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Gesceap /jeˈʃæɑp/ edited this page Apr 16, 2023 · 68 revisions

Nanoloop Mobile Tutorial

This is a unofficial text Nanoloop Mobile Tutorial.

It's goal is to be used as a more in depth reference to the built-in help screen of the app.

The hope is that one can quickly review sections to learn specific features of the app.

This tutorial should be sufficient for users of iOS and Android. If there are any fundamental differences they will be mentioned in the sections below.

General Guide

Let's go over the fundamental aspects of the nanoloop mobile app.

Interface

The fundamental nanoloop mobile interface based on a 4x4 grid. It is a 16 step sequence put into a square.

All aspects of creating sounds comes by using this grid step sequencer.

4x4_grid

Size & Color

By pressing the size_color_menu button you can change the size of the text by pressing size + plus to increase or size - minus to decrease.

By pressing the white or black mode it will change the interface default colors. It is global app setting.

Color White Black
white_mode black_mode

Help

To get help use the ? Menu by tapping ?

It will display a good overview of the app and how to get started.

If at any time you need more details about a button just tap and hold for tips to be displayed.

Pattern Mode

By tapping on the pattern mode button pattern you can modify the currently playing pattern in the step sequencer. This is the default screen when starting a new project.

step_sequencer

Pattern mode is the default when starting. Sometimes it is referred to as live mode.

Notes

Adding a note is done by tapping any square on the pattern grid. the default value is C. You can change the note by touching the square on the grid and dragging up or down.

IMAGE NOTES

A note will change by semitones/half steps. There is no "flat" symbol and all notes are shown in their "sharp" form by adding a symbol sharp.

Here are some examples:

Example Flatted Sharped Nanoloop
Note $D\flat$ $C\sharp$ csharp
Note $A\flat$ $G\sharp$ gsharp

Note Parameters

Each parameter for the notes are shown directly below the 4x4 pattern grid. They will change depending on which instrument is chosen for each channel.

Check out the instruments section to learn more about specific parameters.

The parameters can be changed on a per step basis by tapping first the parameter then sliding up and down on the note.

parameters_changing_gif

The changes to the parameters on the note in a pattern apply additively to the global parameter settings for the instrument. For more information read the section about instruments.

Muting & Cutting

A note can be muted by taking the volume down to zero which changes the note to a equals symbol equals

This has the additional effect of muting all notes playing in that channel when the step plays.

Random

To add randomness to any pattern tap multiple times on any parameters, including the notes. This will modify each step randomly.

The more you tap 👇 the more random it becomes.

 Randomness gif

Meta step

A meta step can be achieved by flicking left or right on a step in a pattern. It shows up as a note which occupies only half of the step in a pattern.

Meta step images

Meta step plays every other time when a patterns play. All patterns play the left/right step together either in live or song mode. (i.e. a global modulo 2 for every other time patterns play)

When a meta step is on the left it plays the first time, when it is on the right it plays the second time.

Meta step is not available on older versions of Nanoloop.

Pause & Play

By default the patterns are all playing.

Pausing the patterns will stop them all from playing.

Button Meaning
pause Pause the pattern
play Play the pattern where you paused it
pattern_return Return the pattern to the beginning

Returning the pattern to the beginning does not start it. You still will have to press play.

Pattern Length

A patterns length can be shortened by dragging the pattern_length icon down or up.

pattern_length_gif

Pattern Shift

To shift all notes in a pattern left/right drag shift_pattern down/up respectively.

pattern_shift_gif

Shuffle

A shuffle can be added to any pattern by swiping up and down the dot on the left of the pattern grid. It can change values from . which is 0 up to 1.0 by tenth intervals [0.0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3 ... 1.0]

Shuffle moves every other 16th step forward a fraction of a step whereas 1.0 would shift the note to the next step.

Octave

The octave of all the notes can be shifted up or down by swiping the 0 on the bottom right of the grid up or down. The range is from -4 to 4 meaning four octaves lower or four octaves higher respectively.

Copy & Paste

Copy and paste can happen on a pattern or a channel.

When copying a pattern, you copy all notes and parameters for that pattern

When copying a channel, you copy all patterns, parameters and instrument for that channel.

