Sound Forge Audio Studio works incorrect with VST3 plugins

tolkachovaa wrote on 2/23/2026, 3:17 PM

I updated my Sound Forge Audio Studio 14 to version 17 yesterday.

I did this because version 14 was not working correctly with 45 out of 170 of my VST3 plugins. For example:
- Melda Dynamic EQ: the processed file is 40 ms longer than the original;
- Soundtoys Little Microshift: after processing, 500 ms of silence was added to the original file;
- Eventide Temperance Lite: the start of the file remains unprocessed;
- Polyverse Filtron: it hangs;
- Wave L3 Multimaximizer: when applying processing, it splits the file into two parts;
etc.
Sometimes the processed file becomes larger or smaller by several milliseconds compared to the original.

I asked MAGIX support several times about the full support of VST3 plugins in the new versions of Sound Forge, but did not receive a response. After reading on the MAGIX website that version 17 works more correctly with modern plugins, I took the risk of spending money on the program update. And here’s what I found out after installing SFAS 17.

The program completely does not recognize some iZotope VST3 plugins, including the Ozone Equalizer 12 that I constantly need. SFAS also does not recognize the new versions (15 and 16) of Waves plugins, so I lost the ability to work with IDX and Curves Resolve plugins. I performed all the manipulations suggested by the manufacturer with the application and plugins, but I still could not achieve recognition of the plugins.

Interestingly, my old SFAS version 14, despite its incorrect operation with many plugins, had no problem recognizing both Waves IDX and iZotope Ozone Equalizer 12. And it allowed me to work with them without errors.

What is going on? I have been working with Sound Forge for almost 20 years, and if earlier versions worked well with plugins, then starting from version 13, chaos began. I constantly hoped that the manufacturer would fix the bugs and teach the application to work correctly with plugins. But that didn’t happen, and I am extremely disappointed. Perhaps I will stop trusting MAGIX and will look towards another audio editor. I am tired of wasting my money.

Comments

SP. wrote on 2/23/2026, 3:42 PM

@tolkachovaa We had some success by installing the free trial version of Music Maker 2026 and copying and pasting the files

audio_plugin_server.exe
audio_plugin_server_x64.exe
audio_plugin_scan_server_vst3.exe
audio_plugin_scan_server_vst3_x64.exe
audio_plugin_scan_server_vst2.exe
audio_plugin_scan_server_vst2_x64.exe

which are newer than the ones coming with Sound Forge. This should help with more modern plugins or solve problems with certain plugins.

I believe Sound Forge 14 still has the old VST Integration from Sony. In SF 16 this was changed to the VST integration made by Magix, but it was very buggy in SF 16 and 17.

tolkachovaa wrote on 2/23/2026, 11:48 PM

Thank you. Can I use trial SF Pro 18 instead of Music Maker?

SP. wrote on 2/24/2026, 2:03 AM

@tolkachovaa Yes, but I think SF 18 wasn't updated over the last two years.

tolkachovaa wrote on 2/24/2026, 3:43 AM

I have just checked both SF Pro 18 and SFAS 17 with the scan files from SF Pro.
My conclusions are as follows.
My old SFAS 14 worked better with VST3 plugins than the new versions of SF. I found the same errors. Also, some of the plugins that worked in SFAS 14 stopped working in SFAS 17 and SF Pro 18.
Sound Forge is a great application, suitable for any task, convenient and functional. I use it primarily for sound file processing and pre-mastering, so I value proper work with the plugins. It’s a shame that SF was so ruined.

SP. wrote on 2/24/2026, 4:24 AM

@tolkachovaa You could still try to copy the exe files from Music Maker 2026 inside the SFAS 17 folder.

tolkachovaa wrote on 2/24/2026, 4:43 AM

Thank you! I will be able to recognize the lost plugins, but I will face the same mistakes in the work of plugins - that’s what it is...