VBLASTBEATS

The app has 56 faders, 32 illuminated buttons, patterns up to 64 steps, parameter locks, fader automation, kit variations and song chaining. Four synth tracks share the 28 synth faders; each synth has four operators and five algorithm choices.

Tap the BLASTBEATS logo to open MENU. General includes display and library actions. Instrument includes drum MIDI notes, drum/synth/mute/solo/program-change MIDI channels, safe envelope ranges, fast pitch fall, quantise, metronome, wiggle only active step and ignore incoming notes.

Standalone provides Ableton Link and WAV recording. In AUv3, Sync to host is enabled by default so a compatible host such as GarageBand or AUM controls the sequencer’s transport and tempo. The host supplies audio and MIDI devices; Audio/MIDI device settings are not shown on iPad. High contrast persists between sessions. Standalone opens full screen without a size control; AUv3 uses the window provided by its host.

Hold buttons with separate fingers and move a fader with another finger. Up to three-button combinations retain the hardware meaning. Releasing one finger does not release a button still held by another finger or keyboard key. Leaving the app or closing the editor releases held inputs.

With an external keyboard, use 1–8 for steps 1–8 and Q W E R T Y U I for steps 9–16. F1–F10 select the ten voices; F7–F10 are Synths 1–4. S is Step, F is Function, K is Kit/Patt, Z is Tempo, X is REC and Space is Run. A shows or hides the key overlay. Host and operating-system shortcuts may intercept keys.

For parameter locks, hold a step and move a fader. For Song mode, hold Kit/Patt and Function. To clone a synth sound, hold its synth button and press the destination synth button.

Click or tap the Grid Edit label at the bottom right, or hold Function and press step 16, then release both. A motorised screen drops over the faders. Click the label again, repeat the combination, or use X on the screen to retract it. The physical step-16 button retains its normal function without Function held. Grid Edit is an added convenience, not a replacement for the hardware workflow: it uses the same live pattern data and the same step and note protocol as the Blast Beats web editor.

The grid follows the voice selected with the hardware buttons. Drum voices show all 64 steps; synth voices show a note grid with four 16-step pages.

Tap or click to add a step or note. Tap a lit cell to erase it, or drag across cells to paint.

Right-click also erases. Hold a grid cell still for two seconds to make it the selected voice's last step (pattern length), without adding or erasing a note. Release sooner for a normal tap; dragging paints and cancels the hold.

Use the octave minus/plus controls, or use the mouse wheel, to reach the synth's full 0-63 raw note range. Multiple fingers can edit independently on iPad.

On iPad, swipe across the on-screen bottom-row buttons to press every step you cross. Each button is pressed once per swipe, so moving back over it does not toggle it again; lift your finger to start another swipe.

Other fingers can keep holding modifiers.

Edits change the live pattern using the hardware web tool's drum-step and synth-step protocol. The playhead follows the sequencer. Steps beyond the current voice length appear dimmed; extend the pattern length with the normal hardware controls to play them. Grid page tabs browse the synth display; hardware page and step controls retain their normal behaviour. Opening Grid Edit selects Step mode so the hardware voice and step buttons are ready to edit.

Click or tap the BLASTBEATS logo to open MENU. Desktop also provides MENU in the options cog. Press G to toggle Grid Edit when using a keyboard. The faders return when the screen retracts.

The YMF262 FM chip synthesizes drum sounds with several FM operators. Some operators are shared between instruments, so some faders affect more than one voice:

• Hats and tom share the same pitch modulation.
• The snare multiplier also affects the pitch of the hats and tom.

This hardware limitation can lead to useful and unexpected results.

There are four synth instruments. Synths 1 and 2 are monophonic. Synths 3 and 4 are duophonic, but they use their two voices differently:

• Synth 3 has two overlapping voices for two-note chords. You can record one or two notes on each Synth 3 step.
• Synth 4 triggers both voices at once. They can be detuned with the Operator 3 Tune fader, which is useful for wide bass lines and chord stabs.

