User manual.

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What changed.

Desktop 1.3.1, with the 1.3.0 changes you may have missed.

1.3.1 also fixes Audio Unit validation at low sample rates and large render blocks. If Logic still shows an older version, see troubleshooting.

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Your first sound.

A short route from an empty track to a saved patch.

1. Load TRESSE on an instrument track. Enable the track’s MIDI input or monitoring. For iPhone or iPad standalone use, open the Tresse app and start with the on-screen keyboard. The current desktop installers contain plugins.
2. Start clean. Save anything you want to keep, then press RESET to load INIT with playback paused. Choose OSC 1, EastCoast and POLY. Leave the centre mixer fully towards OSC 1.
3. Play a note. Use your MIDI keyboard, a note in your DAW, or open SEQ to reach the on-screen keyboard. The SEQ page can be open without its sequencer running.
4. Explore the engine. Move TIM, MOR and HAR one at a time. Change the engine to hear how those same controls take on different jobs.
5. Shape the note. Lower CUT to soften it. Raise A for a slower start, or R for a longer fade after releasing the key.
6. Save the result. Use SAVE for a named preset, or QSAVE for a fresh generated name. Your DAW also saves the plugin state with its project.

For your first session, keep modulation and effects low. It is easier to learn an engine when you can hear which control caused the change.

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Install & unlock.

Get set up on desktop, iPhone or iPad.

Enter your desktop licence

Open the menu ☰ and choose Enter license key…. Enter the purchase email and your VLD1 licence key. Desktop includes all 39 engines and the Morphing Multimode Filter; the desktop licence is separate from iOS purchases. Verification is local and needs no licence server.

Unlock on iOS

Use the in-app purchase options in the standalone Tresse app. Use Restore Purchases with the same Apple Account to recover previous purchases. iOS purchases are separate from desktop licence keys.

Where the desktop plugins go

macOS VST3: /Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/VST3/
macOS AU: /Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/Components/
Windows VST3: C:\Program Files\Common Files\VST3\

If your host cannot find Tresse

Enable the correct format and rescan: Logic uses Audio Units; Windows uses VST3. On Windows, let the installer finish setting up WebView2 and the required runtime.

Get installers and current availability from valdlabs.com/tresse.

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Desktop & iOS.

Know which controls are available in your edition.

Desktop 1.3.1 includes two editable layers, all 39 engines, the Morphing Multimode Filter, all three LFOs, both MOD lanes and the full sequencer. The current Mac package supplies AU and VST3; Windows supplies x64 VST3.

Start and save deliberately

New instances open on INIT, paused. Standalone relaunch also pauses a saved RUN state. Press Play when ready. SAVE and QSAVE need paid access on iOS; Restore Purchases uses the same Apple Account.

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Meet the interface.

The same workspace, with switchable control sections.

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Working with controls.

Small gestures that make editing quicker.

Reading movement

When a parameter is modulated, the knob shows its moving value and range. A source label such as LFO2 tells you what is controlling it. If a knob seems to move by itself, inspect its links before changing the patch.

Randomise without losing a good idea

The menu has separate Randomize synth and Randomize sequencer actions. Keep a pattern while trying new sounds, or keep a sound while generating new patterns. Lock the controls you want to protect and save useful results with QSAVE.

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Build with two layers.

Each layer is a complete sound source.

OSC 1 and OSC 2 each have their own engine selection, TIM / MOR / HAR / DRIFT controls, voice mode, amplitude envelope, filter and filter envelope. Combine a plucked attack with a sustained body, or a bass with a contrasting sequence.

The four sound controls

TIM (Timbre), MOR (Morph) and HAR (Harmonics) shape the selected engine. Their exact role changes with the synthesis method. DRIFT adds slow, independent pitch wander and subtle timbre movement to voices.

A simple layered patch

1. Choose Karplus on OSC 1 and give it a short amplitude envelope.
2. Choose StrChor on OSC 2, with a slower attack and a longer release.
3. Move the centre mixer away from OSC 1 until the sustained layer supports the pluck.
4. Adjust each filter independently, then add shared reverb if desired.

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Shape the brightness.

One morphing filter and a filter envelope for each layer.

Two envelopes, two jobs

An envelope describes how something changes after a note begins and ends. The amplitude envelope controls volume. The filter envelope controls cutoff through ENV.

Try a bright pluck

Choose FLT 1 and LP. Lower CUT, raise ENV above centre, use a short F.A, a modest F.D and a low F.S. The filter opens at the attack and then closes. Keep A short and reduce S if the volume should decay too.

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Movement, grit & space.

The FX, DLY and REV tabs share the bottom-left row.

DLY: delay

REV: reverb

The two layers are mixed before the shared effects. CRSH feeds delay, then reverb; chorus follows the reverb. Delay needs both a non-OFF TIME and some WET. FOLD follows chorus and can also fold delay/reverb tails. Engine-level folding in WavShape, WavFold and Complex is separate from this shared FOLD stage.

