Bitwig has this feature for looping clips: "Operators". The recurrence operator, specifically. You can do more complicated stuff like "play this note on the 2nd & 4th loop of a 5 loop cycle".
GPU Audio is doing it with VST 3. And it's probably possible with CLAP too?
Processing audio on a GPU is a lower level issue than a plugin standard which describes the interface between the DAW and the plugin (how audio, parameters, notes, modulation data, etc. are exchanged).
These Bitwig people are always doing something exciting. Seems like they took all the stuff that makes the built-in Bitwig instruments cool (per note/voice modulation, "non-destructive" modulation) and turned it into an open plugin format.
I wonder if this brings anything cool to the table for effects plugins? Does it allow for per-voice effects?
You may have a point regarding some plugins, but complaining about it here isn't very fair to Vital:
>additional software, security tools (digital dongles) and drivers
Vital appears to install/require none of these things.
>found the free version to be limited in many subtle ways
Subtle how? It's all listed on their home page: there are less presets (you can make your own) and there are less wavetables (you can import your own). The only functional limitation is on using the "text-to-wavetable" feature to generate wavetables.
Otherwise, you have all the same modulation, filtering, wavetable morphing, & FX that the paid version does. If you choose to pay for it, you're basically just buying more presets.