Channels

A channel is an organization of sequences for a instrument. You have 8 channels in total which appear below the 4x4 grid at the bottom of the screen with the letters a-h

a b c d e f g h

To rename the letter just hold down 👇 the channel letter and a keypad will show up. You can choose a different letter.

rename_gif

Instruments

To choose the instrument for the channel, tap the channel then tap the instrument editor instrument_editor

Instruments are associated to a channel, there are four types of instruments to choose from:

Instrument Pulse wave FM Noize Sample
Image pulse fm noize sample

Tap the instrument in the upper left hand corner to change the types

Pulse wave instrument

pulse_wave_instrument

Choosing the pulse wave pulse gives you the following parameters in the instrument editor

Volume Attack Decay LFO LFO Frequency Cutoff Pulse width Resonance
volume forward_slash backslash lfo lfo_freq cutoff pulse resonance

Slide them up and down the change the global instrument parameters.

The LFO and LFO Frequency apply to the LFO Shape chosen above the instrument window

LFO Shape Downward Upward Alternating
Image backslash forward_slash sine

The LFO shape is applied to what appears next to it in the instrument. Holding down on the icon shows the associated hints.

LFO Shape Pitch Pulse width Cutoff
Image pitch pulse cutoff
Hint lfo -> pitch lfo -> pwm lfo -> cutoff

For example:

LFO Shape Used with Produces
Downward backslash pitch Decreasing pitch when played
Upward forward_slash pulse Increasing pulse width when played
Alternating sine cutoff Alternating cutoff will increase and decrease when played

FM Instrument

fm_instrument

Choosing FM (frequency modulation) fm gives you the following parameters in the instrument editor

Volume Attack Decay LFO LFO Frequency Modulation Modulation Frequency Amplitude Modulation
volume forward_slash backslash lfo lfo_freq cutoff fm resonance

Amplitude Modulation may not be available on older versions of Nanoloop.

Noise instrument

noize_instrument

Choosing noize noize gives you the following parameters in the instrument editor

Volume Attack Decay LFO LFO Frequency Phase
volume forward_slash backslash lfo lfo_freq noize

Sample instrument

sample_instrument

Choosing sample sample gives you the following parameters in the instrument editor

Volume Attack Decay Offset Loop Length Fine Tune Base Note
volume forward_slash backslash offset loop_length fine_tune pitch

Song Mode

Song mode can be used by pressing the button song_mode

You will be shown the following screen

song_editor

You can see a few things in this screen.

There is a sequence editor which is made of eight rows, one for each channel.

Channel a b c d e f g h
minus minus minus minus minus minus minus minus

Below the sequence editor is the following buttons

Page Up Page Down Paste Loop Play Play Stop Pattern Empty
paste_song_mode loop_play play stop pattern minus

Below that are the numbers for the sequences.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Composing

There are eight channels in nanoloop, and in song mode there are eight columns.

The eight columns represent each one of the channels, and the number below the sequence editor

By tapping any channel, the cursor becomes orange, you can then tap one of the sequence numbers on the bottom of the screen to add a pattern sequence in that channel.

For example; if I have two sequences in channel a and four in channel b, I could play them all together in song mode by repeating channel a twice and b once by making the following sequence

  1  1  -  -  -  -  -  -
  2  2  -  -  -  -  -  -
  1  3  -  -  -  -  -  -
  2  4  -  -  -  -  -  -
Looping

To loop a section in song mode, tap and drag the section in the page of the song editor that you want to loop. It will turn pink.

Then push the loop play button loop_play

Copy & Paste

If you select a section to loop play in the song editor, it is automatically copied.

Tap the row in the song editor where you want to paste the selected loop and press the paste button paste_song_mode below the song editor.

Pages & Cursors

A page is the pattern sequence of all channels. What you see in song mode.

There are 16 pages you can use to make a song.

On the upper left of the pattern sequence window, there are up two three number that are shown

  1. The white number is the page which you see.
  2. The green number is the page where the song is playing.
  3. The pink number is the page where a loop is set.

The order of the numbers is not fixed.

Additional features

  • Bank mode
  • Instruments per bank
  • One sample only

Advanced Topics

Let's go over some more advanced topics of the nanoloop mobile app.

Synth programming

  • Monophonic
  • Polyphonic
  • Detuning and “Arp-like Chords”

Bass programming

  • FM and Square
  • Layering & Detune

Wave programming

  • Importing, Loading & Recording
  • Note looping

Drum Programming

  • Synthesis
  • Samples
    • Loops
    • Stabs

Effects

  • Chorus
  • Delay
  • Flanger
  • Distortion
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