Contents
Introduction
XenoChop turns incoming audio into tempo-locked rhythmic cuts, repeated slices and probabilistic stutters. It is designed for drums, loops, synths, vocals, effects returns and any other source that benefits from precise rhythmic interruption.
The central sequencer combines four programmable ideas for every position: whether the step is active, how many ratchet subdivisions it creates, how loud the chopped signal is, and how likely the step is to fire. The lower panel then controls clocking, filtering, envelope shape, wet/dry balance and final output.
Main Features
4 / 8 / 12 / 16 Steps
Host-synchronised pattern lengths with 1/4, 1/8, 1/16 and 1/32 step rates.
Four Sequencer Rows
On/Off, Ratchet, Velocity and Probability are independently editable per step.
Live-First Ratchets
The first subdivision passes and captures live audio; later subdivisions repeat that captured slice.
Wet-Path Filter
Low-pass, high-pass and band-pass filtering affect only the chopped signal.
Per-Ratchet Envelope
Length, Attack, Release, Shape and Gap control every subdivision, including 1x steps.
Preset System
Factory and persistent user presets store the complete XenoChop state.
Quick Start
- Insert XenoChop on an audio track or effects bus.
- Start the DAW transport so XenoChop can follow host tempo and musical position.
- Choose a factory preset or press INIT for a clean starting state.
- Set Rate and Steps.
- Enable the sequencer steps you want to hear.
- Choose Ratchet values from 1x to 4x and set per-step Velocity and Probability.
- Use Length / Attack / Release / Gap to shape the repeated slices.
- Use Mix to balance dry and chopped audio, then level-match with Output.
Signal Flow
The filter affects only the chopped wet path. The dry side of Mix remains unfiltered, and Output gain is applied after the wet/dry blend.
Interface Overview
| Area | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Preset strip | Browse factory and user presets, save copies, delete user presets and return to Init. |
| Sequencer | Sixteen positions with On/Off, Ratchet, Velocity and Probability rows. |
| Steps / Filter tab | Rate, pattern length, Swing, Smooth, global pattern actions, filtering, Mix and Output. |
| Envelope tab | Per-subdivision envelope controls plus the Live Wet Chop display. |
The sequencer remains visible while switching the lower panel, so timing and step programming never disappear while you work on the filter or envelope.
Sequencer Rows
| Row | What it does | Range |
|---|---|---|
| On / Off | Determines whether the step can produce chopped audio. Disabled steps are silent on the wet path. | Off / On |
| Ratchet | Sets the number of subdivisions inside the step. The first subdivision captures current audio; later subdivisions repeat it. | 1x-4x |
| Velocity | Sets wet level for the step, useful for accents and ghost-note style variation. | 0-100% |
| Probability | Sets the chance that an enabled step will fire while remaining locked to the rhythmic grid. | 0-100% |
The highlighted vertical column is the current sequencer position. Steps beyond the selected 4/8/12-step length remain stored even while inactive.
Fast Pattern Editing
XenoChop is designed for painting patterns rather than adjusting every cell one at a time.
| Gesture / control | Behaviour |
|---|---|
| Click a cell | Changes the selected step immediately. |
| Drag across On / Off | Paints the same enabled or disabled state across multiple steps. |
| Drag across value rows | Uses vertical mouse position to paint Ratchet, Velocity or Probability across steps. |
| Right-click / right-drag | Sets affected cells to their minimum value. |
| OFF / ON | Sets the whole On/Off row to its minimum or maximum. |
| 1X / 4X | Sets all Ratchet cells to 1x or 4x. |
| 0% / 100% | Sets an entire Velocity or Probability row to minimum or maximum. |
Global Pattern Actions
- RANDOMISE creates a new pattern with varied states, ratchets, velocities and probabilities.
- ALL FULL enables every step and sets Ratchet to 4x, Velocity to 100% and Probability to 100%.
- CLEAR turns every step off without erasing the stored Ratchet, Velocity and Probability values.
How Ratcheting Works
XenoChop uses a live-first slice capture design. When a step fires, the first ratchet subdivision passes and captures the current incoming audio. If the step is set to 2x, 3x or 4x, the later subdivisions repeat that captured audio inside the remaining duration of the step.