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Find FOLD.

A shared wavefolder with its own amount and modulation.

1. Open SYNTH and select FX. If DLY or REV is selected, switch back to the FX row.
2. Right-click the CRSH·DIST knob. On iPhone or iPad, hold the knob for about half a second.
3. Choose Show: FOLD. The same knob socket now reads FOLD.
4. Raise FOLD from zero. Try a simple sustained sound first, then explore the amount. Folding adds harmonics; its character depends on the level and sound entering it.
5. Return through the same menu. Right-click or hold FOLD and choose Show: CRSH·DIST.

Add movement

With FOLD visible, use its knob menu to link an LFO or MOD lane. You can also choose Fold in a source’s destination list. Start with a small depth or narrow MIN / MAX range. Saved presets and projects keep the FOLD amount even when CRSH·DIST is visible.

FOLD processes the mixed layers after delay, reverb and chorus. A long effect tail can therefore change with folding too. Randomize Synth resets FOLD to zero; save an amount you want to keep.

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Three ways to keep moving.

Use an LFO for repeating or continuously varying modulation.

An LFO is a slow oscillator used as an automatic control movement. Select LFO1, LFO2 or LFO3 to edit it. Each has its own shape, depth, speed and destination.

Route from the destination

1. Right-click CUT, TIM or another supported knob.
2. Choose Link to LFO 1, 2 or 3.
3. Select that LFO’s tab and adjust SHP, DEPT and SPD.
4. Watch the target’s animated knob while you listen. Use a small depth first.

Read the destination names

2x means both layers, as in Tim2x or Flt2x. O1 and O2 target only one layer. Dl means delay, Rv reverb, Bal the centre mixer, and Sq the sequencer.

Fold controls the shared FOLD amount. CRSH·DIST has no dedicated LFO/MOD destination; use direct editing, a macro, MIDI mapping or host automation. For envelope stages, O1Atk / O1Dec / O1Sus / O1Rel address OSC 1 amp ADSR, and F1Atk / F1Dec / F1Sus / F1Rel address its filter ADSR. O2 and F2 address layer 2. All three LFOs offer these destinations; they are not MOD-lane targets.

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Make the instrument play.

Generate a pattern, then give it a musical shape.

Press SEQ to open this page. The ▶ button starts the step engine. Choose an ALGO, adjust its four labelled knobs, then set the scale, octave range and timing. The pattern is generated by these controls; the grid is a view of the result.

In SPLIT, algorithm, timing, scale, chord, arp, TIE and LATCH settings belong to the selected part. Run state, sync and the two MOD lanes are shared. Both parts receive the notes you play into their held-note pools.

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Seven pattern generators.

The four ALGO knob labels change with the selected method.

The same algorithm settings regenerate the same base pattern. PROB can omit notes as the pattern cycles; moving a modulation source onto an algorithm knob changes the pattern itself.

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Length, rhythm & feel.

Shape how the generated notes play.

Thin a busy pattern without changing its identity

Leave PROB at 100 and reduce DENSE. You remove some existing hits in a repeatable order. Reduce PROB instead when you want the omissions to vary between cycles.

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Notes, scales & chords.

Constrain the pattern before adding more complexity.

Choose the pitch material

Scale names

CHROM (chromatic), MAJOR, MINOR (natural minor), DORIAN, PHRYG (Phrygian), LYDIAN, MIXO (Mixolydian), HARM (harmonic minor), PENT+ (major pentatonic), PENT− (minor pentatonic), BLUES and WHOLE (whole tone).

Chord choices

OFF, MAJ, MIN, 5 (power chord), SUS2, SUS4, MAJ7, MIN7, 7 (dominant seventh), ADD9 and DIM. Chord tones preserve the selected chord quality; they are not individually forced back into the selected scale.

Play and latch

The keyboard at the bottom plays notes and feeds the arpeggiator. Its − / + buttons shift the displayed keyboard octave; this is separate from the pattern’s OCT − / OCT + range.

LATCH keeps played notes held after release. Add notes by playing them; play a latched note again to remove it. Turn LATCH off to release the held pool.

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Put notes into motion.

The arpeggiator has its own clock and note source.

The ARP selector chooses a mode; OFF disables it. The ARP button toggles between OFF and the last selected mode. ARP DIV controls its speed independently of the sequencer’s DIV.

Use it without the sequencer

Stop SEQ, select UP and play a chord. Enable LATCH if you want to release your hands. The arp needs held or latched notes when SEQ is off.

Use it with the sequencer

When SEQ runs, held-note modes use your played notes and fall back to the sequence if the pool is empty. The four SEQ modes explicitly use the generated pattern as their material.

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Generative control movement.

MOD1 and MOD2 make patterns of parameter values.

Open SEQ and press MOD1 or MOD2. Each lane has its own algorithm, four algorithm knobs, STEPS and PROB. The lane creates control values instead of notes. Press its lit button again to return to the note lane.

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Make modulation predictable.

