100 Crazy Things To Try With pvx

These are intentionally bold, sometimes impractical ideas for sound-design exploration. Use pvx stretch-budget and sensible disk limits before launching extreme renders.

1-10: Extreme Time-Scale Madness

1. Stretch a one-shot to absurd length:

pvx stretch-budget one_shot.wav --disk-budget 50GB --requested-stretch 1000000 --fail-if-exceeds --json && pvx voc one_shot.wav --stretch 1000000 --stretch-mode multistage --auto-segment-seconds 0.25 --checkpoint-dir ckpt --resume --output one_shot_blackhole.wav

2. Make a 10-minute ambient tail from a single hit:

pvx voc hit.wav --target-duration 600 --preset extreme_ambient --output hit_10min.wav

3. Stretch then shrink in two stages for texture hysteresis:

pvx chain input.wav --pipeline "voc --stretch 12 | voc --stretch 0.08" --output hysteresis.wav

4. Warp tempo with aggressive map swings:

pvx warp loop.wav --map maps/warp_chaos.csv --crossfade-ms 10 --output loop_chaos_warp.wav

5. Build a staircase of tempo regimes:

pvx conform input.wav --map maps/tempo_stairs.csv --output input_tempo_stairs.wav

6. Force tiny windows for intentionally crunchy time stretch:

pvx voc source.wav --stretch 8 --n-fft 512 --hop-size 64 --output source_gritstretch.wav

7. Force oversized windows for smeared macro motion:

pvx voc source.wav --stretch 8 --n-fft 8192 --hop-size 256 --output source_glassstretch.wav

8. Alternate compress/expand blocks in one chain:

pvx chain groove.wav --pipeline "voc --stretch 0.5 | voc --stretch 2.0 | voc --stretch 0.5 | voc --stretch 2.0" --output groove_pumpfold.wav

9. Create a "time collapse" impulse sculpture:

pvx voc ambience.wav --stretch 0.03 --output ambience_collapse.wav

10. Use stateful stream for ultra-long continuity tests:

pvx stream long_take.wav --output long_take_stateful_20x.wav --chunk-seconds 0.2 --time-stretch 20

11-20: Freeze + Morph Experiments

11. Freeze the loudest drum transient into a pad:

pvx freeze drums.wav --freeze-time 0.42 --duration 90 --output drums_freeze_pad.wav

12. Freeze a vocal consonant into a synthetic whisper bed:

pvx freeze vocal.wav --freeze-time 1.03 --duration 40 --output vocal_consonant_pad.wav

13. Morph two unrelated worlds with static alpha:

pvx morph piano.wav subway.wav --alpha 0.5 --output piano_subway_50.wav

14. Morph by trajectory map from A to B to A:

pvx morph a.wav b.wav --alpha controls/alpha_aba.csv --interp linear --output a_b_a_morph.wav

15. Use envelope cross-synthesis mode:

pvx morph source_a.wav source_b.wav --blend-mode carrier_a_envelope_b --alpha 0.8 --envelope-lifter 36 --output env_cross.wav

16. Use mask-driven morph with hard spectral selection:

pvx morph source_a.wav source_b.wav --blend-mode carrier_a_mask_b --alpha 0.7 --mask-exponent 1.5 --output mask_cross.wav

17. Keep A magnitude but steal B phase attitude:

pvx morph source_a.wav source_b.wav --blend-mode magnitude_b_phase_a --alpha 0.65 --phase-mix 0.1 --output phase_cross.wav

18. Morph after a freeze for evolving drone color:

pvx freeze hit.wav --freeze-time 0.2 --duration 60 --output hit_frozen.wav && pvx morph hit_frozen.wav choir.wav --alpha 0.35 --output frozen_morph.wav

19. Morph speech into noise and retune it:

pvx morph speech.wav noise.wav --alpha 0.6 --output speech_noise_morph.wav && pvx retune speech_noise_morph.wav --root C --scale minor --strength 1.0 --output speech_noise_retune.wav

20. Build a morph ladder at fixed alpha steps for curation:

pvx morph a.wav b.wav --alpha controls/alpha_ladder.csv --interp none --output morph_ladder.wav

21-30: Pitch, Harmony, and Tuning Extremes

21. Build a choir from one voice in one command:

pvx harmonize lead.wav --intervals 0,4,7,12 --gains 1,0.8,0.7,0.5 --pans -0.4,-0.1,0.1,0.4 --force-stereo --output lead_choir.wav

22. Create detuned micro-harmony clusters:

pvx harmonize lead.wav --intervals 0,3,7 --intervals-cents 0,7,-11 --gains 1,0.8,0.8 --output lead_microcluster.wav

