CRATE DIGGER - Boom Bap Sampler Plugin

Boom bap sampler instrument · Dig. Chop. Feel.

Dig the record. Chop the break. Keep the feel.

CRATE DIGGER puts the whole boom bap workflow in one window. Flip through your breaks like a crate of records, wear them in, store them the way the classic samplers did, chop them across three layered tracks, and sequence it all with real human timing. Drums, chops, a fat mono bass and a chromatic sampler, with a mixer, song mode and export built in.

$40 · Free 30-day trial · Windows 64-bit VST3 + standalone · Instant download

Built for the way the greats made beats

The beats that defined the sound weren't on the grid. Snares dragged, kicks rushed, chops layered over each other and hats wobbled. CRATE DIGGER is built around that: every row has its own swing, push and variance, and every single hit can be dragged off the grid.

Inside the crate

Timing with a pulse

01 / Feel Engine

A step sequencer for drums, three chop tracks, bass and keys, 1 to 8 bars per pattern. The timing lane under the grid shows exactly where every hit lands: drag a dot to nudge that one hit, or let each row's feel carry it.

• Swing50 to 75% per row, MPC style
• PushLean a row up to 40 ms early or late
• VarianceRepeatable human wobble, re-rolled on demand
• CapturePlay it in and keep your timing, then quantize as much as you like

Flip through your samples

02 / The Crate

Point it at a folder of breaks and loops and flip through them as record jackets. Every record is listened to in the background: its tempo and style go on a sticker, and it previews as you land on it. Hit Dig to shuffle and hide the names for blind digging.

• Auto preview4 seconds from a random spot on every record
• Chop itSend the record straight to the chop tracks
• PadsOr drop it on the kick, snare or hats

Slice, layer, flip

03 / Chop

Load a loop or break and it's sliced on its hits and laid out on the grid in its original timing. Press play and you hear the record; now flip it. Three chop tracks play slices of the same loop, each with its own feel, so chops ring over each other the way they did on the classics.

• SlicingOn transients, or 16 or 8 equal parts
• Per-stepPitch, reverse, filter and decay on any chop
• Filter + DriveA low-pass and drive per track, in the spirit of DUSTBOX
• Micro-ChopPull the kick, snare and hats out of the break onto the pads
• GroovePut the record's pocket on your drums, bass and keys

The sound of the eras

04 / Time Machine

Turn the era switch to hear your sounds stored and played the way the classic samplers did it, then turn Condition from Mint to Garage Sale Dust for crackle, hiss, wow and the odd stuck needle.

• '87 12-bitGritty, aliased 26 kHz crunch
• '89 Low-passWarm 12-bit with a sweepable filter
• '94 16-bitSmooth pitching and a punchy output stage
• ConditionSeeded vinyl wear that bounces the same every time

Voyager-style low end

05 / Bass

A mono synth in the spirit of the Moog Voyager, sequenced on its own row. Two oscillators and a sub into a 4-pole ladder filter, with glide and tied notes for those sliding Dilla bass lines.

• OscillatorsTriangle to saw to square, detune, octave, sub
• FilterLadder low-pass with envelope and drive
• AmpAttack, decay, sustain, release and gate

Play any sound in key

06 / Keys

Load a single Rhodes note, a vibes hit or a horn stab and play it across the keyboard. Mono for leads, Poly for chords, with a filter and amp envelope.

• Mono / PolyUp to 8 notes
• FilterResonant low-pass
• AmpFull envelope and gate

Drop the needle

07 / Record and Resample

Sample straight from your turntable or any input: recording starts on the first sound and trims the silence. Send it to the chop tracks, a pad or the Keys. Resample bounces your pattern into a new loop and chops it again.

• RecordUp to 30 seconds, auto-start on threshold
• ResampleBounce and re-chop in one click

Balance it out

08 / Mixer

A channel strip for every track with fader, pan, mute, solo and meter, plus the master. Turn up Pump on any track to have the kick duck it, the classic sidechain bounce.

• StripsKick, snare, hats, three chops, bass, keys
• PumpKick-triggered ducking per track

From loop to song

09 / Song Mode

Sixteen patterns, A to P, each with its own length. Duplicate one for a variation, then line them up into a song. Bounce a seamless loop or the whole song, as one file or as stems.

• Patterns16 per beat, 1 to 8 bars each
• ExportWAV, stems per track, and MIDI with the feel in it

Effects patchbay

10 / The Rack

Two effect slots on every track and on the master. Dust up the chops, squash the drums, put the keys in a room and glue it all on the master.

• VinylWear and wobble
• SquashA compressor you can hear
• FilterDJ-style low-pass and high-pass
• Lo-FiBits and rate
• DelayTempo-synced, darker with every repeat
• ReverbSize and tone

Made for your workflow

What's included

• CRATE DIGGER Windows 64-bit VST3 instrument plugin
• Standalone application
• Built-in drums for sketching before you load your own sounds
• Windows setup installer with uninstaller
• 25-page illustrated PDF manual with a quick-start guide and setup for FL Studio, Ableton Live and MPC software
• Activation for up to three computers per license

System requirements

Activation

Sign in with your 6teenlevels.com account from inside CRATE DIGGER to activate up to three computers per purchased license. The standalone app and VST3 share activation on the same computer and Windows user. A signed offline license lasts up to 30 days and renews automatically while you're online. Manage your activated computers through the license portal. Until it's activated, CRATE DIGGER runs as a free 30-day trial with saving and exporting turned off.

Before you buy

CRATE DIGGER is a sampler: bring your own breaks, loops and records. It includes built-in drums but no sample library. The installer is not yet code-signed, so Windows may show a "Windows protected your PC" screen. Click More info, then Run anyway. Version 1.4.0.

CRATE DIGGER is an independent product inspired by classic hip-hop samplers and synthesizers. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to E-mu Systems, Akai Professional, inMusic Brands, Roland Corporation or Moog Music.