User Manual

Version 1.0 · VST3 · AU · Standalone

© 2026 Butterlamp Audio · All rights reserved

01Welcome & Quick Start

Tilichu is a versatile wavetable synthesizer built for modern sound design — two morphing wavetable oscillators, a sample / granular / spectral source engine, a 32-slot modulation matrix, and a full rack of twelve effects, all wrapped in a fast, deeply playable interface. This manual explains every panel and control, and closes with hands-on walkthroughs.

Make your first sound in sixty seconds

1. Insert Tilichu on an instrument track and play a few notes — the Init Saw patch is a single bright sawtooth, the perfect starting point.
2. Click the preset name in the toolbar to open the Preset Browser, and double-click any patch to load it.
3. Turn Cutoff in the Filter panel to open and close the tone; grab Reso for emphasis.
4. Drag one of the four Macro knobs — every factory patch maps its macros to its most musical moves.
5. Hit Rand in the toolbar for an instant variation, or Init to return to a blank slate.

02Installation & System Requirements

Tilichu ships as a 64-bit plug-in and standalone application for macOS, with Windows support coming soon. Run the installer and choose the formats your host uses; on first launch you will be asked to activate with your license.

Activation

Tilichu uses simple online activation — no dongle required. Enter your license key once; you may activate up to three machines and work offline thereafter. Manage seats from your account page.

03The Interface

The window divides into five horizontal zones. From top to bottom: the title bar, the toolbar, the main synthesis area, the bottom tab rack, and the keyboard footer.

Title bar & toolbar

The title bar carries the Options menu, the Tilichu wordmark, and window controls. Directly below, the toolbar is your command center:

Theming (the ⚙ menu)

Tilichu's look is yours to tune. None of these settings affect the sound.

The keyboard footer

A six-octave keybed with pitch and mod wheels on the left, and voice controls on the right: the octave stepper, voice count, voice mode (POLY / MONO / LEG), glide, and the master output knob with a stereo level meter.

04Signal Flow

Every voice in Tilichu follows the same path: sources are summed, filtered, shaped by the amp envelope, run through the effects rack, and sent to the output — while the modulation system reaches into every stage along the way.

How to read it

• Sources — the two wavetable oscillators, SUB, NOISE, and the RING modulator (OSC A × OSC B) generate the raw tone. The Source engine can replace the oscillator band.
• Mixer — sets each source's level and pan, and chooses whether it feeds the filter or bypasses straight to the output.
• Filter — the multimode filter (with drive) shapes any source routed into it; the routing chips decide which.
• Amp — ENV 1 is hard-wired to the amplifier, so it governs the note's overall loudness contour.
• FX Rack — up to twelve effects process the summed voice in series; drag to reorder.
• Modulation — LFOs, envelopes, macros, and performance inputs feed the 32-slot matrix, which can drive almost any parameter in the stages above.

05Oscillators

Tilichu's tone begins with two identical wavetable oscillators — OSC A and OSC B — flanked by a dedicated SUB oscillator and a NOISE generator.

OSC A & OSC B

Each oscillator scans a 256-frame wavetable. The Pos knob sweeps the frame position — the heart of wavetable synthesis — and the display shows the table as a live 2D slice, a 3D waterfall, or the full editor (see §05). Cycle wavetables with the ‹ › arrows, or click the name for the full library.

Warp modes (the small combo above the Warp knob) reshape the wavetable read in real time:

OSC B adds a Mod knob whose mode selects how OSC A modulates OSC B:

SUB & NOISE

To the left of the oscillators sits a compact source rail. The SUB oscillator adds weight beneath the mix — choose a waveform (Sine / Triangle / Square / Saw), set its octave and level. The NOISE generator adds a type (White, Pink, or Brown), a Color tilt, and a level. Both have on/off toggles and feed the filter like any other source.

06The Wavetable Editor

Click EDIT on either oscillator's view selector to open the full-screen wavetable editor — draw, resynthesize, and morph your own tables.

The editor takes over the synthesis area and is organized into a tool sidebar, two work surfaces, and a frame timeline.

Load your own single-cycle or full wavetable audio with Import WAV, and Save the result into the library. Close the editor with the ✕ in its header.

