Flowfield Help
Flowfield is an exploratory visual synthesizer for shaping sound with connected signal paths, gesture controls, and live visual feedback.
Online help and updates: dreambuildrepeat.com/flowfield/help
Quick start
- Open Flowfield as a standalone app or instrument plugin.
- Choose an audio output device in your host or system audio settings.
- Play the on-screen keyboard or connect a MIDI controller.
- Drag the Instrument pad to shape filter cutoff and oscillator detune.
- Use the VCO, LFO, Spectral Sculptor, and FX panels to shape the patch.
MIDI and keyboard
The standalone app automatically enables available MIDI inputs and rescans devices while running. Plugin builds receive MIDI from the host instrument track.
| Control | Behavior |
|---|---|
| Notes | Up to eight voices, limited by the Polyphony control. |
| Pitch bend | Uses the master Pitch Bend Range setting. |
| Mod wheel | Reserved for expressive modulation routing. |
| Panic | Immediately stops all sounding voices. |
Workspace panels
Panels can be focused, resized, and reordered. Drag a panel title bar to reorder it. Drag the bottom handle to resize. The focused panel fills the workspace until focus is toggled off.
VCO, LFO, and FX graphs
Graph editing
Drag nodes to arrange a graph. Drag from output ports to input ports to create connections. Right-click a node or connection to remove it.
Inspectors
Select a node to edit its properties in the inspector beside the graph. Changes are sanitized to safe ranges before they reach the audio engine.
LFO tempo sync
LFO source nodes can run freely in Hz or sync to tempo. In Free mode, Rate controls cycles per second. In Tempo mode, Division controls the note length for one LFO cycle.
| Tempo source | Behavior |
|---|---|
| Internal | Uses the Master panel BPM value and Tap Tempo. |
| Host | Uses host BPM when Flowfield runs in a DAW. |
Spectral Sculptor
Drag EQ points to shape frequency response. Shift-drag for fine movement. Mouse wheel adjusts influence width. The GPU visualizer can be toggled; Flowfield falls back to CPU rendering when needed.
Patch files and host state
Standalone builds can save and load patch files from the Master panel. Plugin builds store graph and parameter state in the host session and host preset system.
Troubleshooting
No sound
Check your output device, master volume, mute state, host track monitoring, and MIDI routing. Press Panic to clear stuck notes.
MIDI controller not responding
Reconnect the device, wait for the standalone app to rescan, or verify host MIDI input routing for plugin builds.
Plugin not visible in a DAW
Install the AU or VST3 to the platform-standard plugin folder, then rescan plugins in the host.
Support
Visit dreambuildrepeat.com/flowfield/help or contact support@dreambuildrepeat.com.