# DeepPluck V0.10.0 GUI/UX Finalization — Implementation Report

Date: 2026-09-01

Branch: `master`

Starting HEAD: `c7a1f2f039291161ce7fa10ec4de5b6e1f37d851`

Implementation commit: `6591c886d1d307636546bdc109d9406eb9f980df` — `feat: finalize GUI and UX`

## 1. Outcome

The complete automatable V0.10.0 Definition of Done passed. DeepPluck now has its mockup-derived final fixed GUI hierarchy, a cohesive project-owned LookAndFeel, vector icons, persistent GUI-only Hover Help and Welcome preferences, parameter-driven waveform and ADSR displays, and a compact stereo output peak meter after the existing Output Gain.

The sound engine is unchanged. Plugin identity, bus contract, exactly 16 musical voices, all sixty-two parameter IDs/order/version hints/ranges/defaults, four Factory sounds, preset schemas, host state, automation, randomization semantics, and the complete V0.9.0 DSP/effects path remain compatible. No parameter, DSP engine, modulation target, effect, Factory sound, dependency, installer, or system copy was added.

Manual visual, listening, audio-device, and Cubase acceptance remain explicitly open in sections 16 and 17.

## 2. Normative inputs and start gate

Before implementation, the complete V0.10.0 master prompt, `AGENTS.md`, `Docs/Sound/DeepPluck_Sound_Manifest_v1.0.md`, current project documentation, prior implementation reports, parameter/state/preset/randomization/effects/processor/editor code, CMake, and tests were reviewed.

The exact user-supplied target image was present at:

`Docs/a_high_detail_user_interface_screenshot_of_a_virtu.png`

It was copied byte-for-byte to the tracked binding reference:

`Docs/GUI/DeepPluck_V0.10_GUI_Target_Mockup.png`

Both files are 1,670,004 bytes with SHA-256 `1C974D7D7820031BE8CB09FB1B2CE656FE4F6F80E344CC9F416155580C5FD219`. The source image remained untracked and unchanged. The binding composition, colour hierarchy, mood, and visual language of that exact file were used; no speculative substitute was generated.

The tracked starting tree was clean. Previously recorded Cubase files, images, and milestone prompts remained protected and untracked.

## 3. Confirmed environment and baseline

- Windows 11 x64
- Visual Studio 2026 Community 18.9.2
- generator `Visual Studio 18 2026`, architecture `x64`
- MSVC 19.51.36256.0 (`14.51.36231` tool directory)
- Windows SDK 10.0.26100.0
- CMake 4.4.3
- JUCE 9.0.1
- C++20

The V0.9.0 starting state passed before implementation:

| Configuration | Baseline result |
|---|---:|
| Debug | build pass; 28/28 CTests, 58.27 s |
| Release | build pass; 28/28 CTests, 14.23 s |

The final fresh configure command was:

```powershell
cmake --fresh -S . -B build -G "Visual Studio 18 2026" -A x64
```

It selected MSVC 19.51.36256.0 and Windows SDK 10.0.26100.0.

## 4. Final GUI hierarchy and geometry

The editor is deliberately fixed at 1536 x 1024, matching the target mockup canvas. Its permanent hierarchy is:

```text
Top Bar
Permanent Oscillator Row
MAIN | MODULATION | FX | SETTINGS
Active page content
Footer
```

Only those four tabs exist in the instantiated editor. Every editor starts on MAIN. Tab choice remains GUI-local, non-persistent, and audio-neutral.

The Top Bar contains branding, cyclic Previous/Preset Browser/Next, Save, Save As, Delete, Refresh, Folder, Master Random, Undo, Amount, Master Tune, Output, and the compact stereo L/R peak meter.

The permanent Oscillator Row contains:

- Oscillator 1 waveform, Pulse Width, static waveform display, Random, and Lock;
- Oscillator 2 On, waveform, Pulse Width, Level, Octave, Semitone, Fine Tune, static waveform display, Random, and Lock.

MAIN contains Filter, Amp Envelope, Filter Envelope, Unison, Transient, and Noise. MODULATION contains only the established eight LFO/modulation parameters. FX retains the real Chorus, Delay, and Reverb controls, the three position proxies, Reset Order, and exactly one shared Effects Rack Random/Lock pair. SETTINGS contains only Hover Help, Welcome controls, and About/version information.

