HeadStack

What it does

A virtual tape loop with eight playback heads, each with its own gain, pan, offset, tremolo or vibrato, filter with drive and morph, and a granular mode pitched up to 24 semitones. A head wheel spins by hand or on its own, and global controls cover tape length in note values, spacing, feedback, head loss, diffusion, reverse, freeze and a wipe-tape kill switch.

In the demo

Jade runs it in AUM on a nylon guitar from SoundBox, covering the wheel, spacing and feedback, then the per-head panels and the triple-tap that sets one dial on all eight heads. She modulates filter, spacing and head position, pitches four granular heads differently, and finishes on an arpeggiated pad, piano and drums.

Worth knowing

Every head has its own panel, so it takes more dialling in than a two-knob echo. Anyone after a simple slapback will use a fraction of it; it suits evolving rhythmic and ambient work.