blip_blip

blip_blip is a high-performance, terminal-based granular synthesizer and audio workstation written in Rust. It transforms your local .wav files into a multi-track soundscape, allowing for real-time manipulation of grain size, playback speed, and spatial effects through a neon-styled TUI.

Features

• Granular Synthesis Engine: Real-time grain generation with adjustable size and scatter.
• Multi-Track TUI: Neon-inspired interface (Magenta/Cyan/Green) with live Unicode level meters.
• Audio Processing:
  • Variable playback speed (0.0x to 4.0x).
  • Tanh-based distortion/saturation.
  • Global stereo reverb with per-track mix control.
• Live Recording: Capture your session directly to a high-quality .wav file.
• Low Latency: Powered by cpal and fundsp for efficient audio processing.

Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Rust: You will need the latest stable Rust toolchain.
• Audio Drivers:
  • Linux: Requires alsa-lib and pkg-config (standard for ALSA/PipeWire).
  • Windows/macOS: Should work out of the box with system default drivers.

Installation

Clone the repository and build using Cargo:

cargo build --release

The binary will be located at target/release/blip_blip.

Usage

1. Place one or more .wav files in the same directory as the executable (or your project root).
2. Run the application:

   cargo run

3. Use the keyboard controls to manipulate the audio in real-time.

Controls

Key	Action
↑ / ↓	Select Track
Tab	Cycle Parameters (Volume, Speed, Grain, etc.)
← / →	Adjust Selected Parameter
Space	Play / Pause Selected Track
a	Play / Pause All Tracks
r	Restart Playhead for Selected Track
b	Bypass Effects for Selected Track
w	Start / Stop Session Recording
q	Quit

Technical Stack

• TUI: ratatui & crossterm
• Audio Engine: cpal
• DSP: fundsp
• WAV I/O: hound

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.