Granite

Granite is a granular synthesizer enables you to manage tracks and audio samples at a microsound time scale. The micro-samples or grains are edited individually, but can be layered on top of each other smoothly afterward.

The program includes a streamlined and compact interface that is fairly intuitive, organized and easy to navigate. The interface is comprised of four main areas, namely the Browser, Waveform, Parameter areas and Header.

As you probably hinted, you can easily access your presets and samples from your local drives via the Browser. Alternatively, you can access the Assignment Manager and check out the real-time parameters and MIDI Learn functionality via the Browser.

The Header and Waveform enable you to find out more about the loaded preset and allow you to set cursor markers for loop markers and play. Lastly, the Parameter area is the section that lets you fine-tune the samples and add special effects.

The highlight of the application stems from the 16 independent grains that you can edit and modify independently without too much hassle. The idea here is to allow you to tweak each grain to play a particular interval of the sample using distinct pitch, amplitude and FX effects.

You should know that by default, the application includes the Free Running mode. As its name suggests, the mode entails free running operation of the sound engine which can come in handy when you are auditioning presets for instance. In case you want to activate the grains for further configuration, then you can do so by activating the Gate mode,

If you are looking for a utility that enables you to tweak soundscapes to the very detail and generate evolving textures that can set the mood for haunting or overwhelming atmosphere, then perhaps Granite might be worth a try.