The editor still owns exactly sixty-two APVTS bindings:

| Owner | Bindings |
|---|---:|
| Top Bar | 2 |
| Oscillator Row | 9 |
| MAIN | 25 |
| MODULATION | 8 |
| FX | 18 |
| SETTINGS | 0 |
| Total | 62 |

`fxOrder` still has exactly one controller/binding. Its three position controls remain GUI-only projections and Reset Order changes only `fxOrder`.

## 5. Visual system and interaction

`DeepPluckLookAndFeel` owns the final dark petrol/black surface hierarchy, cyan/teal interactive emphasis, amber waveform/envelope/pointer accents, rotary rendering, buttons, toggle switches, combo boxes, popup menus, and tooltips. Save, Delete, Folder, navigation, Undo/Refresh, Random, and Lock symbols are drawn as project-owned vectors; no icon font, bitmap icon dependency, web content, or third-party asset was added.

Rotary value boxes use concise unit-aware text. Main normalized values use readable 0..1 notation while FX normalized values retain their existing percentage-oriented presentation. Disabled/bypassed controls dim without removing their usable routing/bypass endpoints. Every tested FX rotary body has at least a 48 x 48 pixel drawing area.

Focus order and stable component IDs remain defined. Hover Help provides short control descriptions and can be disabled without altering APVTS or sound state.

## 6. Waveform and envelope displays

The Oscillator displays use pure `createWaveformPath()` geometry for Saw, Triangle, Square, Sine, and Pulse. Pulse Width affects only the Pulse display. MAIN uses pure `createEnvelopePath()` geometry for Amp and Filter ADSR displays.

These components read only message-thread control values, own no DSP state, and never feed values back to the processor. Automated tests verify non-empty, finite, in-bounds paths for all five waveforms and representative ADSR values.

## 7. GUI-only preferences and Welcome workflow

`DeepPluckGuiPreferences` is a process-shared JUCE-based service. The production backend uses the current user's application-data area; automated tests inject a build-local file and never read or write the real user preference path.

The service stores only:

- Hover Help enabled/disabled;
- Welcome enabled/disabled;
- first-run Welcome seen state.

Writes are process-serialized and use `juce::TemporaryFile` replacement. Missing or corrupt data falls back to safe defaults. No GUI preference enters APVTS, plugin state, presets, automation, Factory matching, or audio code.

The Welcome overlay is shown on a fresh profile, has Continue and Don't show again actions, and can be re-enabled/shown from SETTINGS. Opening, closing, or changing these GUI preferences is parameter-state neutral.

## 8. Output metering and realtime safety

The meter observation point is after the existing smoothed global Output Gain and immediately before the buffer leaves `processBlock()`:

```text
voice sum -> global FX rack -> Output Gain -> read-only L/R peak observation -> output
```

`DeepPluckOutputMeter` contains only two preallocated `std::atomic<float>` values. The audio thread computes finite local L/R block maxima and publishes them with bounded compare/exchange maximum accumulation. The message thread consumes both peaks with atomic exchange and applies display-only decay. Invalid observations are neutralized to zero.

The meter performs no allocation, lock, string operation, file access, logging, GUI call, or sample write. Reference-platform tests confirm both atomics are lock-free, verify known peak accumulation/clear/NaN behavior, compare the transported values with the actual final buffer magnitudes, and retain sample-identical output while pages and editors change.

## 9. Compatibility and preserved contracts

Unchanged:

- manufacturer code `Tntx`;
- plugin code `DpV1`;
- bundle identifier `de.tonetrax.deeppluck`;
- VST3 and Standalone formats;
- no audio input, stereo output, MIDI input, no MIDI output;
- exactly 16 preallocated musical voices;
- all sixty-two parameter IDs, order, version hints, ranges, defaults, and smoothing;
- all Factory preset names/order/values;
- User/Pack preset format and host-state self-containment;
- randomization module matrix, distributions, Amount, Lock, and Undo behavior;
- all waveform, filter, envelope, transient/noise, Unison, modulation, FX, routing, headroom, and tail behavior.

Old V0.1.0-through-V0.9.0 states and automation therefore continue through the existing migration path. V0.10.0 adds no state migration key because it adds no sound state.