1x
One gated live subdivision. It is still shaped by the ratchet envelope.
2x
One live capture followed by one repeated subdivision.
3x / 4x
Increasingly dense retriggers from the captured slice, useful for fills and stutters.
Probability comes first
An enabled step must pass its Probability test before an audible wet chop occurs. If it misses, the step does not produce the ratchet event.
Velocity applies per step
Velocity controls wet level for that step after it has been allowed to fire, so ratchet density and dynamic emphasis remain separate creative decisions.
Steps / Filter Page
| Control | Range | Function |
|---|---|---|
| Rate | 1/4, 1/8, 1/16, 1/32 | Sets each sequencer step duration relative to host tempo. |
| Steps | 4, 8, 12, 16 | Sets active pattern length; later steps remain stored. |
| Swing | 0-65% | Lengthens and shortens alternating steps while pairs remain aligned to the host grid. |
| Smooth | 0.1-20 ms | Applies short smoothing around chop transitions. Higher values reduce clicks but soften transients. |
| Filter | Off / Low-pass / High-pass / Band-pass | Selects filtering for the chopped wet signal only. |
| Cutoff | 20 Hz-20 kHz | Sets filter frequency. |
| Res | 0-100% | Sets resonance/Q around Cutoff. |
| Mix | 0-100% | Equal-power blend from dry input to fully chopped wet signal. |
| Output | -18 to +12 dB | Final gain after the wet/dry blend. |
Envelope Page
| Control | Range | Function |
|---|---|---|
| Length | 5-100% | Maximum audible portion of each subdivision. |
| Attack | 0-50 ms | Fade-in time at the start of every subdivision. |
| Release | 0-100 ms | Fade-out before the audible portion ends. |
| Shape | Linear / Exponential | Changes attack and release curvature. |
| Gap | 0-90% | Reserves silence at the end of each subdivision. |
The envelope is applied to the chopped wet path before the filter. The preview follows the current subdivision duration, so Rate, Swing and Ratchet count change how the millisecond fades fit into the available slice.
Live Wet Chop Display
- The waveform is captured after the ratchet envelope and filter.
- It is captured before the global Mix and Output controls.
- The previous waveform is retained through silent steps and probability misses until another audible wet chop is captured.
- WAITING FOR LIVE CHOP means no audible wet subdivision has been captured yet.
Click-free starting point
For drums, a useful starting point is Length 100%, Attack 0.5 ms, Release 2 ms and Gap 0%. Increase Release or Smooth only when you hear unwanted clicks.
Preset System
| Control | Behaviour |
|---|---|
| < / > | Move to previous or next preset. |
| Preset menu | Choose from separate Factory Presets and User Presets sections. |
| SAVE | Overwrites the selected user preset. On a factory preset or Init state, it opens Save As instead. |
| SAVE AS | Creates a new editable user preset. |
| DELETE | Deletes the selected user preset. Factory presets cannot be deleted. |
| INIT | Restores the original XenoChop state. |
What a preset stores
Presets store all sixteen step states, Ratchet / Velocity / Probability values, Rate, Steps, Swing, Smooth, filter settings, envelope settings, Mix and Output.
On Windows, user presets use the .xcpreset extension and are stored under %APPDATA%\Xenodimensional\XenoChop\Presets.
Factory Preset Guide
| Preset | Character |
|---|---|
| Straight Chop | Alternating sixteenth-note gates for a clear rhythmic pulse. |
| Sparse Glitch | Occasional probability-driven ratchet bursts. |
| Machine Gun | Continuous 4x retriggering for dense repetition. |
| Swing Ratchets | Varied retriggers with pronounced paired-step swing. |
| Probability Breaks | A full pattern with changing per-step probability. |
| Filtered Stutter | Short low-pass stutters with resonance. |
| Soft Tremolo | Smooth attack and release modulation with partial wet mix. |
| High-Pass Shuffle | A swung high-pass treatment suited to percussion. |
| Band-Pass Pulse | Alternating resonant band-pass pulses. |
| Broken Circuit | Rapid, sparse and irregular high-pass glitches. |
| Wife Swap | A full-level 16-step ratchet pattern with 51% Mix and +6.1 dB Output. |
Factory presets are read-only starting points. Use SAVE or SAVE AS to create an editable user copy.
