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👏 The Sound of Many Hands 👏
El Applauso is a sophisticated handclap and percussion synthesizer that goes far beyond simple sample playback. It synthesizes crowds of up to 8 individual "clappers," each with their own unique timing, pitch, velocity, and tonal characteristics—creating everything from tight, punchy electronic claps to sprawling, organic crowd applause.
Four distinct synthesis models capture the character of classic drum machines and real acoustic phenomena:
- Helmholtz — Physical modeling based on hand cavity resonance
- TR-808 — The iconic filtered noise burst with authentic 4-tap attack
- TR-909 — Snappier, crunchier with 31-bit LFSR noise character
- Finger Snap — Research-based model with impact shock and hand chamber resonance
Five physically-modeled venues place your sounds in realistic acoustic spaces—from dead studios to massive arenas.
| Model | Character | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| Helmholtz | Warm, organic, woody | Acoustic music, natural textures |
| TR-808 | Classic, punchy, smooth | House, hip-hop, electro |
| TR-909 | Snappy, aggressive, crunchy | Techno, industrial, hard styles |
| Finger Snap | Crisp, percussive pop | Jazz, acoustic, minimal |
Transform a single clap into a crowd of up to 8 independent clappers:
- Spread — Distribute claps across time (0-300ms window)
- Humanize — Add timing jitter and "bad claps" for natural feel
- Per-Clapper Variation — Each hand sounds different
- Spatial Clustering — Left/center/right groupings with distance modeling
Six parameters to humanize your crowd:
| Parameter | Effect |
|---|---|
| Velocity | Volume differences between clappers |
| Mute | Random chance of silent hands |
| Pitch | Pitch variation per clapper |
| Decay | Length variation per clapper |
| Pan | Stereo spread variation |
| Humanize | Timing jitter + bad clap chance |
Set Clappers to "Applause" for continuous, self-generating crowd applause—no trigger needed. Features density-controlled spawning (20-50ms intervals) with automatic double-taps and quality variation. Perfect for:
- Audience simulation
- Textural soundscapes
- Live performance endings
- Generative compositions
Five acoustically-researched spaces, each with unique characteristics:
| Venue | RT60 | Character |
|---|---|---|
| Studio | 0.3s | Dead, clinical, heavy acoustic treatment |
| Garage | 1.8s | Flutter echo from parallel metal walls |
| Bar | 0.95s | Warm wood absorption, furniture diffusion |
| Basement | 2.2s | Boxy modal resonances, concrete LF buildup |
| Arena | 3.8s | Massive predelay, air absorption, Lexicon shimmer |
- Tank Modulation — Lexicon-style shimmer with quadrature LFO
- Flutter Echo — Comb filter reflections for metallic spaces
- Modal Resonators — Room mode emphasis for concrete/basement
- Air Absorption — Progressive HF rolloff for large spaces
- Dual Damping — Independent HF and LF decay control
Inject external audio directly into the venue—bypasses the CrowdEngine for processing drums, synths, or any source through the physical space modeling.
-
Copy
elApplauso.instrumentsto your Disting NT SD card:/plugins/elApplauso.instruments -
Power cycle your Disting NT
-
Navigate to Instruments → El Applauso
| Parameter | Range | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Model | Helmholtz / TR-808 / TR-909 / Finger Snap | Synthesis engine selection |
| Pitch | -24 to +24 st | Global pitch offset in semitones |
| Gain | 0-106 | Output level (100 = unity, 106 = boost) |
| Decay | 0-10 | Clap tail length |
| Hand Style | 0-100% | Cupped vs flat hand (Helmholtz) / Snap style (Finger Snap) |
| Tone | 0-100% | Brightness (808/909 only) |
| Body | 0-100% | Low-mid resonance (808/909 only) |
| Noise | 0-100% | Raw noise mix (808/909 only) |
| Parameter | Range | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Clappers | 1-8 / Applause | Number of simultaneous clappers |
| Spread | 0-100% | Time distribution window (0-300ms) |
| Envelope | Off / Hamming / Up Ramp / Triangle / Exp Down / Square | Amplitude shape across crowd |
All parameters range 0-10. At 0, minimal variation. At 10, maximum humanization.
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
| Velocity | Per-clapper volume randomization |
| Mute | Probability of random silence (never mutes first clapper) |
| Pitch | Per-clapper pitch deviation |
| Decay | Per-clapper decay length variation |
| Pan | Stereo position variation |
| Humanize | Timing jitter + bad clap probability at max |
| Parameter | Range | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Space | Studio / Garage / Bar / Basement / Arena | Physical venue selection |
| Reverb | 0-100% | Wet/dry mix |
| Width | 0-100% | Stereo spread of crowd and reverb |
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
| Trigger | CV input for triggering claps |
| Input L | Audio input left (bypasses CrowdEngine, feeds venue) |
| Input R | Audio input right (mono from L if not patched) |
| Output L | Left audio output bus |
| Output R | Right audio output bus (optional, mono if not set) |
| Out Mode | Add (mix with bus) or Replace (overwrite bus) |
Based on Hermann von Helmholtz's acoustic resonance research. Models the cupped hand as a resonant cavity excited by the impact of palms.
