Sample Decks 32

s3g Sample Decks 32 turns two sample stacks into an instrument you can mix, reshape, and pass back and forth. Each deck holds up to 32 layers, with nine playback methods drawn from Sample Neon 32. Perform with the crossfader, turn a deck's output into a new layer on the other deck, and keep transforming the result.

Use it entirely on screen or with a Reloop Beatpad 2. Stereo, discrete multichannel, and ACN/SN3D Ambisonic sources share the same workflow; a separate stereo cue lets you audition a deck before bringing it into the main mix.

Workflow

1. Insert Sample Decks 32 on a REAPER instrument track. For ordinary stereo samples, choose STEREO and leave STEMS: OFF.
2. Route the main mix to your stereo monitoring output, or use a matching multichannel output or Ambisonic decoder for spatial material. Drop audio onto Deck A or choose ADD AUDIO. Multiple files become separate layers.
3. Press A's PLAY and move the crossfader toward A. Start with Sample for direct playback or Lanes to explore a stack. Choose FREE clock in the Playback editor if you want to play while REAPER is stopped.
4. Open A EDIT on the right to adjust A while keeping its waveform visible on the left. Try a different playback method, shape a Stack Path, or add Character FX.
5. With DECK OUTPUT selected in Record / Resample, press REC A → B once to start and again to stop. The new take is selected on B. Play B, move the crossfader toward it, then try REC B → A for another generation.
6. Use UNDO to reverse a take or source edit. Save your REAPER project, or choose SAVE SET to keep a reusable Decks set.

Finding your way

Think of each deck as one instrument with a stack of sources, not a bank of independent drum pads. It has one transport and one playback method. In Layers mode, launching a layer replaces the previous layer launch. In Keyboard mode, the same pads play pitched voices and chords.

• Left display: A WAVE shows A's waveform; B EDIT opens B's controls.
• Right display: B WAVE shows B's waveform; A EDIT opens A's controls.
• Performance strips: the left transport and pads always control A, and the right always control B, regardless of the display above them.
• Center: two permanent mixer strips keep A/B gain, high/mid/low EQ, DJ filter, FX amount, cue, slip, and levels visible. The crossfader, headphone mix/level, recording, output format, and setup are always available too.

Cyan-gray title bars identify A; orange-gray bars identify B. An edit panel takes the color of the deck it controls. Use SHOW WAVE to bring that deck's waveform into the opposite display. Changing display pages does not change the sound, recording direction, or controller assignments.

The center mixer follows the Beatpad and host automation directly. Moving a hardware control updates its on-screen value; dragging a slider or typing a value edits the same setting. A and B stay fixed even when the opposite deck's editor is open. FILT is the DJ filter: negative values low-pass, positive values high-pass, and zero is neutral. FX is the amount of the Character effect selected for that deck. Shifted hardware knobs retain their Stack Cycle, Source Cycle, playback macro, and FX Amount assignments.

The waveform pane contains the playback method, layer source, and selected layer. The edit-page menu opens SOURCE / CHOP, PLAYBACK, STACK PATH, CHARACTER FX, MIXER / ROUTING, CUTUPS PATTERN, PERFORMANCE INPUT, or HEADPHONE CUE. Some playback methods have a second page under CONTROLS. Double-click a slider to restore its default.

Reading and navigating waveforms

VERTICAL SCROLL runs time from top to bottom: the waveform travels upward past a fixed horizontal playhead. HORIZONTAL SCROLL uses a vertical playhead instead. Choose either OVERVIEW orientation for a stationary view of the source.

The channel menu lets you show all channels, combined peaks, or channel 1. Use the mouse wheel to zoom. A scrolling view stays centered on the playhead; an overview zooms around the pointer. Pan a zoomed overview with horizontal scrolling, or Shift + vertical wheel. Panning only changes the view. Drag the waveform to move the source position; in Edit Slices, dragging edits markers instead. ZOOM RESET returns to the full source.

