Transient shaper
Boosts or softens the attack and sustain of each hit, independent of level, with a floor, mix and output trim.
- Dynamics
- Since 0.2.0
- dynamics
- transient
- attack
- sustain
- punch
- drums
A transient shaper changes the shape of each hit rather than its level: more snap or less, a longer ring or a tighter one.
What it does#
Each channel keeps a level that holds every peak for 10 ms, so tones above 50 Hz read as steady, and two followers of it. One rises slowly and falls instantly, so it lags only while a hit grows: that gap is the hit's attack. The other rises instantly and falls slowly, so it stays above only while a hit decays: that gap is its sustain. Attack and Sustain set the gain, in decibels, applied in proportion to each gap, reaching their full value when a gap is 12 dB. The gain follows the shape of the sound, not its loudness, so soft and loud hits change alike, and a held tone with no onset or decay passes unchanged.
The fast follower attacks in 1 ms and releases in 20 ms; Speed multiplies those times for the slow side. Below Floor the shaping fades out over 6 dB, so quiet noise between hits is not boosted. Mix blends the shaped signal with the dry one, and Output trims the result. With Attack and Sustain at zero the node passes audio bit for bit.
When to use it#
Use it to add punch to drums or plucks, to soften harsh attacks, to bring out a room's ring or to dry it up, all without setting a threshold. To control level instead of shape, use the Compressor; to silence the gaps, use the Gate.
Ports#
| Port | Direction | Signal | Lanes |
|---|---|---|---|
audio | Input | Audio | Inferred from the cable |
audio | Output | Audio | Inferred from the cable |
Parameters#
| Parameter | Label | Range | Default | Unit | Scale | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
attack | Attack | -24 to 24 | 0 | dB | linear | Gain on onsets: positive adds punch, negative softens hits. |
sustain | Sustain | -24 to 24 | 0 | dB | linear | Gain on decays: positive brings out tails and room, negative tightens them. |
speed | Speed | 2 to 20 | 8 | × | log | Ratio of the slow to the fast follower times; higher treats longer spans as attack and sustain. |
floor | Floor | -80 to 0 | -60 | dBFS | linear | Below this level shaping fades out, so quiet noise is not boosted. |
mix | Mix | 0 to 1 | 1 | linear | Dry/shaped blend. | |
output | Output | -24 to 24 | 0 | dB | linear | Gain after shaping. |
Attack (attack)#
Gain on onsets, from −24 to 24 dB. Positive values add snap; negative values soften hits.
Sustain (sustain)#
Gain on decays, from −24 to 24 dB. Positive values bring out tails and room; negative values tighten them.
Speed (speed)#
The ratio, from 2 to 20, between the slow and fast follower times. Higher values treat a longer stretch of each onset as attack and of each decay as sustain.
Floor (floor)#
The level, from −80 to 0 dBFS, below which shaping fades out.
Mix (mix)#
Blend of the dry signal (0) and the shaped signal (1).
Output (output)#
Gain after shaping, from −24 to 24 dB.
Tips#
- Boosting Attack raises peaks: lower Output or follow with a Limiter.
- A negative Sustain is a quick way to dry up a boomy drum.
- Raise Floor when a Sustain boost lifts the noise between hits.
See also#
Help patches
Each help patch is an ordinary Toy that teaches one idea. The diagram shows the Patch; the preview shows its Frame. Open it in TuneToys to play and edit it.
1. Punch up a drum hit
beginner Teaches: attack, sustain, output
A transient shaper adds snap to a synthetic drum and shortens its ring.
MIDI1 lane
Audio2ch
Fundamental pitch, capped below Nyquist; detune uses cents. Range: 20–20000 Hz. Default: 220 Hz. Logarithmic scale. Units: Hz.
Hz
Output gain. Range: 0–0.5 ×. Default: 0.12 ×. Linear scale. Units: linear gain.
×
Selects the implemented algorithm. Choices are discrete and are not LFO targets. Range: 0–7. Default: 0. Linear scale. Units: unitless.
