SoundZapper user manual
Find a sound.
Make it yours.
Find a sound, try it in your music, and take it into your DAW. Choose a chapter for the steps and shortcuts.
Chapter 1What SoundZapper is
1.1 Your presets, ready to explore
Find the right Serum preset faster. Click to hear a sound, search by name or character, or explore similar sounds on the map. You can start browsing while your first scan is still running.
Chapter 2Getting started
2.1 Set up your library
Open SoundZapper and follow the setup assistant:
Step 1 · Looking for Serum
Check that Serum is installed so SoundZapper can prepare your sounds. Without Serum, you can still browse and play previews already in your library.
Step 2 · Your preset folders
Review the Serum folders found on your computer. Add any that are missing. These folders are read-only: SoundZapper never changes, moves or deletes your original presets.
Step 3 · Where SoundZapper keeps its files
Choose a folder or drive with enough free space. SoundZapper creates its own empty SoundZapper folder there for your library.
Existing files stay untouched. Keep this folder separate from your preset and sample libraries, and avoid cloud-synced folders.
Step 4 · Build your library
Scan my presets prepares your library. Keep Add sound description search (2.4 GB) ticked to search by describing a sound or dropping an audio sample.
Press Start & continue. You can add sound search later from Settings if you skip the download.
Step 5 · Summary
Check the scan and download progress. You can close the assistant while scanning continues.
If audio crackles while scanning, pause the scan from the bottom bar.
Choose Skip for now or press Esc to leave setup. Reopen it to continue where you left off.
Reopen the assistant whenever you want from Settings → Folders & setup → Setup assistant.
2.2 Your library and original files
Your original presets, samples and Ableton projects remain read-only. SoundZapper keeps its own files separately:
- Your SoundZapper library: prepared sounds, favourites and taste choices. Choose its location during setup or in Settings.
- App settings: SoundZapper remembers your preferences separately from your music files.
- Generated presets: choosing Save to Serum creates a new preset in Serum User → SoundZapper. Existing presets are never overwritten.
Use one SoundZapper window at a time with a library. A second window can browse but cannot save changes. If SoundZapper asks you to choose your library again, sign in first, then select its folder. Your existing sounds stay untouched.
2.3 Browse during the first scan
You can browse as previews finish. The bottom bar shows progress: “Scanning your presets: X of Y · time left”.
- Load new sounds: click the green “N new sounds ready: click to load” banner when you are ready.
- Pause while producing: use the bottom bar to pause scanning if audio crackles.
- Browse early: use List while your collection grows. The Map becomes more complete as scanning finishes.
2.4 Finish the first scan
Windows beta · untested with Serum. Choose a new empty SoundZapper folder on a local NTFS drive. Linked folders and network drives are not available. This beta also cannot enable saving in an older library or save generated sounds directly into Serum’s library. You can still export a temporary preset with your chosen arp; your original presets stay untouched.
On Windows, keep the folder path short (for example C:\Users\you\Music\SoundZapper): unless Windows long paths are turned on, a very long path is refused and very long sound names are shortened on export.
New sounds appear in the list and on the map while the scan runs. You do not need to reload anything. If a scan finds no presets, a note along the bottom opens Settings so you can check your folders.
If you downloaded sound search, you can describe a sound or drop a sample once scanning finishes. No restart is needed.
Once your library is ready, a short tour introduces search, the map, playback, sample matching and Taste.
Skip it with Esc whenever you like, and restart it any time from Settings → Help & diagnostics → Restart the tour.
2.5 Find the main controls
At the top is the search box. Next to it are two buttons: List and Map. The app opens on the Map: every preset as a field of dots, with similar sounds sitting close together. List shows the same presets as a plain table you can sort.
Use whichever you like. You can switch any time (Shift+Tab flips between them).
Down the right side are your filters (shape, tone, sliders, tags). Along the very bottom is the player bar, where a sound plays.
2.6 Choose safe storage
Choose a folder or drive; SoundZapper creates its own empty folder inside it. Existing files and libraries stay untouched.
For an older library, choose Enable saving in this folder when offered to keep using the same sounds without copying them. Unknown files stay untouched. On Windows, choose a new empty folder instead.
Chapter 3Searching
A name, a tag, or a few words such as warm bass are enough. Matching names come first, followed by tags, categories and descriptions. Drop an audio reference to put the closest-sounding matches first.
A complete-name result is marked 100% name match in the list and highlighted on the map. Your Words and Tags chips still apply; other filters do not hide a complete-name match. Capitalization and extra spaces do not matter.
3.1 Search names and words
Type any words: a name, a tag, a description, an effect. The list narrows as you type. For example, type bass to see bass sounds.
3.2 Describe a sound
With sound search downloaded, describe a sound in plain words, like "warm analog bass" or "airy bell pluck", and it ranks presets by how they actually sound, even if those words are nowhere in the name.
3.3 Match a reference sample
Have a sound you love from a song or a sample? Drag the audio file (wav, aiff, mp3, flac…) from Finder or File Explorer or your DAW straight onto the list or the map.
SoundZapper finds the presets that sound the most like it and marks the closest matches. A ♫ chip with the file's name appears in the tag bar while this is active.
Type a word or click a tag to narrow the matches. Click the ♫ chip to return to normal browsing.
3.4 Dropping a preset's own sound
Drop a preset’s own audio onto the Map to find similar sounds. Press F on a selected sound, or right-click → Find similar sounds, to compare it with your analysed library.
Keep browsing while it compares; Cancel stops it. The comparison stops after 15 seconds if it cannot finish. Your previous matches stay available until the new result is ready.
Once it succeeds, your browsing filters are set aside so you can hear matches across the library. Remove the similar-sounds chip to bring those filters back.
If you add or change filters while viewing the matches, removing the chip keeps your new filters instead. Clear all filters discards both the matches and the earlier filters.
This also recognises a preview saved in another format, trimmed or normalised.
Changing its pitch or adding an arp can give different matches.
3.5 Where to let go
Drop your file onto the List or Map. If you are outside the drop area, the status line tells you where to drop it.
3.6 If a drop fails
If a drop fails, follow the next step shown in the status line:
- Signed out: sign in under Settings → Account.
- Account cannot be checked: reconnect, then try again.
- Loading search tools: your search continues automatically. If it cannot finish, wait a moment and try again.
- Over 32 MB: trim the sample and retry.
- Link to the sound engine lost: restart SoundZapper and retry.
3.7 How many matches?
Settings has a Similarity matches control: Tight (the default) keeps only the closest matches, the ones with white rings (top 15). Narrow widens to the closest cluster (roughly the top 60, about 1% of the library), Medium to around 250, and Wide shows the full ranked list (up to 800).