Each synth instrument can use one of five algorithms selected with the Algo fader.

The snare drum is special: some waveforms silence it, so waveforms 4, 5, and 6 are disabled for the snare.

Entering Step Edit Mode

Press Step to edit individual steps in the current pattern. While the sequencer is running in Step Edit Mode, the Bottom 16 buttons represent the steps on the current page.

LED Chasing

Each step briefly blinks as the sequencer passes it. Patterns can be up to four pages long (64 steps). By default, the chase indicator is shown only when the current step is on the page you are viewing.

To make the chase indicator blink across every page, hold Function and press Step. Repeat the same shortcut to return to the default current-page-only behavior.

Selecting a Page

If a pattern is longer than one page, press Step to move through its pages. The Top 10 LEDs briefly show the current page. See Length Mode for changing the number of pages and the final step.

Selecting an Instrument

Press any Top 10 voice button to select a voice. If the sequencer is stopped, selecting a voice also triggers it so you can preview the sound.

Cloning a Synth

To copy one synth sound to another, hold the source synth's Top 10 button and press the destination synth's Top 10 button. For example, hold Top 10 button 7 and press Top 10 button 9 to copy Synth 1 to Synth 3.

Cloning a Step

Make sure REC is unlit. Hold REC and press the step you want to copy, then press any destination step. The copied step includes its on/off state, note number, and step automation.

X0X-Style Step Input

When REC is off, press Bottom 16 buttons to switch individual steps on or off. If the sequencer is stopped, synth tracks play the selected step's note when you toggle it.

Step Nudging / Micro-Timing

To delay a step, hold that step for about one second, then press one of the Top 10 buttons to choose the delay amount.

To apply the same nudge value to every step in the selected track, hold Function and press one of the Top 10 buttons. This is useful for tightening or quantizing a recorded part.

Transposing a Synth Step

Hold a synth step and press Kit/Patt to transpose it down one semitone, or Function to transpose it up one semitone. The synth plays the new note.

Real-Time Drum Input

With REC armed and Blast Beats running, press Top 10 buttons 1-6 to record drum hits.

Real-Time Synth Input

With REC armed and Blast Beats running, use the Bottom 16 buttons to record synth notes in real time. The Bottom 16 LEDs represent a piano keyboard; lit LEDs are white keys.

Synth Monitor Mode

To practice a synth without arming REC, double-tap one of the synth voice buttons (Top 10 buttons 7-10). The Bottom 16 buttons become a playable keyboard. Double-tap a synth voice button again to leave monitor mode.

Changing the Synth Octave While Recording

Hold REC and press Kit/Patt for the low octave, Step for the normal octave, or Function for the high octave.

Changing the Playback Octave

Hold a voice's Top 10 button and press Kit/Patt to transpose that voice down one octave, Step to return it to the mid-range octave, or Function to transpose it up one octave. Press Kit/Patt twice while holding the voice to transpose down two octaves. Double-tap Kit/Patt, Step, or Function to apply that octave change to all voices.

Step-by-Step Synth Input

Hold REC and press Run to toggle step-by-step synth input. When Blast Beats is stopped, REC is armed, and a synth voice is selected, the Bottom 16 buttons enter notes one step at a time. A blinking Bottom 16 LED shows the current target step, and the target advances after each note. Press Step to enter a rest.

When the sequence reaches its end, it loops back to step 1 and overwrites from there. You can also enter notes from MIDI on the selected synth's MIDI channel. To restart from step 1, turn REC off and on again.

Arbitrary Step Synth MIDI Input

Hold a synth step for at least one second, then play a note from a MIDI controller on that synth's MIDI channel. The held step is enabled or updated with the new note.

Undo / Redo

Whenever REC is pressed before recording changes, Blast Beats creates a snapshot of the current pattern. In Step Mode, hold Function and press REC to undo or redo that snapshot.