Cycle offset; Gate rising edges restart phase from this position. Range: 0–1 cycles. Default: 0 cycles. Linear scale. Units: cycles.
cycles
Pitch offset in cents. Range: -1200–1200 cents. Default: 0 cents. Linear scale. Units: cents.
cents
On or off. A rising edge retriggers; held on runs the oscillator or envelope. A control cable switches it at 0.5. Range: 0–1. Default: 1. Linear scale. Units: unitless.
Semitones a full pitch bend on the MIDI input moves the note, up or down. Range: 0–48 st. Default: 2 st. Linear scale. Units: st.
st
Time constant of the slide from one MIDI note's pitch to the next; 0 jumps. Range: 0–2000 ms. Default: 0 ms. Linear scale. Units: ms.
ms
Audio2ch
Peak amplitude of white noise. Each channel and node path owns a repeatable independent stream; preparation restarts it. Range: 0–0.5 ×. Default: 0.12 ×. Linear scale. Units: linear gain.
×
Audio2ch
Audio2ch
Filter cutoff, capped at 0.45 times sample rate. Range: 20–20000 Hz. Default: 1200 Hz. Logarithmic scale. Units: Hz.
Hz
State-variable filter Q. Range: 0.5–12 Q. Default: 0.707 Q. Linear scale. Units: Q.
Q
Selects the implemented algorithm. Choices are discrete and are not LFO targets. Range: 0–5. Default: 1. Linear scale. Units: unitless.
One or two cascaded state-variable stages; notch/all-pass retain their response semantics. Range: 0–1. Default: 0. Linear scale. Units: unitless.
Audio2ch
Body.in2ch
dB
Position on a two-lane mix: −1 left, 0 centre, 1 right. Constant-power for a one-lane channel, balance for a two-lane one; ignored on other widths. Range: -1–1. Default: 0. Linear scale. Units: unitless. The ring fills from zero for this signed linear range. Manual editing is unavailable while this host owns the control.
Read only
Click.in2ch
dB
Position on a two-lane mix: −1 left, 0 centre, 1 right. Constant-power for a one-lane channel, balance for a two-lane one; ignored on other widths. Range: -1–1. Default: 0. Linear scale. Units: unitless. The ring fills from zero for this signed linear range. Manual editing is unavailable while this host owns the control.
Read only
Mix output level in decibels, after every channel. −60 dB is off; 0 dB leaves the sum unchanged. Range: -60–12 dB. Default: 0 dB. Linear scale. Units: dB.
dB
Audio2ch
Audio2ch
Done1 lane
Time to rise to full gain. Range: 0–10000 ms. Default: 10 ms. Linear scale. Units: ms.
ms
Time to fall to sustain in ADSR, or zero in AD. Range: 0–10000 ms. Default: 120 ms. Linear scale. Units: ms.
ms
On or off. A rising edge retriggers; held on runs the oscillator or envelope. A control cable switches it at 0.5. Range: 0–1. Default: 0. Linear scale. Units: unitless.
Selects the implemented algorithm. Choices are discrete and are not LFO targets. Range: 0–2. Default: 0. Linear scale. Units: unitless.
Continuous concave/linear/convex segment curvature. Range: -1–1. Default: 0. Linear scale. Units: unitless.
Repeats complete envelope cycles while Gate is held. Range: 0–1. Default: 0. Linear scale. Units: unitless.
Restart from the current gain or reset to zero on a rising Gate. Range: 0–1. Default: 0. Linear scale. Units: unitless.
Duration of the held part in repeating ADSR/AR cycles. Range: 0–10000 ms. Default: 100 ms. Linear scale. Units: ms.
ms
Audio2ch
Audio2ch
Gain on onsets: positive adds punch, negative softens hits. Range: -24–24 dB. Default: 9 dB. Linear scale. Units: dB.
dB
Gain on decays: positive brings out tails and room, negative tightens them. Range: -24–24 dB. Default: -6 dB. Linear scale. Units: dB.
dB
Ratio of the slow to the fast follower times; higher treats longer spans as attack and sustain. Range: 2–20 ×. Default: 8 ×. Logarithmic scale. Units: ×.