Change it any time to see more or fewer matches for the same sample.
SoundZapper widens a small result to show at least 10 matches when your library has enough sounds.
3.8 Keep a search as chips
Choose a search type
Leave the type on Auto to search naturally. It recognises complete preset names, real tags and suggested sound words; other phrases, such as “saw sweep”, find names and similar sounds. Choose a type yourself when needed:
| Type | What it does |
|---|---|
| Pink · Auto | Finds matching names and sounds like your description. |
| Blue · Words | Finds the words you typed in preset names and text. A complete preset name matches that name only. |
| Amber · Tags | Finds presets with that tag. |
| Pink · Description | Finds sounds that resemble your description. Without sound search, it uses text matches. |
Browse by sound
Under Tags & search, choose a sound type such as Flute, a character such as Acid or Warm, or a sound-shaping effect such as Phaser or Flanger. Suggested tags describes the selected sound, with up to eight useful choices. Any Recently used choices appear separately. With no sound selected, common library tags come first. Your active filters stay at the top. Pink Sound chips describe what you hear; amber Tags come from the preset. Click to include; Alt-click to exclude.
Add or exclude
Press Enter to keep a chip. Alt+Enter, or Alt-click a tag or sound suggestion, excludes it.
Each chip appears in the search bar and lower-right Tags & search panel. Hover either copy for its type explanation. Click a suggested tag to add or remove it.
Remove or keep your search
- Click either copy to remove the chip.
- Focus a chip and press Delete or Backspace to remove it.
- Backspace in an empty search removes the last chip.
- Clear all filters removes every chip. Filter tabs, saved sessions and browse history keep them.
Chapter 4Filtering
Choose a topic · 11 short sections
4.1 Choose a filter
4.2 Shape chips
Tap a shape to keep only sounds that behave that way:
- Pluck starts sharp and dies away quickly, like a plucked string.
- Pad is soft and slow, and holds and swells behind the music.
- Swell fades in gently with no hard start.
- Stab is a short, punchy hit.
- …and more. Tap again to turn a chip off.
4.3 The Tone bar
Tone focus groups sounds by their overall frequency balance at the recorded note: Bass below 200 Hz, Low Mid from 200 to 800 Hz, High Mid from 800 Hz to 3 kHz, and High at 3 kHz or above.
Harmonics count as well as the main note, so this describes tone rather than musical pitch. Changing the audition note or matching octaves does not change these groups.
Sounds without this measurement are left out when a Tone focus group is selected.
4.4 The sliders
Each filter has two handles: set the minimum on the left and the maximum on the right. Sounds at either limit are included. For small changes, focus a handle and use the arrow keys. Clear all filters resets both ends.
- Attack is how fast the sound starts (snappy or gentle).
- Sustain is how much it keeps holding while you press the note.
- Release is how long the tail rings out after you let go.
- Brightness runs from dark and mellow to bright and crisp.
- Stereo width runs from narrow and centred to wide and spacious.
4.5 Tags
Tap a tag chip to require it. The tags shown are the ones common to what you're already looking at, so they help you dig deeper. Alt-click any chip (tag, bank, category, shape) to exclude it instead and keep everything except that. Press Enter to keep a typed search chip.
Auto recognises real preset tags; choose Words or Description to override it. Hover a chip in the right-hand panel to read what its type does. Typed search chips are removed by clicking; Alt-click exclusion applies to the suggested tags; Alt-Enter also excludes typed real tags.
4.6 Hide silent previews
The checkbox under the sliders drops presets whose preview came out near-silent (dead patches, or ones that need a mod-wheel move to make a sound). It's on by default; untick it to see everything.
4.7 Banks & categories
The two menus at the top pick a preset pack or a musical category (bass, lead, pad…). Each one you pick becomes a chip you can remove.
4.8 Clear all filters
The button at the top of the panel takes you back to the whole library in one tap. Two shortcuts do the same reset: click the results counter at the top (it reads “N sounds match”), or press Esc when nothing is open to close.
4.9 Filter tabs
The + next to ♥ Taste makes a new tab that remembers a whole search (its filters, sliders and any similarity result). Switch tabs to jump between searches; ✕ closes one.
4.10 List drill-down
- Filter from a row: click its pack, category or shape; Alt-click excludes it.
- Shuffle neutral browsing: use ↻ or ⌘+R in List view. It mixes packs and categories so one bank does not dominate your scrolling.
- Ranked results: ↻ dims while similarity (♫) or Taste (♥) decides the order. Clear that ranking to shuffle again.
- Keeper: a small amber ★ and an amber name identify your kept sounds.
- Favorite: click the row’s ♥ to mark it pink; click again to undo. Favorites and keepers are independent, so a sound can show both.
4.11 Long lists
When a filter still leaves thousands of sounds, the list shows the first few hundred and says "showing 400 of …". Narrow with a search word, a tag or a slider to reach the rest. The arrow keys still walk the whole list, not only the visible rows.
Chapter 5The Map
Choose a topic · 8 short sections
5.1 Browse the sound map
5.2 Closeness means similarity
Sounds that are alike sit close together; sounds that are very different sit far apart. Wander around and you'll find whole neighbourhoods of related patches.
5.3 What the rings mean
The map sometimes decorates dots to tell you something:
- A solid white dot is the sound you have selected right now.
- A white ring marks one of the closest matches to an audio file you dropped in (the same sounds get a white edge mark in the List view).
- A ring in the dot's own colour marks a suggested layer partner that would sit nicely underneath or on top of your selected sound (see Layering).
- A big bright ring marks the sound you are pointing at in the layer suggestions list, so your eye can find it on the map.
5.4 Colours mean families
Family colours group related sounds. An odd-coloured dot among a group can be a hybrid borrowing from two families.
- Family legend: the map’s families button names each group by its most common sound type, such as Bass, Pad, Lead or Pluck.
- Filter a family: click its legend entry; Alt-click excludes it. Close the legend with ✕. The same clickable legend is in ? help.
- Hover details: the card names the family and marks ★ keeper and ♥ favorite when relevant.
- Keepers: brighter dots grow as you use them.
- Favorites: a pink ring marks them. It dims while layering so it cannot be mistaken for a layer-partner ring.
5.5 Getting your preset out
Drag a dot into Serum, Finder or File Explorer to export its preset. Drag empty space to move around the Map. Click a dot to hear it.
The cursor tells you which you'll get: a pointer over a dot (drag it out / click to play), an open hand over empty space (drag to pan).
5.6 Explore with the arrow keys
Select a dot, then press ← ↑ ↓ → to hear the nearest sound in that direction.
