k2k audio From gentle warmth to full destruction. These nodes add harmonics, fold waveforms, crush bits, and push audio past its limits — the sonic equivalent of overdriving a tube amp or dragging tape across a magnet.
Native Saturator
What it does — Adds analog-style harmonic coloring by pushing audio into soft saturation across five circuit models.
When you’d reach for it — Your mix sounds sterile or too clean and you want that lived-in warmth that tape machines and tube preamps give for free. Also great for thickening thin vocals or adding body to a direct-recorded bass.
Quick example
- Connect your audio source to the Saturator input.
- Set the mode to Tape for gentle warmth.
- Push Drive to around 8 dB and pull Saturation to 0.4.
- Roll Tone down to 5000 Hz to keep the added harmonics from getting harsh.
- Blend to taste with Dry/Wet at 0.60.
Parameters
| Parameter | What it controls | Range | Sweet spot hint |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drive | How hard the signal hits the saturation stage | 0 — 24 dB | 4—10 dB for warming, 16+ for crunch |
| Saturation | Depth of the nonlinear curve | 0.00 — 1.00 | 0.3—0.5 for musical color |
| Tone | Low-pass filter on the saturated signal | 200 — 20 000 Hz | 4000—8000 Hz tames fizz |
| Output | Post-saturation gain trim | -12 — +12 dB | Compensate for drive increase |
| Mode | Circuit model: Tape, Tube, Transistor, Diode, Hard Clip | 5 modes | Tape/Tube for warmth, Transistor/Diode for edge |
| Dry/Wet | Balance between original and saturated signal | 0.00 — 1.00 | 0.50—0.70 for parallel saturation |
Native Soft Clipper
What it does — Gently rounds off signal peaks using anti-aliased waveshaping, keeping loudness gains clean and alias-free.
When you’d reach for it — You need a transparent limiter-style effect that catches peaks without the pumping of a compressor. Ideal as the last step before output to shave off transients while preserving the character of the sound.
Quick example
- Feed a drum bus into the Soft Clipper.
- Set Threshold to 0.6 so only the loudest transients get shaped.
- Keep Hardness around 0.3 for a smooth knee.
- Leave Oversample on for the cleanest result.
- Adjust Output to match the perceived loudness of the original.
Parameters
| Parameter | What it controls | Range | Sweet spot hint |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drive | Input gain before clipping | 0 — 24 dB | 3—8 dB for subtle shaping |
| Threshold | Level where clipping begins | 0.10 — 1.00 | 0.6—0.8 catches just the peaks |
| Hardness | Sharpness of the clipping knee | 0.00 — 1.00 | 0.2—0.4 for gentle rounding |
| Output | Post-clipper gain trim | -12 — +12 dB | Match loudness with bypass |
| Mode | Clipping curve: Tanh, Polynomial, Sine | 3 modes | Tanh is the most transparent |
| Oversample | Enables oversampling to reduce aliasing | On / Off | Leave on unless CPU is tight |
| Dry/Wet | Balance between original and clipped signal | 0.00 — 1.00 | 0.80—1.00 for peak control |
Native Distortion
What it does — Aggressive waveshaping with four clipping algorithms, a bias control for asymmetry, and an optional cabinet simulation.
When you’d reach for it — You want to destroy something on purpose. Mangling a synth lead, turning a clean guitar into a wall of fuzz, or creating sound-design textures where recognizability is the enemy.
Quick example
- Connect a synth pad to the Distortion input.
- Choose Foldback mode for complex harmonic content.
- Crank Drive to 24 dB.
- Shift Bias to 0.15 to break the symmetry and add odd harmonics.
- Enable Cabinet to round off the harshest frequencies.
Parameters
| Parameter | What it controls | Range | Sweet spot hint |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drive | Input gain into the clipping stage | 0 — 48 dB | 12—24 dB for heavy distortion |
| Tone | Post-distortion low-pass filter | 200 — 20 000 Hz | 3000—6000 Hz tames digital harshness |
| Bias | DC offset before clipping, creates asymmetric waveshaping | -0.50 — +0.50 | Small amounts (0.05—0.15) add character |
| Output | Post-distortion gain trim | -24 — +12 dB | Pull back to compensate for extreme drive |
| Mode | Clipping algorithm: Hard, Foldback, Asymmetric, Rectifier | 4 modes | Foldback for synths, Hard for guitars |
| Rectifier Type | Half-wave or Full-wave rectification (active in Rectifier mode) | 2 types | Full-wave for octave-up effect |
| Cabinet | Enables a speaker cabinet simulation filter | On / Off | Smooths out digital harshness |
| Dry/Wet | Balance between original and distorted signal | 0.00 — 1.00 | 0.50 for parallel grit |
Bit Crusher
What it does — Reduces bit depth and effective sample rate to create lo-fi digital artifacts, from subtle warmth to full-on retro crunch.
