The tracker workflow

Song → Chain → Phrase

Values are hexadecimal. The digits run 0–9, then A–F. For example, row 0F is decimal 15 and the next row is 10.

Song screen

The Song screen arranges chains across eight channels. The play marker follows the current row; the bottom visualizers and meters show active notes and level.

• Move with plain arrows.
• Tap ENTER on an empty cell to insert a chain.
• Use ENTER+arrows to change a chain number.
• Use NAV+right on a populated cell to open that chain.
• Use NAV+up/down to jump among populated rows.
• Use EDIT+up/down to page through the arrangement.

Song mode and Live mode

Switch modes with EDIT+left/right on the Song screen.

Chains

A chain is a list of phrases. Its right column transposes the phrase on that row. Small positive values transpose upward; high byte values represent negative offsets.

• Tap ENTER on an empty phrase slot to create/insert a phrase.
• Use ALT+(EDIT, ENTER) to clone the current phrase to an unused number. Keeping ALT+EDIT held and tapping ENTER again clones a second time.
• Use EDIT+left/right to move to the previous or next chain.
• Use NAV+right on a phrase number to open it.
• A single phrase can appear in many chains; use transpose to reuse a melodic shape at other pitches.
• Chain and phrase numbers that editing leaves unreferenced return to the pool, so inserting and cloning keep working until the project genuinely has no unused slots left.

Phrases

Each Phrase row has a row label and six editable semantic columns: note, instrument, FX1 command, FX1 value, FX2 command, and FX2 value. The instrument name at the top follows the instrument number under the cursor.

Touch selection and editing

Tap a cell to move the cursor and dismiss an existing selection. Drag across cells to select a rectangle; a light haptic marks each row or semantic-column boundary. Long-press inside the selection to open its actions. Long-press elsewhere moves the cursor to that cell and dismisses the selection.

Each expansion action is omitted independently when the selection already spans its full direction, and its label pluralizes when the existing selection covers multiple rows or columns. The clipboard is independent of the visible selection, so it remains available after tapping elsewhere.

With a selection active, ENTER+left/right applies the normal fine edit to every eligible cell, and ENTER+up/down applies the normal coarse edit. Note changes follow the project scale and sample-slice range; instruments move through defined slots; commands follow command order; values use command-specific ranges. Empty and special cells remain empty.

Note and slice Fill

Long-press a Note cell or a selection that begins in the Note column, then choose Fill. The modes are Ascending, Descending, Up/down, Repeat selected pitches, Random pitch, and Random triggers. With a sliced SAMPLE instrument they become slice-aware: pitches are shown as slice numbers, Repeat selected pitches becomes Repeat selected slices, and Random pitch becomes Random slices.

• Melodic fills preserve the existing rhythm by default. Enable Every Step to write every selected row.
• Root starts at the first playable selected note, or the last-entered note when the selection has none.
• Generated notes follow the project scale and root. For a sliced SAMPLE instrument, Start Slice and End Slice define a range within the instrument's actual slices; every generated value stays inside it.
• Repeat selected pitches cycles the playable selected notes in row order.
• Up/down rises to the middle of the selected row range, then falls symmetrically.
• Random pitch preserves rests and note-offs. Random triggers uses the selected root and density without changing instrument cells.
• For either random mode, Locked limits randomization to rows that already contain a playable note; empty and note-off rows remain untouched. Random pitch keeps that row mask exactly, while Random triggers applies Density only within it.
• Tap the displayed Mode to choose from a checked list. Tap Start Note or End Note to use the same note-name and octave picker as Instrument Root Note. The larger arrows remain available for one-step changes.
• The displayed seed makes both random modes repeatable. Drag its slider for coarse movement, use the left/right arrows for one-step changes, or tap the number to enter a value from 1 to 65,535.
• The preview does not modify the Phrase; Apply commits one edit. The next Fill starts with the most recently applied mode, options, density, seed, and separate remembered melodic-note or slice range. Cancelling does not replace those settings.

FX Automation

Long-press a selection confined to one FX lane and choose Automation. A multi-row selection defines the affected rows. Starting from a single FX cell uses all 16 Phrase rows.

• Choose an automatable command, then choose the target component directly below it. Tap a displayed command, component, or named companion value for a checked list; use the arrows for one-step changes. Structural commands are not listed.
• Draw freehand or use Ramp Up, Ramp Down, Triangle, or Sine. Minimum and Maximum limit the output range.
• The vertical labels show hexadecimal command values; the horizontal labels show Phrase steps 0–F.
• If every selected row already uses the same command, the editor selects it and approximates the existing values in the curve. Mixed or empty rows require a command choice.
• Commands with multiple components show controls for the components not being drawn. For example, MAC shows Target below Command while its Value is drawn.
• Apply writes ordinary command/value cells in one transaction. Closing without applying leaves the Phrase unchanged.

Grooves and ticks

A groove is a repeating list of tick lengths. A tick is the tracker’s internal timing unit; phrase rows last for the number of ticks supplied by the active groove. Equal values produce straight timing. Alternating long and short values produces swing.

STRAIGHT   06 06 06 06
SWING      08 04 08 04
PUSH/PULL  05 07 05 07

Use the Groove screen to edit patterns, then select a groove in Project settings or change it during playback with the GRV command. Small changes are often more musical than extreme ones.

Row delay and microtiming

Use a Phrase timing command when one row should move without changing the groove for every track. Both commands shift the entire row: its note, instrument change, and both FX lanes remain together.

Negative MTT on phrase row 00 is clamped to the phrase boundary; it does not reach back into the previous phrase. Use DLY for intentionally coarse late hits and MTT for small push/pull placement. These are Phrase commands, not Table play-head delays.

Tables

Tables are reusable command sequencers. They can automate an instrument every tick, create arpeggios and envelopes, or run one row per trigger when instrument automation is enabled.

• Each table contains command rows, similar to a Phrase without note/instrument columns.
• Assign a table on an instrument or trigger one from a Phrase with TBL.
• HOP creates loops and holds; STP ends a one-shot table.
• Tables are shared. Clone before making a variation if other instruments already depend on one.

00 VOL 0400   ; fade down
01 HOP 0110   ; hold while the fade runs
02 VOL 0560   ; rise toward 0x60
03 STP ----   ; finish the one-shot envelope

Basic writing sequence