Press the opposite arrow to retrace your steps. When zoomed in, the map gently follows your selection near the edge, keeping your zoom. Drag or scroll to take over. Hover a dot to see its details.
The Map fits your window automatically.
5.7 Move around the map
Scroll to zoom in and out (it zooms toward your cursor), drag an empty patch to pan, and double-click anywhere to fit the whole map back into view.
The ⌂ button in the top-left corner does the same reset in one tap, and the ⊕ button next to it zooms straight in on the currently selected sound and centres it.
One key does both: press 0 to toggle: zoomed in (or panned) snaps back to the whole map, and from the whole map it zooms in on the selected sound.
5.8 Swap the axes
By default the map is a pure similarity map: close means alike, and the directions carry no meaning.
The two small menus at the top can instead pin each axis to a real measured value (brightness, attack, sustain, release, stereo width, pitch or loudness), so you can lay the library out as, say, brightness across × attack up. Set the X menu back to similarity map for the default view.
5.9 Hover any sound to peek at it.
Rest your mouse over a row or a dot and a little card pops up with its details and two small pictures. On each one, warm colours mean a deep, bassy sound and cool colours mean a bright, airy one.
If the preset has its own built-in arp, the card also shows a tiny piano-roll of that pattern and its length (e.g. "12 steps · 1/16").
Chapter 6Hiding presets
6.1 Hide a sound
Got old or throwaway sounds cluttering the view? Select one and press H to hide it.
6.2 Hiding never touches your library
Hiding does not delete, move or rename your presets. Press H again on a hidden sound to bring it back.
- On the map a hidden sound shows as a dimmed grey dot. It is still there, just pushed into the background.
- The arrow keys skip it. Stepping through the list or walking the map with the arrows jumps straight over hidden sounds, so they never interrupt your browsing.
- A direct click still plays it. Click a dimmed dot or row to hear it.
6.3 Push them out of sight completely
In Settings → Browsing turn on hide hidden sounds fully and hidden sounds vanish from the list and the map entirely (no grey dots at all). Turn it off to get the greyed, arrow-skipped dots back.
6.4 Bring everything back
The same Browsing panel shows how many sounds you've hidden and offers an Unhide all button that clears the whole hidden set in one click.
Chapter 7Playing a sound
Choose a topic · 13 short sections
7.1 Hear a sound
The player bar at the bottom controls playback.
Use it to play or loop a sound, try an arp, and choose your note, octave and tempo.
For held-note previews, SoundZapper prepares a fresh stereo Serum note at your selected pitch and tempo while the existing preview keeps playing. Rapid browsing only prepares the sound you settle on. If Serum cannot prepare it, the saved preview remains available. Your DAW’s controller or effect settings can still change its sound.
7.2 Play / pause button
Click to start or stop. It glows green while a sound is playing and blue when stopped. Space does the same.
7.3 Loop
Keep the preview repeating over and over.
7.4 Volume fader
Drag to set the level. Double-click it to snap back to normal (0 dB).
7.5 The little keyboard
Click a piano key to lock the audition note; click it again to unlock. With no sound selected, a key plays the first sound in your current list.
Every preset then auditions at that note. Note names follow Ableton Live: middle C is C3. The octave buttons move the root up or down.
Arps keep their tempo when you change the note. The sound may take a moment to settle after a pitch change.
7.6 Octave − / +
Shift the locked note (and the arp) up or down an octave.
7.7 note only
On by default, this plays just the held note. Turn it off to hear the little intro run (a quick note flourish) before the held note.
7.8 match octaves
Some presets sound much higher or lower than the note you press. Turn this on to pull them all into the same range so they're easy to compare. Previews and Serum Live use the same sounding range.
What you export is what you hear: ⌘C, shift+drag of the player name, Copy wav and the arp MIDI/audio export all carry the same adjustment, so a pasted clip sits at the pitch you just auditioned. Copying or dragging a prepared preview also keeps its speed and section, including tempo-preserving pitch changes. Your preview volume setting is not baked into exported audio.
7.9 one-shot (arp off)
Appears when an arp is on. It plays the sound through once instead of looping the arp round and round.
7.10 Bpm and LOCK
Enter your track’s tempo in Bpm and press LOCK to match it without changing pitch. Use ÷2 or ×2 for half or double tempo.
To use tempo lock, unlock the piano key and turn off match octaves if it is changing the sound’s pitch.
7.11 The waveform
Click anywhere on it to jump to that spot in the sound.
7.12 Compare A / B / C
Compare A / B / C one sound at a time
- Choose slot A, then pick a candidate sound.
- Click an empty B or C slot before choosing another sound. A new choice replaces the sound in the current blue-bordered slot.
- Click A, B or C to recall one candidate at a time. Normal slot recall does not turn on a layer stack.
Use a consistent note and octave setting when comparing. Add or remove slots with + / −; press and hold a slot, then drag, to export its preset.
7.13 Try another set with Randomize
⚄ Randomize appears next to ≈ Layers only while → Serum live is on. It picks only presets that Serum can reach and that match your current filters. The button stays greyed out until the SoundZapper MIDI port is ready, and while no reachable preset matches your filters.
Randomize changes every populated slot, including when preview layers are off. It does not start playback. Save unsaved Serum edits before browsing or randomizing: preset switching replaces the plugin’s current sound.
Chapter 8Arps
Imported Ableton melodies appear in packs named after their project, with patterns named after the MIDI track. Single hits and one-pitch rhythms are not included.
Your original Ableton projects remain unchanged.
8.1 Play a sound as an arp
An arp (arpeggio) plays a repeating run of notes instead of one held note. SoundZapper gathers patterns from your own presets, plus a few basic ones.
ARP patterns, note-length changes, MIDI/clip import and MIDI export use creative access. If a control opens an offer, review the exact price and first charge date before choosing a subscription. Incoming MIDI for ordinary auditioning and Serum Live routing remain separate from these creative tools.
- Pick a pattern: open arp:, hover a pack on the left, then choose a pattern on the right. Packs include built-in shapes, arps from your presets and imported songs. Click a pattern to hear it on your selected sound.
- Find a pattern: type in the search box at the top of the arp browser to match arp, preset or pack names. The pills narrow the list: Melodies are patterns that move to other notes, Sequences repeat only the root note (in any octave) as a rhythm. Every count follows the filter.
- Make your own packs: open your library folder from Settings. Add a folder of MIDI files inside custom_arps; each subfolder becomes a pack.
- Note length sets how fast the steps go. native keeps the pattern's own speed (it also shows that speed as a division, e.g. native (1/8)); or choose 1/16, 1/8, 1/4 and so on to match your track.
- ⧉ MIDI copies the pattern as a MIDI clip. Paste or drag it straight onto a MIDI track in your song to keep the exact notes.