Page Rotate

Hold Step and press Kit/Patt to rotate the selected page left, or Function to rotate it right.

Hold Step and press Run to enter Key / Scale Change Mode. Press Kit/Patt, Step, or Function to leave this mode and return to the corresponding mode.

Key and scale changes affect all synth tracks at the same time. Use the Bottom 16 buttons to transpose the pattern. These buttons represent piano keys; lit buttons are white keys. If REC is armed, key changes are recorded. To clear recorded key changes, use Clear Mode.

Hold Function and press a Bottom 16 button to choose the tonic (root note).

Use the Top 10 buttons to choose the scale:

1 Chromatic - all 12 semitones are available. 2 Major (Ionian) - whole, whole, half, whole, whole, whole, half. 3 Minor (Aeolian) - whole, half, whole, whole, half, whole, whole. 4 Dorian - minor third with a major sixth. 5 Lydian - major scale with a raised fourth. 6 Mixolydian - major scale with a flattened seventh. 7 Blues - flattened third, fifth, and seventh. 8 Melodic Minor - minor third with a raised sixth and seventh when ascending. 9 Harmonic Minor - minor scale with a raised seventh. 10 Gypsy - minor third with augmented seconds.

Press Kit/Patt to enter Kit / Pattern Mode. In this mode, you can change patterns, chain patterns, and assign kits to patterns.

Kits and Variations

Each song can use up to 10 kits, and each kit has four variations. That gives each song access to 40 kit variations.

Songs can use their own kits. If a song folder contains its own KITS folder, Blast Beats loads kits from that folder. If no song-specific KITS folder exists, it uses the global KITS folder at the library root.

Changing Kit

Press a Top 10 button to change the kit assigned to the current pattern. To automate kit changes per step, change kits while REC is lit. To clear kit automation, hold Kit/Patt and press Clear.

Kit Reload

Hold Function and press Kit/Patt to reload the saved kit from the library. This clears unsaved kit edits.

Cloning Kits

Hold the Top 10 button for the source kit and press another Top 10 button to paste it to the destination kit. You can paste to multiple destinations while holding the source kit.

Changing Kit Variations

While in Kit / Pattern Mode, hold Kit/Patt and press one of the first four Top 10 buttons to select the current kit variation. The active variation LED flashes.

Cloning Kit Variations

Hold Kit/Patt, hold the Top 10 button for the source variation, then press one or more of the other first four Top 10 buttons to overwrite those variations.

Changing Pattern

Press a Bottom 16 button to change pattern. If the sequencer is stopped, the pattern starts immediately. If it is running, the next pattern is cued and changes at the end of the current pattern. The cued pattern flashes on the Bottom 16 row. All tracks resync after the pattern change.

Cloning Pattern

Hold the Bottom 16 button for the source pattern and press another Bottom 16 button to paste it. The assigned kit is loaded automatically when you change patterns.

Chaining Patterns

1. Press REC. The REC LED lights solid.
2. Press the first pattern in the chain. REC starts blinking, which means chain recording is ready. This overwrites the previous chain.
3. Press Run to start recording the chain. Change patterns while the sequencer plays to build the song. Repeated patterns are allowed.
4. Press REC again at the end of the song. Blast Beats returns to the first pattern in the chain and loops the chain.
5. If playback is stopped, the chain resets to its first pattern.

Pattern chaining is recorded in real time and requires the sequencer to be running.

Clearing the Chain

To play only Pattern 1, press REC, press Bottom 16 button 1, then press REC again before Pattern 1 reaches the end of its cycle.

Adding or Replacing Patterns in the Chain

Start the song with Run. Arm REC at any point and press Bottom 16 buttons to swap patterns in the chain. If the end of the chain is reached while REC remains armed, the chain is extended until you disarm REC or stop the sequencer.

Freezing the Chain

Hold REC and press Freeze to temporarily freeze or unfreeze the chain without clearing it.