23. Hard retune spoken voice to a scale:

pvx retune speech.wav --root D --scale major --strength 1.0 --output speech_tuned.wav

24. Gentle retune with minimal intervention:

pvx retune vocal.wav --root A --scale minor --strength 0.25 --output vocal_subtle_retune.wav

25. Force ratio-based pitch with no stretch change:

pvx voc input.wav --stretch 1.0 --ratio 7/4 --output input_ratio_7_4.wav

26. Extreme semitone dive with formant-preserving mode:

pvx voc vocal.wav --stretch 1.0 --pitch -19 --pitch-mode formant-preserving --output vocal_deep_formant.wav

27. Conform to 19-TET map:

pvx conform lead.wav --map maps/map_19tet.csv --output lead_19tet.wav

28. Conform to just intonation map:

pvx conform choir.wav --map maps/map_just_intonation.csv --output choir_ji.wav

29. Layer two opposite pitch moves:

pvx chain vocal.wav --pipeline "voc --pitch 7 | voc --pitch -12" --output vocal_pitch_fold.wav

30. Pitch-shift then freeze at peak weirdness:

pvx chain vocal.wav --pipeline "voc --pitch 12 | freeze --freeze-time 0.5 --duration 45" --output vocal_octave_freeze.wav

31-40: Transients, Stereo, and Layer Split

31. Run hybrid transient preservation on speech at high stretch:

pvx voc speech.wav --transient-mode hybrid --transient-sensitivity 0.65 --stretch 2.5 --output speech_hybrid_2_5.wav

32. Stretch drums with transient-first preset:

pvx voc drums.wav --preset drums_safe --stretch 1.8 --output drums_safe_1_8.wav

33. Mid/side lock for stable wide mixes:

pvx voc mix.wav --stereo-mode mid_side_lock --coherence-strength 0.95 --stretch 1.4 --output mix_ms_lock.wav

34. Intentionally lower coherence for drifting sides:

pvx voc stereo.wav --stereo-mode mid_side_lock --coherence-strength 0.2 --stretch 2 --output stereo_side_drift.wav

35. Split HPSS layers and stretch only harmonics:

pvx layer full_mix.wav --harmonic-stretch 2.0 --percussive-stretch 1.0 --output full_mix_harm_stretch.wav

36. Split HPSS layers and tighten percussion only:

pvx layer beat.wav --harmonic-stretch 1.0 --percussive-stretch 0.7 --output beat_tight_perc.wav

37. Pitch harmonics up while lowering percussion gain:

pvx layer groove.wav --harmonic-pitch-semitones 5 --percussive-gain 0.7 --output groove_harm_up.wav

38. Push transient mode with tiny protect windows:

pvx voc drumloop.wav --transient-mode hybrid --transient-protect-ms 8 --transient-crossfade-ms 2 --stretch 1.5 --output drumloop_snappy.wav

39. Push transient mode with huge protect windows:

pvx voc drumloop.wav --transient-mode hybrid --transient-protect-ms 80 --transient-crossfade-ms 20 --stretch 1.5 --output drumloop_smearshield.wav

40. Compare wrapper vs stateful stream seam behavior:

pvx stream source.wav --mode wrapper --output source_wrapper.wav --chunk-seconds 0.2 --time-stretch 2.0 && pvx stream source.wav --mode stateful --output source_stateful.wav --chunk-seconds 0.2 --time-stretch 2.0

41-50: Sidechain Follow and Feature-Driven Control

41. Basic pitch-follow stretch transfer:

pvx follow guide.wav target.wav --emit pitch_to_stretch --pitch-conf-min 0.75 --output target_follow.wav

42. Build pitch map and route manually through voc:

pvx pitch-track guide.wav --emit pitch_map --output - | pvx voc target.wav --control-stdin --route pitch_ratio=pitch_ratio --output target_manual_follow.wav

43. Modulate stretch from spectral flux:

pvx pitch-track guide.wav --feature-set all --output - | pvx voc target.wav --control-stdin --route stretch=affine(spectral_flux,0.04,1.0) --route stretch=clip(stretch,0.8,1.6) --output target_flux_stretch.wav

44. Modulate pitch from MFCC component:

pvx pitch-track guide.wav --feature-set all --mfcc-count 13 --output - | pvx voc target.wav --control-stdin --route pitch_ratio=affine(mfcc_01,0.002,1.0) --route pitch_ratio=clip(pitch_ratio,0.5,2.0) --output target_mfcc_pitch.wav

45. Gate effect strength by voicing probability:

pvx pitch-track guide.wav --feature-set all --output - | pvx voc target.wav --control-stdin --route stretch=affine(voicing_prob,0.4,0.8) --output target_voicing_gate.wav

