Common Files\VST3
So I have no idea what you are talking about when you say “Windows decides”.
Windows does not decide anything - the plugin installers do.
VST2 was retired in 2022 and is soon to be unsupported by all vendors.
S
none of my ample sound guitar plugins are showing up in the 3rd party plugins in standalone are inside my DAW.
Au contraire.
Program Files
Program Files x86
Still, let’s not let actual facts intrude here eh?
x86 was for 32 bit plugins - which have not been a thing in 15 years.
No vendor plugin today ships in this format and that directory does not exist on my DAW.
S
I got no clue why you’re even remotely defending Steinberg’s stunningly stupid decision to make it a requirement that everything should be thrown into one location 
It’s a matter of fact that’s not applicable in practice. Smashing everything into one place ends up in a bloody mess in a blink of an eye. Personally I ditched that already after installing like 10 vst3 plugins, to me it’s impossible to handle this without a subfolder structure.
You end up with duplicated files, not just readme files or manuals but also more important files and folders (“resources” for example), those would’ve to be renamed, which ultimately breaks plugins lmao…
So why the heck are you taking party of something that dumb?
And btw, in case you haven’t noticed it yet, a whole bunch of manufacturers are actually creating subfolders in VST3. You know why that is? Because it’s not working otherwise.
I mean, even Scaler 3 creates its’ subfolders… 
I did not say subfolders were not good - of course they are. Create as many as you want.
The DAW does not care about subfolders. It cares about a single “parent” location - which has been standard for years now.
It’s these users that do this:
C:\My cool plugins
C:\Didn’t want to use any defaults\So I Installed Here
D:\Sorted Plugs\64
F: \Plugins I got on sale\Last December
E:\32Bit Plugins That I Think Still Work\But I am not sure\Test
And then expect something like Scaler, or a DAW or Komplete Kontrol or who knows what - to correct navigate this mess. And when it cannot - chaos ensues and they of course blame Scaler
That is why I defend C:\Program Files\Common Files\VST3
And so does the entire audio industry BTW.
S
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Yea all good, I honestly apologize!
Essentially I was drifting into a rant against Steinberg, sorry about that. If I’m not mistaken they are technically not “allowing” any subfolders under VST3, that’s basically the point I think is bizarre.
But nothing against you, sorry… 
(and let’s not forget about symlinks, which are very useful in that regard)
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Technically - (according to the actual VST3 SDK) - subfolders under that parent is just fine.
It’s attempting to strongarm your VST3 - into some other foreign (non-standard) parent folder - that is VERY frowned upon.
Users that insist they “need” to “organize” their plugins - deep in some obscure folder structure on a system drive truly makes me cringe. I cannot think of a single thing that I want to think about less - than “what” the folder structure looks like in a designated parent folder where my plugins are installed.
The DAW (or Scaler) or Komplete Kontrol, etc - will scan the parent location folder, scan all subfolders, do all the organization and maintain an up to date plugin list.
What the actual folder structure looks like out there - is completely pointless.
And yes - I use symlinks for everything - best thing ever invented for plugin management.
Cheers!
S
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