Choose a playback method

FREE clock runs independently of REAPER's transport; HOST follows host timing and pauses when it stops. Source movement and stack movement are separate: Source Cycle controls travel through sample time, while Stack Cycle controls travel through layers. A cycle control only affects a playback path that uses it.

Layers, Stack Path, and manual navigation

LAYER chooses the sample you are editing. LAYER SOURCE chooses how playback uses the stack: Primary, Selected, Velocity, Random / Trigger, or Stack Path, where available. Sample chooses a layer on a trigger; Motion, Grains, Stretch, Wavesets, and Spectral can travel continuously between layers. Lanes uses its own Manual / Stack Path choice. Cutups uses File Order; Slice Sequence uses its slice map and optional stack-wide mosaic candidates.

FOLLOW SOURCE means “let the chosen layer source decide.” It does not turn on Stack Path by itself. For an automatic tour through a stack, choose Stack Path as the source or navigation, choose a shape, and adjust Stack Cycle or Stack Beats.

The compact path sits below the waveform; open the STACK PATH edit page for a larger version. Layer 1 is at the top, higher-numbered layers below. The moving dot follows the path. Choose a shape, or click to add a point and drag points to reshape it; editing switches the shape to Manual. Right-click an interior point to remove it.

To take over, move STACK POS or hold Shift + jog on the Beatpad. This changes layers without moving through sample time, and leaves navigation at MANUAL STACK after release. Motion, Grains, Stretch, Wavesets, Lanes, and Spectral blend through layers; Sample, Slice Sequence, and Cutups choose discrete layers. Select FOLLOW SOURCE, or press Shift + Sync, to release the manual hold without restarting or changing speed. The same shortcut releases a recalled cue blend.

Draw a Cutups pattern

Open CUTUPS PATTERN to see up to 64 steps in one strip. Drag a step's bright handle vertically to choose its layer; layer 1 is at the top. Drag across steps to draw a sequence. This changes File Order to Manual while keeping the other steps. Hold Option (Alt) while dragging the thinner gray handle to set the position within each source; this changes Source Order to Manual independently.

The readout identifies the step, layer, and source percentage. Double-click resets the step's layer address; Option-double-click resets its source position. The pattern is saved with the project or set.

Shape the sound

CHARACTER FX has Filter, Echo, Space, Shift, Vowel, Punch, Drive, and Crush, each with its own controls. Set its amount with FX in the center mixer, alongside deck gain, three-band EQ, and the separate DJ filter. MIXER / ROUTING holds technique routing and cue-position settings. Use the FX Punch pad mode to temporarily introduce a Character effect while performing; pressure changes its intensity. Effect changes fade through dry to keep transitions smooth.

Eight performance pad modes

Choose PAD MODE on screen or the corresponding Beatpad page. These are different ways to intervene in the current playback method, not eight more playback engines. INPUT opens extra performance options on the opposite display.

PAD BANK, or Shift + Browse, selects ranges 1–8, 9–16, 17–24, and 25–32 for slices, layers, keys, and Stack Ride. Page or bank changes do not redirect a held note's release. On-screen pads flash when pressed and remain outlined while held; their bottom bar shows pressure. Stop clears performance overrides.

Loops use SOURCE BPM, not automatic beat detection, and stay within the source trim. Slices use the chosen playback method; select RAW SAMPLE in Performance Input for direct slice audition. Roll includes the deck's EQ and Character FX and keeps up to four seconds of history; a pad becomes available when enough audio is ready.

Three kinds of cue

• SET CUE / CUE in the transport stores one position and returns to it.
• Cues pads store eight bookmarks. Each remembers a source position and layer, including an in-between layer blend for stack-blending methods.
• CUE A / CUE B in the center mixer sends a deck to your headphones. It does not move playback.

Recalled layer blends are held until you choose Follow Source or press Shift + Sync. Sample, Slice Sequence, and Cutups use single-layer cues. Cue jumps use a short fade-in shared by all channels. STOP also clears the effect tail. SYNC sets Time Rate from host tempo and Source BPM, then restarts from the beginning; it is a rate-matching shortcut, not beat-grid analysis.