Press Kit/Patt and Function together to enter Song Mode. Both LEDs light while Song Mode is active.

The library can hold 160 songs, arranged as 10 bank folders with 16 songs in each bank. Tap a Top 10 button to select the bank, then tap a Bottom 16 button to load a song.

Each song contains 16 patterns. Each pattern can be up to 64 steps long, arranged as four pages of 16 steps. A song can also contain a chain of up to 256 pattern changes.

Patterns, automation, chains, nudges, and song-specific kit folders are stored with the song. If a song does not have its own KITS folder, it uses the global kits from the root KITS folder.

Press Function to enter Function Mode and choose one of the function buttons.

Save Mode

Save Song stores the current song in the library. Choose a destination bank with a Top 10 button, then choose the song slot with a Bottom 16 button. The current bank and song slot are lit when you enter Save Mode.

Manual Save works during playback and writes in the background. Wait for Saving... to finish before closing the app or exporting a backup.

Save Kits stores the current kits. Press the flashing Kit/Patt button while in Save Mode. Saving kits does not save patterns.

Length Mode

Length Mode sets the pattern length from 1 to 64 steps by combining a page count with the final step on the last page. For example, two pages with the last step set to 4 gives a 20-step pattern.

Use the first four Top 10 buttons to set the number of 16-step pages for all tracks. Hold Function while choosing the page count to affect only the selected track.

Use the Bottom 16 buttons to set the final step on the last page for all tracks. In Length mode, buttons 14, 15 and 16 set the length; they do not open the WAV recorder, mixer or grid. Hold Function while choosing the final step to affect only the selected track.

Track 1 (BD) is the master track for pattern chaining and several automation timings. Its length affects overall pattern timing.

To resync all tracks to step 1, hold Function and press Run. To choose another track without leaving Length Mode, hold Step and press a Top 10 voice button.

Copy Page

In Length Mode, hold REC and press a page to copy it, then press another page to paste it. This copies all voices. Hold Function during the paste to paste only the selected voice.

Clear Mode

• Hold Clear and move a fader to erase that fader's automation.
• Hold Clear and press REC once to clear automation for the selected track. Press REC a second time without releasing Clear to clear all automation for the current pattern, including tricks, tremolo, vibrato, kit changes, and volume automation.
• Hold Clear and press a Top 10 button to clear the steps and automation for one track.
• Hold Clear and press Kit/Patt to initialize the current pattern as a blank 16-step pattern.
• Hold Clear and press Wiggle, Vibrato, Tremolo, or Swing to clear that automation lane.
• Double-tap Clear in Clear Mode to reset the current kit's faders to zero.
• Hold Clear and press Run to clear recorded key changes.

Wiggle Mode

Wiggle adds randomness to selected faders. In Function mode, hold WIGGLE to see the assigned faders outlined in dark red.

Touch or click a fader to toggle its assignment: an unassigned fader becomes assigned; an assigned fader becomes unassigned and its outline disappears. One touch or drag toggles once, so moving the same fader during that gesture does not repeatedly toggle it.

The outlines disappear when WIGGLE is released; the assignments remain. During playback, the fader handles move to show the engine’s Wiggle modulation without changing their underlying settings.

Dragging a fader takes priority over its animated position. Press a Top 10 button to set the wiggle depth for the current pattern.

Double-click a Top 10 button to apply that depth to every pattern in the song. With REC lit, wiggle depth changes are recorded as automation.

To remove a fader from Wiggle, hold Wiggle + Clear and move that fader. To clear all Wiggle assignments, hold Wiggle and press Clear.

Hold Wiggle and press Kit/Patt to shuffle the kit. Hold Wiggle and press Step to shuffle the pattern. MENU → INSTRUMENT → WIGGLE ONLY ACTIVE STEP chooses whether Wiggle affects all steps or only enabled steps.

