STOCHASTIC SCALE SEQUENCER — a melody that never plays the same way twice

Stochastic Scale is a monophonic CV/Gate sequencer for Eurorack, part of the BIGZUN Timewind Project family. Instead of looping a fixed pattern, it keeps reshaping it: right before every step it "rolls the dice" and — with the probability you set — changes the note, always staying inside the selected musical scale.

At low Entropy the phrase slowly drifts and breathes, like the hypnotic sequences of the Berlin School. Turn it up and the module becomes a stream of ever-new notes. Set it to zero and the pattern freezes — a classic step sequencer playing exactly what you like.

Patch CV OUT to any 1 V/oct oscillator, GATE OUT to an envelope, and the module starts playing by itself.

★ WHAT IT DOES

• GENERATIVE — one press creates a new 32-step pattern: smooth melodic motion, repeated notes, rests, accents on strong beats and occasional octave jumps.

• ENTROPY (0–100%) — the chance that a step changes its note before it plays. 0% = fixed pattern, 100% = new notes on every pass. Rhythm (rests and accents) stays stable, so the groove never falls apart.

• BIAS — the character of change: from gentle one-step drift to free jumps anywhere in the melodic range.

• 10 SCALES — Ionian, Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, Mixolydian, Aeolian, Locrian, minor pentatonic, harmonic minor, Byzantine, plus Random (a new scale with every generation). Every note always belongs to the scale.

• SCALE CHARACTER — the algorithm gently leans toward each mode's signature note (the 6th in Dorian, #4 in Lydian, b7 in Mixolydian…), so every scale sounds like itself.

• RANGE (0–36 semitones) — sets how wide the melody may spread, from a single note to three octaves.

• LIVE OCTAVE SHIFT — move the whole sequence one octave up or down from the main screen.

• RATCHETING — fast bursts of gate hits within a step, with probability on a knob, up to 8 hits, two shapes: EVEN (spread across the step) or FLAM (packed at the start). Accented steps ratchet more often.

• 4 PLAYBACK DIRECTIONS — forward, reverse, pendulum, random.

• 20 PRESET SLOTS — freeze the complete state (pattern + all settings) and recall it any time. The last generated pattern and your settings survive power-off.

• ANALOG DRIFT & TUNE — optional subtle "vintage oscillator" pitch wobble and ±50 cent fine tuning.

★ RADIAL CLOCK DISPLAY

The OLED screen shows the whole sequence as a clock face: every spoke is a step, its length is the pitch, rests are short ticks and the playing step is highlighted. You see the shape of the melody at a glance — plus tempo, Entropy, length, scale, ratchet chance and direction. The sequencer never stops playing while you browse the menu.

★ CLOCK & SYNC

• Internal clock 10–300 BPM (16th-note steps).

• CLOCK IN — follows an external clock automatically after two regular pulses, returns to the internal clock after 2 s of silence. Adjustable input threshold.

• CLOCK OUT — one 10 ms pulse per step to drive other modules.

★ CONTROLS

Knobs: TEMPO, STEP (1–32 steps), RATCHETING

Buttons: GENERATIVE, ENTROPY UP / DOWN, DIRECTION, START / PAUSE / STOP, UP / MENU / DOWN

Jacks: CLOCK IN, GATE OUT, CV OUT, CLOCK OUT

★ SPECIFICATIONS

• Format: Eurorack 3U, 8 HP

• CV OUT: 0–4.09 V, 1 V/octave, 12-bit DAC, buffered output

• GATE OUT / CLOCK OUT: approx. 0–5 V, buffered

• CLOCK IN: protected input, adjustable threshold with hysteresis

• Power: standard 10-pin Eurorack header, reverse-polarity protected

• Display: 128×64 OLED

• Memory: settings, last pattern and 20 presets kept when powered off

★ PERFECT FOR

Berlin School and ambient sequences, generative and self-playing patches, evolving bass lines, live improvisation, and anyone who wants a sequencer that keeps surprising — without ever leaving the key.

★ DOCUMENTATION

A full user manual in English and Polish (PDF) is available — just send a message.

★ GOOD TO KNOW

• Requires a Eurorack case and power supply (not included).

• Designed and built by hand in Poland by BIGZUN, Timewind Project.