- Hand Style 0% — Flat hands, bright slap, minimal resonance
- Hand Style 100% — Deeply cupped, woody resonance, more body
Corrected to match original hardware specifications:
- Bandpass: 1000Hz center (±200Hz with Tone)
- Tap Spacing: 10ms (0, 10, 20, 30ms)
- Tap Gains: 1.0, 0.72, 0.52, 0.38 (steeper than commonly emulated)
- Reverb Path: Separate filtered reverb tail (~100ms, 30% mix)
Corrected specifications with authentic noise character:
- Bandpass: 1140Hz center, Q ~1.95 (sharper than 808)
- Tap Spacing: 11ms (0, 11, 22, 33ms) — 4 taps, not 3
- Noise: 31-bit LFSR at ~300kHz clock blended with LC noise (70/30)
- Character: Click transient + soft saturation for crunch
Based on Georgia Tech 2021 research (Bhamla Lab). The snap consists of two acoustic components:
1. Impact Shock (7ms)
- Finger strikes thenar eminence (fleshy pad at thumb base)
- Air compression creates shock wave at 2000-2800Hz
- Higher Snap Style = brighter, sharper impact
2. Chamber Resonance (15-45ms)
- Cupped ring/pinky fingers form resonance cavity
- Snap Style 0% — Loose hand, 1200Hz resonance, more body
- Snap Style 100% — Tight hand, minimal resonance, punchy
- Set Model to TR-808 for classic sound
- Set Clappers to 1, Spread to 0
- Trigger with a gate signal
- Adjust Decay and Gain to taste
- Increase Clappers to 4-8
- Set Spread to 30-50% for rhythmic flam
- Add Humanize at 3-5 for natural timing
- Set Velocity variation to 4-6 for dynamics
- Choose a Venue to place the crowd in space
- Use Helmholtz model
- Hand Style around 70%
- Clappers at 3-5 with Spread 20-40%
- All variation parameters at 3-4
- Space: Bar or Basement, Reverb 30-50%
- Use TR-808 or TR-909
- Clappers at 1-2, Spread at 0-10%
- Humanize at 0-2
- Space: Studio, Reverb 0-20%
- Set Clappers to "Applause"
- Spread at 60-80%
- All variation parameters at 6-8
- Space: Arena, Reverb 50-70%
- No trigger needed—continuous output
- Use TR-909 model
- Space: Garage for flutter echo
- Reverb at 40-60%
- Try routing other sounds through Input L/R
- Patch audio to Input L (and optionally Input R)
- Select Venue and Reverb amount
- External audio bypasses CrowdEngine, goes direct to venue
- Mix with triggered claps or use venue processing standalone
The custom UI provides real-time feedback:
┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ EL APPLAUSO │
│ TR-808 │
│ PITCH +0 GAIN 100 DECAY 5 │
│ HANDS 4 VENUE Bar WIDTH 50 │
│ V▓▓░░ M░░░░ P▓░░░ D▓▓░░ S░░░░ H▓▓▓░ │
│ OUT ▓▓▓▓░░░░░░ ▓▓▓░░░░░░ ████░░░░ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────┘
- Row 1: Plugin name
- Row 2: Current model
- Row 3: Pitch, Gain, Decay values
- Row 4: Hands count, Venue, Width
- Row 5: Variation bars (V=Velocity, M=Mute, P=Pitch, D=Decay, S=Pan, H=Humanize)
- Row 6: Stereo output meters + active clapper indicators (~ shows in Applause mode)
| Specification | Value |
|---|---|
| Max Polyphony | 8 simultaneous clappers |
| Sample Rate | Follows system (48kHz typical) |
| Memory Usage | ~86KB reverb buffers |
| Latency | Zero (direct synthesis) |
| Trigger Threshold | >1.0V |
FDN (Feedback Delay Network)
- 4 delay lines with Hadamard matrix mixing
- Prime-ratio delays: 29.3ms, 33.7ms, 39.1ms, 44.7ms
- 4 input allpass diffusers
- 6-tap early reflections
Per-Venue Processing
- Configurable predelay (2-95ms)
- Tank modulation (0-6% depth, 0.4-0.8Hz)
- Flutter comb filters (17.5ms/18.3ms for Garage)
- Modal bandpass resonators (68-272Hz for Basement)
- Air absorption lowpass (Arena)
┌──────────────────────────────────────┐
│ PER-CLAPPER │
