Animatek – UZZ (VCV Rack Plugin)

UZZ (Ultimate Ztep Zequencer) is a step sequencer originally created as a Max for Live device, designed for immediate control, clear visual feedback, and fluid musical flow.

This repository is a port to VCV Rack 2.x, aiming to preserve the original philosophy: precise timing, structured improvisation, and modular flexibility.

Changelog

2.3.0 — Stability & Host Reload Fixes

(2025-11)

Core Fixes

• Fixed critical crash when reloading the Rack plugin inside Bitwig or other hosts.
• dataToJson() no longer assumes a valid base object from Module::dataToJson().
  • It now creates its own json_object() when the base is nullptr, preventing null writes that previously killed the plugin sandbox (“plugin host died / end of stream”).
• dataFromJson() now calls the base method before applying stored values for a clean restore.
• UI asset safety during headless scans.
  • Constructors that previously called APP->window->loadSvg() unconditionally now guard against a null APP->window.
  • When the host runs Rack without a window (typical during VST scans), custom graphics are skipped or replaced with system fallbacks instead of crashing.

Timing & Clock Behavior

• Default clock ratio set to ×1.
• RATIO_DEFAULT_INDEX now points to the ×1 entry so new instances and resets start at unity speed. Existing projects keep their saved ratio.
• Virtual clock rewrite for long gates.
  • Added needsVirtualClock so the internal oscillator only runs when the ratio differs from ×1.
  • At ×1, the module waits for a new rising edge to advance, eliminating runaway ticks caused by held gates.
• havePhase is forced off at ×1 to prevent the scheduler from enqueuing extra steps while an external gate is high.

UI & Font Rendering

• Improved note LED readability.
• Font loading now uses asset::system("res/fonts/ShareTechMono-Regular.ttf") with APP && APP->window guards to avoid headless crashes.
• Text rendering tuned for clarity: centered alignment, pixel-rounded coordinates, and an optimal 9 px size.
• Optional monospace fallback retained for hosts running without system fonts.

SVG Loading Refactor

• Unified safe SVG loader (loadSvgFile()).
• All plugin and system assets now route through this helper, which performs a single system::exists() check and prefers APP->window->loadSvg() when available, falling back to a non-window loader in headless mode.
• Step-mode icons and row-shift arrows now render correctly after VST project reloads.

Internal Changes

• Hardened JSON read/write path with null-checks and index clamping.
• Moved sample-rate dependent initialization to onSampleRateChange().
• Improved fallbacks for missing UI assets and fonts.
• Minor cleanups in button constructors and naming.

2.1.0 — Per-Row Shift & Menu Enhancements

(2025-10-03)

• Added per-row shift controls for Pitch, Octave, Duration, Mod1, and Mod2 with wrap-free behavior and step-size tweaks (Mod rows now move 10% per click).
• Introduced contextual menu refinements: dedicated submenus for Direction mode, Range Mod1, Range Mod2, and an EOC-on-reset toggle.
• Implemented optional EOC trigger on external reset with persistence.
• Refined reset handling so the active step still fires before jumping back to the start window.
• Added custom input/output port widgets with 10% scale reduction and optional recolored SVGs.
• Tuned slew response to a logarithmic curve (fixed).
• Cleaned up random button light logic while retaining smoothing.
• Fixed malformed plugin.json version field.

2.0.5 — Clock Multipliers & Stability Fixes

(2025-09-23)

Fixed

• Clock multipliers now trigger the first sub-tick correctly (×2, ×3, ×4… no longer skip).
• Gate/Trigger handling improved for more consistent behavior.
• Removed unused variables and resolved compilation warnings.

Changed

• Limited maximum multiplier to ×48 (removed ×64 and ×96, which produced continuous gates).
• Old patches saved with ×64/×96 automatically clamp to ×48 for compatibility.

Notes

• Tested with VCV Rack 2.5 SDK.

Info and website

• Website: https://animatek.net
• Manual: https://animatek.net/uzz-en-vcvrack/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@animatek
• Author: Javier Melgar (Animatek)
• License: GPL-3.0-or-later