VDMX for Windows? Here is the free alternative that runs on Windows
There is no VDMX for Windows: VDMX is made for the Mac only. If you want what VDMX users love, ISF shaders, every value driven by an LFO, the audio or a knob, panels you arrange yourself, on a Windows PC, Phosphor does that for free. It is open source, has a Windows 10 and 11 installer, sends Spout, sends and receives NDI, and maps onto projectors and LEDs in the same window.
VDMX is a trademark of its owner; Phosphor is independent and not affiliated with it. The Windows build of Phosphor is a preview: it works, updates itself and is tested automatically on every change, but it has not yet run on many different PCs.
Is there a VDMX for Windows?
No. VDMX, made by Vidvox, runs on macOS only: at the time of writing its site lists macOS 13 or later on an Intel or Apple-silicon Mac, and VDMX6 costs 199 USD (VDMX6 Plus 349 USD). There is no Windows version and no Windows port announced. Running it in a virtual machine is not a real option for live video, because a VJ app needs the graphics card directly.
So the practical question is which Windows app gives you the VDMX way of working. Phosphor was built after a close look at VDMX (its own project notes compare the two feature by feature), so most VDMX habits have a direct match.
What you get on Windows
ISF shaders, the same files
Phosphor ships Vidvox's free ISF collection, so a Windows PC gets the same blurs, glitches, colour, distortion, generator and transition shaders a VDMX user has. Your own .fs files go in the folder Help › Open ISF Shader Folder opens; shaders reload a couple of seconds after you save them in any editor.
Spout and NDI
Turn on Spout in Output & Stats and pick "Phosphor" in Resolume, TouchDesigner, OBS (Spout2 plugin) or MadMapper. NDI sends the composition and receives NDI sources as layers, with the free NDI Tools or NDI Runtime installed.
Modulation on any value
Shared modulators work like VDMX data sources: named LFOs, audio bands, step sequencers, random, the beat or a MIDI knob, followed by any number of controls and chained into each other.
MIDI, OSC and keys, with Learn
Right-click any slider or button, press Listen, move a knob. Every control also has an OSC address and OSC Query, sliders take limits and snap points, and every menu command can be mapped.
Your own panels
View › New Panel builds panels of buttons, faders and pads wired to anything and to OSC, docked or floating, like a VDMX control surface. A phone on the same Wi-Fi becomes a remote by QR code.
Mapping and shows that run themselves
Projection mapping (corner drag, mesh warp, masks, soft-edge blending, layouts per output), Art-Net and sACN LED mapping, start at login, a crash watchdog, and Export Show: a folder with its own .exe that runs on another PC without installing Phosphor.
Phosphor on Windows and on the Mac
The Windows and Mac apps are the same program with the same projects. A few things depend on the operating system:
| Feature | Mac | Windows 10 / 11 |
|---|---|---|
| Download | Phosphor-mac.zip (Apple silicon, macOS 13+), Phosphor-mac-intel.zip (macOS 10.15+) | Phosphor-windows-setup.exe (installer) or Phosphor-windows.zip, 64-bit |
| Clip grid, layers, effects, beat sync, Match the beat | ✅ | ✅ |
| ISF shaders and the ISF collection | ✅ (also reads VDMX's ISF folders) | ✅ |
| Share video with other apps | Syphon | Spout (send) |
| NDI in and out | ✅ | ✅ with NDI Tools or NDI Runtime |
| MIDI, OSC, Ableton Link | ✅ | ✅ |
| Projection mapping, LED mapping over Art-Net / sACN | ✅ | ✅ |
| Export Show (a standalone copy of the show) | ✅ | ✅ (.exe) |
| Updates itself | ✅ | ✅ (puts the old version back if an update fails) |
| FFGL plug-ins | ✅ | ➖ Mac only |
| Remove Background effect | ✅ | ⬜ not yet |
Switching from VDMX habits
- Data sources are Phosphor's shared modulators: make one LFO, then right-click any slider to follow it. Chain one into the next (scaled by, plus, speed set by…).
- Control surface plug-in becomes a panel (View › New Panel) or the Control area's Control Surface, with pages, XY pads and colour.
- Preview windows work as in VDMX: open as many as you like and switch one to an XY pad that drives two modulators.
- Media bin and layers become the clip grid: layers by columns, launched on the beat or the bar. File › Import also reads a VDMX project's media into the grid.
- Syphon out to another app becomes Spout on Windows; NDI works on both.
- Saved layouts: the Show, Outputs and Control areas, or Custom in the top bar for a free layout of panels.
What "preview" means on Windows
The Windows build ships with every release, is built, tested and opened on Windows automatically before each one, and updates itself like the Mac app. "Preview" means it has not yet been tried on many different PCs and graphics cards, so test it on your show machine before a gig. Windows SmartScreen warns once the first time: choose More info, then Run anyway. If something breaks, Help › Report a Bug sends what happened.
Questions
Is there a VDMX for Windows?
No. VDMX runs on macOS only (macOS 13 or later, Intel or Apple silicon, according to Vidvox). Phosphor is a free, open-source VJ app with ISF shaders and modular control that runs on Windows 10 and 11.
Can I use my VDMX ISF shaders on Windows?
Yes. Copy the .fs files into the folder that Help › Open ISF Shader Folder opens. Phosphor already ships Vidvox's free ISF collection, so most shaders VDMX comes with are there from the start.
Does Phosphor do Syphon on Windows?
Syphon is a Mac technology; on Windows Phosphor sends Spout instead, which Resolume, TouchDesigner, OBS and MadMapper receive. NDI works in both directions.
Is Phosphor for Windows really free?
Yes. Phosphor is free and open source (GPL), with no watermark, trial or licence key. A free account keeps 5 projects in the cloud; Pro is only for more space.
Which Windows versions does Phosphor support?
Windows 10 and 11, 64-bit, from an installer or a zip. The Windows build is a preview: new, and not yet tested on many PCs.
Try it
Download the Windows installer or see every download. On Linux? Read VDMX for Linux. Comparisons: VDMX alternative · Resolume · MadMapper · all three, feature by feature. Guides: ISF shaders · MIDI controllers.