When you’d reach for it — You are going for an 8-bit aesthetic, degrading a sample to sound like it came off a vintage sampler, or adding gritty texture to hi-hats and percussion.
Quick example
- Send a melodic loop into the Bit Crusher.
- Drop Bit Depth to 8 for a chunky, quantized character.
- Raise Rate Factor to 8 to hear obvious staircase aliasing.
- Turn on Pre-Filter to keep the aliasing musical rather than chaotic.
- Set Dry/Wet to 0.60 so the original transients still poke through.
Parameters
| Parameter | What it controls | Range | Sweet spot hint |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bit Depth | Number of quantization bits | 1 — 16 bits | 6—10 for audible but musical crush |
| Rate Factor | Sample rate reduction factor — higher values mean more decimation | 1 — 32 | 4—10 for obvious aliasing |
| Pre-Filter | Low-pass filter before rate reduction to tame aliasing | On / Off | On for musical results |
| Dither | Amount of noise added during requantization | 0.00 — 1.00 | 0.2—0.4 smooths harsh steps |
| Jitter | Random variation in sample-hold timing | 0.00 — 1.00 | Small amounts (0.05—0.15) for analog wobble |
| Output Gain | Post-crush gain trim | -24 — +12 dB | Compensate for level changes |
| Stereo Width | Decorrelation between left and right crush timing | 0 — 200% | 100% for normal stereo, 50% for subtle movement |
| Dry/Wet | Balance between original and crushed signal | 0.00 — 1.00 | 0.50—0.80 depending on taste |
Harmonic Shaper
What it does — Generates precise harmonics using Chebyshev polynomials, giving you individual level control over harmonics 1 through 8.
When you’d reach for it — You want to add specific overtones to a sound rather than broad-stroke saturation. Perfect for enriching a sine-heavy sub bass with a controlled 3rd and 5th harmonic so it translates on small speakers, or for giving a dull sample more presence without changing its fundamental character.
Quick example
- Feed a sub bass into the Harmonic Shaper.
- Keep H1 (fundamental) at 100%.
- Raise H3 to 40% and H5 to 25% for odd-harmonic presence.
- Leave even harmonics (H2, H4, H6, H8) low for a hollow, clarinet-like color.
- Pull Output Gain to 0.7 to avoid clipping.
Parameters
| Parameter | What it controls | Range | Sweet spot hint |
|---|---|---|---|
| Input Gain | Level going into the shaping stage | 0.10 — 2.00 | 0.8—1.2 for clean shaping |
| Output Gain | Level coming out of the shaping stage | 0.10 — 2.00 | 0.6—0.9 to avoid clipping |
| H1 | Fundamental level | 0 — 100% | Usually stays at 100% |
| H2 | 2nd harmonic (octave) | 0 — 100% | 20—40% for warmth |
| H3 | 3rd harmonic (octave + fifth) | 0 — 100% | 15—35% for presence |
| H4 | 4th harmonic (two octaves) | 0 — 100% | Subtle, 5—15% |
| H5 | 5th harmonic | 0 — 100% | 10—25% for bite |
| H6 | 6th harmonic | 0 — 100% | 5—10% adds shimmer |
| H7 | 7th harmonic | 0 — 100% | 5—10% for metallic edge |
| H8 | 8th harmonic | 0 — 100% | Keep low (under 10%) to avoid harshness |
| Dry/Wet | Balance between original and shaped signal | 0.00 — 1.00 | 0.70—1.00 for enrichment |
Wavefolder
What it does — Folds the waveform back on itself when it exceeds a threshold, creating complex, evolving harmonic content that responds dynamically to input level.
When you’d reach for it — You are designing sounds from simple waveforms and want that signature West Coast synthesis texture — metallic, bell-like, and alive. Also great for turning a boring pad into something that shifts and breathes as the amplitude changes.
Quick example
- Start with a sine or triangle wave into the Wavefolder.
- Set Fold Amount to 3.0 for moderate complexity.
- Leave Symmetry at 0.0 for balanced folding on both halves.
- Choose the Single stage for a clear, controllable result.
- Automate Fold Amount with a slow LFO for evolving timbral movement.
Parameters
| Parameter | What it controls | Range | Sweet spot hint |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fold Amount | How many times the wave folds back | 1.0 — 10.0 | 2.0—4.0 for musical results, 7+ for chaos |
| Symmetry | Shifts the folding center, making positive and negative folds unequal | -1.00 — +1.00 | 0.0 for clean folds, 0.1—0.3 for asymmetric color |
| Stages | Number of cascaded folding passes: Single, Double, Quad | 3 settings | Single for clarity, Quad for extreme density |
| Dry/Wet | Balance between original and folded signal | 0.00 — 1.00 | 0.50—0.80 to keep the fundamental anchored |
| Preset | Quick starting points: Subtle, Medium, Heavy, West Coast, Chaotic | 5 presets | West Coast is the classic starting point |