×
Below this level shaping fades out, so quiet noise is not boosted. Range: -80–0 dBFS. Default: -60 dBFS. Linear scale. Units: dBFS.
dBFS
Dry/shaped blend. Range: 0–1. Default: 1. Linear scale. Units: unitless.
Gain after shaping. Range: -24–24 dB. Default: -3 dB. Linear scale. Units: dB.
dB
Audio2ch
Connections as text
- Noise audio output connected to Filter audio input
- Oscillator audio output connected to Mixer body.in input
- Filter audio output connected to Mixer click.in input
- Mixer audio output connected to Envelope audio input
- Envelope audio output connected to Transient shaper audio input
- Transient shaper audio output connected to Patch outputs audio input
- Attack raises or lowers the start of each hit; Sustain raises or lowers its ring.
- It follows the shape of the hit, not its level, so loud and soft hits change alike.
2. Speed, floor and mix
intermediate Teaches: sustain, speed, floor, mix
Bring out a drum's ring without lifting the hiss under it, and blend the result.
MIDI1 lane
Audio2ch
Fundamental pitch, capped below Nyquist; detune uses cents. Range: 20–20000 Hz. Default: 220 Hz. Logarithmic scale. Units: Hz.
Hz
Output gain. Range: 0–0.5 ×. Default: 0.12 ×. Linear scale. Units: linear gain.
×
Selects the implemented algorithm. Choices are discrete and are not LFO targets. Range: 0–7. Default: 0. Linear scale. Units: unitless.
Cycle offset; Gate rising edges restart phase from this position. Range: 0–1 cycles. Default: 0 cycles. Linear scale. Units: cycles.
cycles
Pitch offset in cents. Range: -1200–1200 cents. Default: 0 cents. Linear scale. Units: cents.
cents
On or off. A rising edge retriggers; held on runs the oscillator or envelope. A control cable switches it at 0.5. Range: 0–1. Default: 1. Linear scale. Units: unitless.
Semitones a full pitch bend on the MIDI input moves the note, up or down. Range: 0–48 st. Default: 2 st. Linear scale. Units: st.
st
Time constant of the slide from one MIDI note's pitch to the next; 0 jumps. Range: 0–2000 ms. Default: 0 ms. Linear scale. Units: ms.
ms
Audio2ch
Peak amplitude of white noise. Each channel and node path owns a repeatable independent stream; preparation restarts it. Range: 0–0.5 ×. Default: 0.12 ×. Linear scale. Units: linear gain.
×
Audio2ch
Audio2ch
Filter cutoff, capped at 0.45 times sample rate. Range: 20–20000 Hz. Default: 1200 Hz. Logarithmic scale. Units: Hz.
Hz
State-variable filter Q. Range: 0.5–12 Q. Default: 0.707 Q. Linear scale. Units: Q.
Q
Selects the implemented algorithm. Choices are discrete and are not LFO targets. Range: 0–5. Default: 1. Linear scale. Units: unitless.
One or two cascaded state-variable stages; notch/all-pass retain their response semantics. Range: 0–1. Default: 0. Linear scale. Units: unitless.
Audio2ch
Body.in2ch
dB
Position on a two-lane mix: −1 left, 0 centre, 1 right. Constant-power for a one-lane channel, balance for a two-lane one; ignored on other widths. Range: -1–1. Default: 0. Linear scale. Units: unitless. The ring fills from zero for this signed linear range. Manual editing is unavailable while this host owns the control.
Read only
Click.in2ch
dB
Position on a two-lane mix: −1 left, 0 centre, 1 right. Constant-power for a one-lane channel, balance for a two-lane one; ignored on other widths. Range: -1–1. Default: 0. Linear scale. Units: unitless. The ring fills from zero for this signed linear range. Manual editing is unavailable while this host owns the control.