- Flip through arps with Shift+↑ / Shift+↓ (it crosses from one pack into the next), or jump a whole pack with ⌥+Shift+↑ / ↓. Hovering the arp button shows a little preview of the pattern. Esc or a click outside closes the browser.
Chapter 9MIDI from your DAW
9.1 Play incoming MIDI
Feed notes from Ableton (or any MIDI keyboard) into SoundZapper in two easy ways.
9.2 Drop a clip
Drag a MIDI clip straight out of Live onto SoundZapper's list or map (Live hands over a .alc clip file). You can also drop a project .als (all its clips come in, pick the one you want in the arp browser) or a plain .mid file.
The clip becomes a custom arp and plays on your selected sound.
The new pattern lives in a Dropped clips pack in the arp browser so you can reuse it later. Or just export the clip as MIDI from Live and drop that for the same result.
9.3 Play it live (like a Push)
SoundZapper listens to MIDI keyboards or a virtual MIDI input. Choose your keyboard or connection in Settings → MIDI & Serum.
On Mac, you can connect Ableton over the built-in IAC bus. One-time setup: open Audio MIDI Setup, double-click the IAC Driver and tick "Device is online"; back in Live, set a MIDI track's MIDI To to IAC Driver. Now the notes you play (or the clip you run) sound the selected preset at those pitches.
On Windows, use your MIDI keyboard or a virtual connection from your DAW and choose its input in Settings. Incoming notes do not require a port called SoundZapper; that name is needed for the separate Serum live output. Windows MIDI playback is untested.
The MIDI in dot lights up when notes arrive. Play single notes or chords to try the selected sound.
9.4 Choose live MIDI or a preview
The Settings → MIDI & Serum → play the selection through live MIDI checkbox decides where the selected sound plays. On (the default): Play and any incoming MIDI note play the selection through live MIDI: into Serum 2 when → Serum live is on, otherwise SoundZapper's own preview. When Serum live is on and the selected preset is one Serum can’t switch to, its name in the player turns red: you hear its audio preview instead.
Off: the selection plays from SoundZapper's built-in sample instead, no notes are sent to Serum, and MIDI keyboards are ignored. Switching Serum's preset when you pick one (→ Serum live) is independent. It still follows your selection either way, silently.
Use this to audition presets with your own playing. Some delay is possible. Record your final performance in your DAW.
Chapter 10→ Serum live
Choose a topic · 10 short sections
Windows beta: Create a virtual MIDI loopback port named exactly SoundZapper, then restart SoundZapper. Choose that port as your DAW track’s MIDI input. Serum live is untested on Windows; recorded WAV previews work without this connection.
10.1 Hear presets in your track
Make Serum 2 in your DAW jump to whatever preset you pick in SoundZapper, so you can browse here and hear it through your own track, effects and mix.
10.2 One-time routing
On Mac, SoundZapper creates a virtual MIDI port called SoundZapper (it appears in your DAW like a plugged-in controller). On the track that hosts Serum 2, set MIDI From → SoundZapper (or All Ins if you'd rather leave it open to everything) and set Monitor → In so the track listens even when it isn't armed.
Pick which one you use under Settings → MIDI & Serum → Your Serum track's MIDI From so the on-screen hint matches your setup.
10.3 One channel per slot
- Load Serum 2 on a MIDI track in Ableton.
- Set MIDI From to SoundZapper, or use All Ins.
- Choose Ch. 1 for slot A, Ch. 2 for B, Ch. 3 for C, and so on, when separate Serum tracks should follow separate slots. Choose All Channels when you do not need that separation.
- Set Monitor → In for continuous auditioning, including while clips play. With Monitor → Auto, use the red arm button and stop any playing clip on that track. SoundZapper does not arm DAW tracks for you.
- Enable → Serum live in SoundZapper, then select a sound in the intended populated slot.
The manual test channel in Settings affects only the test sender. Normal preset changes still use the slot’s channel. MIDI routing does not automatically build a multi-Serum layer stack.
10.4 Turn it on
Flip → Serum live in the player bar. Now every preset you select here (by clicking a dot on the map, arrowing through the list, or picking a row) tells Serum to switch to the matching preset.
If Serum cannot load a preset, check the status line for the next step.
10.5 Layers use recorded previews
The Serum / WAV / Both choice below applies to single-note and arp previews. Choose WAV or Both to hear the full recorded layer stack. Serum-only auditioning plays the selected slot; MIDI routing does not automatically create a multi-Serum stack.
10.6 Choose Serum, WAV or Both
With → Serum live on, press Play or Space to hear the preset in your DAW. Choose what you hear under Settings → MIDI & Serum → Preview plays through:
- Serum (the default while → Serum live is on): Play sends the note straight into Serum and mutes SoundZapper's own preview, so you hear the real plugin.
- WAV: Play the recorded preview like normal. Serum still switches to the picked preset when you select it. It just doesn't play notes into Serum.
- Both: play the recorded preview and drive the real Serum together, handy to A/B them. Two sources at once can sound a little phasey. That's expected.
It works for a single note and for the arp: turn the arp on (the ARP button or the a key) and the pattern plays into Serum, transposed to your locked root just like the on-screen arp.
Because Serum has one preset loaded at a time, the arp drives the selected preset only (it ignores layer slots when it plays into Serum). Allow a moment for Serum to load when changing presets.
When → Serum live is off, Play always uses the WAV.
10.7 Silence controller mode without losing preset-switching
If you'd rather Serum not play notes at all, and only follow your selection so you can trigger it from your own DAW clips, turn off Settings → MIDI & Serum → play the selection through live MIDI.
With that off, Play plays SoundZapper's built-in sample, nothing is sent into Serum, but → Serum live still switches Serum's preset every time you pick one.
10.8 Which presets Serum can reach
Serum Live can switch between the first 127 folders and the first 128 presets in each folder. Sounds beyond these limits play as audio previews automatically.
- While → Serum live is on, unreachable presets are greyed and selecting them does not switch Serum. A status note explains why.
- Select a greyed preset to hear its audio preview. Missing audio is prepared automatically. You can still drag it into Serum, and Serum live stays on for the next reachable preset.
- Grey out presets Serum can’t reach can be turned off in Settings → MIDI & Serum. The setting changes how they look; it does not make them playable through Serum Live.
- If you want more presets within MIDI reach, reorganise your own library into fewer, smaller folders, or hide sounds you do not need live with H / Settings → Browsing. SoundZapper does not rearrange library files.
The first activation with out-of-range presets explains this limit; Do not show again hides future reminders. If no presets are reachable, the status line points out that the library may need a rescan.
