Parameter Surface

Parameter Surface turns several instrument states into a map you can play. Each colored cell holds a sound. Move the crosshair between cells to blend those sounds, then record the movement as automation if you want to repeat it.

The design is directly inspired by AudioMulch's MetaSurface.

Open the SURF page in a supported instrument to begin.

Quick Start

Choose or create a sound, open SURF, and press ADD.
Choose or create a different sound and press ADD again. The surface needs at least two cells.
In EDIT, drag the circular cell markers into a useful arrangement.
Turn the surface ON, switch to PLAY, and drag the crosshair to move between the sounds.
Adjust GLIDE if you want the crosshair to follow your movement more slowly.

Ambi Encoder Water with six colored cells, circular cell markers, and a crosshair on its SURF page — A six-cell surface in Ambi Encoder Water. The crosshair shows the sound currently being played.

Controls

Control	What it does
`PLAY` / `EDIT`	Switches between moving the performance crosshair and arranging cells.
`ON`	Enables the surface. Turn it off to hear and edit the current base sound directly.
`ADD`	Adds the current sound as a new cell.
`CAP`	Replaces the selected cell with the current sound.
`DEL`	Removes the selected cell.
`CURVE`	Chooses how gently or decisively neighboring cells blend.
`FOCUS`	Sets how strongly the nearest cells dominate the blend.
`GLIDE`	Slows the crosshair as it travels toward a new position.
`POP`	On macOS, opens the same live surface in a separate attached panel.

Select a cell and use its menu to assign a factory preset to it. A surface can hold up to 24 cells.

What Changes as You Move

Sliders and other continuous sound controls blend across nearby cells. Menus, switches, and counts use the nearest cell. Landing directly on a cell recalls that cell's sound.

OUT and ORDER stay under your direct control instead of changing with the surface. Colors identify cells; they do not indicate low or high values. See Interpreting Color for the site's display conventions.

Automation and Saving

SURFACE X and SURFACE Y are ordinary host parameters. Record a performance, draw envelopes, or apply modulation to move the crosshair from your DAW.

The host project saves the cells, their positions and assignments, the surface controls, and the cursor position. Portable preset files save one instrument state rather than the complete surface.

Supported Instruments

Parameter Surface is available in Stochastic, Wrangler, Water, Wind, Pyrosphere, Cryosphere, and Insect.