## 10. Automated coverage

The existing 28-suite matrix remains intact. The expanded `gui` suite now additionally covers:

- 1536 x 1024 target geometry;
- only MAIN/MODULATION/FX/SETTINGS tabs;
- permanent Oscillator Row and output meter;
- exact 62-binding and ten-module Random/Lock contracts;
- positive, in-parent, non-overlapping control bounds;
- all existing waveform, sync, bypass, FX order, preset, and Custom behavior;
- 48-pixel minimum FX rotary bodies;
- pure waveform and ADSR path geometry;
- four non-empty rendered page snapshots under build-local test data;
- injected GUI preference defaults, roundtrip, atomic persistence, and corrupt recovery;
- first-run Welcome/dismiss/re-enable behavior;
- APVTS neutrality of all GUI preferences;
- lock-free known-value/final-buffer stereo meter tests;
- repeated editor lifecycle and bit-neutral page switching.

All earlier DSP, state, preset, randomization, effects, headroom, CPU, and artifact-version tests also passed without relaxed thresholds.

## 11. Final build and test results

| Configuration | Build | Compiler errors | New compiler warnings | CTest result |
|---|---|---:|---:|---:|
| Debug | pass | 0 | 0 | 28/28 pass, 61.79 s |
| Release | pass | 0 | 0 | 28/28 pass, 18.26 s |

The generated-input precheck resolved both configurations to 0.10.0. The artifact-version test passed in both configurations.

## 12. Version and artifacts

`project(DeepPluck VERSION 0.10.0)` remains the single authoritative current version. It propagates through JUCE target metadata, generated macros, VST3 metadata, Windows FileVersion/ProductVersion, GUI labels, and tests.

Six required version statements:

- Debug VST3 module version: `0.10.0`;
- Release VST3 module version: `0.10.0`;
- Debug Standalone FileVersion: `0.10.0`;
- Debug Standalone ProductVersion: `0.10.0`;
- Release Standalone FileVersion: `0.10.0`;
- Release Standalone ProductVersion: `0.10.0`.

| Project-local artifact | Bytes | SHA-256 |
|---|---:|---|
| Debug VST3 inner binary | 28,398,592 | `E1E77C82D1171F893598AF3238E5C0A75026544EB1847B413DCCE18465428DC9` |
| Debug Standalone | 28,841,472 | `D4EA6BB60C7E90A8625F3F016F35B451D39AC09063EBE9B63F32063B011A2DA2` |
| Release VST3 inner binary | 9,419,264 | `E642EA9917E01E7CF7E2D962C002802162CD36A83F49E22A974AB7A61D8F16CF` |
| Release Standalone | 9,438,720 | `0E8D6439ADEBDA7D4C149BDA2B71637928BF6D03B5543A08D84E1B842468C726` |

Every build output and corresponding `Artifacts/<configuration>` file is byte-identical. Both VST3 bundles and both Standalones exist. `COPY_PLUGIN_AFTER_BUILD` remains `FALSE`; `build/` and `Artifacts/` remain ignored and unstaged.

## 13. Standalone smoke

Both project-local executables started independently, reached input-idle with a nonzero native main-window handle, accepted a normal main-window close, exited within the timeout with code 0, and left no process behind:

| Configuration | Window handle | Exit code |
|---|---:|---:|
| Debug | 1901986 | 0 |
| Release | 2033800 | 0 |

This hidden window/process smoke proves construction and clean shutdown. It is not a claim of visible layout, audio-device, or listening acceptance.

## 14. System installation, JUCE, and repository hygiene

No build or test installed or copied a plugin/application into a system directory. The pre-existing system VST3 remains byte-identical to the recorded V0.9.0 baseline:

| System file | Bytes | SHA-256 |
|---|---:|---|
| `Contents/Resources/moduleinfo.json` | 1,086 | `E42CA30EF209944C12BFB43805D72306F36C642408794DC3D428586F5486FD45` |
| `Contents/x86_64-win/DeepPluck.vst3` | 7,870,464 | `288F1BC88BBB8FCD131DA089846C3ED99D5E554B77EA9DA4A97EA18E2000FDC3` |

No file under `JUCE/` changed. The final staged implementation contained only the 16 intended source, test, documentation, CMake, and tracked target-mockup files. Protected untracked Cubase content, source images, and master prompts were not staged.

Representative protected hashes remained unchanged:

| Protected file | Bytes | SHA-256 |
|---|---:|---|
| `CubaseTest/DeepPluckTest.cpr` | 785,571 | `A039DBBF9F60E8A8C61AC11C5CD63527CCD2EE5FF9935020CC0071B93AF36C5B` |
| Cubase autosave | 677,938 | `F589C323777A8CBEC9C3C1EF334E443E05C2889D14C5C834D66C7209EAEF8380` |
| exact source mockup | 1,670,004 | `1C974D7D7820031BE8CB09FB1B2CE656FE4F6F80E344CC9F416155580C5FD219` |
| V0.10.0 master prompt | 66,004 | `627E27F9F9C0DB59576865A6A4B6FED43AC3DE5A4543CF6D60DD2B177B6953EA` |

No push was performed.