Importing a WAV

Drop a WAV, AIFF, or FLAC onto the import dialog (or browse to it) and choose how Tilichu should slice the file into wavetable frames:

The dialog previews the imported waveform and the resulting frame count before you commit. Press Import to load the frames into the timeline, where you can edit, reorder, or morph them like any other table.

07The Source Engine

Press Source in the toolbar to swap the oscillator band for a full-width sample engine with three modes — Sample, Granular, and Spectral. The Filter, LFO, and Envelope panels stay in place below.

Sample

Classic sample playback. Drop in any audio file, choose a loop mode (One-Shot, Loop, or Ping-Pong), set the loop region, crossfade, and keytracking. Ideal for multisamples, drums, and one-shots.

Granular

Plays the sample as a cloud of overlapping grains. Scan through the file, spray the grain positions for texture, and shape density, size, pitch, and per-grain stereo width. Freeze locks the playhead to hold a texture indefinitely; Loop and Keytrack behave as in Sample mode.

Spectral

Analyzes the sample into a spectrum you can reshape and resynthesize in real time. Play it back in Harmonic or Inharmonic mode, redraw the harmonic balance with the flex curve, and apply a spectral warp — Gate, Smear, Spread, Oct Up, or Shift — for anything from subtle EQ-like moves to radical morphs.

08Filter

A single multimode filter shapes the combined output of every source. The response curve shows the shape live; the routing chips decide what feeds it.

09LFOs

Four independent low-frequency oscillators provide cyclic modulation. Select LFO 1–4 with the tabs; each has its own shape, rate, and behavior.

Each LFO is a modulation source — click its ⠿ MOD pill and drag onto any knob to assign it, or wire it explicitly in the matrix (§10).

10Envelopes

Four DAHDSR envelopes shape how sound evolves over a note. ENV 1 is hard-wired to amplitude; ENV 2–4 are free modulation sources.

The Mode switch (Retrig / Phrase / Once) sets how the envelope retriggers — restart on every note, restart only at the start of a phrase (legato-aware), or run once like a one-shot.

11The Modulation Matrix

The Matrix tab is where modulation becomes explicit. Each of its 32 slots wires a source to a destination with a bipolar depth and a response curve.

Patch cables — drag to route

You rarely need to open the Matrix tab to make a connection. Every modulation source — each LFO and envelope panel, and every macro — carries a ⠿ MOD handle. Press it and drag: a glowing patch cable follows your cursor across the whole instrument, drawn in that source's signature color. Release it over any knob and the routing is made — a new matrix slot is created automatically, and a small colored tap appears on the knob to show it is now a destination.

• The cable is tinted by the source's accent (violet for LFOs, amber for envelopes, magenta for macros), so a densely patched sound stays readable at a glance.
• As you drag, any knob under the cursor highlights with a dashed ring to confirm it is a valid target before you drop.
• Dropping creates the route at a sensible default depth; open the Matrix tab to fine-tune depth and curve, or right-click the source to list and remove its routings.
• A single source can be dragged to as many knobs as you like — each drop adds another slot.

Macros

The four Macro knobs (bottom-right) are performance controls — assign each to several destinations at once for expressive, one-knob morphs. Rename them and they follow the patch. Macros are the controls factory patches expose first, so they are the natural place to build a patch's "signature move."

12Modulation Recipes

A collection of ready-to-wire routings. Each recipe lists the matrix slots to set up — source → destination, a suggested depth and curve — plus what to listen for. Use the ⠿ MOD drag-to-assign shortcut, then fine-tune depth and curve in the Matrix tab.

13The Effects Rack

The FX tab holds twelve effects in a reorderable rack. The list on the left shows every slot with its on/off toggle and drag handle; select a slot to edit it in the detail panel on the right, where a live visualization tracks every knob.

Distortion

Nine shaping curves — Soft Clip, Hard Clip, two Diode models, Tube, Fold, Foldback, Bitcrush, and Downsample — each shown as a transfer curve. Controls: Drive, Tone, Mix, plus an oversampling selector to keep it clean.

EQ

A quick tone shaper: low and high shelves plus a sweepable mid bell. Low, Mid, Freq, High.