Swing Mode

Use the Top 10 buttons to set the swing amount for the current pattern. With REC lit, swing changes are recorded as automation.

Hold Function and press Swing to toggle Wonky Swing. Wonky Swing offsets the opposite step group from normal swing.

Mute Mode

Use the Top 10 buttons to mute or unmute voices.

To skip pages during playback, hold Mute and press one of the first four Top 10 buttons. A flashing page button is skipped. Up to three pages can be muted at once. Press the flashing page button again to unmute it.

Solo Mode

Use the Top 10 buttons to solo a voice. Press the active solo voice again to cancel solo.

Probability Mode

Hold Probability and press a Top 10 button to choose the target voice. Release Probability, then use the Top 10 buttons to set that voice's trigger probability.

Stutter / Drill

Hold a Top 10 button while Stutter is active to repeat the current step at a tempo-related rate. Hold Wiggle during Stutter to randomize the stuttered steps. Stutters are recorded when REC is lit.

Hold Tempo and press Stutter to toggle Drill mode. Normal Stutter repeats the held step. Drill keeps the sequencer moving while repeating each step in sequence.

Bend

Hold Bend to bend the global FM chip tuning downward. Use the Top 10 buttons to set bend strength. Hold Function during a bend to spin the pitch upward.

Freeze

Hold Freeze to suspend communication with the FM chip, creating sustained notes and glitch effects. Freeze can be combined with Bend and Stutter.

Tremolo

Use the Top 10 buttons to set the tremolo rate for the current pattern. Tremolo modulates operator volume and can be automated by changing it while REC is lit.

Hold Tremolo and press Kit/Patt, Step, or Function to set the tremolo speed ratio to slow, normal, or fast.

Vibrato

Use the Top 10 buttons to set the vibrato rate for the current pattern. Vibrato modulates pitch and can be automated by changing it while REC is lit.

Hold Function and press a Top 10 button in Vibrato mode to set the maximum vibrato depth. Hold Vibrato and press Kit/Patt, Step, or Function to set the vibrato speed ratio to slow, normal, or fast.

Vibrato / Tremolo Waveforms

Hold Tremolo or Vibrato, then press a Top 10 button to choose the waveform. The first eight buttons correspond to the printed waveform shapes, with button 5 using the updated ramp waveform. Buttons 9 and 10 select random waveforms. With REC lit, waveform changes are recorded as automation.

Mix

Enter Function mode and press MIXER (bottom button 15), then release the buttons to open the mixer overlay. Its MIX fader controls MIX VOL; see KNOW YOUR PANEL for levels, drive, mute/solo and pan.

In the standalone presentation, the former Phones position opens WAV REC. On all versions, click the bottom-right Grid Edit label or use Function + Bottom 16 to open the grid after release. Without Function, Bottom 16 still acts as step 16. See the app-specific chapter.

The sequencer uses its internal clock by default. Press Run (Space) to start or stop. Starting manual playback begins at page one, step one; a playing host takes priority when SYNC TO HOST is enabled.

Tap Tempo (Z) five times to set the tempo. If stopped, the sequencer starts on the fifth tap.

For manual BPM entry, hold Tempo (Z) and enter two or three digits with Top 10 buttons (F1–F10). F10 is digit 0. For 123 BPM, hold Z and tap F1, F2, F3. For 80 BPM, hold Z, tap F8 and F10, then release Z.

Hold REC (X) and press Tempo (Z) to toggle record quantize. Hold Function (F) and press Tempo (Z) to toggle the metronome.

AUv3 enables Sync to host by default. Host play/stop controls the sequencer, using the supplied PPQ, tempo and sample timeline.

Events are scheduled within audio blocks; tempo changes, seeking and looping realign the current pattern. The choice is saved with the plugin state.

While the host is stopped, Play runs the sequencer independently. Host playback takes over and realigns the pattern; host stop stops it.

Disable sync to follow incoming MIDI clock. Host sync takes priority over incoming MIDI realtime messages.

