capsicum vst3 / au / aax

randomize

no rolls

amount 100%

1 curve → a knob · a shape you draw, looping

the actual plugin layout: module · randomize · two modulator slots · history strip, in one window. click a tab to switch a slot; hover to hold

ratetakes bits away from the codec. turning it up strips bits from the filter and gain codes, from 6 bits to 4 for each filter code and from 5 bits to 4 for the gain, so the description of the sound gets thinner.

frameanalysis frame length, 8 to about 22 ms. longer frames smear attacks.

errorflips bits in the code words. near the top of its travel, whole frames are lost.

voicesets the buzz-or-hiss decision. across its whole travel it follows the pitch tracker, with a slight lean toward hiss. fully down, even a clearly pitched frame is about 12% hiss; fully up, about 4%.

pitchretunes the buzz, after quantisation, from about 1.4 semitones down (fully down) to about 0.6 semitones down (fully up). centre is about 1 semitone down, so the buzz always sits slightly below the tracked pitch.

mixdry/wet balance. fully down is dry only; fully up is the effect alone.

crush & lo-fi · wam-122 · standalone + cv modulation

capsicum speech codec bitcrusher

US$25or every module · US$9/monthor all 76 · US$249one-time · 14-day free trial built in

buy capsicum · US$25 try it free · 14 days

vst3 · au · aax · macos 11+ · windows 10+ · no ilok · unlocks in the tangle rack too

§ what it does

corrupted voice codec

A speech codec running on material it was never meant for. Frame by frame it stores a spectral shape, a pitch and a voiced-or-unvoiced decision, then rebuilds the sound from only that description.

RATE thins the description, cutting each filter code from 6 bits to 4. FRAME lengthens the analysis window from 8 to about 22 ms, so attacks smear. ERROR corrupts the stream until whole frames are lost, CONCEAL decides whether a lost frame leaves a hole or repeats the last one, and VOICE nudges the breath-or-buzz decision, which always follows the pitch tracker and leans slightly toward breath.

It runs the same DSP as the module in Tangle; nothing is cut down for the standalone version. One licence covers both: this plugin, and the same module unlocked inside the rack.

§ every control

what each knob does

Six controls, no menus. Here they are on the panel itself.

rateTakes bits away from the codec. Turning it up strips bits from the filter and gain codes, from 6 bits to 4 for each filter code and from 5 bits to 4 for the gain, so the description of the sound gets thinner.

frameAnalysis frame length, 8 to about 22 ms. Longer frames smear attacks.

errorFlips bits in the code words. Near the top of its travel, whole frames are lost.

voiceSets the buzz-or-hiss decision. Across its whole travel it follows the pitch tracker, with a slight lean toward hiss. Fully down, even a clearly pitched frame is about 12% hiss; fully up, about 4%.

pitchRetunes the buzz, after quantisation, from about 1.4 semitones down (fully down) to about 0.6 semitones down (fully up). Centre is about 1 semitone down, so the buzz always sits slightly below the tracked pitch.

concealSets what replaces a lost frame. Drop leaves a hole; repeat plays the previous frame again, so it stutters.

mixDry/wet balance. Fully down is dry only; fully up is the effect alone.

§ built-in modulation

it modulates itself

Capsicum ships with the full CV/logic modulation section every Tangle standalone carries. Two slots, each running one of six modulators: pick one from a slot's tabs, drag a patch cable onto any knob, and that control moves on its own, no DAW automation required. Both slots can run the same kind, each its own copy, and slot 2 can be switched off.

lfoSmooth cyclic movement: sine, triangle, square, sample & hold, or a shape you draw.

curveA looping contour you draw by hand: smooth, spiked or stepped.

noiseStepped, smoothed or slewed randomness for texture and wander.

transientListens for hits, then fires a trigger plus an envelope on every transient it hears.

env followTracks how loud you are playing and turns that into a control voltage.

timingSpreads hits as evenly as possible across a bar, so rhythms land musically instead of bunched.

§ always recording

it keeps what you just played

A rolling capture strip runs beneath the panel, always recording the plugin's output. No transport, nothing to arm. Played something great while you were just tweaking? Click-drag across the history waveform to select it, then drag the slice straight into your DAW timeline.

ARM flips it to ring-capture for hands-free takes.

§ one purchase, two plugins

it unlocks in tangle too

Capsicum is a module from Tangle, the free cable-patchable rack. Buying it here licenses both: this standalone plugin, and capsicum unlocked inside the rack, where you can patch it into any other module you own. There is no second purchase and no upgrade path; the rack itself costs nothing.

Sign in once in the rack and your licences follow your account: a module bought this morning appears at the next licence check, on every machine you install on.

try it free · 14 days all 76 modules →

§ the box

capsicum

US$25or every module · US$9/monthor all 76 · US$249one-time