Compressor

Dynamics with a transfer curve and gain-reduction meter. Thresh, Ratio, Attack, Release, Makeup.

Chorus

Four types (Classic, Ensemble, Dimension, String). Rate, Depth, Delay, Width, Mix.

Flanger

Sweeping comb filter with feedback. Rate, Depth, Fdbk, Delay, Mix.

Phaser

Six-stage all-pass phaser, optionally tempo-synced. Rate, Depth, Fdbk, Mix.

Delay

A digital or Tape delay with ping-pong and tempo sync. In sync mode pick a base note (1/1–1/32) and a modifier (straight, dotted, triplet). Time, Fdbk, Filter, Mix.

Reverb

Room, Plate, and Hall algorithms with a shimmer option. Primary knobs Size, Decay, Mix, Shimmer; secondary row Damp, Pre, LoCut, HiCut, Mod, Diff, Width.

Convolution

Convolution reverb using impulse responses — Small Room, Hall, Plate, Spring, Cathedral, Drum Room, and Ambience — with a reverse option. Mix, Pre, Length, Start, Stretch, LoCut, HiCut.

Multiband Compressor

Three-band dynamics with a crossover bar and per-band Threshold, Ratio, Attack, Release, and Makeup.

Widener

Stereo widening (M/S, Haas, or All-pass) with a goniometer scope and a Bass-Mono option to keep the low end centered. Width, Stereo, Damp, Mix.

Limiter

A brick-wall limiter for the output with auto-makeup and a gain-reduction meter. Thresh, Release.

14The Arpeggiator

Press Arp in the toolbar for a full step-sequencing arpeggiator. Play a chord and Tilichu turns it into a rhythmic pattern you can shape per-step.

Below the knobs, the step grid lets you edit each step individually — per-step note offset, velocity, gate length, probability, and ties. The pattern can be 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, or 64 steps long (16 by default). Use the pattern tools to clear or randomize the sequence.

15Chord Mode

Chord Mode turns Tilichu into a scale-aware chord instrument: hold down single keys and the engine voices full diatonic chords, in key, with the extension you choose. It's built for quick progressions, live performance, and writing harmony without thinking about theory.

Enable it from the Global tab — set Chord to On — and pick a governing Scale. While Chord Mode is on, the keyboard splits into three zones (the lower two are tinted on the on-screen keybed so you can see them at a glance).

The three keyboard zones

So a typical setup is: tap a note below C1 to choose the key, tap a key in the C1–B1 band to choose how lush the chords are, then play melodies from C2 upward — every key you press sounds a complete, in-key chord.

Extensions (the C1–B1 latch band)

Because the chords are diatonic, every degree stays in the chosen scale — the third is major or minor, the seventh major or dominant, and so on, exactly as the key dictates. You never play a wrong note.

Scales

The Scale selector governs which chords each degree produces. Eleven scales are available:

Major and Natural Minor cover most pop and cinematic writing; the modes (Dorian through Locrian) give modal colors; Harmonic and Melodic Minor add the classic raised-seventh tension; and the two pentatonics keep things open and consonant for leads and simpler harmony.

16Mixer

The Mixer tab gives every source its own channel strip — OSC A, OSC B, SUB, NOISE, RING (the ring modulator), and the effects return — plus a master strip.

Each strip has a level fader with a meter, a pan control, Mute / Solo buttons, and an output routing selector (Filter, Direct, or Master). The RING strip carries the ring-modulation of OSC A × OSC B — raise it for metallic, clangorous overtones. The master strip sums everything to the stereo output.

17Global Settings

The Global tab groups patch-wide behavior into four cards.

The Scale selector and the Chord On/Off switch also live here — see Chord Mode (§14) for the full walkthrough.

18The Preset Browser

Click the preset name in the toolbar to open the browser — a fast, filterable library of every factory and user patch.

• Search by name, tag, or author from the field at the top.
• Banks and Categories filter the list on the left; category color dots match the plugin's section hues.
• Tags stack with AND logic — click several to narrow the results.
• ★ Favourite any patch; double-click a row (or press Load Preset) to load it.
• Save, Save As…, and Delete manage your own patches; Init and Random sit at the bottom-left for quick starts.

