Plugin categories are the top-level folders in the Instruments and Effects sidebar tabs. Each plugin can live in one or more categories, and you control the order inside each category.
Categories are app-wide — the same layout applies to every project. With iCloud enabled, your categories, plugin assignments, and ordering sync across your Macs.
Default Categories
Gridshift ships with a starter set of categories. Effect categories appear in the Effects sidebar:
- EQ
- Dynamics
- Reverb
- Delay
- Modulation
- Distortion
- Utility
Instrument categories appear in the Instruments sidebar:
- Synths
- Sampler
- Keys
- Drums
- Strings
Defaults behave like any other category — you can rename, reorder, or delete them.
Auto-Categorization
When a plugin is scanned for the first time, Gridshift drops it into a matching category based on its name — a plugin called “Fab Reverb” lands in Reverb, “SSL Compressor” in Dynamics, and so on. Once a plugin has any explicit assignment, that assignment takes over and the name isn’t consulted again.
Plugins that don’t match any category land in Other.
Managing Categories
Right-click a category header in the Instruments or Effects sidebar tab:
| Action | Effect |
|---|
| Rename ”…” | Rename the category |
| Delete ”…” | Delete the category; assigned plugins fall back to Other |
| New Category… | Create a new category |
Assigning Plugins
Right-click a plugin row to open its context menu. Under Assign to Category you’ll see every category for the current sidebar tab:
- A checkmark marks categories the plugin already belongs to.
- Clicking a category toggles membership — a plugin can live in multiple categories at once.
- New Category… at the bottom creates a fresh category and assigns the plugin in one step.
You can also drag a plugin onto another category header to move it, or drag up or down within a category to reorder plugins.
Favorites
The Favorites section at the top of each sidebar tab is toggled per plugin via the Favorite context-menu item. Favorites sync alongside your categories. Last modified on April 24, 2026
