Visual Composer

Visual AI image generation pipeline for Max/MSP — AI image providers as patchable modules.

Visual Composer is a Max 9 package that turns AI image generation into a modular, patchable system. Each model or operation is a self-contained module (patcher) with a consistent message interface, so you can wire them together like any other Max objects — generate from a prompt, edit with inpainting, remove a background, upscale, compare, and save, all inside your patch.

Powered by fal.ai for cloud inference (Flux, Ideogram, Recraft, Kontext, IC Light, Birefnet…) and sharp for local image operations.

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Requirements

Requirement	Version
Max	9.0.0 or later
macOS	12.0 (Monterey) or later
Architecture	x64 or Apple Silicon (aarch64)
Node.js	bundled with Max 9
fal.ai account	free tier available at fal.ai

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Installation

1. Copy the visual-composer folder into your Max packages directory:

   ~/Documents/Max 9/Packages/visual-composer
   

2. Install Node dependencies (required for the node.script backends):

   cd ~/Documents/Max\ 9/Packages/visual-composer/code
   npm install

3. Add your fal.ai API key. Create a .env file next to package-info.json:

   FAL_KEY=your_fal_ai_key_here
   

   Get a key at fal.ai/dashboard.

4. Restart Max (or File → Refresh Max Browser) and open the entry point:

   extras/VC Overview.maxpat
   

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Quick Start

1. Drop a GENERATE module (e.g. VCFLUXPRO) into a patch.
2. Connect a VCPROMPT to its prompt inlet.
3. Connect VCVIEW to its output to display the result.
4. Send a bang to trigger generation — the result path appears at the output.
5. Chain modules: pipe the output of VCFLUXPRO into VCREMBG to strip the background, then into VCUPSCALE.

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Module Categories

Visual Composer ships 24 modules across five categories. Each is available as a patcher in patchers/ and as a drag-and-drop snippet in the Max browser under snippets/.

GENERATE — text-to-image

Module	Model	Notes
VCFLUXPRO	Flux Pro 1.1	Fast, high quality
VCFLUXULTRA	Flux Ultra	High-res, optional reference image
VCFLUXDEV	Flux Dev	Open-weights, LoRA support
VCIDEOGRAM	Ideogram	Typography and design-focused
VCRECRAFT	Recraft	Illustration and graphic styles

EDIT — AI image editing

Module	Model	Notes
VCFILL	Flux Fill	Inpainting — fill masked regions
VCOUTPAINT	Flux Fill	Outpainting — extend image borders
VCKONTEXT	Flux Kontext	Semantic/contextual editing
VCKONTEXTMAX	Flux Kontext Max	Higher quality contextual editing
VCRELIGHT	IC Light Turbo	Change image lighting
VCREMBG	Birefnet	Background removal
VCTRYON	IDM-VTON	Virtual clothing try-on

LOCAL — local image processing (no API call)

Module	Library	Operation
VCBLUR	sharp	Gaussian blur
VCCOLOR	sharp	Hue and saturation
VCCROP	sharp	Resize to pixel dimensions
VCLEVELS	sharp	Brightness and contrast

UPSCALE

Module	Model	Notes
VCUPSCALE	Recraft Crisp Upscale	Fast, clean upscaling
VCMAGNIFIC	Magnific AI	Detail-preserving creative upscale

HELPERS

Module	Purpose
VCPROMPT	Standalone prompt editor, send to multiple modules
VCASPECT	Aspect ratio selector
VCSEED	Fixed or random seed for reproducible results
VCCOMPARE	Side-by-side image comparison
VCVIEW	Large image display with passthrough
VCSAVE	Copy output image to a folder on disk

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Package Layout

visual-composer/
├── extras/
│   └── VC Overview.maxpat     ← main dashboard / entry point
├── patchers/                  ← 24 module patchers
├── snippets/
│   ├── GENERATE/              ← drag-and-drop snippets by category
│   ├── EDIT/
│   ├── LOCAL/
│   ├── UPSCALE/
│   └── HELPERS/
├── code/
│   ├── vc.api-client.js       ← fal.ai backend (node.script)
│   ├── vc.sharp-ops.js        ← local Sharp image processor (node.script)
│   └── vc.utils.js            ← save utility (node.script)
├── help/                      ← .maxhelp file for every module
├── media/                     ← output images (gitignored)
└── package-info.json

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Further Reading

• Architecture — JS backends, message protocol, data flow
• Modules Reference — inlet/outlet guide for every module
• Setup & Configuration — API key, npm deps, troubleshooting

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License

MIT — see LICENSE.

Version

0.1.0 — Federico Del Gaudio, 2025