Share sounds by exporting a .tilichupreset file (☰ menu → Export), or drop one into the user folder to import it.

19Preset Management

Beyond loading sounds, Tilichu gives you a complete workflow for saving, organizing, and sharing your own patches. Everything you create lives in the same browser as the factory content, tagged and searchable.

Saving a patch

Once you've built a sound, store it from the toolbar or the browser:

Organizing: banks, categories & tags

Three layers keep a large library navigable, and you set all three when you save:

• Banks — the top-level container (e.g. Factory, User, or a named soundset). Use banks to keep a project's or a pack's sounds together.
• Categories — the sound type: Bass, Lead, Pad, Pluck, Keys, Arp, Soundscape, and so on. Each category carries a color dot that matches the plugin's section hues.
• Tags — free-form descriptors (Analog, Bright, Wide, Dark, Evolving…). A patch can carry many, and tags stack with AND logic in the browser to narrow a search fast.

Favourites & search

Star (★) the patches you reach for most and filter the browser to favourites only. The search field matches names, tags, and authors, and combines with the bank/category rail and the tag bar — so "user bank + Pad + Wide + favourited" is a couple of clicks away.

Import & export

Patches are portable as .tilichupreset files:

• Export — from the ☰ menu, export the current patch (or a whole bank) to a .tilichupreset file to back up or share.
• Import — choose Import preset… from the ☰ menu, or drop the file into the user presets folder (☰ → Open presets folder). It appears in the browser on next scan.
• Soundsets — third-party packs install as their own bank; nothing overwrites your existing work.

20MIDI, Automation & MPE

Tilichu responds to the full range of MIDI and host automation.

• MIDI Learn — right-click almost any control and choose MIDI Learn, then move a hardware knob to bind it.
• Host automation — every parameter is exposed to your DAW for automation lanes.
• Performance sources — velocity, aftertouch (channel and poly), mod wheel, and keytrack are all available as matrix sources.
• MPE — enable MPE in your host to route per-note pitch, pressure, and slide into the matrix for expressive controllers.

21Sound Design Walkthroughs

Three short recipes to connect the panels into finished sounds.

A. Evolving pad

1. Start from Init. On OSC A pick a smooth wavetable and raise Unison to 5 with a little Detune and full Spread.
2. Enable OSC B, detune it +7 semitones for a fifth, and lower its level slightly.
3. Set ENV 1 to a slow attack and long release for a gentle swell.
4. In the Matrix, route LFO 2 (slow, Smooth shape) to OSC A Pos with moderate depth — the timbre now drifts.
5. Add Reverb (Hall) with a touch of Shimmer, and a slow Chorus before it.

B. Plucky bass

1. Single oscillator, a bright saw-like table. Voice Mode MONO with a short Glide.
2. ENV 1: fast attack, medium decay, zero sustain — the amp "plucks."
3. Route ENV 2 to Filter Cutoff with positive depth; short decay gives the classic snap.
4. Add Distortion (Tube) for harmonics, then a tight Compressor.
5. Bring up the SUB an octave down for weight.

C. Granular texture

1. Press Source, choose Granular, and load a vocal or field-recording sample.
2. Lower grain Density for a sparse cloud; add Spray for randomness.
3. Engage Freeze and route an LFO to the scan position for slow, hands-free movement.
4. Filter with a gentle LP24, then Convolution (a large hall IR) and Widener to place it wide and deep.

22Troubleshooting & FAQ

No sound

Check that at least one source is enabled and routed to the Filter (or Direct), that ENV 1's level and the master aren't at zero, and that the track isn't muted in your host.

High CPU

Lower oversampling and voice count, set engine quality to Eco while writing, and freeze/bounce finished parts. Reverb and Convolution are the heaviest effects.

A patch sounds different than expected

Patches store their theme but not your global CPU settings. If a patch was made at higher oversampling, small timbral differences at lower settings are normal — raise Quality to match.

My edits vanished

Every change is undoable with Ctrl/Cmd + Z. If you loaded a new patch without saving, reopen the browser — your unsaved work is not stored, so Save often to the user bank.

23Keyboard & Mouse Reference

Tilichu · Wavetable Synthesizer · © 2026 Butterlamp Audio