Harmonic Bloom Lite

TRACK 1 AUDIO — HARMONIC BLOOM LITE 1.0.0
FREE EDITION / PREVIEW BUILD

Harmonic Bloom Lite is a free second and third harmonic processor with the
vintage hardware editor and core controls from Harmonic Bloom Premium.
Lite uses Classic processing and serial routing permanently. It ships without
factory presets. It is a separate plugin and can coexist with Premium.

DOWNLOADS AND INSTALLATION
macOS 11+: universal Intel/Apple Silicon AUv2 and VST3.
Windows 10/11: x64 VST3 for 64-bit Intel/AMD DAWs.
Use AU in Logic. No AAX, 32-bit Windows or native Windows ARM build is included.

Mac: close your DAW, extract the full ZIP, and open Install Harmonic Bloom Lite.pkg.
The package installs for the current user. To back up an existing Lite version,
use Install.command instead. The targets are:
~/Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/Components/HarmonicBloomLite.component
~/Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/VST3/HarmonicBloomLite.vst3
Reopen/rescan your DAW and find Track 1 Audio / Harmonic Bloom Lite.
This preview is ad-hoc signed, and its installer is unsigned/not notarized.
If macOS blocks it, use Apple's scoped Open Anyway workflow only if you trust
the download. The fallback script can be run from Terminal with bash followed
by a space and the dragged-in Install.command. It verifies both bundles and
removes quarantine only from those two installed bundles. Global security
settings are unchanged. Keep a single copy per format to avoid scan conflicts.

Windows: close your DAW, extract the full ZIP and run Install.cmd (requires UAC).
It verifies the included file checksums and backs up an older Lite installation.
It copies the whole bundle to:
C:\Program Files\Common Files\VST3\HarmonicBloomLite.vst3
Reopen your DAW and rescan VST3. In REAPER use Options > Preferences > Plug-ins
> VST, then Re-scan; search for Harmonic Bloom Lite in the track FX browser.
Scripts and the Windows DLL are unsigned. Scripts use a process-only execution
policy override, not a change to stored PowerShell policy. If policy blocks
the installer, have the administrator install the complete VST3 bundle.

CONTROLS
Input: -6 to +6 dB drive. Start at 0 dB and leave output headroom.
Second / Third: 0-100% contributions, with individual stage on/off switches.
Classic is level dependent: normal track levels can produce subtle color.
Premium's Bold mode is the option for stronger harmonics at lower input levels.
Serial processing feeds the second-harmonic stage into the third-harmonic stage;
the combined result can contain higher overtones as well as second/third color.
Fourth knob, Harmonics scope: -24 to +24 dB on the generated signal branch.
The separate clean branch stays at its existing gain. Total loudness/peaks and
the measured fundamental can still change, especially in Classic processing.
Master scope changes the gain of the combined signal.
Solo Harmonics: listen to the generated branch alone. This branch can contain
fundamental energy from the shaping; it is not a harmonic-frequency isolator.
Mix: controls the generated contribution. Solo on plus Mix 0 is silent.
Invert: reverses polarity before the shaping stages.
Power and host bypass preserve the 164-sample latency and return the clean path.
A/B compares two editor-local settings. The active setting is saved in the DAW
project; A/B scratch slots are not a persistent preset bank.
The plugin has no built-in/factory presets. DAW project recall and host-saved
user settings remain available. Windows/macOS VST3 state is portable within Lite;
AU and VST3 instances don't automatically translate. Premium and Lite are distinct.
Knobs: drag vertically, Shift for fine adjustment, double-click to reset.
Both meters show peak levels with vintage needle styling, not calibrated VU ballistics.

UNINSTALL
Quit the DAW, run Uninstall.command (Mac) or Uninstall.cmd (Windows), then rescan.
Uninstall moves Lite copies to a recoverable backup folder. It does not remove
Premium. Projects using Lite require it to be reinstalled for full recall.

PREMIUM AND LITE
Both have the harmonic controls, Harmonics/Master gain, Solo, Mix, stage switches,
Invert, Power, meters, A/B, automation, session recall and 8x oversampling.
Premium adds Bold mode, Classic/Bold selection, Serial/Parallel selection and
six factory presets. The finalized Premium binary stays version 1.2.0 and
appears as Harmonic Bloom in existing DAW projects. Lite starts at version 1.0.0.

VALIDATION
Intel Mac: 180 DSP checks across 84 reference comparisons; 230 direct AU checks;
47 Steinberg validator tests, 0 failures; 1988 direct VST3 checks; 176 native
editor checks across 20 lifecycle cycles, including coexistence with Premium.
Mac installer script fresh/update/uninstall checks and .pkg payload inspection
are recorded separately in Validation. Apple Silicon slices are compiled and
signature checked. Native Apple Silicon and Windows DAW/runtime/installer
execution remain pending. This is a preview, not universal DAW certification.

LICENSES AND SOURCE
Original code: MIT, Track 1 Audio. Apple AudioUnitSDK: Apache 2.0.
Steinberg VST3 SDK: MIT. Full license texts accompany the bundles and source.
No external plugin binary or proprietary code is incorporated.