Play chords

1. Select SAMPLER on the Beatpad, or LAYERS / KEYS on screen.
2. Choose KEYBOARD, or press Shift + Sampler to switch between layers and keys.
3. Open INPUT. Set ROOT NOTE for the untransposed source pitch and KEY VOICES for the voice limit: 1–16, default 8. Root defaults to MIDI 60 (C4).
4. Play the pads as consecutive chromatic notes. Banks extend the range to 32 notes. KEY OCTAVE, or Shift + Pitch Bend − / +, shifts the range without changing held notes.

All nine methods support independent pitched voices. Their tuning behavior differs: Sample changes playback rate, while the other engines retain their own synthesis. Layer source, Stack Path, jog movement, EQ, and effects remain shared across the deck. More voices, channels, and complex playback methods use more CPU.

For mouse chords, choose MOUSE PADS → LATCH: click a pad to hold it and click again to release. HOLD follows the mouse button. Mouse Velocity and Mouse Pressure apply only to mouse performance. RELEASE MOUSE PADS or Stop clears held mouse notes. The Scratch and Nudge strips provide on-screen jog gestures; Stack Position provides manual layer navigation.

Trim, chop, and organize layers

1. Select a layer and open SOURCE / CHOP. Set Start and End around the audio you want.
2. Choose CROP SELECTION to discard audio outside that region in this layer. NORMALIZE adjusts the selected layer's level.
3. Set Slice Count, then use EQUAL SLICES or TRANSIENT SLICES as a starting point.
4. Choose EDIT SLICE MARKERS, or EDIT SLICES in the waveform view. Click to add a boundary, drag to move one, and right-click to remove it. Endpoints stay fixed; a layer can have up to 32 slices.
5. Play the markers with the Slices pads or Slice Sequence method. To make separate samples, choose SLICES TO LAYERS. This fills empty layers in the same deck and keeps the original source; enough empty layers must be available for the whole batch.

ZERO CROSS refines slice boundaries to a nearby shared, low-discontinuity position across channels. Turn it off when exact placement matters more. CLEAR MARKERS returns to one full-region slice without deleting audio. Switch back to Follow Stack or Edit Layer for ordinary waveform scrubbing.

Right-click the STACK LAYERS grid for COPY LAYER, PASTE LAYER, or CLEAR LAYER. Copy includes audio, trim, and slice markers and works between decks. Pasting over an occupied cell asks before replacing it. Clear and Delete Layer remove a source from this set, not its original file on disk.

Undo a source edit

UNDO and REDO cover imports, trims, crop, normalize, layer paste or clear, slice edits and distribution, cue-bookmark edits, and completed recordings. Finish a take or wait for loading to finish before editing. A completed marker drag is one undo step.

Internal history holds up to 32 operations within its audio budget. It is not saved with the project; loading a set starts a new history. Save a separate set before a long destructive-edit session if you want a lasting return point. Continuous playback and effect adjustments use the host's automation rather than this source-edit history.

Record, resample, and hand off

Select an empty layer on the receiving deck to choose the destination. If its selected layer is occupied, Decks uses the first free layer; it never records over an occupied layer. The record button shows the destination. Only one take records at a time.

Record is a toggle: press once to start, again to stop. The live capture thumbnail grows during recording. On stopping, the take remains selected on its receiving deck, ready to play, crop, or delete. The receiver's Layer Source changes to Selected. Neither its level fader nor the crossfader moves automatically, so bring it into the mix when you are ready.

The number beside the recording-time readout sets the maximum length from 1 to 120 seconds, default 30. Capture / Handoff pads offer timed takes based on host tempo. Next Take finishes and prepares the current recording before starting another; it is not gapless. The maximum length and available audio memory still apply.

Record track audio

1. Make audio reach Decks' input in REAPER: use a track item, an upstream instrument, a track receive, or a monitored hardware input.
2. Select TRACK INPUT or INPUT + THRU, then the input channel group.
3. Match FORMAT to the audio you want to record. Each take uses that channel count, even when the receiver's other layers use a different format.
4. Press REC INPUT → A or REC INPUT → B. Stop to keep the take, then audition it on the receiver.