Read only
Mix output level in decibels, after every channel. −60 dB is off; 0 dB leaves the sum unchanged. Range: -60–12 dB. Default: 0 dB. Linear scale. Units: dB.
dB
Audio2ch
Audio2ch
Done1 lane
Time to rise to full gain. Range: 0–10000 ms. Default: 10 ms. Linear scale. Units: ms.
ms
Time to fall to sustain in ADSR, or zero in AD. Range: 0–10000 ms. Default: 120 ms. Linear scale. Units: ms.
ms
On or off. A rising edge retriggers; held on runs the oscillator or envelope. A control cable switches it at 0.5. Range: 0–1. Default: 0. Linear scale. Units: unitless.
Selects the implemented algorithm. Choices are discrete and are not LFO targets. Range: 0–2. Default: 0. Linear scale. Units: unitless.
Continuous concave/linear/convex segment curvature. Range: -1–1. Default: 0. Linear scale. Units: unitless.
Repeats complete envelope cycles while Gate is held. Range: 0–1. Default: 0. Linear scale. Units: unitless.
Restart from the current gain or reset to zero on a rising Gate. Range: 0–1. Default: 0. Linear scale. Units: unitless.
Duration of the held part in repeating ADSR/AR cycles. Range: 0–10000 ms. Default: 100 ms. Linear scale. Units: ms.
ms
Audio2ch
Peak amplitude of white noise. Each channel and node path owns a repeatable independent stream; preparation restarts it. Range: 0–0.5 ×. Default: 0.12 ×. Linear scale. Units: linear gain.
×
Audio2ch
Hit.in2ch
dB
Position on a two-lane mix: −1 left, 0 centre, 1 right. Constant-power for a one-lane channel, balance for a two-lane one; ignored on other widths. Range: -1–1. Default: 0. Linear scale. Units: unitless. The ring fills from zero for this signed linear range. Manual editing is unavailable while this host owns the control.
Read only
Room.in2ch
dB
Position on a two-lane mix: −1 left, 0 centre, 1 right. Constant-power for a one-lane channel, balance for a two-lane one; ignored on other widths. Range: -1–1. Default: 0. Linear scale. Units: unitless. The ring fills from zero for this signed linear range. Manual editing is unavailable while this host owns the control.
Read only
Mix output level in decibels, after every channel. −60 dB is off; 0 dB leaves the sum unchanged. Range: -60–12 dB. Default: 0 dB. Linear scale. Units: dB.
dB
Audio2ch
Audio2ch
Gain on onsets: positive adds punch, negative softens hits. Range: -24–24 dB. Default: 0 dB. Linear scale. Units: dB.
dB
Gain on decays: positive brings out tails and room, negative tightens them. Range: -24–24 dB. Default: 12 dB. Linear scale. Units: dB.
dB
Ratio of the slow to the fast follower times; higher treats longer spans as attack and sustain. Range: 2–20 ×. Default: 8 ×. Logarithmic scale. Units: ×.
×
Below this level shaping fades out, so quiet noise is not boosted. Range: -80–0 dBFS. Default: -40 dBFS. Linear scale. Units: dBFS.
dBFS
Dry/shaped blend. Range: 0–1. Default: 1. Linear scale. Units: unitless.
Gain after shaping. Range: -24–24 dB. Default: 0 dB. Linear scale. Units: dB.
dB
Audio2ch
Connections as text
- Noise “snap” audio output connected to Filter audio input
- Oscillator audio output connected to Mixer “drum” body.in input
- Filter audio output connected to Mixer “drum” click.in input
- Mixer “drum” audio output connected to Envelope audio input
- Envelope audio output connected to Mixer “roomy” hit.in input
- Noise “room” audio output connected to Mixer “roomy” room.in input
- Mixer “roomy” audio output connected to Transient shaper audio input
- Transient shaper audio output connected to Patch outputs audio input
- Below Floor the shaping fades out, so the quiet hiss between hits is not lifted with the ring.
- Speed stretches how much of each hit counts as attack and sustain; Mix blends back the dry drum.
Related nodes
- Compressor Peak/RMS compression with a sidechain key input, detector filtering, hold, adaptive release and channel linking.
- Gate Noise gate and downward expander with a sidechain key input, range, hold, lookahead, detector filtering and channel linking.
- Envelope Curved AD, AR and ADSR gain envelopes with looping and explicit retrigger behavior.