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SonykUser guide › Drift Engine

Drift Engine

The Drift Engine modulates parameters over time using LFOs and noise generators. Drift is what makes a Sonyk pattern evolve rather than loop identically.

Driftable parameters

  • humanize — small per-step timing wobble
  • velocitySpread — random velocity variation per step
  • probability — LFO over the chance each step fires
  • pitch — adds ±semitones to the base pitch
  • filterCutoff — slow opens / closes
  • decay — envelope decay length wobble
  • pan — stereo position wander
  • euclideanRotation — slow phase the algorithmic pattern
  • stepDensity — globally adjust how many steps fire

Drift knobs (per active drift)

  • Amount — modulation depth (0–100% of the parameter range).
  • Rate — period in bars (0.25 to 64 bars per cycle).
  • Shape — sine, triangle, random walk, perlin, drunk, ramp up, ramp down, s-curve.
  • Snap-back — pulls the value back toward center proportionally to distance. 0 = free wander, 1 = stays centered.
  • Phase — initial offset around the cycle (0–1).

Adding / removing drifts

Open the Drift tab. Pick a parameter from the list to add a drift; click ✕ on its row to remove. The "Presets" buttons apply common combinations (Slow Evolution, Subtle Wobble, Heavy Drift) across all active drifts.

TipA small ghost ring on a knob (a faint extra arc in the same color as the value arc) shows the drift-modified value in real time — you'll see it move on every drifted parameter.

Try it in the app