10.9 Calibrate / test
Choose Test note in Settings → MIDI & Serum to check that your Serum track receives notes. Set MIDI channel to match the track.
For manual preset-switch testing, enter Bank / Sub / Pgm and choose Send.
10.10 Follow Ableton’s timing (optional)
Load the updated SoundZapper Max for Live bridge to follow Ableton’s tempo and launch timing.
Serum Live auditions then start at Ableton’s Global Launch Quantization, including triplets and bar lengths in your time signature. The pattern’s note division remains your choice. Use this to audition sounds in time; record the final performance in your DAW.
Long waits show a message; press Space to stop. If Ableton is stopped, quantization is None, or timing is unavailable, the sound starts without waiting for the DAW. The app keeps the last tempo, and you can still set tempo and division yourself.
Without the bridge, or in another DAW, set Bpm and note length in SoundZapper.
Serum Live is available in the desktop app.
Chapter 11Layering sounds
Choose a topic · 11 short sections
11.1 Build a layer stack
11.2 The slots (A / B / C…)
The letter bar under the top holds presets you've parked. Whatever you click always lands in the current slot (the one with the blue border). With Layers closed, click a letter to bring that preset back. With Layers open, click it to turn its layer on or off. Use + and − to add or remove slots.
Press and hold a slot for a moment, then drag, to pull its preset file straight into Serum or Finder or File Explorer.
11.3 Arm layers to stack them
Shift+click a slot (or press Shift+A…H) to turn it green. Green slots are layered, so pressing Play sounds them all together at once. With Layers open, a plain click or a number key (1–9) turns that layer on or off. Close Layers with L, then click a slot to return to one sound at a time.
11.4 Find great partners
Press the ≈ Layers button (or press L). A panel opens next to the filters and the map makes room for it. It lists presets that would stack well with your current sound: sounds that fill the gaps instead of fighting each other. On the Map those partners also glow.
Click a suggestion to hear it layered under your sound (click again to stop); tap + layer to keep it. The list never runs out: just keep scrolling and more ideas load.
11.5 Find partners for the whole stack
Suggestions suit the whole stack you hear. Add or remove a layer to find new partners for the combined sound.
11.6 Choose the sound to build on
Choose a slot to find partners for it and your active green layers.
Click a Map dot to replace the sound in the current slot and see new partners.
11.7 Every suggestion tells you why
Instead of one long ranked list, the partners are sorted into the moves a producer actually makes, and each row says which one it is in plain words:
- Add sub weight anchors the low end when your stack has no sub. Kept mono; a wide low sound is flagged "high-pass for mono safety".
- Reinforce body fills a hole in the mids (roughly 250 Hz–2 kHz) with a same-vibe sound.
- Add air / sparkle adds sheen on top when the stack rolls off dark.
- Add attack / bite adds a short, percussive front for a sound with a slow attack (with a note on whether to align the onsets to fuse them or nudge them apart to stay distinct).
- Widen it suggests a wide sound when the stack is narrow. Above the low end only, so the bass stays mono.
- Add movement suggests a sweep or an arp when everything in the stack sits still.
- Character double suggests the same vibe on a different waveform, to thicken without phasing.
- Grit / clean counterpart suggests the same part in the opposite texture (a gritty version of a clean sound, or the reverse).
Read each suggestion’s mixing tip. It may suggest keeping bass mono or reducing harsh mids when two layers compete.
11.8 It follows your stack
Choose + layer to keep a partner at the top of the panel. Suggestions update for the whole stack: after adding a sub, try air or movement.
Uncheck a pinned sound to drop it again.
11.9 Drag straight out
Every row is a real file: drag it into Serum or Finder or File Explorer to keep the preset, exactly like a row in the list.
Choose an arp, then hold Option on Mac / Alt on Windows while dragging a preset name or map dot to export a temporary Serum 2 copy containing that arp. The original preset and Serum Live stay unchanged. Shift-drag keeps its usual audio action.
These preset copies are temporary: drag them into Serum or save them elsewhere to keep them. Unchanged copies may be cleared after a day; changed or unknown files stay untouched. Arp copies support up to 256 steps, pitches within two octaves of the root and note lengths up to two bars. Unsupported patterns show a message instead of exporting an inaccurate copy.
11.10 Arm layers to hear them together
The kept sounds live in the green slots (see above), so pressing Play sounds the whole stack at once. With Layers open, click a slot letter to turn that layer on or off. Close Layers with L, then click a letter to hear that sound on its own.
11.11 Recall one sound or hear the stack
With ≈ Layers open, clicking a slot toggles layer membership without Shift. Closing the panel returns slot clicks to one-sound recall.
Leaving ≈ Layers with its button, ✕ done, L or Esc stops the stack and returns to your starting sound alone. The slots keep their presets.
Chapter 12Getting sounds into your music
12.1 Take a sound into your project
12.2 Drag a preset into Serum
Drag a preset name (or a Map dot) straight onto Serum to load it. On the map, dragging a dot exports it right away; drag empty space to pan.
12.3 Drag a waveform onto an Ableton track
Drag the small waveform in the player bar (or in a row) onto an audio track in Live to drop in the sound as audio.
12.4 Right-click for quick copies
right-click a preset for:
- Copy preset copies the preset file, ready to paste in Finder or File Explorer.
- Copy wav copies the selected sound as audio at the note you auditioned, ready to paste into Finder, File Explorer or your DAW. Use ⌘C (Windows: Ctrl+C) for fresh audio of the current sound or selected arp.
- Copy name copies only the preset’s name. Press ⌘⇧N on Mac or Ctrl+Shift+N on Windows outside text fields (or from the empty search box); selected text keeps its normal keyboard behaviour.
- Find similar sounds ranks the whole library against it, exactly like dropping its audio. A ♫ chip with the preset name appears and the blend/sensitivity controls work the same way as a dropped sample. F does the same on the selected sound.
- Copy arp (MIDI) appears when the preset has its own pattern. Copies its notes and rests as MIDI at the current key and tempo, in the pattern's own rhythm (the step length the preview card shows). Paste onto a MIDI track. ⌘⇧A (Windows: Ctrl+Shift+A) does the same for the selected sound when no arp is playing. ⌘⇧C (Windows: Ctrl+Shift+C) always copies the arp picked in the arp player.
- Use arp appears only on presets that carry their own arp. It plays THAT preset's arp on the currently selected sound (picks it in the arp browser for you).
- ♥ Favorite / ♥ Unfavorite sets your own love-mark on a sound (pink in the list, a pink ring on the map). Also teaches “My taste”. Independent of ★ Keeper, so a sound can be both.
