Thank you for downloading Scatter. We hope you enjoy using this plugin as much as we enjoyed creating it.

Introduction

Scatter is a live audio effect that generates up to 64 grains of which all have a randomised position in the audio buffer and stereo field. This results in a variety of outputs from sporadic and chaotic repeats at lower grain values (for example 1-16), to dense shimmering textures at higher values (for example, 64 grains). Pitch randomisation is optional and can be locked to chromatic, octaves, fifths and major/minor modes.

We've also provided a built-in reverb that provides an additional tool to help scatter your sound into the void. You can also control the playback direction of the grains (forwards or reversed) and freeze the incoming audio at any time.

Installation

Once you've downloaded the file, extract the ZIP and run the installer. By default, the plugin is installed into:

Once installed, open your preferred DAW. Scatter is a VST3 and AU plugin, so you'll need to ensure your DAW is set-up correctly to find and load the plugin. The above directories are where most DAWs expect these files to be — otherwise some hosts can't find a plugin on the machine. E.g. this is the case for FL Studio or Cubase with VST3 files.

On Mac, Scatter installs both VST3 and AU formats of the plugin by default. If you want to install only one of these, please select the format by clicking "Customise" in the Installation Type tab.

If you use any other folder for your plugins on Windows, please select it by clicking "Browse" in the Destination Location Panel during the installation.

Using Scatter

To get started, we recommend loading Scatter as an effect on a live instrument/MIDI instrument track and just playing some notes. Scatter has an internal audio buffer of 1 second which is always recording. The plugin engine generates grains from this buffer.

Grains Slider

The ‘Grains’ slider, situated below the coloured grains visualiser, controls the number of grains. At 0 (far left) no grains are generated. As you turn up the control (to the right) more grains are added to the 1 second recording buffer. Up to 64 grains can be added.

The colour coding of the grains can be used as a reference point. Results will vary depending on other factors such as shape and size of the grains, but the colours can help simplify the process:

1-16 Grains (BLUE)

Sporadic. Useful for oddly timed glitches or more simple textures. Minor and Major pitch randomisation works best here with single notes being passed through the effect.

17-32 (PURPLE)

Cluttered. Grains become more frequent and the likelihood of overlapping is increased, resulting in a much more up-front effect.

33-48 (YELLOW)

Chaotic. Grains begin to spread across each other and more of the buffer, resulting in a much more chaotic sound.

49-64 (GREEN)

Smear. Grains are now spread across the a majority of buffer, resulting in a silky smooth effect. Try increasing the pitch an octave to create a shimmer reverb effect.

The brightness and glow of each individual grain mirrors the amplitude of that grain.

Size

This sets the size of the grains, from 30ms to 1 second (the full size of the recording buffer).

Feedback

Controls the amount of grains that are fed back into the recording buffer. Larger values result in longer decay times.

Note: When Freeze is active, feedback has no affect as the buffer has been locked.

Space

A high-quality reverb send. This reverb has a dark and expansive colour.

Shape

Sets the shape of all the grains. There are 4 shapes to choose from, from left to right:

• Rectangle: sustained grains, resulting in a more intense sound
• Exponential decay: quick decay for snappier and sporadic grains
• Smoothed triangle: smoother textures and grain transitions
• Linear attack: Reverse-like effect

Mix

Dry/Wet control of the entire plugin. This also raises the volume of the grain engine. At 100% there is no input signal.

Pitch

Controls the pitch of the grains. You can choose from 5 transposition modes that lock the control to the applicable transpositions:

• Chromatic
• Octaves
• Fifths
• Minor
• Major

To choose a pitch transposition mode, click on the pitch dropdown.

You also have control over random modulation that is applied to the pitch, which also mirrors the selected pitch transposition mode. To add modulation, click and drag the outer modulation ring. You can also choose which direction the randomisation is applied — up, down or both. We recommend BLUE grains for Fifths, Minor and Major, and GREEN for Octaves. Anyone wishing to create atonal textures will feel right at home with any colour for Chromatic randomisation!

Freeze

Freezes the recording buffer. When this is active, no more audio information is recorded. Try holding a single note for a few seconds, freezing the buffer and then play around with BLUE grains and MINOR or OCTAVES pitch modes.

Reverse

Reverses the playback of the grains. When this is off (as it is by default) grains always play forwards.

Uninstalling

If you wish to uninstall the plugin and/or the demo version of the plugin, on Mac you need to delete the files from the following locations:

On Windows, find ‘Add or remove programs’ in your system settings. Find the plugin and click Uninstall.

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