This is an alternative to the visualisation bridging plugin (foo_vis_bacon) which seems like a waste of time to me, but if it makes you happy then thats cool.

CAVEAT: Though this method should work for anyone (it even works with no soundcard), the best results are achieved with a full duplex soundcard i.e. one that can record what is being played back.

Requirements:

• An audio player - how about Foobar 2000
• Visual Plugin Player - Cool hack but a little hard to find
• Some WinAMP plugins - If you want use AVS then it must not have the WinAMP version check, AVS 2.5a2 works fine.
• Enabler - Allows you to change object properties in running apps, used to force unco-operative installers to continue

Extract VPP (Visual Plugin Player) to somewhere handy along with any plugins you have - I use the same directory for VPP and the plugins but you can put them whereever you like. You are bound to find some installers that will check to see if WinAMP is installed and they don't all do it the same way, so use Enabler to force their "Next >" button to be active.

When you start VPP the first time it will ask for the location of your plugin folder - simple enough. Now choose the plugin you want to run and choose Wavgen from VPP's context menu - this generates random noise so you can see the plugin is working properly. Switch Wavgen off and set the recording input of your soundcard so its recording what is being played (usually called "Stereo Mix" or "Mix")

I hope this all makes sense - comments/gripes welcome.

I tried doing something similar with Winamp and its line-in plugin, but noticed that the vis isn't sychronized very well with the music (compared to playing through a "normal" Winamp plugin).

I was trying to avoid the necessity of installing Winamp (might keep the llama-haters happy I don't care if it syncs better or not as I personally don't see eyecandy as a necessary/desirable feature - that's why i chose fb2k.

Edit: No argument here, vis_bacon is the way to go, excellent work.

You don't need Winamp to use foo_vis_bacon. In fact, it even works with the latest AVS. Some people will notice a minor stuttering, depending on their system speed. The visualization manager should be set to update at least as fast as your vis of choice can render frames. (I doubt you can set it to match, though, as Winamp's vis API was never designed to synchronize vis redraw with sample/spectrum updates...)