PA PortaTwin v2.1.0 — macOS
by Pointless Audio
https://pointlessaudio.studio

Tascam Porta Two 4-track cassette emulator — tape, wow/flutter, dbx, HOT preamp.


INSTALLATION
------------
1. Double-click "PA_PortaTwin_v2.1.0_macOS.pkg" to launch the installer.
   The installer is signed with an Apple Developer ID and notarized by Apple:
   macOS opens it directly, with no security warnings.
2. Follow the installer. You can choose which formats to install during the
   Customize step.
3. Plugins are installed system-wide:
   - VST3 -> /Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/VST3/PA PortaTwin.vst3
   - AU   -> /Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/Components/PA PortaTwin.component
   - CLAP -> /Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/CLAP/PA PortaTwin.clap (where included)
4. Restart your DAW. On first AU load, macOS will re-scan AudioUnits
   (Logic/GarageBand: may take a minute).


UNINSTALL
---------
Delete the installed bundles manually from the paths above.


REQUIREMENTS
------------
- macOS 10.13 or later
- Apple Silicon or Intel (Universal Binary)
- VST3 or AU compatible host


FORMATS
-------
VST3 + Audio Unit (AU) — plus CLAP where included


WHAT'S NEW IN v2.1.0
--------------------------
PortaTwin v2.1.0 — the four-track's mixer, measured on a real unit

An update for v2.0.0. New projects run through a model of the four-track's
mixer, built from measurements of a real unit: its input stage, fader and EQ
before the tape, its master and output amplifier after it. The plugin also
needs less than half the CPU of v2.0.0, and a few ways it could get stuck are
closed.

- The four-track's mixer. New instances, factory presets and Init use it.
  Each amplifier stage clips on its own curve, measured on the real unit, and
  the mixer's faint background noise is included, at its measured level. The
  controls are the same sixteen: the right half of INPUT is now the TRIM, up
  to +40.1 dB; LOW and HIGH work at 100 Hz and 10 kHz, about ±10 dB; HOT
  pushes the channel fader 9.4 dB up and pulls the master down by as much, so
  a quiet signal keeps its level and a loud one distorts more; OUTPUT is the
  master.
- Less than half the CPU. On an Apple Silicon Mac at 48 kHz with a 128-sample
  buffer, PortaTwin with the mixer uses about 3.7 % of one core. In the worst
  case we measured it needed 3.74 % against 8.21 % for v2.0.0.
- Recovers from invalid samples. In v2.0.0 a single NaN or infinite sample at
  the input could leave the output of both channels invalid until the host
  re-initialised the plugin. The bad sample is now treated as silence and the
  plugin carries on.
- Host Reset works. Reset in the host now clears the plugin's filters, delay
  lines and oversampling state; in v2.0.0 it did nothing.
- Bypass on mono tracks. On a mono track with a stereo output, switching
  PortaTwin off, with POWER or with your DAW's bypass, left the right channel
  silent in v2.0.0, so the sound jumped to the left. Both sides now carry the
  signal.
- POWER is remembered. A project saved with PortaTwin switched off now reopens
  with it off; v2.0.0 always switched it back on.
- Bottom bar keeps responding in Logic on macOS Tahoe. A Logic/GarageBand bug
  on Tahoe (Apple Silicon) can stop the bottom-left corner of a plugin window
  from taking clicks after the window is moved or resized, which is where the
  preset bar (preset, A/B, S/M/L) sits. PortaTwin now works around it in
  Logic, GarageBand and MainStage. Other hosts are unaffected.
- Retouched faceplate. The faceplate and the DRIVE TYPE and AUTO GAIN switches
  were redrawn from the retouched artwork; knobs and layout are unchanged.
- Three new factory presets: Line Level, Trim Crunch and Fader Heat. The
  fifteen from v2.0.0 keep their names and character, retuned for the mixer:
  about the same distortion as before, level-matched to the bypassed signal.

Projects saved with v2.0.0 open with the same settings and keep the preamp
they were made with, even when you save them again: they sound as they did.


SUPPORT
-------
hello@pointlessaudio.studio  ·  https://pointlessaudio.studio/support/


LICENSE
-------
LICENSE.txt in this folder is the End User License Agreement for this software, followed by
the third-party notices.


PortaTwin is not affiliated with or endorsed by TEAC Corporation / Tascam.
Tascam and Porta are trademarks of TEAC Corporation.
