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Stardust

Custom Sampler

Record a sound, auto-map it across the keyboard, save as a Stardust Patch. Use it for show-specific custom sounds.

💭 v2.0+

What it does

Record audio (live input or imported file), and Stardust automatically maps it across the keyboard with pitch shifting + time stretching so every key plays the sound at a different pitch.

Useful for:

  • Show-specific custom sounds — Sondheim’s “Sweeney Todd” whistle, “Little Shop of Horrors” Audrey-II growl, any number from your specific show
  • Recorded vocal samples — your singer’s “ah” for a layered backing
  • Found sounds — a creaky door, a coin drop, anything you need to trigger from a keyboard
  • Quick-and-dirty instrument design — record yourself playing one note on a real instrument, map it across

How it works

  1. Record or import — record from your audio interface input, or import a .wav / .flac / .aiff file
  2. Set the root note — what key was the original sound played at? (Stardust can auto-detect for tonal recordings)
  3. Configure mapping — pitch shift (semitone-by-semitone) or time stretching (preserves pitch over the keyboard range)
  4. Save as Patch — adds to the current Patch’s VST chain as a “Stardust Sampler” instance

Under the hood, this generates an SFZ file (industry-standard sample format) that Stardust’s built-in SFZ player (or Sforzando, if installed) plays. SFZ format means your custom samples are portable to other apps if you ever leave Stardust.

Recording quality

  • Record at the audio interface’s native sample rate
  • Up to 30 seconds per sample (configurable)
  • Multi-sample recording supported (record 3-5 root notes for better range coverage)
  • Velocity-layered samples (v0.5+ — record soft, medium, loud versions; Stardust crossfades by velocity)

Pitch shifting strategies

  • Resampling (default) — fast, classic “Mellotron” character; pitch and time scale together (high pitch = shorter)
  • Time-stretched pitch shift — pitch shifts independent of duration; high notes don’t get shorter. Slight quality loss but tonally cleaner.

Pick per sound. Drums and percussion want resampling. Sustained tones want time-stretched.

Multi-sample for range coverage

A single sample stretched across an octave or more starts to sound artifact-y. For better coverage, record multiple samples at different pitches:

  • Record C2, C3, C4, C5
  • Stardust uses the closest sample as the source for each key, then pitch-shifts within ±3 semitones

This is how all professional sample libraries work — Stardust gives you a quick way to do it in-app.

Workflow example

“I need a glass-clink sound for Patch 3 of My Shot.”

  1. Open Stardust → Patch 3 in Edit Mode
  2. Click “Add Sound” → “Custom Sampler”
  3. Record button → tap a glass with a metal spoon, stop recording
  4. Set root note: G4 (or just let Stardust auto-detect)
  5. Choose “Resampling” for that classic percussion-y feel
  6. Save → glass-clink is now playable across the whole keyboard, pitch-shifted

Time investment: 30 seconds to record, 10 seconds to configure.

Integration with community sharing

Sampler-created sounds can be exported as .sfz + sample files and shared via Community Sharing — paid or free. Other users can install the sound bundle and it appears in their Sampler library.

Storage

Custom samples stored in the Show’s bundle (the .stardust-show zip):

  • samples/<patch-id>/<sample-id>.wav — raw audio
  • samples/<patch-id>/<sample-id>.sfz — SFZ mapping definition
  • Referenced in the Patch’s plugin chain

Phase status

PhaseWhat’s available
v0.4Basic record + pitch-shift mapping, single sample per Patch
v0.5Multi-sample + velocity layers
v1.0+Time-stretched pitch shifting, granular synthesis options