DYSEKT docs · Shaping sound
Sound settings
The SOUND tab gives every slice, pad or zone its own level, pitch, time-stretch, envelope, LFO, playback behaviour and loop.
Everything here applies to the selected slice, pad or zone, or to all of them with APPLY TO › ALL. See Selected or all.
#Level and routing
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| GAIN | The level of this slice, pad or zone. Double-click the value to type it. |
| PAN | Stereo position. Double-click the value to type it. |
| FADES | Fade in and out to avoid clicks. Drag the handles: left is the fade in, right the fade out. Shift-drag for fine steps. Double-click a fade's value to set it back to 0. |
| FULL LEVEL | Ignores velocity and always plays at full level. |
| OUTPUT | Sends this slice, pad or zone to a separate plugin output, up to 16 stereo outputs. |
#Pitch and time
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| SEMITONE | Transposes in semitones, up to four octaves. Big shifts colour the sound. Double-click the knob to reset it. |
| FINE | Fine tuning in cents. Double-click the knob to reset it. |
| PITCH | The current transposition. Double-click it to type semitones (top half) or cents (bottom half). |
| SYNC | Locks playback to the host tempo, so the slice stretches to fit your project's BPM. |
| PITCH MODE | How DYSEKT changes pitch and time. See below. |
#Pitch modes
| Mode | Best for |
|---|---|
| Stretch | An all-rounder: pitch and time change separately. |
| Tight | Material where transients matter. |
| Beats | Drums and loops. |
| Repitch | Tape-style: pitch and speed change together. |
| Cyclic | Grain playback, for textures and stutters. |
In Cyclic mode, two more controls appear:
- CYCLIC STRETCH: how far each grain is stretched, 100–1600%.
- GRAIN SIZE: the length of each repeated grain, 10–200 ms. Short is metallic, long is stuttery.
Drag either one, Shift-drag for fine steps, or double-click to type.
#Envelope
The ENVELOPE page of the MODULATION panel shapes each note's level:
- ATTACK: time to reach full level.
- DECAY: time to fall to the sustain level.
- SUSTAIN: the level held while the note is on.
- RELEASE: the fade after the note ends.
Drag the knobs, or drag the nodes on the envelope display: attack and decay horizontally, sustain vertically. Double-click a value to type it.
#LFO
The LFO page adds slow, repeating movement:
- LFO ON switches it on or off. The light pulses at the LFO rate while it runs.
- Shape: SINE, TRIANGLE, SAW UP, SAW DOWN, SQUARE or RANDOM.
- RATE: the speed in Hz, or a note division from 1/64 to 4 BARS with SYNC on. Double-click the knob to reset it.
- RETRIG restarts the LFO on every note.
- Amounts for PITCH, FILTER, LEVEL and PAN, each bipolar. For LEVEL, the amount is how far the level dips each cycle: a SQUARE at 100% is a tempo-synced gate, and a negative amount flips it.
#Playback
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| TRIGGER | One Shot plays to the end; Gate stops when you let go; Toggle starts and stops on each hit. |
| CHOKE GROUP | Slices or pads in the same group cut each other off. |
| REVERSE | Plays the sample backwards. |
| PLAY TO END | Ignores the slice's end and keeps playing into the rest of the sample. |
| LOOP | Loops between the loop markers while the note is held. |
#Note repeat
NOTE REPEAT retriggers the slice in time while you hold it. In Toggle mode, press once to start and again to stop.
- REPEAT RATE: 1/4 to 1/64, each with a triplet (T). Click for the list, or use the arrows to step.
- SWING: pushes every second repeat late; 50% is straight. Double-click to reset it, or double-click its value to type.
#Loop
With LOOP on, the loop range shows on the waveform:
- Drag an end to set the loop start or end.
- Drag the lit middle to move the whole loop.
- Shading shows the crossfades.
The loop fields set it exactly:
| Field | What it does |
|---|---|
| LOOP START | Where the loop begins. Drag, or double-click to type. |
| LOOP END | Where the loop ends. Drag, or double-click to type. |
| LOOP FADE IN | A fade after the loop start. Shift-drag for fine steps, double-click to type. |
| LOOP TYPE | Forward, or ping-pong back and forth. |
| LOOP FADE OUT | A fade before the loop end. Shift-drag for fine steps, double-click to type. |
LOOP START and LOOP END can be automated: in the AUTOMATION tab, pick a slot and click the START or END value.
#Freeze
FREEZE, beside the loop direction keys, holds a sound for as long as the note is held: it plays up to the freeze point, then carries on from the sound at that moment, steady, with each note in a chord keeping its pitch. Short stabs and plucks become playable, held sounds.
- The freeze point is set just after the attack. Drag on the loop display, or the single handle under it, to choose which moment is held; double-click the display to go back to just after the attack.
- On the main waveform, a dashed line marks the freeze point and the held part is tinted. Drag the handle under the waveform to move it.
- Moving the point while a note is held changes the held sound as you drag.
- The envelope shapes it: Decay, Sustain and Release work as on a synth, so a held stab can settle and ring out.
- FREEZE and LOOP take turns, and FREEZE plays forwards (it turns Reverse off). The held part is made in the background a moment after you switch FREEZE on or move the point.
- While a note holds, its playhead waits at the freeze point and pulses.
- In ONE SHOT the attack always plays through to the freeze point; the held part lasts while the key is down.
- With SYNC on, a frozen note keeps its own speed: it holds one moment, so there is no tempo to match.
- The held part keeps the sound's stereo width at the freeze point: a centred stab stays centred.
- Tones stay steady and noise stays noisy: each partial is held as one tone, while breath, hiss and room keep moving, so the held part sounds natural rather than metallic.
- Pitch (STRETCH and CRISP) is rendered into the held part, so a held, pitched note costs no more than an unpitched one.
#Keys mode extras
In Keys mode the SOUND tab also has PORTAMENTO (glide between notes in mono) and BEND RANGE (the pitch-bend wheel range in semitones). See Keys mode.