Input + Thru monitoring is independent of deck levels and the crossfader. Avoid a second REAPER monitoring path that would double the signal. The recording contains incoming audio before Decks' processing, not its own playback or monitoring output. A disconnected input channel ends the take and keeps captured audio; connected silence records normally. Changing Format ends a take in its original format.

Output and spatial material

Decks exposes 32 output channels. FORMAT chooses stereo, quad, octo, or first-, second-, or third-order ACN/SN3D Ambisonics. Use matching sources and monitoring: Decks does not automatically upmix a sample or convert Ambisonic conventions. Mixed-format stacks retain their original audio; stack playback stays within the selected layer's channel group.

STEMS adds separate A and B buses after the main mix when all three buses fit. For stereo, the mix is 1–2, A is 3–4, and B is 5–6. Third-order Ambisonics uses the 16-channel main mix only.

In MIXER / ROUTING, PRESERVE FIELD keeps source channels linked; DISTRIBUTE allows independent treatment of discrete channels. Ambisonics keeps field-preserving behavior and disables Wavesets, Drive, Crush, and tape delay. The main output remains Ambisonic; only the separate headphone cue is decoded to stereo.

Headphone cue

1. Open HEADPHONE CUE from the title bar or edit-page menu to set the route. Lower Cue Level in the center mixer and your interface's headphone volume before auditioning.
2. Choose CUE OUTPUT. Auto uses the first free stereo pair after the main mix and any stems; a fixed pair lets you match your interface routing.
3. In REAPER, expose that pair through the plug-in pins and track channels, then send it to your interface's headphone outputs. Keep it out of the master mix.
4. Press mixer CUE A or CUE B to hear a deck independently of its fader and the crossfader. Use CUE → MASTER to blend between audition and the main mix.

For a Beatpad 2 stereo setup, choose STEREO, STEMS: OFF, and AUTO: route the main mix 1–2 to hardware outputs 1–2 and cue 3–4 to hardware outputs 3–4. Decks does not create these REAPER routes for you. With another interface, use whichever hardware pair feeds its headphones.

The Beatpad's Cue Mix knob controls Cue → Master; its Phones knob also controls physical headphone volume. Both decks can be selected for cue; their signals are averaged for headroom. Cue includes deck processing and Roll. If a format or stem change makes a fixed cue pair overlap another bus, cue is muted and the page reports the conflict.

For quad and octo, choose the fold that matches your material:

• STEREO PAIRS: odd channels to left, even to right; appropriate for interleaved L/R pairs, including FL, FR, RL, RR quad.
• CLOCKWISE RING: an evenly spaced horizontal speaker ring; quad order is FL, FR, RR, RL.
• MONO SUM: all channels to both ears when channel order is unknown. Opposite-phase material can cancel in a fold-down.

Ambisonic cue automatically uses an XY stereo projection, matching the selected ACN/SN3D order. It is an audition mix, not binaural or HRTF monitoring. For a spatial headphone check, route the full field to a dedicated binaural decoder. See Ambi Decoder Stereo for more about stereo projection.

Connect a Beatpad 2

1. Select BEATPAD 2 in Setup.
2. Choose the Beatpad as the REAPER track's MIDI input and enable record monitoring.
3. Add a MIDI hardware output from the track back to the Beatpad for LEDs. Preserve the original MIDI channels; do not force all feedback onto one channel.
4. Press REFRESH LEDS after connecting or changing the return route. Do not route the feedback back into Decks or send it to unrelated devices.

Jog travel is measured in source time, so loading a longer file does not make a wheel movement jump farther. With Slip enabled, release returns to the continuing source position. Shift + jog controls the stack instead.

Shift shortcuts

After a Shift-fader start, returning that fader to zero also stops the deck if Shift has been released. An ordinary fader move only changes volume.

