Manual

Learn how to install and use Orbiter's physically modelled gong, handpan, and singing bowl instruments. Available as VST3 and CLAP plugins, a standalone web app, and on iOS and Android.

Getting Started

Get started with Orbiter — install plugins in your DAW, play in the browser, or download for iOS and Android

How It Works

How Orbiter uses modal synthesis and physical modelling to recreate handpan, gong, and singing bowl sounds in real time

Parameters and Controls

How to control parameters in Orbiter — gestures, keyboard shortcuts, and automation

Scales

Orbiter's 8 factory handpan scales — D Kurd, D Celtic Minor, C# Amara, D Hijaz, D Integral, F Pygmy, C# Annaziska, E Hijaz — with note layouts

Orbit View and Navigation

How to navigate between the Orbit ambient view and the Instruments configuration view in Orbiter

Scene Presets

Orbiter's three curated ambience presets — Sleepy, Calm, and Melodic — for instant ambient soundscapes

Sleep Timer

Set a sleep timer in Orbiter to automatically fade out and stop playback after a chosen duration

Generative Sequencer

How Orbiter's built-in probabilistic generative sequencer creates evolving ambient sequences across handpan, gong, and singing bowl

Audio and MIDI Settings

Configure audio devices, MIDI input and output, tempo sync, and routing in Orbiter

Sharing and Collaboration

Share Orbiter soundscapes via URL or create real-time collaborative sessions with live parameter sync and presence

Automatic Modulation

How Orbiter's time-varying modulation system slowly evolves instrument parameters for organic ambient sound

Plugin Formats

Orbiter plugin formats — VST3, CLAP, and Audio Unit (AUv3) instruments and audio effects for macOS, Windows, Linux, and iOS

Handpan

Orbiter Handpan — modal synthesis with beating mode pairs, Helmholtz resonance, 8 factory scales, and full parameter reference

Gong

Orbiter Gong — nonlinear plate synthesis with energy cascading between modes, continuous size control, and bowing excitation

Sound Bowl

Orbiter Sound Bowl — friction-driven singing bowl with strike and rub excitation, sympathetic resonance, and bowing simulation