46. Route onset strength into dynamic stretch pull:

pvx pitch-track guide.wav --feature-set all --output - | pvx voc target.wav --control-stdin --route stretch=affine(onset_strength,0.2,0.9) --route stretch=clip(stretch,0.9,1.3) --output target_onset_push.wav

47. Use MPEG-7 spectral descriptors for wild macro motion:

pvx pitch-track guide.wav --feature-set all --output - | pvx voc target.wav --control-stdin --route stretch=affine(mpeg7_spectral_flux,0.05,1.0) --output target_mpeg_flux.wav

48. Build a "rhythm-following pad" from spoken guide:

pvx follow speech.wav pad.wav --feature-set all --emit pitch_map --route stretch=affine(transientness,0.2,0.9) --output pad_rhythm_follow.wav

49. Use low-confidence pitch regions as chaos zones:

pvx pitch-track guide.wav --feature-set all --output - | pvx voc target.wav --control-stdin --route stretch=affine(confidence,-0.5,1.5) --route stretch=clip(stretch,0.6,2.0) --output target_conf_chaos.wav

50. Create sidechain-driven timing from pitch map with manual routing:

pvx pitch-track guide.wav --emit pitch_map --output - | pvx voc target.wav --control-stdin --route stretch=pitch_ratio --route pitch_ratio=const(1.0) --output target_pitchtime_follow.wav

51-60: Control-Map Authoring With Envelope + Reshape

51. Generate ADSR stretch macro map:

pvx envelope --mode adsr --duration 12 --rate 20 --attack-sec 0.3 --decay-sec 1.0 --sustain 1.4 --release-sec 2.0 --key stretch --output controls/stretch_adsr.csv

52. Generate sine pitch-ratio wobble map:

pvx envelope --mode sine --duration 10 --rate 40 --start 1.0 --peak 0.08 --sine-cycles 12 --key pitch_ratio --output controls/pitch_wobble.csv

53. Generate exponential ramp map for acceleration:

pvx envelope --mode exp --duration 8 --rate 30 --start 0.7 --end 1.8 --exp-curve 6 --key stretch --output controls/stretch_exp.csv

54. Normalize a control map to safe range:

pvx reshape controls/stretch_raw.csv --key stretch --operation normalize --target-min 0.8 --target-max 1.5 --output controls/stretch_norm.csv

55. Resample map to dense control rate:

pvx reshape controls/stretch_env.csv --key stretch --operation resample --rate 80 --interp polynomial --order 5 --output controls/stretch_dense.csv

56. Smooth noisy map before applying:

pvx reshape controls/stretch_noisy.csv --key stretch --operation smooth --window 11 --output controls/stretch_smooth.csv

57. Time-shift map late by half second:

pvx reshape controls/stretch_env.csv --key stretch --operation time-shift --offset 0.5 --output controls/stretch_shifted.csv

58. Time-scale map to half speed modulation:

pvx reshape controls/stretch_env.csv --key stretch --operation time-scale --factor 2.0 --output controls/stretch_slowmod.csv

59. Invert a modulation map for opposite behavior:

pvx reshape controls/mix.csv --key response_mix --operation invert --output controls/mix_inverted.csv

60. Build map then apply it in two deterministic steps:

pvx envelope --mode adsr --duration 8 --rate 20 --key stretch --output controls/stretch_env.csv && pvx reshape controls/stretch_env.csv --key stretch --operation resample --rate 50 --interp polynomial --order 5 --output controls/stretch_env_dense.csv && pvx voc input.wav --stretch controls/stretch_env_dense.csv --interp linear --output input_envdriven.wav

61-70: Analysis/Response Artifact and Spectral Operator Ideas

61. Cache PV analysis for repeated experiments:

pvx analysis create source.wav --output source.pvxan.npz --n-fft 4096 --hop-size 256

62. Inspect artifact stats for pipeline sanity:

pvx analysis inspect source.pvxan.npz --json

63. Build median response profile:

pvx response create source.pvxan.npz --method median --normalize peak --output source.pvxrf.npz

64. Build RMS response profile for denser weighting:

pvx response create source.pvxan.npz --method rms --normalize rms --output source_rms.pvxrf.npz

65. Apply static spectral imprint:

pvx filter target.wav --response source.pvxrf.npz --response-mix 1.0 --output target_imprint.wav

66. Animate response imprint over time:

pvx tvfilter target.wav --response source.pvxrf.npz --tv-map controls/response_mix.csv --tv-interp linear --output target_tv_imprint.wav

67. Use response-referenced noise filtering:

pvx noisefilter noisy.wav --response noise_profile.pvxrf.npz --noise-floor 1.2 --output noisy_cleaner.wav

