01. Playing Controls & Expressive Articulations
ObsidianFret 3D is designed for both casual jamming and expressive guitar performance directly in your browser. Play using your mouse or touchscreen by dragging across the dual chrome humbuckers, or use full alphanumeric keyboard mappings:
- Keys 1 – 8: Instant Rock Chords (Em, G, D, A, C, Am, Fmaj7, E5)
- Spacebar: Palm Mute Chug (Tight bridge damping & punch)
- Shift Key: +2 Semitone Whole-Step Lead String Bend & Vibrato
- Key Z: Whammy Dive-Bomb (-5 Semitone pitch drop)
- Zen Stage: Collapse control dock for full-screen performance
- Keys A – L: Lower octave E Minor Pentatonic scale tones
- Keys Q – P: Higher octave lead shred register
- Fretboard Click: Click any of the 22 frets to fret individual strings
- Strum Bar: Swipe down or up across the pickups for strumming
02. Boutique Tube Amplifier Rigs & DSP Chain
Every note passes through an authentic multi-stage guitar signal chain simulated in real time using the Web Audio API:
03. Physical Modeling & Mobile Speaker Optimization
Unlike sampled instruments that loop static recordings, ObsidianFret models physical vibrating nickel-wound and plain steel guitar strings using recursive Karplus-Strong waveguide synthesis. When you palm-mute, the feedback damping coefficient tightens dynamically; when you bend or dive-bomb, delay buffer pitch interpolates smoothly without glitching.
To guarantee that low E string chugs (82.4 Hz) are punchy and audible on mobile phones and ultrabook laptop speakers without headphones, an integrated psychoacoustic harmonic exciter generates phase-aligned 2nd and 3rd order harmonics (164.8 Hz and 247.2 Hz) that your brain decodes as deep bass, paired with a dedicated 2.4 kHz pick-presence contour.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
How does Karplus-Strong string synthesis work?
Karplus-Strong physical modeling excites a delay line with a burst of filtered noise (the pick attack). The signal recirculates through an averaging low-pass filter, causing higher frequencies to decay faster than lower ones, exactly mimicking the physics of a real vibrating steel guitar string.
Can I record and loop my guitar jam tracks?
Yes. Open the Jam & Backing tab in the Studio Dock, select a groove (Slow Blues, Midnight Synth-Rock, or Metal Double-Kick), hit Play, and tap Record on the Jam Looper to layer guitar rhythm chords and solo overdubs.
Does ObsidianFret work on touchscreens and mobile browsers?
Yes! On smartphones and tablets, an on-screen chord bar, camera angle switchers, and touch-sensitive string pickups allow complete mobile shredding without physical keyboards.
What makes the 3D graphics and strings so responsive?
All string vibrations and liquid-metal floor reflections are calculated 100% on your GPU using custom WebGL GLSL shaders, keeping CPU overhead minimal so audio DSP remains completely jitter-free at 60 FPS.