When a sound is imported into Factorsynth, it analyzes it and displays a set of horizontal time elements (“T-shapes”) and of vertical spectral shapes (“S-shapes”). The button matrix on the interface is then used to connect any T-shape with any S-shape, generating new sounds. By importing a second clip, called the “X-syn” sound (for “cross-synthesis”), it is possible to combine elements of both sounds and thus create hybrids.

There are a series of additional controls that allow to randomize the connections, the temporal positions or the panning of the components. This allows performing powerful transformations with a single click, such as changing the rhythm of a drum loop, the melody of a synth lead or turning mono clips into stereo.

Although conceptually related, Factorsynth is not a stem separator. It is not intended to unmix full instruments (voice, drums…) from full tracks, but to discover and extract unpredictable but interesting sound elements with a certain degree of structure (notes, drum hits, rhythmical or melodic motifs).

Besides a complete rewrite as a plugin, version 3 includes several new features, such as sampler mode, which instantly launches components via MIDI and therefore allows to use Factorsynth as an instrument. 

System requirements