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The TALLBOY plugin: a violet handheld console with a four-shade green dot-matrix screen showing the CHIP 4CH cartridge, a D-pad, A and B buttons, and three cartridge cards below

TALLBOY

Your track, played back on a handheld.

TALLBOY listens to the pitch of whatever you feed it and replays that performance through a four-channel console sound chip.

Get TALLBOY - $20 Try the demo - free Hear it

Not a filter over the top. An actual chip voice following your line.

  • 3 cartridges
  • Pitch-tracked resynthesis
  • Tempo-synced arp
  • VST3 / AU / AAX

TALLBOY is a chiptune resynthesizer and bitcrusher plugin. It tracks the pitch of the audio you feed it (one clear pitch at a time) and replays the performance through a four-channel handheld-console sound chip, with three cartridges including a CRUSH ROM decimator. $20 one-time. VST3, AU and AAX on macOS; VST3 on Windows. Free demo available.

Last updated: October 2026

Same take. Two very different outcomes.

Every clip here is the same source file, rendered through TALLBOY with one of the shipping presets. Nothing else is on the chain.

Before

Dry vocal

CHIP 4CH / 4BIT CHOIR

Through TALLBOY

Sustained and chordal - the chip voice holds the vocal's pitch while the arpeggiator spreads it across octaves.

A bitcrusher degrades what you give it. TALLBOY replaces it with a chip voice that follows your line.

The cartridges

Three engines. Insert the ones you want.

Each cartridge has a power LED on its bay card. Click it to insert or eject that stage. Any combination runs, including none, in which case TALLBOY passes audio through completely untouched.

  1. Cartridge 01

    CHIP 4CH RESYNTH

    Tracks the pitch and envelope of your input, then rebuilds it on four hardware-modelled channels.

    • Two pulse channels, four duty cycles
    • 32-sample, 4-bit wavetable
    • 15/7-bit LFSR noise, transient-keyed
    • 11-bit frequency register detune

  2. Cartridge 02

    ARP + GLIDE SEQUENCER

    Shapes the chip voice into a pattern. Locks to your project tempo, or free-runs with swing.

    • UP, DOWN, UPDN, RAND, CHRD
    • 1/4 to 1/32, host-synced
    • One to four octaves
    • Portamento up to 400 ms

  3. Cartridge 03

    CRUSH ROM DECIMATOR

    Bit and sample-rate reduction with deliberate aliasing. Works on anything, chip voice or not.

    • 1 to 16 bits
    • Rate divide 1-64, with jitter
    • Drive into the quantiser
    • Post filter, 18 kHz down to 540 Hz
The TALLBOY dot-matrix screen showing four channel lanes above the parameter list

Everything happens on the screen.

There are no knobs. You drive TALLBOY the way you'd drive the thing it's modelled on: with a D-pad and a four-shade dot-matrix display.

  • D-PAD
    Up / down selects, left / right adjusts

    Six parameters per cartridge, always visible with a live value bar. Arrow keys work too.

  • SELECT
    Swap cartridge

    Cycles the page and replays the insert animation, exactly like swapping a cart.

  • START
    Power

    True bypass. It nulls perfectly against dry. Verified in testing, not just claimed.

  • A / B
    Fullscreen the visualiser

    Drop the parameter list and watch the four channels, the arp steps, or the crushed waveform at full size.

Where it earns its place.

TALLBOY is a resynthesiser, so it's happiest with something it can follow. Here's where it works, and where it doesn't.

Best on

  • Vocals and vocal doubles
  • Bass lines
  • Single-note leads and hooks
  • Monophonic synth parts

Also good for

  • Transitions and risers
  • Turning a hook into a counter-melody
  • Chiptune layers under a real instrument
  • Game and video soundtrack work

Use CRUSH ROM alone for

Eject CHIP 4CH and ARP, and run CRUSH ROM on its own. That's a straight decimator.

  • Drums and full mixes
  • Anything without one clear pitch
  • Straight lo-fi bitcrushing
  • Parallel crush on a bus
The Carbonated Audio showroom: every plugin on its own unit in a 3D hall The showroom Try TALLBOY in the 3D showroom Walk up to TALLBOY, hear it on real audio, flip A/B and use its interface right in your browser. Best on a computer with headphones. Enter the showroom

Runs where you work.

Formats

  • VST3
  • AU
  • AAX

macOS

10.13+, VST3, AU and AAXUniversal for Apple Silicon and Intel, signed for Pro Tools

Windows

Windows 10+ (64-bit)VST3, with an installer

DAWs

Pro Tools, Logic, Ableton Live, FL Studio, Studio One, Cubase, Reaper and the rest

One price. Yours for good.

$20

One-time. No subscription, ever.

  • VST3, AU and AAX on macOS - universal, Pro Tools-signed
  • VST3 on Windows, 64-bit
  • Three machines on one licence
  • No iLok, no dongle, no account
  • Works offline after one activation
  • Lifetime updates
Get TALLBOY - $20 Try the demo - free

Or 4 payments of $5 with Klarna or Afterpay at checkout

Or take all nine.

TALLBOY plus every other Carbonated Audio plugin, SPRITZ included, for $99.

See the bundles

The things people ask.

Is this just a bitcrusher?

The CRUSH ROM cartridge is a proper bit and sample-rate decimator, so it will do that job. But CHIP 4CH is doing something different: it tracks the pitch of your audio and re-synthesises it on four modelled chip channels. A bitcrusher degrades what you give it. TALLBOY replaces it.

What does it sound like on drums?

The chip voice needs one clear pitch to follow, and drums don't have one. It will chase the loudest partial and sound unstable. That's the wrong tool. Eject CHIP 4CH and ARP, and run CRUSH ROM on its own; that's a straight decimator and it sounds great on drums. The drums demo above is exactly that.

Do I have to use all three cartridges?

No. Every cartridge has its own power LED. Click it to insert or eject that stage. Any combination works, including none. With all three out, TALLBOY passes audio through untouched.

Does the arpeggiator follow my project tempo?

Yes. It locks to host tempo at 1/4, 1/8, 1/8T, 1/16 or 1/32. With the transport stopped it free-runs, and the swing control applies there.

How many computers can I use it on?

Up to 3 machines with one licence. No iLok, no dongle, no account. Activate once online and it works offline forever. If you need to move an activation, email mixedbysoda@gmail.com and we'll reset it.

What formats and systems?

VST3, AU and AAX on macOS, universal for Apple Silicon and Intel, signed for Pro Tools. VST3 on Windows, 64-bit, with an installer. Works in Pro Tools, Logic, Ableton Live, FL Studio, Studio One, Cubase, Reaper and the rest.

Is there a demo?

Yes. Download it here: macOS (VST3 + AU) or Windows (VST3), no email required. It is identical to the paid version except audio plays for 60 seconds then mutes for 10, on a loop.

AAX is not included in the demo; if you are on Pro Tools and want to try it, email mixedbysoda@gmail.com and we will sort you out.

Go deeper on chip sound.

8-bit vocal effect: how to chip a vocal in any DAW Handheld-console chiptune in your DAW Bitcrusher vs decimator: the actual difference Chiptune VST guide 8 best chiptune plugins (free and paid) TALLBOY vs bitcrushers TALLBOY vs lo-fi plugins
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