Sample Doubles

Sample Doubles 2 is a stereo instrument with two independently positioned read heads over one mono or stereo recording. Deck A and Deck B share the source while retaining separate positions, levels, cues, and transport states. You can synchronize them, place them at a beat offset, move them in discrete steps, or let their timing separate gradually, then switch or blend between them with the crossfader.

Workflow

1. Press LOAD SAMPLE or drop a mono or stereo audio file on the waveform. Choose STORE PROJECT (the new-instance default), STORE LINK, or STORE EMBED as described in Sample Storage.
2. Route its fixed stereo output to the intended speakers or monitor path.
3. After loading, inspect the BPM readout. A confident, unambiguous estimate is applied automatically; a less certain result is shown as a suggestion. Use 1/2, AUTO, or x2 to resolve octave choices, or edit SAMPLE BPM directly. After a manual BPM edit, AUTO restores the retained analyzed value. If the current sample has no retained result—for example after project recall—AUTO re-analyzes it in the background and applies a valid result. This source tempo defines beat distances inside the file; it does not force the instrument to follow host tempo.
4. Set SPEED. Its default of -7 semitones lowers the playback rate, pitch, and duration together; positive values raise them together.
5. Drag the waveform's S and E handles to select a region. Choose ON from the LOOP menu when the two copies should remain inside it.
6. Press RESTART. Deck A starts at S and Deck B starts at Deck A plus B OFFSET, measured in source beats.
7. Set A LEVEL and B LEVEL, then move the crossfader between them. The deck levels are smoothed before the crossfade; OUT remains the post-crossfade master. XFADE CURVE provides CUT, SHARP, and equal-power BLEND.
8. Use SYNC to restore the selected offset, STEP - and STEP + for discrete moves, or B LIVE PHASE for an immediate continuous nudge. A P/P and B P/P pause individual decks when LINK is off. Hold DRAG A or DRAG B to slow that deck temporarily; release it for a smooth return to its normal rate. Set CUE PREROLL for the reaction time between hearing a target and pressing CUE A or CUE B. Use its TRIG button for repeatable restarts, or drag an existing colored cue marker to place it directly on the waveform.
9. Sequence the command notes from s3g Tracker. The complete mapping is published through the CLAP note-name extension, so supporting hosts can display the commands by name.

Working with Two Decks

Use Speed to establish the shared playback rate, then choose how the two decks contribute to the output. Cut and Sharp curves support quick changes between decks, while Blend combines them more gradually. A Level and B Level set the balance before the crossfader. Punch commands temporarily favor one deck, and cue triggers provide repeatable starts from chosen points in the source.

Deck B's timing controls offer several distinct kinds of movement. B Offset defines the position applied by Restart or Sync, B Live Phase moves the deck immediately, Phase Step makes repeatable discrete moves, and B Drift creates continuous separation over time. Press Sync whenever you want to return to the stored relationship.

Deck Timing

SPEED changes playback rate, pitch, and duration together. Both decks use this common rate. B DRIFT adds a fine speed difference to Deck B only, from -100 to +100 cents. Very small values create a slowly changing relationship; larger values move through alignments quickly.

B OFFSET is stored in beats but does not teleport Deck B whenever its slider moves. Press Sync or Restart to apply it. B LIVE PHASE is deliberately separate: moving it shifts Deck B immediately and precisely by its change in source beats. MIDI notes 48–60 select a signed stored offset and synchronize Deck B immediately. Phase Step moves the existing Deck B playhead backward or forward without changing either control.

Phase Step, Loop, Crossfader Curve, MIDI Receive, and Link are categorical or toggle settings. Speed, Sample BPM, Start, End, Cue Preroll, output level, both deck levels, Deck B Offset, Deck B Drift, Deck B Live Phase, and the crossfader remain continuous controls.

With Loop enabled, synchronization, offsets, drift, live phase, and phase steps wrap inside the selected S–E region. Without Loop, each deck stops when it reaches E. Stop silences both positions; Play resumes them, while Restart returns to the beginning and reapplies the offset. Link is enabled by default so either deck Play/Pause button operates both decks; disable it to stop and resume the two copies independently.

Drag is momentary rather than a saved speed setting. While held, that deck slows according to the incoming note velocity; on release it eases back to the shared playback rate. Mouse release, MIDI note-off, editor close, and transport reset all release the gesture.

Each deck has one persistent cue point. Cue looks backward from the current read head by CUE PREROLL (0–1000 ms, default 150 ms), replaces the previous cue, and snaps to the nearest available zero crossing to reduce clicks. The lookback is measured in heard time: varispeed, Deck B drift, and a held Drag gesture change the corresponding source-frame distance, and Loop wraps the lookback inside S–E. The cyan or orange marker is drawn only in that deck's waveform lane. Click and drag an existing marker to place it directly under the mouse; mouse placement bypasses pre-roll but still snaps to a zero crossing. Trigger is a one-shot action: every press moves that deck to its cue and starts it, without moving the other deck or clearing the marker. Loading a different source clears both cues.

Tracker Command Keyboard

A practical Tracker layout uses one sparse lane for Restart, Sync, offset selection, and cue setting, one lane for Punch A, and one for Punch B. Add Trigger, Drag, or independent deck-toggle notes where a retrigger, temporary slowdown, or one-sided pause belongs. These are ordinary notes, so Tracker's microtime, delay, repeat, ratchet, flam, stutter, probability, note length, and per-step volume can shape the performance directly. VOL sets both Punch depth and Drag strength: full velocity gives the deepest slowdown, while lower values leave more of the deck's normal speed. With the Cut curve, Tracker's normal note velocity is already deep enough to cross the narrow center transition; full volume lands completely on the punched deck.

Continuous MIDI

These fixed mappings work in a raw MIDI or Tracker CC lane. They are also CLAP-automatable parameters, so host automation and MIDI learn remain available. Buttons illuminate for GUI gestures and incoming MIDI; gated Punch and Drag controls remain lit until note-off.

Factory Presets

The five starting configurations below are available from the plugin's PRESET menu. They set the two-deck performance relationship while preserving the loaded sample, analyzed or manual BPM, S–E region, cue points and pre-roll, MIDI channel, Link state, deck levels, and master output.

The stepped and gradual settings let identical repeating material begin together, separate through a small rate difference, pass through intermediate relationships, and reunite. Doubles keeps that process performable by adding explicit Sync and Phase Step commands alongside the continuous B Drift control.

Storage and Recall

Doubles has a fixed stereo output, presents mono files on both channels, preserves stereo channel order, and receives MIDI on Omni or a selected channel from 1–16.

PROJECT copies the source into the saved REAPER project's s3g Samples directory, LINK keeps the original path, and EMBED stores self-contained decoded audio. Project recall restores the saved BPM and cue points; if no analyzed BPM candidate is available, pressing AUTO starts a new analysis. See Sample Storage for the shared tradeoffs.