CHIPSLAPPER

Update

I've just updated Chipslapper so that instead of throwing a file error on load and doing nothing in Smp mode, it now boasts the samples from the famous and beloved Protracker ST-01 sample disk! The samples are mapped to the entire MIDI keyboard range and I've fixed all the root notes to match roughly with the 440hz-based synth modes, although I haven't fine-tuned them (which would ruin that classic, jarring, ST-01 partyhacked technotune vibe!). To use the loop controls, you first need to open the Sample Editor in Reaktor (you should know how to do this if you're a Reaktor owner, but if you don't, it's the waveform icon at the bottom/middle of the plugin window, above the 'play' icon) and then enable looping. You can also do ping-pong or reverse play here, and once looping's enabled, you can automate the LoopLength/etc controls. The readme.txt contains the sample list and corresponding numbers on the Select slider. So give it a try and relive the good old days!

About

Chipslapper by Syphus

Sure, the world probably doesn't need another simplistic, single-osc Reaktor synth, but I made this specifically to mimic the behaviour of so-called 'chipsamples' in ProTracker, FastTracker2 and similar trackers.

Traditionally, since the late '80s, tracked chipmusic has been created by looping short (~32byte) samples which the tracker automatically uses as pitched instruments. Effects are applied using hex commands and more advanced trackers had extended instrument options which emulated the behaviour of basic synths.

Anyway, purely for my own work, I wanted to have a straightforward, cross-platform means of composing using my old tracker styles/technique in newer DAWs like Ableton Live. If it's useful to any other afficionados, great - but most people will just find it to be a very dull synth that looks like a Reaktor beginner's project ;)

THAT'S about it. Comments welcome - @echolevel on Twitter - but remember I made this mainly for my own use so I won't be spending loads of time developing it further. Maybe one day I'll get good enough at C++ to make this a proper cross-platform free VST plugin that doesn't require Reaktor. Maybe. One day.

THANKS to anyone/everyone whose snippets I used in this: particularly Tim (trash80), who was very helpful.

IF YOU LIKED THIS (or even if you didn't), ymVST is a great (but Windows-only) free plugin which emulates the Atari ST[x] family's YM chip. I only made Chipslapper because I sometimes need to work on a Mac and nearly fuck-all plugins will run on the damn thing.

WTF

Anyone who's familiar with FastTracker2 should recognise what's what in this ensemble:

• Drop the polyphony in Reaktor if you want to emulate XM channel-count limitations, or switch to mono and use the severely restricted delay controls to mimic pattern-delay.
• Vibdepth (pitchmod vibrato) behaves in the FT2 way, with sweep delaying the effect and phase allowing you to turn the triangle waveshape into FT2's two optional sawtooth shapes.
• Pan has a Random Range control which, when twiddled, means each successive noteon event will be given a random pan position within that range. This is the closest I can be bothered to get to FT2's pan envelope, as it wasn't synced with the song anyway...if you want proper panning envelopes for phrases of notes, do them in your DAW!
• One thing which definitely doesn't appear in FT2 or PT is the pulsewidth modulation. However, I often use a bank of around 8 squarewave samples with varying pulsewidths and then cycle through them over the course of a melody line: the pulsewidth mod emulates *that* trick, which in turn was always supposed to emulate pulsewidth mod ;)
• Chip Waveform - draw it yourself. This is a bit flakey and doesn't seem to save the shape if you switch waveforms to something else and then back again.
• Chip Sample - I've included a single small looping sample which *hopefully* gets included with the .Ens (if not, I need to figure out how), but the idea is just to load in a short sample and then play it like an instrument. Because Reaktor isn't as limited as PT/FT2, it's slightly less fun to use...but you can experiment with longer samples too and play around. 'Select' chooses between samples in the sample map, so I guess you could load in a tonne of samples and then automate the Select knob in your DAW to get a wavetable thing going on...
• Arpeggiator - There isn't one. Real musicians write their own arpeggiations; proper oldschool chipmusicians, even more so ;) But if you're really keen on abdicating compositional responsibility, your DAW probably has an arpeggiator built in as a MIDI effect. Go nuts!