Droplets
Droplets is a physics-based sequencer, offering a new way to create and perform music
The plugin simulates droplets falling at musical intervals, bouncing off of bars to trigger notes and generate intricate musical patterns.
The user is able to place, arrange and modify 'bars' and 'drippers' in a variety of ways. The interval at which a dripper emits droplets can be adjusted by turning its handle. The pitch of a bar can be controlled by adjusting its length. By making even small adjustments, entirely new musical patterns will arise.
Features
Quantization
Control how tightly notes are quantized to the musical grid using the 'quantize' parameter. Notes can be quantized either to the nearest 16th or 12th note by changing the 'division' setting.
Tempo affects simulation speed
Changing the tempo (either inside the standalone application or in your DAW) causes the whole physics simulation to speed up or slow down, meaning that the musical pattern will stay constant at any tempo.
Scale selection
You can determine what pitches bars may be tuned to with the scale wheel. Choose from one of the many premade scale presets, or create your own scale by selecting the root note and choosing the scale degrees.
Wind
Turn up the 'wind' setting and droplets will start being blown in random directions, leading to a constantly evolving pattern.
Gravity manipulation
Change the strength and direction of gravity to discover new patterns within the same arrangement.
Probability
Introduce random variation by setting the chance that a dripper will emit a droplet each cycle.
Preset saving
Easily save and share preset files containing both the layout and parameter settings.
Synth engine
Droplets features an in-built synth engine, capable of FM, sampling, additive and subtractive synthesis, and featuring multiple effects and modulation settings, allowing you to design unique sounds entirely inside the program. Save synth presets to easily reuse a sound with a new layout.
MIDI output
Droplets can be used as a MIDI generator to trigger your favourite virtual instrument or external synthesizer.
MIDI learn
Most parameters in Droplets can be controlled using MIDI CC. Simply right click on a parameter, select “Learn MIDI,” and move a knob/slider on your MIDI controller to create a new mapping.
DAW compatibility
Droplets can be run as a standalone application, or as a plugin inside any DAW supporting VST3 or AU plugins, including Ableton Live, Logic, Bitwig, Reaper, FL Studio, Cubase, Studio One, etc.
Versions
Each format comes in both a standard and MIDI-only version. The MIDI-only version does not feature the in-built synth engine, and can only be used to send MIDI to other instruments.
- Standalone (Mac, Windows)
- VST3 (Mac, Windows)
- AU (Mac only)
System requirements
MacOS
- Version 10.10 or higher.
- Intel Core i5 processor / Native Apple Silicon support
- 4GB of RAM
- OpenGL 3.2 compatible GPU
Windows
- Windows 7 or higher.
- Intel Core i5 processor
- 4GB of RAM
- OpenGL 3.2 compatible GPU
An internet connection is required for license activation
Note for Ableton users
Ableton Live is unable to load MIDI-only plugins. The workaround is to use the standard VST version, and simply disable the in-built synth engine, by clicking on the power button in the top-left of the synth panel. You can still use the standard version to send MIDI to any other instrument in Live.
Also note that the standard AU version cannot send MIDI, and so you must use the standard VST version.
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