TRIGGER ──────────┤ ┌─────────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ Unique Seed (RNG) │ │
│ │ │ │ │
│ │ ┌────┴────┐ │ │
│ │ │ Timing │◄── Humanize │ │
│ │ │ Jitter │◄── Bad Claps │ │
│ │ └────┬────┘ │ │
│ │ │ │ │
│ │ ┌────┴────┐ │ │
│ │ │ Synth │◄── Pitch Var │ │
│ │ │ Engine │◄── Decay Var │ │
│ │ │ │◄── Tone/Body │ │
│ │ └────┬────┘ │ │
│ │ │ │ │
│ │ ┌────┴────┐ │ │
│ │ │Distance │◄── Spread │ │
│ │ │ LPF │ │ │
│ │ └────┬────┘ │ │
│ │ │ │ │
│ │ ┌────┴────┐ │ │
│ │ │Velocity │◄── Velocity Var │ │
│ │ │ VCA │◄── Mute │ │
│ │ └────┬────┘ │ │
│ │ │ │ │
│ │ ┌────┴────┐ │ │
│ │ │ Pan │◄── Cluster │ │
│ │ │ │◄── Pan Var │ │
│ │ └────┬────┘ │ │
│ └─────────│───────────────────────┘ │
│ │ (×8 clappers) │
└────────────┼─────────────────────────┘
│
┌─────┴─────┐
│ Mixer │
│ (stereo) │
└─────┬─────┘
│
┌─────┴─────┐ ┌───────────┐
│ DC Block │ │ AUDIO IN │
└─────┬─────┘ │ L / R │
│ └─────┬─────┘
│ │
┌─────┴────────────────────┴─────┐
│ FDN REVERB │
│ ┌─────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ Predelay (2-95ms) │ │
│ │ Input Diffusion (4×AP) │ │
│ │ Early Reflections (6tap)│ │
│ │ Flutter Echo (Garage) │ │
│ │ Modal Resonance (Bsmnt) │ │
│ │ FDN Tank + Modulation │ │
│ │ Dual Damping (HF/LF) │ │
│ │ Air Absorption (Arena) │ │
│ └─────────────────────────┘ │
└─────────────┬─────────────────┘
│
┌─────┴─────┐
│ Soft Clip │
│ (tanh) │
└─────┬─────┘
│
OUTPUT L/R
- 🔧 TR-909 Level Fix — Properly matched to other models (output × 0.5, reduced internal gains)
- 🫰 Finger Snap Redesign — Research-based model from Georgia Tech 2021 study
- Impact shock (7ms, 2000-2800Hz) + chamber resonance (15-45ms)
- Snap Style controls hand tightness and resonance amount
- 🔊 Audio Input Routing — Input L/R for external audio through venue processing
- 🎹 TR-808 Corrections — 1000Hz bandpass, 10ms tap spacing, proper reverb path
- 🎹 TR-909 Corrections — 1140Hz bandpass, 11ms/4-tap, 31-bit LFSR noise
- 🏛️ Physical Venue Modeling — 5 researched acoustic spaces
- Studio (dead), Garage (flutter), Bar (warm), Basement (modal), Arena (massive)
- ✨ FDN Reverb Enhancements — Tank modulation, flutter echo, modal resonators, air absorption
- 👥 CrowdEngine — 8 simultaneous clappers with spatial clustering
- 📍 Distance Modeling — HF rolloff and amplitude scaling per clapper
- 🎲 Bad Claps — 40% chance at max humanize for realistic crowds
- 👏 Applause Mode — Continuous self-generating crowd (20-50ms density spawning)
- 🎉 Initial public release
- Three synthesis models: Helmholtz, TR-808, TR-909
- Up to 8 independent clappers with per-clapper variation
- Applause mode for continuous crowd simulation
- Built-in Schroeder reverb
- Comprehensive variation system (velocity, mute, pitch, decay, intensity, humanize)
- Real-time UI with output metering and activity visualization
El Applauso was developed for the Expert Sleepers Disting NT platform.
Synthesis models informed by:
- Roland TR-808 and TR-909 drum machines (hardware analysis)
- Hermann von Helmholtz's acoustic resonance research
- Georgia Tech Bhamla Lab finger snap physics study (2021)
- Acoustic research on hand clapping (Fletcher et al.)
- The universal language of appreciation 👏
This plugin is provided as-is for use with the Expert Sleepers Disting NT.
For bug reports, feature requests, or general feedback—your input shapes future versions.
GitHub: github.com/kuttor/Disting-NT-Plugin--El-Applauso
👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏
👏 👏
👏 THANK YOU 👏
👏 👏
👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏
El Applauso — Because one clap is never enough.