Recording into the buffer¶
Field granulates a buffer of audio. You can load a file, but you can also record straight into the buffer from the mic or from the audio reaching the plugin, then granulate what you just captured. The record button lives in the top bar, next to Play.
The record button¶
The record button sits at the right of the top bar. It shows a circle when idle and a filled stop square while a recording runs. Below it, a small badge shows the current record mode at all times: ONE-SHOT, LIVE-LOOP, or LIVE.
The badge is also a shortcut. Tap it to open the record options, the same panel you get from a long press on the button. Tap it to check or change the mode without starting a recording.
The first time you use recording, a plain tap on the button opens the mode options instead of recording, so you can pick a mode before you commit. After you have chosen a mode once, a tap starts and stops recording, and a long press (about 0.4 seconds) opens the options.
While recording, a red write head sweeps across the waveform at the live capture position and a REC badge shows in the corner.
The three modes¶
Open the options with a long press on the button, or a tap on the mode badge. The mode picker has three choices.
| Mode | Picker label | What it captures |
|---|---|---|
| One-shot | One-shot | A single clean pass. Each recording replaces the buffer. No feedback. |
| Loop | Loop | A wrapping loop of a fixed length. Audio overdubs into the loop, and feedback sets how much of the previous pass survives. |
| Live | Live | A continuous rolling capture over a fixed window. No feedback, so the buffer always holds the most recent input. |
One-shot is the default. In one-shot the recording auto-stops when it reaches the length cap of 90 seconds; you can also stop it by hand.
Loop and Live both wrap at a window you set. The difference is feedback: Loop keeps a share of what was already there so passes build up, Live always replaces so it reflects the latest input like a real-time effect.
Loop length and window¶
For Loop and Live, one slider sets the wrapping length. It reads "Loop length" in Loop mode and "Window" in Live mode.
| Control | Range | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Loop length / Window | 0.25 s – 10 s | 2.00 s |
The slider is hidden in one-shot, which has no wrapping window.
Feedback¶
Feedback appears only in Loop mode. It sets how much of the existing loop survives each time the record head wraps, so you can layer passes or let them decay.
| Control | Range | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Feedback | 0% – 98% | 50% |
One-shot and Live always record with feedback at zero, so they never overdub.
Wet / dry mix¶
The mix slider is always visible, in every mode. It blends the dry input through to the output, which matters when Field runs as an insert effect in a host and you want some of the untouched signal to pass.
| Control | Range | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Mix · wet | 0% – 100% | 100% |
At 100% you hear only the granulated buffer. Lower it to pass dry input through alongside the grains.
The input meter¶
Left of the record button, a small IN meter shows the level of audio arriving at the plugin. It is a check that signal is actually reaching Field, from the mic in the standalone app or from the track in an AUv3 host. The bar turns ember when the input is close to clipping.
Why recording needs real input, and Bluetooth output disables it¶
Recording needs a live input route. When the output is a Bluetooth device (AirPods or any A2DP / LE headset), Field runs playback-only and recording is turned off. The record button dims, and a tap shows an inline message: "Recording unavailable on Bluetooth audio."
The reason is how iOS handles a record-capable session over Bluetooth. Asking for record and playback together while allowing Bluetooth lets iOS route into the HFP headset profile, which collapses the sample rate to 8–16 kHz and wrecks quality. Field avoids that by dropping to a playback-only session whenever the output is Bluetooth, which keeps full-quality A2DP audio. Recording comes back the moment you switch to a wired or built-in output. If the output becomes Bluetooth while a recording is running, the recording stops.
Live mode is the mode most affected by this, since it depends on a continuous input stream. This is the mechanism behind the "Live mode needs audio input" point.
After you record¶
A recorded buffer is granulated exactly like a loaded sample. Every grain control, the XY pads, freeze, pitch, and Area Select all work on it the same way. The sample name updates to reflect what you captured (for example "Recorded", "Live loop", or "Live").
A fresh capture is held only in memory. Field tracks it as unsaved until you either export the audio or save it into a preset. Export lives in the waveform long-press menu ("Export audio…"); saving the buffer into a preset also clears the unsaved state.
Capturing what you hear¶
Recording writes into the buffer; it never captures Field's output. The same goes for export: "Export audio…" saves the raw audio in the buffer, not the granulated result. The performance you hear (grains, reverb, pitch, everything you played) exists only at Field's output, and Field has no built-in output recorder.
To keep a performance, record Field's output in a host:
- In AUM, use the channel recorder on the channel that carries Field, or on the master bus, and record to a file.
- In Logic for iPad or GarageBand, record the track carrying Field to another track, or bounce the region.
- From the standalone app there is no direct capture path. For full quality, load Field as the AUv3 in a host and record there. An iOS screen recording does grab the app's audio, but compressed: fine for sketches, not for keepers.
See also: Area Select to confine grain reads to part of the buffer.