Chop, a small DAW for chopping samples

How it works

Load a loop, cut it into slices and play them back in a different order.

01
Load a loop

Drop a WAV, AIFF, FLAC or MP3 on one of the eight tracks. A file longer than ten seconds opens an import page where you keep the part you want, up to twenty seconds.
02
Chop it

Slice on the grid, at the transients or by hand. Markers snap to zero crossings and each slice gets a short fade, so nothing clicks.
03
Play it differently

Reorder, repeat, mute and reverse the slices. Give a single hit its own pitch, envelope or filter, or turn it into a roll. Each track keeps four variations of its pattern.

Screens

You edit a track in Sample, arrange it in Multitrack and mix it in Mixer.

The Sample screen: the waveform with its numbered slices, the sequence of blocks under it and the knobs of the slices. — The waveform with its slices, the sequence of blocks underneath and the knobs for the track, the slice and the block. Everything you hear is made here.

The Multitrack screen: eight tracks with their parts over eight bars and an automation lane below. — Each part is one pass of a track's pattern. Move it, copy it, switch it between the four variations and draw its automation in the lane underneath.

The Mixer screen: eight track strips, four returns and a master, each with meters, insert slots, EQ knobs, sends and a fader. — Eight channels, four returns and a master. Every strip has four VST3 inserts and a simple EQ; every track has four sends.

Features

Every parameter can be moved while it plays, mapped to a MIDI knob and undone.

Samples

WAV, AIFF, FLAC and MP3, mono or stereo
Drag and drop, or the built-in browser with folders, favourites, recent files, search and preview
Long files: keep a piece of up to 20 s on an import page
Record the audio input to make a new sample
Normalize and reverse without touching the file
A file edited in another program reloads when you come back

Chopping

Slices on a grid, at the transients (with a sensitivity slider) or by hand
Zero-crossing snap and anti-click fades
Drag a marker to trim a slice in place
Pitch, gain, reverse, envelope and filter per slice
Copy one slice's settings to another, or to all
Up to 128 slices per track

Sequencing

Reorder, repeat and mute, on the grid or free
Overlapping blocks cut or crossfade
Resize a block: stretched, varispeeded or cut
Pitch, gain, envelope and filter per block, on top of the slice
Rolls down to 1/64, with triplets, decay and pitch ramps
Select several blocks with Cmd or Shift and edit them together
Swing per track, 50 to 75 %

Variations

Four per track, A to D: fills and breaks without spending tracks
Edit each one on the Sample screen; in the Multitrack every part chooses the one it plays
Change a variation and every part playing it follows
They share the sample, slices and mixer; each has its own blocks
Create one as a copy of another, or clear it

Tempo

Time-stretch that keeps the pitch
Varispeed, like a turntable
Beats: slices moved to the tempo, REX-style
Loops fitted to whole bars, or at their original speed
Pitch that leaves each slice's length alone
Mono or poly, 16 voices per track
BPM, time signature, metronome and a grid from 1/1 to 1/64
Band-limited resampling; knobs glide, so nothing clicks

Arranging

Parts placed, moved and copied, each one playing a variation
Trim a part with the markers on the waveform ruler
Loop range and play cursor on the ruler
Mute, solo, name and colour per track
Duplicate a track's content into an empty track
Drop a file on a track to load it there

Automation

One lane per part: volume, pan, sends, insert on/off, pitch and EQ gains
Draw with points, lines or a pencil
Or record a MIDI controller, latched until Stop
Read and Write per track
Move a part and its automation goes with it

Mixing

8 channels, 4 returns and a master
LED peak meters with clip lights
Console-style faders, 0 dB at three quarters of the travel
Channel EQ: high-pass, low-pass, two shelf or bell bands and two mids
4 sends per track, 2 before the fader, 2 after
Rename strips by double-clicking

Plugins

4 VST3 inserts on every track, return and the master
Scanned in a separate process; a plugin that fails is skipped
A page to scan, add folders, enable and disable
Plugins follow the tempo and the position
Automatic delay compensation and click-free bypass
Undo brings a removed plugin back with its settings

MIDI

Right-click any control, turn a knob, done
Knobs can follow the selected track or slice
Relative encoders and 14-bit CC
A mappings page with range, invert and curve
MIDI never plays notes, it only moves controls

Projects and export

Undo for every edit
Sample paths relative to the project; Collect Samples gathers them; Open Recent
Autosave every 5 minutes, recovery after a crash
A crash report you send yourself; a plugin that crashes can be switched off
Export the mix, stems or single slices to WAV, with an optional 2 s tail
Resample a track through its effects into a free track

Interface

A late-80s sampler look: LCDs, LEDs, a seven-segment readout
Resizable window, full screen, zoom from 75 to 150 %
Icon buttons with the name and shortcut in a tooltip
The layout follows the window size: wider columns, more room for the waveform

Not included

No piano roll, MIDI tracks, step sequencer or pads. No free clips and no recording on the timeline. No built-in effects apart from the channel EQ, and no more than eight tracks. Chop is not a plugin either: it runs on its own and exports stems for the DAW you already use.

Specifications

Tracks	8, one sample each
Variations	4 per track
Slices	Up to 128 per track
Voices	16 per track, mono or poly
Sample files	WAV, AIFF, FLAC, MP3, mono or stereo
Sample length	Up to 20 s
Time-stretch	Signalsmith Stretch
Mixer	8 channels, 4 returns, master
Per strip	4 VST3 inserts, channel EQ
Sends	4 per track
MIDI	CC learn on every control, 14-bit, relative
Export	WAV, 16-bit dithered, 24-bit or 32-bit float
macOS	macOS 11.5 or later, Apple silicon only (M1 or better)
Windows	Coming soon
Memory	8 GB of RAM
Screen	1440 × 900 or larger
Audio	Any audio device your system supports; an input only to record
Price	Free during the beta

Questions

When can I get it?

Chop is in public beta. The macOS version is available now: download it from this page.

How much does it cost?

Nothing during the beta.

What do I need to run it?

A Mac with Apple silicon (M1 or better) and macOS 11.5 or later. Intel Macs are not supported. A Windows version is coming soon. You also need 8 GB of RAM and a screen of at least 1440 × 900. The full list is in the specifications.

Which plugins can I use?

VST3 effects, in four insert slots on every track, return and on the master. Plugins are scanned in a separate process, so one that crashes during the scan is skipped instead of taking Chop down.

Can I play slices from a MIDI keyboard?

No. MIDI in Chop moves controls: right-click a knob, turn one on your controller and they're linked. Slices play from the sequence.

Can I use it with my DAW?

Chop is a standalone app, not a plugin. Export the mix, one WAV per track or the single slices of a track, and drag them into your DAW.

Can I record?

Only to make samples. Rec records the audio input for up to ten minutes, then you keep a piece of up to twenty seconds and chop it like any other sample.

Why only eight tracks?

Each track is one player with a fixed set of voices, so every control answers the mouse or a MIDI knob at once. Eight is enough for a beat and small enough to keep the app simple.

Public beta, out now.

Chop is in public beta. It is free for the whole beta, on macOS first. Windows follows soon.

Download for macOS