Distortion

Lo-fi

Bits, sample rate, drive and tone: from a vintage sampler to a crushed toy.

Lo-fi window
Lo-fi, the main screen.

Overview

Lo-fi brings the sound down to fewer bits and a lower sample rate. Each control is off at its end, so you can use just one stage.

Getting started

  1. Start with Rate around 12 kHz and Bits around 8; choose Filtered or Raw.

Controls

Bits1 to 24 (24 is off).
Rate200 Hz to 48 kHz (top is off).
ToneA high cut after it all.
DriveA soft push before the crush.
MixCrushed against dry.
AliasingFiltered (warm steps) or Raw (folded, metallic).

Settings

The gear in the header opens the settings panel; it covers the lower panel until the gear is clicked again.

DitherOff or On: noise before rounding, so low bits hiss instead of grit.
Lo-fi: Lo-fi, the settings panel.
Lo-fi, the settings panel.

What the screen shows

Eight milliseconds of the waveform: input as a thin line, output as orange steps.

Tips

  • Raw aliasing on drums gives the bite of early samplers.

Technical notes

  • No latency; with everything off the sound passes bit for bit.

Common to every plugin

The headerEvery window opens with the same header. On the left a dot-matrix display shows the main reading large and the details under it; text that does not fit scrolls. Next to it a hint with a coloured dot says what the plugin is doing or what to do next. On the right: Undo and Redo arrows (up to 100 steps of everything done in the window), the Bypass button, and the gear, which opens the plugin's settings panel when it has one.
BypassWith Bypass lit, the plugin lets the sound through untouched. It is the same switch as your DAW's own bypass for the plugin, so either can be used and automated. The input is held back by exactly the plugin's latency, so the timing stays right, and switching fades over 10 ms, so it never clicks. Bypass is not part of Undo.
Input and OutputMost plugins have a column on the right with a pair of VU meters for the input and the output, each with its own gain knob (plus or minus 24 dB). Analog shows the classic VU scale, dBFS the digital one. A click on a meter opens a large view of it. The CLIP lamp lights when a sample reaches 0 dBFS.
KnobsDrag a knob up or down to turn it. Knobs that go both ways, or that have a natural middle, catch briefly at their centre. A double-click returns a knob to its default.
About and the demoA click on the xsidfx logo in the footer opens About. In the demo version the plugin's name ends in (demo), its settings are not saved with your project, and About opens each time the window does.