Understand who owns the target before adding more sources.

MOD lanes set a value; LFOs move around it

A MOD lane drives its target between MIN and MAX, much like moving the knob by hand. The knob’s own base position is parked while the lane controls it. This is different from simply adding a positive amount to the knob.

Two MOD lanes aimed at the same destination are averaged. LFO movement is relative to the current base, which can be the MOD result. More sources can make a complex result; add them one at a time.

Give one layer its own motion

1. Keep OSC 1 audible and open MOD1.
2. Choose RANDOM WALK and target O1Flt.
3. Set a modest MIN / MAX range, with CRV and a slow RATE.
4. Keep PROB at 100 while you explore the four algorithm knobs.
5. Return to SYNTH and watch CUT move. Select FLT 1 if needed.

Useful destination groups

A low MOD PROB holds the previous value on skipped steps rather than setting the destination to zero. The MOD lanes have their own running cycles; stopping note generation does not turn a routed MOD lane off.

If a lane seems ineffective, check its target layer and MIN / MAX range before adding another source.

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Clock & MIDI.

Choose who starts the pattern, then connect your controller.

Change sync in the ☰ menu. It is a setup preference: loading a preset or pressing RESET leaves it unchanged. In FREE or MASTER, drag the BPM readout or use tap tempo to set the internal tempo (30-300 BPM). In SLAVE, change tempo in your DAW. Tempo-synced LFOs and delay use the selected clock too.

Map a hardware knob

1. Right-click or touch-hold the target control and choose MIDI Learn.
2. Move the hardware control. Its CC is assigned to the parameter.
3. Use the menu’s MIDI mapping panel to inspect mappings, enter CC numbers directly or clear them.

Use ordinary controller numbers 0-119. Channel-mode messages 120-127 are reserved. Host automation is also available through the plugin’s parameters.

Address a layer directly

With the sequencer, arp, latch and chord processing off, MIDI channels 1-14 play both layers; channel 15 addresses OSC 1 and channel 16 addresses OSC 2. When note processing is active, played notes feed its pools instead. Pitch bend is not routed in this edition.

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Keep it. Share it.

Presets save the instrument; patch keys make it portable.

Save and browse

SAVE stores a named .tresse preset. QSAVE stores a new preset with a generated name. LOAD opens the preset browser; the footer arrows step through the library. Factory presets are marked with a star and are read-only.

Rename or delete your own presets from the browser. Save a new copy when you want to preserve an earlier variation. DAW projects retain their own plugin state.

Share a patch

1. Press SHARE to show the patch key and QR code.
2. Copy the text key into a message or your notes, or save a share card.
3. On the receiving instrument, use PASTE to load the copied patch key.

Patch keys carry sound, sequence and modulation settings. A patch that uses newer features may need a newer Tresse build. If a key is rejected as newer or unsupported, update the receiving instrument; do not edit the key text.

Back up your desktop preset library

macOS: ~/Library/TRESSE/Presets/
Windows: %APPDATA%\TRESSE\Presets\

Copy the .tresse files to your backup location. On macOS, use Finder’s Go to Folder command to open the hidden Library path.

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Reuse a part.

Copy a sequence or oscillator while keeping the rest of the patch.

1. Open ☰ → Copy…. In JOIN choose Joined sequences. In SPLIT choose Both sequences, Sequence 1 or Sequence 2. For sound settings, choose Both oscillators, OSC 1 or OSC 2.
2. Load the destination patch. The internal clipboard survives preset loading and keeps sequence and oscillator copies separately.
3. Select the destination part. For a single sequence, choose OSC 1 or OSC 2 on SEQ. For a single oscillator, choose OSC 1 or OSC 2 on SYNTH.
4. Open ☰ and choose the matching paste. PASTE SEQUENCE ON 1 / 2 or PASTE OSCILLATOR ON 1 / 2 names the selected destination. Plural pastes replace both parts. PASTE JOINED SEQUENCES restores the copied JOIN routing.
5. Play and save the combination. Use Undo to compare with the previous patch.

These controls are included on desktop and available with iOS PRO/FULL. The internal part clipboard is separate from the text patch key used by SHARE and the footer PASTE button.

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Three places to start.

Small patch-building exercises, not fixed recipes.

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Quick reference.

The essentials in one place.

Credits

Tresse is designed and developed by Jaime Paiva / Våld Labs, Lisbon. Its Classic Plaits engines are based on the work of Emilie Gillet / Mutable Instruments. The Modal engine uses the Rings resonator bank. Våld Labs provides the instrument’s custom synthesis, sequencing, modulation, effects and interface.

Mutable Instruments Plaits, Rings and stmlib are distributed under the MIT licence. Refer to the distribution’s licence notices for the complete terms and third-party acknowledgements.

valdlabs.com/tresse
Support & updates

October 2026 · Desktop 1.3.1 + iOS with tier/version limits. Retained screenshots show desktop 1.2.3; newer menus are explained in the text.