Standalone supports its internal clock, incoming MIDI clock and Ableton Link. Host timing precision depends on the information the host supplies.

Host parameters follow the panel: 28 drum faders from left to right, then the 28 synth faders for Synths 1–4 (140 in total). Each synth bank controls its named synth regardless of the current panel selection. Moving a synth fader records into the selected synth’s bank. Existing synth automation from earlier builds now controls Synth 1.

In Step Mode, you can record and automate the faders. Fader automation runs inside the instrument; this build does not emit MIDI CC messages.

Recording a Fader

Press REC in Step Mode. The REC LED flashes, and fader movements are recorded and played back. Press REC again to stop recording faders.

Deleting Automation for One Fader

Press Function to enter Function Mode. Hold Clear and move the fader whose automation you want to delete.

Step-Lock Automation

You can write a fader value to a specific step without real-time recording. Make sure REC is off, hold the target Bottom 16 step, and move the fader.

Deleting All Fader Automation

Press Function to enter Function Mode. Hold Clear and press REC.

Trick Automation and Step Editing

In Function Mode, you can record and play back the three trick functions: Stutter, Bend, and Freeze.

To record a trick, press REC in Function Mode. The REC LED flashes, and activated bends, freezes, and stutters are recorded and played back.

To delete trick automation, press Function, then hold Clear and press Stutter, Freeze, or Bend.

To step-edit trick automation, hold Step and press Stutter, Bend, or Freeze to open that trick editor. Use the Bottom 16 buttons as you would for normal step editing. Press Step to change pages. To exit a trick editor, press Function, Kit/Patt, Step plus any Top 10 button, or repeat the shortcut used to enter it.

Bend and Freeze Step Editing

In Bend and Freeze editors, press a Bottom 16 button to turn the trick on or off for that step.

Hold Function and press Bend or Freeze to enable or disable the corresponding automation playback. Repeat the shortcut to enable it again.

Stutter Step Editing

In the Stutter editor, press a Bottom 16 button to select a step. If no stutter exists on that step, the LED lights and stutter is added. Press a Top 10 button to choose the stutter rate for the selected step. To clear a stutter step, press a lit Bottom 16 button twice.

Hold Function and press Stutter to enable or disable stutter automation playback. Repeat the shortcut to enable it again.

The library is stored in a single .vbb file. Use the import and export commands in MENU → GENERAL for backups and transfers. You do not need to manage the app’s working files.

IMPORT BLASTBEATS SD CARD: select the contents of your hardware card (KITS, SONGS, VGM and EEPROM.BB) and compress them into a ZIP. Zip the contents, not the enclosing folder. Choose this command and select the ZIP, or a .vbb backup. The app checks the contents and loads them automatically. Import replaces the whole library: export a backup first and close other instances.

EXPORT TO HARDWARE SD CARD: save your edits and wait for Saving... to finish, then choose this command to create a ZIP. For hardware use, extract its contents directly onto the card, with KITS, SONGS, VGM and EEPROM.BB at the root. The ZIP also serves as a complete library backup. On iPad these commands use Files. Unsaved edits recalled by a host project must still be saved in the instrument before they are included in a library export.

Factory reset replaces the library with the factory sounds, patterns and instrument settings. Export a backup first and close other instances. A progress bar shows restoration, and the instrument reloads automatically. Cancelling the confirmation leaves your library unchanged. Desktop MIDI Learn assignments are cleared by factory reset, but not by import. Display preferences, MIDI Learn assignments and additional mixer controls are app-specific and are not included in hardware transfers.

The iPad version receives the hardware MIDI CC assignments listed below. Factory note channels are 10 for drums and 1–4 for synths. Change MIDI channels and drum note assignments in MENU → INSTRUMENT. CC values follow the hardware’s 16 fader positions. This build does not send MIDI to the host. AUv3 also exposes named fader parameters for host automation.