Tuff Nerds · Blog

Notes on LEADR

What it does, how I actually use it, and why it sounds the way it does. Written by me, the person who made it, not a content team.

• June 12, 2026

  What LEADR is, and why I made it

  A lead instrument that's a sampler and a synth at the same time, built so you can play an idea instead of programming one.

• June 19, 2026

  Chord lock: one key, a whole progression

  Press one key, hear a full chord. The feature people mess with first, plus the WATERFALL arp that turns it into a moving wash.

• June 25, 2026

  Using LEADR to play your other synths

  LEADR doesn't have to make the sound. Send its chords and arp out to drive Serum, Diva, anything in your rack, off one key.

• June 26, 2026

  Why LEADR sounds like a 90s video game

  The sound comes from early Nintendo and the SNES, where one lead line had to carry the whole song. That's the feeling I built in.

• June 27, 2026

  The Japanese composers that taught me melody

  Zelda, Koji Kondo, and the idea that a few right notes can carry a whole world. The reason LEADR is a lead instrument.

• June 27, 2026

  Why LEADR looks like a dungeon

  Wolfenstein, Doom, old WoW menus, and Star Fox. Why the plugin is stone and torches instead of flat and gray.