ChowDSP BYOD
Key Features
- Build a custom guitar-effects signal path by placing processors and connecting them with virtual cables.
- Combine analog-modelled and digital distortion designs with tone-shaping filters and utility processing.
- Route shared modulation or level signals between compatible processors for more connected patches.
- Use input and output gain controls to manage level before and after the complete chain.
- Choose minimum- or linear-phase oversampling up to 16x, with a separate offline-render configuration.
- Start from factory presets, then save and organize your own processor-chain setups.
- Run the current desktop build on Windows, macOS, or Linux in the formats listed by ChowDSP.
Description
ChowDSP BYOD is a modular guitar-effects plugin for building custom distortion chains from pedal- and amplifier-inspired drive circuits, tone controls, filters, and utility processors. Instead of locking you into one amp or stompbox model, it lets you patch processors together with virtual cables and shape the route around the sound you want.
The workflow is especially useful when a conventional drive plug-in is too fixed: add, remove, duplicate, or replace processors, then connect their audio, modulation, and level ports. Input and output gain controls keep the chain manageable, while oversampling can be set as high as 16x with separate offline-rendering options.
BYOD can start as a focused overdrive or fuzz builder, then grow into a broader multi-effect rig with compression, modulation, delay, and spring-reverb-style processing where those modules suit the patch. Its factory presets provide a practical starting point, but the payoff is hands-on experimentation rather than a single signature tone.
Version 1.3.0 adds Laser Trem and Poly Octave modules, tempo-sync options for Delay, and several DSP, memory, preset-search, and host-automation improvements. The desktop release supports Windows, macOS, and Linux, while an iOS edition is separately available through the App Store.
Video Preview
Frequently Asked Questions
What does BYOD let you build?
BYOD is centered on a processing chain made from processors and virtual cables. Its included processors cover guitar-distortion and tone-shaping circuits alongside additional effects and utilities, so a patch can be as simple or elaborate as the project needs.
How do I add or change an effect in a BYOD patch?
Open the processor menu by right-clicking the plug-in background or using the plus icon, then add a processor. You can also replace a cable with a processor, duplicate a processor, or use the per-processor settings menu to reset, replace, or inspect it.
Can BYOD use one modulation or level signal across multiple processors?
Yes. The manual describes purple modulation ports and red level ports that can pass an existing signal to another compatible processor, rather than making each processor generate or detect it independently.
Are the paid BYOD add-on packs required?
No. BYOD's desktop base plug-in is open-source software and the current official release remains publicly available. Optional add-on module packs are separate purchases for desktop BYOD version 1.1.0 and later, activated with a code supplied after purchase.