- ★ Keeper / Not my taste teach “My taste” which sounds you like or want hidden (see Layering and the taste tools in the slot bar).
12.5 Per-row icons
Every list row also carries small icons: ⧉ copies the name (paste it into Serum's own browser search) and 🔍 reveals the actual preset file in Finder or File Explorer.
If dragging or copying does not respond, see If something looks wrong.
Chapter 13Your account & access
Choose a topic · 8 short sections
13.1 Get started with SoundZapper
Get the installer at SoundZapper.com/download, then sign in to the app with Discord or email. New accounts get 14 days free, including ARP and MIDI. No card is needed and you won’t be charged automatically.
Active Psytrance Blueprint members have free access while their membership stays active. They go straight into the app without a trial welcome. Access granted directly by the owner also stays separate from trials and subscriptions.
Have a special trial code? Enter it in the welcome or in Settings → Account, then choose Apply code. Capital and small letters both work. If the code applies, your account shows the new trial end date. Each offer can be used once per account. You can enter a different eligible code later. Entering the same code again won’t add more time.
After your trial ends, choose See plans to continue with a subscription. Review the price and any first charge date before subscribing. Manage or cancel an existing subscription in Settings → Account → Manage subscription.
13.2 Log in or create your account
Choose Continue with Discord on the sign-in screen or in Settings → Account. Finish in your browser. If your email already has a SoundZapper account, choose Connect accounts and confirm it is you when asked, using your password or passkey. SoundZapper signs you in automatically. Press Esc to stop a pending sign-in.
Prefer email? Your email sign-in and sign-up options are still available. Connecting Discord keeps your usual email sign-in.
Open Settings → Account or use the startup sign-in screen. Existing account? Choose Log in.
- Choose Sign up and enter your email.
- Request a setup code and find it in your inbox.
- Paste the code into SoundZapper, choose your password and enter it twice.
- Sign in and start your free trial, or continue with your existing membership.
Use the same email if you have already been granted access.
SoundZapper remembers your sign-in securely, so you do not need to sign in each time. Your password is never kept on your computer.
Choose Log out to end this device’s session; password changes, suspension or a deliberate security revocation can also require a new login.
- From day 7, SoundZapper offers eligible accounts a reminder to choose Extend your free trial and add a card for 14 more free days.
- The offer shows how many days remain and the exact end date: 21 days left on day 7, or 14 days left on day 14. The end date stays the same.
- Review the plan price and first charge date in Stripe before confirming. Existing subscriptions keep their agreed dates.
After your free trial or extended trial ends, choose See plans for SoundZapper at €4.99/month or €49/year. The offer shows your first charge date. Your paid subscription starts when you confirm it in secure Stripe checkout; return and choose Refresh access after payment. If you already have a subscription, use Manage subscription to check billing or restore access. Stop waiting ends a slow request; you can try again, and no charge happens until you confirm in Stripe.
13.3 Your membership and trial dates
Settings → Account shows your membership: Psytrance Blueprint, manually approved, subscriber, free trial or extended trial. Trial users can see how many days remain and the exact end date, including any time added by a code.
- The code field stays here after you close the welcome, including during an extended trial.
- Different eligible codes can add more time. Reusing the same offer won’t.
- Paid, Blueprint and manually approved memberships don’t show a code field.
If your active Psytrance Blueprint membership isn’t showing, contact PSIGER in your Blueprint Discord. Connecting Discord keeps your usual email sign-in too.
13.4 Creating a password
Use at least 10 characters, or a longer passphrase. Choose something unique and hard to guess; spaces are welcome. Common or compromised passwords are not accepted.
If you cannot create a password, follow the message shown and try again. Already have an account? Choose Sign in.
13.5 Working offline for 3 days
After a successful account check, access can work offline for up to 3 days. Course members should connect each day to keep their access current.
- Local work continues: search, Map, playback, dragging sounds, sample matching, favourites, My taste, ≈ Layers and scanning.
- See the remaining time: Settings → Account shows “working offline” and the days left. The final day also has a status reminder.
- Access deadlines still apply: offline use ends by your course, trial or subscription deadline, even before the three days have passed.
- Reconnect to refresh: connect to the internet while using the app to renew your offline access.
13.6 What needs the internet
You need the internet to sign in, create or verify an account, refresh access, manage subscriptions, download installers or updates, use the Store and create invite links. Local browsing and playback continue within your remaining offline access time.
13.7 If the 3 days run out
Connect to the internet to renew your access. Your library, previews, favourites and taste choices stay where you left them.
If your computer's date has been set earlier than the last check, SoundZapper cannot tell how long it has been offline, so it asks the same thing; fixing the date or connecting once resolves it.
13.8 If sign-in fails
Connect to the internet and sign in again. SoundZapper retries the connection automatically; choose Retry connection to try sooner. If access is still refused, follow the account message.
Logging out returns to this screen and ends the offline window; your local files remain unchanged.
Chapter 14The Store (beta)
14.1 Browse extra sounds
Browse and buy extra sounds for your library.
The Store is optional and may not appear in your beta. You can still browse your own library without it.
14.2 Sign in
Open the Store view and enter your store email and password. SoundZapper remembers your sign-in; your password is never kept on your computer.
14.3 Points
Buying a sound costs points. Most single sounds are one point, but a pack or a premium sound can cost more. Each Buy button shows its own price. Your balance and subscription show at the top. Get points and Subscribe open a secure checkout in your browser; a subscription gives you a monthly points allowance.
14.4 Preview and buy
Press ▶ on any sound to hear it first. Buying takes two clicks so you never spend by accident: the first click on Buy turns it amber and restates the price (Buy · N pts?), and a second click within a few seconds confirms. On success it downloads and joins your library automatically.
If you can't afford it the Buy button is greyed out and says so.
14.5 Hide what you own
A hide sounds I already own toggle at the top is on by default, so the grid only shows sounds you don't have yet. Untick it to see everything, owned sounds included.
14.6 Filter by tag
Each store card shows its tags. Click a tag to narrow the grid to just the store sounds carrying it (it lights up); click it again to clear. Click several tags to combine them.
14.7 Where purchases land
Downloaded sounds go to Serum ▸ User ▸ SoundZapper ▸ Purchased (grouped by pack). Nothing else in your library is touched. SoundZapper then re-scans so the new sound shows up on the map, in search and in layering like any other.
14.8 Why some sounds are hidden
The Store never offers you a sound you already have. Anything already in your library, or that you've already bought, is hidden, so you never pay twice for the same sound (even if it's sold both in a pack and on its own).
Chapter 15Settings & scanning
Choose a topic · 11 short sections
15.1 Choose folders and scan
Point SoundZapper at your presets, then let it work.
