Haeloc's Crook: Ambient Looper

Save over 30% when you buy all three Fabula effects together. 

Haeloc's Crook is an intelligent ambient looper that continuously records the last 64 seconds of your playing. You can loop any moment from that memory and let the loop evolve a little more with each pass, or freeze a single moment into a sustained, shimmering drone.

It is designed for ambient, cinematic, rock/indie, experimental and drone musicians and for composers who build atmospheric beds or want new musical ideas drawn from their own playing. This effect is an idea-generating, atmospheric powerhouse.

Overview

• 64-second memory: Haeloc's Crook is always listening and keeps the last 64 seconds of everything you play 
• Looping from memory: LOOP takes a slice from 0.1 to 16 seconds long, set by SIZE, ending up to 47 seconds back, set by SCAN
• Evolving loops: with EVOLVE raised, steps of the loop move to other notes from your recording, reverse, change speed by an octave or a fifth, drop out or stutter, a little more with each pass
• WANDER and RETURN modes: choose whether the loop drifts away for good or keeps returning to what you originally played
• Spectral freeze: FREEZE holds any moment as a sustained, shimmering drone, with UNISON, OCTAVE or FIFTH layers
• BLOOM control: shapes the drone's motion, blur, wander and tone
• Note detection: when you press LOOP or FREEZE after you stop playing, it captures your notes and leaves out silence and hiss
• Five controls: SIZE, SCAN, EVOLVE, BLOOM and MIX, alongside the layer and WANDER/RETURN switches and the LOOP and FREEZE footswitches
• Reactive and expressive interface: the artwork animates as you turn each control
• Low CPU use: very light on CPU, works at every sample rate and buffer size, with a resizable window and every setting saved with your project
• Formats: VST3, AU, AAX and Standalone on Mac; VST3, AAX and Standalone on Windows; VST3 and Standalone on Linux
• Perpetual licence: royalty-free use, with no subscription and no iLok or activation required

Looping from memory

Haeloc's Crook listens to your playing intelligently. When you press LOOP, it takes a slice of its 64-second memory and loops it. SIZE sets the length of the slice, from 0.1 to 16 seconds, and SCAN sets how far back the slice ends, up to 47 seconds ago. Because it is always recording, you can press LOOP after you have finished playing. It finds the notes you played and leaves out the silence and hiss.

Evolving loops

The EVOLVE control changes the loop a little more with each pass. Steps of the loop can move to other notes from your recording, reverse, change speed by an octave or a fifth, drop out or stutter, so the loop keeps developing as it plays.

The WANDER and RETURN switch decides how far the changes go. In WANDER mode the loop drifts away from where it started, and in RETURN mode it keeps finding its way back to what you originally played.

Spectral freeze

Pressing FREEZE holds any moment as a sustained, shimmering drone. The layer switch adds UNISON, OCTAVE or FIFTH layers to the drone, and the BLOOM control shapes its motion, blur, wander and tone. MIX blends the effect with your playing.

Reactive and expressive interface

Each control animates the artwork as you use it. SIZE leans the shepherd's crook, SCAN turns his eyes, EVOLVE lifts the lamb's head, BLOOM grows flowers in the grass and MIX multiplies the stars.

Made for

Haeloc's Crook is built for generating ideas, creating instant-atmosphere, or making epic drones and beds from any material. A short melodic phrase can become a slowly changing loop that runs beneath a whole piece, and a single held moment can become a texture for ambient music or for film and game scoring. It also works as a source of ideas: raise EVOLVE and let the loop suggest new melodic and rhythmic variations drawn from your own playing.

More Fabula effects

Dungeon Dude: Dark Reverb Fuzz. Dungeon Dude is a dark reverb with a custom-built fuzz. It offers Cathedral and Dungeon algorithmic reverbs alongside six convolution spaces, with a fuzz in front of the reverb that ranges from light grit to a crumbling, saturated roar. 

St. Mora: Harmonising Delay. St. Mora is a harmonising recall delay with a 28-second memory of what you play. Its echoes can harmonise a fifth or fourth away, move between the left and right channels, or play backwards. 

Buy all three together in the Fabula Effects Bundle and save over 30%.

FAQ

• Does Haeloc's Crook have presets? Haeloc's Crook is designed to be set by ear. Every control setting is saved with your project.
• Do I need to press LOOP while I am playing? Haeloc's Crook is always listening, so you can press LOOP or FREEZE after you have played. It finds the notes you played and leaves out the silence and hiss.
• What happens when I reopen my project? Every control setting is saved with your project and returns as you left it. LOOP and FREEZE start in the off position when the project reopens, ready to capture whatever you play next.
• Will it work in Pro Tools? Yes. Haeloc's Crook includes AAX for Pro Tools on both Mac and Windows.
• Can I use it without a DAW? Yes. Every platform includes a standalone app, so you can use Haeloc's Crook without a DAW.
• Will it slow my computer down? Haeloc's Crook is very light on CPU and works at every sample rate and buffer size.
• Can I use it on commercial work? Yes. Any music you make with Haeloc's Crook is yours to use royalty-free, forever.
• How many computers can I install it on? One person can install the VST on any number of their own computers.

System requirements

macOS: macOS [11.0 Big Sur] or later. Universal binary, native on Intel and Apple Silicon. AU, VST3, AAX and Standalone. Signed and notarised.

Windows: Windows [10] or later, 64-bit. VST3, AAX and Standalone. Signed.

Linux: 64-bit Linux. VST3 and Standalone.

General: Around 250 MB of free disk space. Use the appropriate plugin format in your DAW, or use the standalone app on its own. Works entirely offline with no account, iLok or activation required.

Licence

• Perpetual licence with no subscription
• One person can install it on any number of their own computers
• Royalty-free use worldwide: any music you make with Haeloc's Crook is yours forever
• Governed by the laws of England and Wales; your UK and EU statutory rights are unaffected