## 15. Documentation changed

- `README.md`: current V0.10.0 status, final hierarchy, visual system, GUI preferences, metering, tests, build/smoke behavior, limitations, and manual host checklist;
- `ARCHITECTURE.md`: final editor ownership/binding distribution, LookAndFeel, preferences, path displays, output-meter transport, signal flow, test contract, version flow, and deferred scope;
- `AGENTS.md`: confirmed V0.10.0 reference environment;
- `CMakeLists.txt`: authoritative 0.10.0 version, final milestone description, GUI support, and metering sources;
- `Docs/GUI/DeepPluck_V0.10_GUI_Target_Mockup.png`: exact tracked binding mockup;
- this implementation report.

## 16. Manual visual and listening checklist — open

None of the following is claimed by automation:

1. Compare the running GUI directly with the tracked target mockup for composition, hierarchy, colour mood, spacing, typography, icon clarity, and visual balance.
2. Verify the complete 1536 x 1024 editor fits the intended monitor/workflow.
3. Verify MAIN, MODULATION, FX, and SETTINGS at Windows scaling 100%, 125%, and 150%.
4. Verify no label, value box, combo popup, tooltip, Random/Lock control, footer item, or meter scale clips.
5. Verify all rotary controls are comfortable to drag and edit precisely.
6. Verify keyboard focus/navigation and combo-box keyboard interaction.
7. Verify Hover Help on/off behavior and tooltip descriptions.
8. Verify Welcome Continue, Don't show again, restart behavior, and SETTINGS re-enable.
9. Verify all four rendered waveform types plus Pulse/Pulse Width presentation while editing.
10. Verify both ADSR displays track live edits clearly.
11. Verify disabled Oscillator 2, Filter, Transient, Noise, and bypassed FX remain understandable and editable where required.
12. Verify every Random/Lock icon communicates its scope.
13. Verify the Output meter is readable, responsive, stereo-correct, and decays naturally.
14. Compare bypassed versus metered output to confirm the meter does not affect audible level or sound.
15. Audition all four Factory presets and confirm their established sound is unchanged.
16. Audition Oscillator, Filter/Drive/resonance compensation, Unison, Transient, Noise, Modulation, and FX workflows after the reorganization.
17. Confirm the previously corrected serial-FX perceived-level behavior remains satisfactory.
18. Confirm no clicks, dropouts, instability, excessive level loss, or headroom regression during GUI interaction.

## 17. Cubase validation checklist — open

None of the following is claimed by automation:

1. Cubase discovers V0.10.0 as the same DeepPluck plugin identity.
2. Existing V0.9.0 and older projects open with the same sound, presets, state, and automation.
3. Exactly 62 host automation parameters appear in the unchanged order; no GUI preference, tab, Welcome state, meter, or FX position proxy appears as a host parameter.
4. Every parameter control and host automation lane remain synchronized in both directions.
5. MAIN, MODULATION, FX, and SETTINGS switch reliably while playback and automation run.
6. The Oscillator Row remains visible and operational on every tab.
7. Preset Previous/Next, browser, Save, Save As, Delete, Refresh, Folder, Factory/User/Pack/Imported behavior, and Custom matching work.
8. Master Random, Amount, Undo, every module Random/Lock pair, and the single Effects Rack pair work.
9. FX Position proxies remain a valid permutation and Reset Order changes only `fxOrder`.
10. Hover Help and Welcome preferences behave across editor close/reopen and multiple plugin instances without changing project state.
11. The stereo meter follows the final output without affecting host meters, bounce, or audio.
12. Project save/close/reopen restores the exact sound independently of external preset files.
13. Multiple instances remain stable and keep their independent sound state while sharing GUI preferences safely.
14. Realtime playback, offline bounce, tails, voice stealing, tempo sync, and automation remain deterministic and click-safe.
15. CPU, peak level, mono compatibility, and audio-device behavior remain acceptable.
16. Validate the final GUI at Windows scaling 100%, 125%, and 150% inside Cubase.

## 18. Final status

All automatable V0.10.0 requirements are complete. Manual visible-GUI/listening and Cubase validation remain explicitly pending. No external blocker remains.

**automatable DoD complete; manual V0.10.0 verification pending**