Find your app version and build date in Settings. Dates include the UTC time zone.
Open ⚙ Settings to adjust the options below.
SoundZapper keeps detailed sound information compactly to save disk space. Your original presets stay untouched.
Compare preview levels
Settings → Folders & setup → Match preview levels gently reduces volume jumps between recorded previews, by up to 3 dB. It starts on; turn it off to hear original levels. Your volume fader still works, and exported audio and Serum Live stay unchanged.
Choose how much audio to keep
Open Settings → Folders & setup → Keep audio. New setups use None with Preload nearby sounds on. Every sound is still analysed for the map and search; this choice only controls retained audio. Choose:
- All audio previews: keep recorded audio for every sound.
- Only sounds unavailable in Serum Live: keep previews for sounds Serum Live cannot load. Sounds with uncertain Live availability are kept too.
- None (prepare when needed): make a temporary preview when you play a sound. The first play may take a moment.
Choosing less audio opens a review before saving. You can remove safe previews or keep them. Older audio stays protected because your DAW may use it; None applies to new temporary previews. Your original presets and search results stay available.
Choosing more audio offers to prepare it now or Later. Use Prepare missing previews at any time, or Stop preparing to stop after the current sound.
Turn on Preload nearby sounds under Settings → Folders & setup → Audio previews for faster arrow-key browsing. Turn it off while recording if you notice audio crackles.
Preview audio and audio used in your music
With None, new temporary previews are cleared the next time you open SoundZapper. When you copy or drag audio into your DAW, SoundZapper keeps a separate, permanent copy in exports. Preview cleanup leaves those copies alone so your project can still find them.
Free preview space… shows what can be removed before asking you to confirm. If nothing can be removed safely, Review previews… explains why. Choose Open preview folder to review or remove files yourself. Only remove audio your DAW no longer needs; keep the exports folder. It removes only SoundZapper’s disposable previews. Older audio and unknown files stay untouched.
Use Show library folder to find your library, or Show exports folder to find audio used in your music. Keep that exports folder available to your DAW.
15.2 Add your preset folders
The folders where your Serum presets live. They are only ever read; the app never changes or deletes anything in them.
15.3 Choose a storage folder
Choose a folder or drive with enough free space for your SoundZapper library. 📂 Open folder reveals it in Finder or File Explorer.
If the drive is unavailable
The app pauses and offers Quit or Choose a new folder. Reconnecting the original drive clears the warning. Canceling the picker keeps your current setting.
Use your library drive on another computer
Quit SoundZapper before you unplug a library drive or move it to another computer. A sound library can be open in only one SoundZapper at a time. If it is still open on another computer, SoundZapper asks you to close it there first.
You can keep your SoundZapper library on an external drive and use it on more than one Mac. SoundZapper recognizes the drive by itself only on a Mac where it is already set up with this library: its settings there must point to this library folder, and the drive must keep the same name, so the folder is found at the same place. Your favorites and saved sounds then come back as you left them.
If this Mac does not recognize the library during setup and you choose its folder, SoundZapper uses the sounds already there without copying them. Depending on how the library was saved, favorites and taste from the other Mac may appear here as a starting point. Favorites and choices you make on this Mac are saved separately and don’t show up on the other Mac. The other Mac’s files stay untouched.
If SoundZapper asks you to Choose your sound library again, click Choose library folder and pick the SoundZapper folder you used before, not the drive itself. It reconnects a library only at the place where it was set up (same drive name, same folder) and changes none of your sounds. On Windows (beta), that also means the same drive letter: if it changed, change it back first. A library found anywhere else is refused and left untouched.
If the folder you pick doesn’t hold your library, the dialog stays open and nothing changes, so you can try again. To start over instead, click Start a new library… and confirm: SoundZapper creates a separate, empty SoundZapper folder there. Your original library and its files stay untouched, and canceling the confirmation keeps everything as it was.
Copying the library to a new drive is not a reliable way to change drives. SoundZapper accepts a copy only at the old place (the new drive needs the old drive’s name) and only if it can confirm every file is unchanged. A library last used with an older version may not be confirmable. Otherwise it leaves the copy untouched: connect the original drive or choose a new empty folder. On a Mac, use Move library… to change drives.
Make a copy only while SoundZapper is closed on every computer. A copy made while the library was open may count as still open there, and SoundZapper won’t open it at the same time.
Checking a large copy can take a few minutes. A progress bar shows how much is checked, and it may pause while your computer is busy. Click Stop check to stop: SoundZapper confirms when it has stopped, and nothing is changed. Once it says Finishing, the check can no longer be stopped and completes.
Choosing another folder leaves the original library untouched. Start a scan when you are ready. Restart SoundZapper after changing storage so sound search uses the new library. In a browser, enter the full folder path when prompted.
Move your library to another drive
In the installed Mac app, choose Move library…, select the new drive or parent folder, then confirm. SoundZapper creates a new SoundZapper folder there; an existing folder with that name is refused.
Browsing pauses while it copies and checks every file. A progress message shows what is happening. Cancel move keeps the original library selected until the final switch starts. Old copies are cleared only after checking the new copies. Changed files stay in place. Empty placeholders may remain in the old folder. Your Serum preset folders are never moved or changed.
The app reopens the same library from its new location, with favourites and saved sounds. Keep the drive connected while using it. This move tool is currently Mac-only and available in the installed app.
15.4 Scan now
The app plays and listens to every preset. A progress bar shows how it's going. It runs in the background and picks up where it left off if you stop it. A rescan also cleans up after presets you've deleted from your library: they disappear from browsing and search. Only disposable previews are cleared; audio your DAW may use stays protected.
(If a whole folder is offline, for example an unplugged external drive, nothing is removed; the app waits until it's reachable again.)
15.5 Matches your taste
SoundZapper learns from sounds you use: drag a sound into your DAW, copy it with ⌘+C, or choose ★ Keeper in its right-click menu.
Open your taste zone
The ♥ Taste button lights up after at least 5 keepers. While learning, it stays grey; clicking it explains your current count and how to add more.
Taste is a filter. It shows your favorites and keepers with their closest-sounding neighbours, ordered by closeness. A few marks make a tight zone; a larger collection opens it to a few hundred sounds. The 15 closest have amber map rings.
The status line gives the number of sounds and tells you to turn ♥ off to see everything. Turn it off to return to the full library.
Review or change what it learned
- Right-click ♥ Taste, or choose Show kept sounds in Settings, to open your kept-sounds list.
- Click a row to play it; use ✕ to forget that sound.
- Reset taste asks first, then clears local choices. It cannot be undone.
- Not my taste steers suggestions away from a sound. Mark it ★ Keeper again to bring it back.
