Parameters¶
Bent Spool publishes 40 parameters to the host, in a fixed order. Every one can be automated. Knobs are stored as values from 0 to 1, so the default 15% for DRIVE is 0.15. On/off switches show as OFF and ON, and the drive voice shows as OD and FUZZ. The mode, sync division, seed, repeat count and voice count are whole-number parameters, and a host may show them as numbers.
The order never changes between versions. New parameters are only added at the end.
| # | Host name | On the panel | Range | Default | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | DRIVE | DRIVE | 0 to 1 | 0.15 | |
| 1 | MODE | MODE switch | 0 TREM, 1 REPEAT, 2 LOOPS (whole numbers) | 0 | |
| 2 | MACRO | Centre knob: RATE, TIME or LENGTH | 0 to 1 | 0.5 | Its meaning follows the mode. With SYNC on, the knob writes Sync Division instead. |
| 3 | SHAPE | SHAPE | 0 to 1 | 0.3 | |
| 4 | CHAOS | CHAOS | 0 to 1 | 0.2 | |
| 5 | WEAR | WEAR | 0 to 1 | 0.25 | |
| 6 | MIX | MIX | 0 to 1 | 0.5 | |
| 7 | Sync | SYNC | OFF or ON | OFF | |
| 8 | Sync Division | Centre knob while SYNC is on | 0 to 15 (whole numbers) | 4 | The list is below the table. |
| 9 | Trem Stereo Phase | PHASE | 0 to 180 degrees | 0 | |
| 10 | Legacy Echo Feedback | none | 0 to 0.9 | 0.45 | Only used by the old echo engine. See Repeat Engine. |
| 11 | Legacy Echo Repeats | none | 1 to 8 (whole numbers) | 4 | Only used by the old echo engine. See Repeat Engine. |
| 12 | Loop Buffer | none | 1 to 16 | 4 | Has no effect. Kept so older projects and presets keep loading. |
| 13 | Dirt Trim Wow | WOW paddle | 0 to 1 | 0.5 | |
| 14 | Dirt Trim Bandwidth | HEAD paddle | 0 to 1 | 0.5 | |
| 15 | Dirt Trim Noise | HISS paddle | 0 to 1 | 0.5 | |
| 16 | Dirt Trim Crush | CRUSH paddle | 0 to 1 | 0.5 | |
| 17 | Chaos Seed | SEED | 0 to 99 (whole numbers) | 0 | |
| 18 | Input Gate | none | 0 to 1 | 0 | Off at 0. See below. |
| 19 | Trem Depth | DEPTH | 0 to 1 | 1 | |
| 20 | Drive Voice | OD / FUZZ switch | OD or FUZZ | OD | |
| 21 | Level | LEVEL | -12 to +12 dB | 0 | Shown without a unit in hosts. |
| 22 | Loop Octaves | OCTAVES | 0 to 1 | 0.5 | |
| 23 | Loop Reverse | REVERSE | 0 to 1 | 0.5 | |
| 24 | Loop Reach | REACH | 0 to 1 | 0.5 | |
| 25 | Loop Width | WIDTH | 0 to 1 | 1 | |
| 26 | Loop Freeze | FREEZE | OFF or ON | OFF | |
| 27 | Echo Preserve Stereo | none | OFF or ON | OFF | See below. |
| 28 | Save Frozen Audio | none | OFF or ON | ON | See below. |
| 29 | Repeat Count | REPEATS | 1 to 64 (whole numbers) | 4 | |
| 30 | Repeat Decay | DECAY | 0 to 1 | 0.85 | |
| 31 | Repeat Feedback | FEEDBACK | 0 to 0.95 | 0 | |
| 32 | Repeat Hold | HOLD | OFF or ON | OFF | Momentary. Not saved. |
| 33 | Repeat Latch | LATCH | OFF or ON | OFF | Not saved. |
| 34 | Repeat Engine | none | OFF or ON | ON | ON is the REPEAT described in this manual. See below. |
| 35 | Loop Mono Voices | ROUTING | OFF (STEREO) or ON (MONO) | OFF | |
| 36 | Loop LFO Motion | MOTION | OFF (CLASSIC) or ON (LFO) | OFF | |
| 37 | Loop Voices | VOICES | 1 to 6 (whole numbers) | 6 | |
| 38 | Loop Motion Rate | RATE (fifth loop knob) | 0 to 1 | 0.5 | 0.25x at 0, 1x at 0.5, 8x at 1. |
| 39 | Repeat Gapless | GAPLESS | OFF or ON | OFF |
Sync Division values¶
| Value | Note length | Value | Note length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 1/32 | 6 | 1/2 |
| 1 | 1/16 | 7 | 1/2. |
| 2 | 1/8 | 8 | 1/1 |
| 3 | 1/8. | 9 | 2/1 |
| 4 | 1/4 | 10 | 4/1 |
| 5 | 1/4. | 11 | 1/64 |
| 12 | 1/16T | 14 | 1/4T |
| 13 | 1/8T | 15 | 1/2T |
A dot means a dotted note; a T means a triplet, two-thirds of the plain note. New note lengths are added at the end of the list, so a saved value always keeps its meaning. The face's centre knob shows these in a different order depending on the mode. See The face. TREM cannot use 2/1 or 4/1. If you automate Sync Division to 9 or 10 in TREM, the pulse runs at 1/32. REPEAT steps down to the longest note length that fits within 1.2 s.
Parameters without a control¶
These are in the host's list, in presets and in saved sessions, but have no knob or button on either panel.
- Input Gate. A noise gate ahead of DRIVE. At 0 it is off and the signal passes untouched. Above 0 it closes on quiet input and opens on louder input. Two factory presets use it: REPEAT - 15 Gated Sixteenths (0.45) and FUZZ TREM - 04 Gated Stabs (0.4).
- Echo Preserve Stereo. In REPEAT, OFF sums the copies to one centred signal, and ON keeps left and right apart. The dry signal stays stereo either way. Every factory preset except REPEAT - 15 sets it ON.
- Save Frozen Audio. Whether a frozen LOOPS buffer is stored with your session. See Presets.
- Repeat Engine. ON, the default and the setting in every factory preset, is the REPEAT mode in this manual. OFF selects an older tape-style echo engine. Projects saved by pre-release builds load with it OFF, and the face then shows ECHO in place of REPEAT. Legacy Echo Feedback and Legacy Echo Repeats only apply to that engine.
- Loop Buffer. Has no effect.
Automation notes¶
- A host may show any of these as a plain 0 to 1 value, because the knobs publish no unit text.
- Repeat Hold and Repeat Latch are always saved as OFF, and Hold is released when the editor closes. They are better played by hand than automated.
- In VST3 hosts, Bent Spool splits each audio block at parameter changes, so automation moves are sample-accurate.
- On iPhone and iPad, if you automate MODE, Drive Voice or a preset into a locked option before unlocking, the 15 second preview starts and then reverts.