Chan Sampler

Open-source recreation of FL Studio's Channel Sampler, null-tested against FL itself. VST3, CLAP, AU and Standalone for Windows, macOS and Linux.

Every knob uses FL's units, and most features render sample-identically to FL. FL Sampler presets (.fst) load with their sample.

Plug-in	Recreates	What it does
Chan Sampler	FL Studio's Channel Sampler	plays one sample per note with FL's precomputed effects, time stretching, envelopes, LFOs, filters, arpeggiator and echo

Chan Sampler is an independent project, not affiliated with or endorsed by Image-Line. It contains none of Image-Line's code, artwork, samples, presets or other files; its editor is drawn by its own code.

How it was made

Chan Sampler was created entirely with Claude (Anthropic's AI): the code, the measurements behind it and this documentation. FL Studio was the reference throughout, as described in plugin/MEASUREMENTS.md.

Features

• FL's playback: start offset, loop points, ping-pong loop and FL's six declicking modes.
• FL presets: drop an FL Sampler preset (.fst) on the window to get its sample and every setting.
• Precomputed effects: normalize, reverse, fades, crossfade, trim, reverb, stereo delay and more, rendered into the sample as FL does.
• Time stretching: PITCH, MUL and TIME with Resample, Stretch, Stretch Pro, the e3 modes, slice stretch and slice map.
• Modulation: envelopes for volume, Mod X, Mod Y and pitch, LFOs for those and panning, tempo sync, and eight filter types.
• Misc: polyphony with mono, porta and slide, velocity and key tracking, cut groups, an arpeggiator with chords, and echo with fat mode.
• FL's sample view: zoom, markers, spectrum and multichannel views, and colourful waveforms.
• FL's look and feel: controls drawn as FL draws them, down to the hover fades and the wheel glide. The window resizes and stays sharp on high-DPI screens.
• Undo and redo in your DAW's history: every knob, switch, preset and sample load is a step of the host's own undo (FL Studio's History lists them by name). The standalone app has its own undo and redo.
• Files: WAV (including FL's compressed WAVs), AIFF, FLAC, Ogg Vorbis, Opus and MP3, with region and slice markers and loop points read from the file.

Precomputed effects	Envelopes, LFOs and filter
Levels, arpeggiator and echo	Spectrum view

Quick start

1. Download the file for your system from the latest release:

   System	File	Contents
   Windows (x64)	ChanSampler-<version>-Windows-Setup.exe	Installer for the VST3, CLAP and standalone app
   macOS 10.13 or later (universal)	ChanSampler-<version>-macOS.pkg	Installer for the AU, VST3, CLAP and app (pick which)
   Linux (x86-64, glibc 2.35 or later)	ChanSampler-<version>-Linux.tar.gz	VST3, CLAP and standalone app with an install script

2. On Windows and macOS, run the installer. On Linux, run this in the folder that holds the download (it installs to ~/.vst3, ~/.clap and ~/.local/bin; sh install-linux.sh --uninstall removes them again):

   tar -xzf ChanSampler-*-Linux.tar.gz
   cd ChanSampler-*-Linux
   sh install-linux.sh

3. Rescan plugins in your DAW and add Chan Sampler to an instrument track. Drop a sample on its window and play.

The release notes say whether a download is signed. An unsigned installer shows a warning the first time:

• Windows SmartScreen: click More info, then Run anyway.
• macOS 15 and later: open it once, then go to System Settings > Privacy & Security and click Open Anyway. On earlier versions, right-click it and choose Open.

Each release lists SHA-256 checksums in SHA256SUMS.txt, so you can check a download.

Usage

To	Do this
Load a sample	Drop an audio file on the window, or click the folder button.
Load an FL preset	Drop an .fst file on the window, or import it from the preset menu.
Hear the sample	Click the waveform. It plays at the root note.
Set the start and loop	Drag the Start flag and the loop markers in the sample view.
Zoom the sample view	Scroll over it.
Edit the sample elsewhere	Drag the waveform out to your DAW, an audio editor or a folder. When the file is saved there, it reloads here with your settings.
Use the sample view's tools	Right-click it: Reload, Save as, Locate file, Copy, Paste, Detect tempo, Get properties and the view options.
Fine-tune a knob	Ctrl + drag.
Step a knob	Scroll over it.
Reset a knob	Alt + click, or right-click it and choose Reset.
Type a knob's value	Right-click it and choose Type in value.
Undo / redo	In a DAW, its own undo and redo (FL Studio: Ctrl+Z / Ctrl+Alt+Z, or the History in the browser). In the standalone app, Ctrl+Z / Ctrl+Y (or Ctrl+Shift+Z) or the arrows beside the presets. Use Cmd on macOS.
See the version and About	Click CHAN SAMPLER in the top bar.

Without the volume envelope, a note plays to the end of the sample, as in FL.

Presets

The bar at the top saves and loads .cspreset files in Documents/Chan Sampler/Presets. Subfolders become submenus, and the arrows step through the presets.

The Factory presets hold settings only, so they keep your sample: Chop (the sample lasts exactly as long as the note), Pluck, Swell, Filter sweep, Wobble 1/8, Tremolo, Vibrato, 808 glide, Echo ping-pong 1/8 and Reverse.

Waveform colours

Right-click the sample view and choose Colorful waveforms to colour the waveform by its sound. From top to bottom: Multiband (the default), Color map, and Multiband in the multichannel view.

How close is it to FL?

Each feature was checked against FL Studio 26.1.7 with null tests: the same notes rendered through FL's Sampler and through Chan Sampler inside FL, then subtracted. The precomputed effects, interpolation, envelopes, LFOs, filters, loops, tracking, glide, echo, most of the arpeggiator and the compressed formats null against FL. The sample view's colours, grid and spectrum were measured from FL's screen.

Known gaps:

• Time stretching (any mode but Resample) behaves like FL's but does not match it sample for sample. FL's engine (elastique) is proprietary, so Chan Sampler uses its own algorithms.
• FL-only features that need FL as the host are left out: the Time panel (gate, shift, swing) and the knob menus' automation and remote-control entries. Your DAW provides those.

MEASUREMENTS.md lists every measurement, NULLTESTS.md the null-test results and RESEARCH.md every known gap.

Build from source

You need CMake 3.22 or later, Git and a C++ compiler. JUCE downloads automatically. On Linux:

cmake -B build -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release
cmake --build build --target ChanSampler_VST3 ChanSampler_CLAP ChanSampler_Standalone

docs/BUILDING.md has the Windows and macOS commands and the Linux packages to install first.

Contributing

Found a bug or a difference from FL's Sampler? Open an issue and attach a sample or an .fst preset that shows it. To change the code, read CONTRIBUTING.md for the tests, the null tests against FL and the release steps. Changes per version are in CHANGELOG.md.

Security

A sample, preset or project that makes Chan Sampler crash or misbehave is a security bug. Please report it privately, as described in SECURITY.md, not in a public issue.

License

Chan Sampler is free software under the GNU Affero General Public License v3. It is built with JUCE (used under the AGPLv3), the VST3 SDK, CLAP and clap-juce-extensions (MIT). Their licenses are in THIRD-PARTY-NOTICES.txt and ship with every download.

FL Studio is a trademark of Image-Line Software. Other names are trademarks of their owners and are used only to describe compatibility.