15.6 Your Serum stars
- 4–5 Serum stars: teach My taste automatically.
- 1 star: exclude the sound from Taste suggestions. It stays available in ordinary browsing and searching.
- 2–3 stars or none: add no preference.
SoundZapper reads these ratings without changing Serum files. Your next Taste results use these ratings. They do not add a Favorite heart.
Your choices take priority
Keep or favorite a sound to bring it back; reject it to exclude it; forget it in the taste list to ignore the imported rating. Reset taste clears local choices and lets Serum’s stars apply again.
15.7 Favorites vs Keepers
- ♥ Favorite: a deliberate mark for a sound you love. Click the heart in a list row or use the right-click menu. Its name is pink and its map dot has a pink ring.
- ★ Keeper: SoundZapper notices usage through dragging, copying or an explicit Keeper action. Keepers are amber; their map dots grow as you use them.
A sound can have both marks. Favoriting teaches My taste; removing a heart does not erase that learning.
15.8 Similarity matches
Choose Tight for the closest matches to a sample, or Narrow, Medium and Wide to explore more. Change the setting while viewing matches to see the difference. See How many matches? for the ranges.
15.9 Similarity blend
Find this slider next to the ♫ chip in the filter panel after dropping a sample or choosing Find similar sounds. Choose what matters most: Sound type or Character:
- Sound type matches what the sound is: its musical role (a lead, a pad, a zap, a pluck).
- Character matches texture: bright, gritty, hollow or airy.
The default sits at 90% type / 10% character: mostly "what it is", with a touch of "how it sounds". Slide toward Character for material where the texture matters more than the instrument type. Drag it to update your current results.
If Character is unavailable, matching uses Sound type.
15.10 Setup assistant
Reopen the guided setup any time to re-check Serum, adjust folders and storage, or start a fresh scan (see Getting started).
15.11 Experiments
An experiment row is already ON. Uncheck it to hear the previous behavior. Its own Compare A/B button opens side-by-side tabs: A = old, B = new. Switch tabs with ⌥+Tab, or jump with ⌥+1 and ⌥+2.
Each row has its own comparison and a tooltip explaining what to try. Your work is preserved when switching back.
- Clearer notes when changing pitch: pitch-lock a pad by ±12 semitones; compare watery/phased sound and attack clarity. Blind test runs 10 random rounds: Play A / Play B, choose the cleaner sound, then see the result and which used the new preview version.
- Smarter taste ranking: turn on ♥ Taste and compare whether the new zone feels more like your taste.
- More balanced sound matching: compare the map’s family separation; listen for clearer groups of related sounds.
Chapter 16Keyboard shortcuts
16.1 Find a shortcut
Press ? to see shortcuts for your current view. Choose the List or Map help tab to see the other view’s keys. Mac: ⌘ means Command and ⌥ means Option; on Windows use Ctrl and Alt. Here is the full list.
| Everywhere | |
|---|---|
| Space | Play / pause the current sound (or start / stop the arp) |
| ⌘+C | Copy the current sound as audio (freshly recorded at the note you are hearing, or the selected arp) to the clipboard. Works for every sound, including greyed ones: a sound that has no preview yet is prepared first, and the copy follows. Press Esc to cancel a slow copy. |
| ⌘+Shift+C | Copy the selected arp as a MIDI clip |
| ⌘⇧A / Ctrl+Shift+A | Copy the arp as a MIDI clip: the arp playing in the arp player, or, when none is on, the selected sound's own arp at its own rhythm |
| ⌘⇧N / Ctrl+Shift+N | Copy the selected preset name only; also works from the search box when no text is selected, leaving other text fields and selected text alone. |
| A | Arp on / off (remembers the last pattern) |
| F | Find similar sounds: rank the whole library against the selected sound (same as right-click → Find similar sounds) |
| H | Hide / unhide the selected sound. Hidden sounds show as greyed map dots and the arrows skip them (a direct click still plays them). Settings → Browsing can hide them fully or unhide all. See Hiding presets. |
| Shift+↑ / ↓ | Previous / next arp pattern (across packs) |
| ⌥+Shift+↑ / ↓ | Jump to the previous / next arp pack |
| Alt+Shift++ / − | Arp step size (native · 1/16 · 1/8 · 1/4 · 1 bar · 2 bars) |
| + / − (or Alt++ / −) | Shift the locked note and arp up / down one octave. On US keyboards, Shift+= types +; = also works. Numpad +/− works too. Text fields and selected text keep their normal behavior. |
| Tab | Cycle through the preset slots (A → B → C…) |
| 1…9 | Pick slot N. In ≈ Layers mode it toggles that slot's layer on / off (press again = off); otherwise it recalls that slot's sound (repeat presses just re-select it) |
| Shift+A…H | Turn that slot's layer on / off (works in any mode) |
| L | Toggle ≈ Layers mode |
| Shift+Tab | Switch between List and Map |
| ⌘+Z | Undo your last browse step: filters, search, ranking, list/map, the active tab and the selected sound all restored (lost a dot on the map? ⌘Z brings you back to it). Same as the ← button in the top bar (⌘+[ works too; inside the search box ⌘Z stays normal text-undo). |
| ? | Show / hide the quick help |
| Esc | Close whatever is open (the arp browser, ≈ Layers, a menu, popover, dialog or the hover card). When nothing is open, a bare Esc clears all filters: the same reset as the ✕ Clear-all-filters button, or clicking the results counter. |
| List view | |
| ↑ / ↓ | Previous / next preset |
| ⌘+R | Shuffle the list: a fresh mix of packs and categories (off while a similarity / taste ranking is active) |
| Map view | |
| ← ↑ ↓ → | Jump to the nearest sound in that direction. The opposite arrow retraces your steps, and a zoomed map follows you. |
| 0 | Zoom toggle: if you're zoomed in (or panned), snap back to the whole map; if you're already showing the whole map, zoom in on the selected sound (same as the ⌂ / ⊕ buttons) |
| In the search box / on a search chip | |
| Enter | Keep the draft as one Auto, Words, Tags or Description chip. |
| Alt+Enter | Exclude a tag from the preset’s own tags. |
| Backspace | In an empty search, remove the last chip. |
| Delete / Backspace | On a focused chip, remove that chip from both copies. |
| Compare A/B (only while an experiment comparison is open) | |
| ⌥+Tab / ⌥+Shift+Tab | Next / previous comparison tab. Ctrl+Tab also cycles. |
| ⌥+1 / ⌥+2 | Jump to tab A (old behavior) or tab B (new behavior). ⌥+3 to ⌥+7 reach extra tabs when an experiment has more. |
Chapter 17If something looks wrong
17.1 Find the cause