Sound Recipes
Punchy Drum Chop
Rate 1/16; Steps 16. Use 2x or 4x on selected fills. Length 80-100%, Attack about 0.5 ms, Release about 2 ms. Mix 50-100%, Output matched to source.
Soft Rhythmic Tremolo
Enable all steps at 1x. Length 55-80%, Attack 5-15 ms, Release 15-40 ms, Mix 30-70%, Filter Off.
High-Pass Percussion Shuffle
Rate 1/16, Swing 15-35%, High-pass around 800 Hz-3 kHz, Resonance 10-30%, with Probability on a few off-beat steps.
Glitch Fill
Rate 1/32; Steps 4 or 8. Randomise, then reduce active steps. Ratchets 3x-4x, Probability 40-80%, short Length and a small Gap.
Filtered Vocal Repeat
Rate 1/8 or 1/16. Use Band-pass or Low-pass, Attack 2-8 ms and Release 10-30 ms. Automate Mix at phrase endings.
Controlled Chaos
Start from Probability Breaks. Keep important downbeats at 100% probability, Randomise the rest, then save each useful variation.
Automation and Transport
Transport Behaviour
XenoChop follows host tempo and musical position while the transport is playing. Swing remains paired to the DAW grid rather than drifting over time.
When playback stops, the captured chop buffer and filter state are cleared silently. The next Play command starts with an empty capture buffer so stale audio cannot replay.
Automation
Sequencer step states and values can be automated from the host. Rate, Steps, Swing, Smooth, filter, envelope, Mix and Output are also plugin parameters.
Good continuous targets
Mix, Filter Cutoff, Resonance, Swing, Gate Length and Gap.
Good abrupt targets
Step Probability, Ratchet values, step On/Off states and short preset changes.
Level Matching
Start with Output at 0 dB, compare dry and wet at similar loudness, then adjust Output until the processed and unprocessed states feel comparable.
Troubleshooting
| Symptom | Check |
|---|---|
| No chopped sound | Start transport. Confirm at least one step is On, Velocity and Probability are above 0%, and Mix is not fully Dry. |
| Wet side is quiet | Check step Velocity, envelope Length/Gap and filter settings before raising Output. |
| Clicks at chop boundaries | Increase Attack, Release or Smooth slightly. Very short slices may need more smoothing. |
| Filter seems inactive | The filter affects only the wet path. Increase Mix or temporarily use 100% Wet while adjusting it. |
| DELETE is disabled | Only user presets can be deleted. Factory presets and Init are protected. |
| WAITING FOR LIVE CHOP | Play audio through an enabled step that successfully passes its Probability test. |
| Old audio after stop/start | v1.0 clears captured slice history at transport stop and again before new playback. Confirm the current v1.0 plugin is loaded. |
Specifications & Version 1.0 Release
Core Specifications
| Plugin type | Tempo-synchronised stereo audio effect |
| Pattern length | 4, 8, 12 or 16 steps |
| Step rate | 1/4, 1/8, 1/16 or 1/32 |
| Ratchet count | 1x-4x per step |
| Swing | 0-65% |
| Smooth | 0.1-20 ms |
| Filter | Off, Low-pass, High-pass, Band-pass |
| Cutoff | 20 Hz-20 kHz |
| Envelope Attack | 0-50 ms |
| Envelope Release | 0-100 ms |
| Gate Length | 5-100% |
| Gap | 0-90% |
| Output | -18 to +12 dB |
Version 1.0 Release
XenoChop v1.0 is the first public release. It brings together the completed host-synchronised sequencer, 1x-4x ratchet engine, per-step probability and velocity, wet-path filtering, ratchet envelope, live waveform display, DAW automation and the factory/user preset system.
Performance Core
Tempo-synchronised chopping, paired-step swing, live-first ratchet capture and probability-driven variation.
Sound Shaping
Per-subdivision envelope, wet-only filtering, equal-power Mix and post-blend Output gain.