Grains
README
Grains
A granular synthesizer and live-processing effect for the Workshop System Computer.
Controls
Switch Actions
- Down (Flick): Cycle forward a page.
- Down (Short): Cycle back a page.
- Up (Flick): Toggle Freeze.
- Down (Hold 2s): Live mode: Load buffer/ sample. Freeze mode: Save Buffer.
Page 1: Grain Control
- Main: Position
- X: Density
- Y: Size
Page 2: Grain Tone
- Main: Envelope Shape (Hamm, Decay, Square, Inverse, Gauss)
- X: Left: Jitter, Middle: Chords, Right: Random Reverse
- Y: Pitch
Page 3: Mix & Spread
- Main: Wet / Dry Mix
- X: Feedback (Live Mode) / Diffusion (Freeze Mode)
- Y: Stereo Spread
Page 4: Reverb
- Main: Reverb Mix
- X: Room Size
- Y: Damping
IO
Audio In 1 (L/Mono): Audio input for granular recording.
Audio In 2 (R): CV input for Grain Density.
CV 1 In (Pitch): 1V/Octave tracking for granular pitch.
CV 2 In (Position): Granular playhead offset.
Pulse 1 In (Trigger): External grain spawn trigger.
Pulse 2 In (Freeze): Toggles granular buffer recording.
Audio Out 1/2: Main stereo output (Mixed or Wet).
CV 1 Out (Envelope): Looping Ramp 0-5V synced to buffer length.
CV 2 Out (Playhead): Random CV per grain (0-5V).
Pulse 1 Out (Grain Gate): Fires a gate synced to grain spawning.
Pulse 2 Out (Freeze State): HIGH when the buffer is frozen.
Sample Management
The module features 16 internal slots for audio storage. Samples are streamed directly from flash memory with zero latency.
- Slots 1-4 (Persistent Recordings): These slots hold audio captured directly on the module using the Freeze/Record function. They survive power cycles.
- Slots 5-16 (User Samples): These slots are reserved for custom audio files loaded via the
web/grains_sample_manager.html.
Also available under: https://vincentmaurer.de/grains/grains_manager.html
The Save Menu
To save a buffer into a slot:
- Ensure you're in freeze mode (LED 6 is ON).
- Hold the momentary switch DOWN for 2 seconds.
- LED 5 will be on to indicate the Save Menu is active.
- Use the Main Knob to scroll through slots 1-4.
- LEDs 1-4 display the slot number in 4-bit binary.
- Let go of the switch to save the buffer and exit.
The Load Menu
To load a sample into the engine:
- Ensure you're not in freeze mode (LED 6 is OFF).
- Hold the momentary switch DOWN for 2 seconds.
- LED 6 will be on to indicate the Load Menu is active.
- Use the Main Knob to scroll through slots 1-16.
- LEDs 1-4 display the slot number in 4-bit binary.
- Let go of the switch to load the sample and exit.
Tape Mode
Tape Mode is a sample player engine that transforms the Grains module into a sample player with manual scrubbin
Activation
To enter Tape Mode, hold the momentary switch DOWN during the power-up sequence (while the LEDs are chasing). LED 5 will remain ON to indicate the mode is active.
Controls
- Main Knob: Manual position scrubbing and playhead offset.
- X Knob: Playback Speed (Center is 1.0x).
- Y Knob: Pitch control (Center is 1.0x).
- Switch UP: Momentary pause.
- Switch DOWN (Hold): Open the Slot Selection menu. Use the Main Knob to select a slot (1-16).
IO
- CV 1 In (Pitch): 1V/Octave tracking for playback pitch.
- CV 2 In (Position): Playhead position offset / scrubbing.
- Pulse 1 In: Play/Pause Gate (HIGH = Play, LOW = Pause).
- Pulse 2 In: Resets the playhead to the beginning of the sample.
- Audio Out 1/2: Main stereo output.
- CV 1 Out: Playhead Position Ramp (0-5V).
- CV 2 Out: Movement/Speed CV (Bipolar).
- Pulse 1 Out: Fires a trigger at the End of Cycle (EOC).
- Pulse 2 Out: Fires a trigger at the Midpoint of the sample.
Visuals
- LED 5: Indicates Tape Mode is active.
- LEDs 0, 1, 3, 2: Circular progress bar showing the current playhead position.
- Slot Menu: Displays the current slot in 4-bit binary (LEDs 1-4) while the switch is held down.
Created for the Music Thing Modular Workshop System by Vincent Maurer (https://github.com/vincent-maurer/) with assistance from Google Gemini.
Thank you to everyone on the Workshop System Discord server and especially to Tom Whitwell for the module and Chris Johnson (https://github.com/chrisgjohnson) for the ComputerCard library and the great support.