The four Shift + mixer knobs, top to bottom: Stack Cycle, Source Cycle, playback macro, and FX Amount. Free clock uses seconds; Host clock uses beats. The physical order stays the same in Classic and Filter EQ layouts.

Knob pickup: after switching between mixer and Shift functions, move the knob through the current on-screen value before it takes over. This prevents jumps when you release Shift, change a value on screen, or switch playback method or clock. If the Beatpad was connected in Filter EQ mode, move the Filter knob once or reselect the rear switch before using the third Shift knob.

Pad lights and jog rings

Loaded layer pads are red, the selected layer yellow, and held pads white; empty layers are dark. Keyboard pads are cyan with yellow root keys. Other pad modes have distinct colors, and active loops or toggled effects remain lit. Enable velocity and pressure with Shift + Hot Cue when you want expressive pad control.

With multiple layers, the jog-ring marker follows the actual stack position in both Follow Source and Manual Stack. A single-layer deck shows source position instead. Cyan indicates Follow Source, yellow manual stack control, and red the deck receiving a recording. Empty decks are dark unless recording.

Moving LED feedback can light REAPER's MIDI activity indicator even when you are not touching the controller. Decks updates changed lights rather than sending repeated full refreshes while idle. REFRESH LEDS is the manual recovery button after reconnection or a routing change. A lit mixer CUE confirms Decks' cue selection, not the downstream headphone routing in REAPER.

Save your work

Choose how audio is kept with STORE in Setup:

SAVE SET and LOAD SET use .s3gdecks files. Choose Embed before saving a set for another computer. Loading a set stops both decks. For Project storage, keep the s3g Samples folder with the project; older audio versions may still be needed by REAPER's undo history. When moving a project with Save As, enable REAPER's copy-media option.

The footer shows the loaded-audio budget: 512 MiB across both decks. Capacity depends on duration, sample rate, and channel count, not just file size on disk. Five minutes of eight-channel audio at 44.1 kHz uses about 404 MiB, so leave room for the other deck and new takes. An import that does not fit leaves your set unchanged. Playback, display, and undo buffers use additional memory.

If something seems wrong

The deck is playing but I hear nothing.
Check its level, the crossfader, output level, and REAPER routing. Host clock also needs a running host transport; try Free clock for independent playback.

Can I start recording in REAPER after launching the decks?
Yes. With Free clock, decks launched with Play or a latched performance action recover when REAPER resets the plug-in immediately before starting its transport. Sample position and Free-clock technique/stack progress are retained, with a short fade-in. The reset still clears effects tails and overlapping grains; Wavesets and Cutups begin a fresh group/cut at the remembered source position. Held keyboard notes and momentary auditions are not relaunched. Stop, Panic, loading a set, changing the source, and unrelated resets still stop playback. This does not change Host-clock behavior. To record the sound of Decks, set the REAPER track to record its audio output.

The stack stopped moving.
Choose Follow Source or press Shift + Sync. Then check the source choice: Follow Source will not move automatically if the source itself is Selected or Manual rather than Stack Path.

A Shift knob does not seem to respond.
Move it through the current on-screen value to pick up control. Check that the chosen method and source use the cycle you are adjusting.

Some Slices pads are dark.
Check the selected layer's markers and pad bank. Only existing slices can play; make markers in Source / Chop first.

I cannot record or distribute slices.
Check for free destination layers and remaining audio memory. Slice distribution needs room for every slice. Input recording also needs the selected input channels connected and a matching Format.

CUE is lit but headphones are silent.
Check Cue Output, Cue Level, the Cue → Master blend, REAPER's track and pin routing, and the interface's physical headphone volume.

I want to sequence Decks without the Beatpad.
Choose Notes / All or a MIDI channel in Setup. Notes 36 and 37 trigger A and B; note-off stops the addressed deck. CC 16 moves the crossfader. These are deck addresses, not a chromatic keyboard map.

Related instruments: Sample Neon 32 for pad-centered performance, Sample Doubles for two heads over one source, and Sample Circulator for stereo loop circulation.