Fractal Bits is a $1.99 drum synth that gives you 4 billion sounds

If you’re finding your current drum synth’s sound palette a bit limiting, we suggest that you take Alexander Zolotov’s Fractal Bits for a spin. Available for iOS and Android, this startling app uses fractal synthesis to generate a potential four billion different rhythmic tones.

It also appears to be incredibly simple: just hit the forward or back buttons to create new drum sets based on codes of eight characters. You can also edit these codes yourself, and export them as plain text so that they can be shared with others users.

There are six additional processing parameters - all of which can be controlled via MIDI - and you can play the sounds using the onscreen buttons, PC keyboard or a MIDI controller. There’s real-time audio recording and WAV export, too, while a LCK button freezes individual drum sounds so that they won’t change when you switch to a new random set.

You can buy Fractal Bits now via the Apple App Store and Play Store. It costs $1.99, and there’s also a Donate button on the developer’s website

Ben Rogerson

I’m the Deputy Editor of MusicRadar, having worked on the site since its launch in 2007. I previously spent eight years working on our sister magazine, Computer Music. I’ve been playing the piano, gigging in bands and failing to finish tracks at home for more than 30 years, 24 of which I’ve also spent writing about music and the ever-changing technology used to make it. 

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