68. Exaggerate dominant response peaks:

pvx bandamp source.wav --response source.pvxrf.npz --band-gain-db 10 --peak-count 12 --output source_peakpump.wav

69. Compress/expand in response-relative spectral space:

pvx spec-compander source.wav --response source.pvxrf.npz --comp-threshold-db -22 --comp-ratio 3 --expand-ratio 1.4 --output source_specdyn.wav

70. Pitch-shift response curve instead of source pitch:

pvx filter source.wav --response source.pvxrf.npz --transpose-semitones 7 --shift-bins 24 --output source_resp_shifted.wav

71-80: Ring, Resonator, Chordmapper, Inharmonator

71. Slow ring tremolo with deep mix:

pvx ring input.wav --frequency-hz 3.5 --depth 1.0 --mix 1.0 --output input_ring_trem.wav

72. Audio-rate ring metallicizer:

pvx ring input.wav --frequency-hz 97 --depth 0.95 --mix 0.9 --output input_ring_metal.wav

73. Ring with near-chaotic feedback memory:

pvx ring input.wav --frequency-hz 43 --depth 1.0 --mix 1.0 --feedback 0.92 --output input_ring_fb.wav

74. Ring + resonant peak filter:

pvx ringfilter input.wav --frequency-hz 60 --resonance-hz 1600 --resonance-q 12 --resonance-mix 0.6 --output input_ringfilter.wav

75. Time-varying ring map performance:

pvx ringtvfilter input.wav --tv-map controls/ring_map.csv --tv-interp cubic --output input_ringtv.wav

76. Chord-lock noisy ambience to minor harmony:

pvx chordmapper ambience.wav --root-hz 110 --chord minor --strength 1.0 --boost-db 8 --attenuation 0.3 --output ambience_minorlock.wav

77. Tight chord attraction with low tolerance:

pvx chordmapper pad.wav --root-hz 220 --chord diminished --tolerance-cents 12 --output pad_tight_chord.wav

78. Soft chord attraction with high tolerance:

pvx chordmapper pad.wav --root-hz 220 --chord major7 --tolerance-cents 80 --output pad_soft_chord.wav

79. Inharmonic stiff-string emulation:

pvx inharmonator bells.wav --inharmonic-f0-hz 220 --inharmonicity 0.0002 --inharmonic-mix 1.0 --output bells_stiff.wav

80. Subtle inharmonic shimmer blend:

pvx inharmonator pad.wav --inharmonic-f0-hz 110 --inharmonicity 0.00005 --inharmonic-mix 0.25 --dry-mix 0.8 --output pad_shimmer.wav

81-90: Multi-Stage Pipelines, Streaming, and Batch Tricks

81. One-line cleanup + stretch + formant chain:

pvx chain vocal.wav --pipeline "denoise --reduction-db 6 | deverb --strength 0.35 | voc --stretch 1.3 | formant --mode preserve" --output vocal_full_chain.wav

82. Stream with explicit output policy controls:

pvx stream source.wav --output source_stream.wav --chunk-seconds 0.2 --time-stretch 2.0 --bit-depth 24 --dither tpdf --dither-seed 7 --metadata-policy sidecar

83. Stream wrapper compatibility baseline:

pvx stream source.wav --mode wrapper --output source_wrapper.wav --chunk-seconds 0.2 --time-stretch 2.0

84. Stateful stream driven by stretch map:

pvx stream input.wav --output output_stream_map.wav --chunk-seconds 0.2 --stretch controls/stretch.csv --interp linear

85. Pipe denoise straight into deverb with no temp file:

pvx denoise field.wav --reduction-db 5 --smooth 7 --stdout | pvx deverb - --strength 0.35 --output field_clean.wav

86. Pipe harmonize into voc for post-stack stretch:

pvx harmonize lead.wav --intervals 0,4,7 --gains 1,0.75,0.65 --stdout | pvx voc - --stretch 1.5 --output lead_stack_stretched.wav

87. Chain with alternating transient modes for A/B blend:

pvx chain speech.wav --pipeline "voc --transient-mode hybrid --stretch 1.5 | voc --transient-mode off --stretch 1.0" --output speech_transient_combo.wav

88. Run two-pass pitch: retune then ratio-jump:

pvx chain vocal.wav --pipeline "retune --root E --scale minor --strength 0.7 | voc --ratio 9/8" --output vocal_two_pass_pitch.wav

89. Long-run resume-safe rendering script target:

pvx voc long.wav --target-duration 14400 --checkpoint-dir ckpt_long --auto-segment-seconds 0.25 --resume --output long_4h.wav

90. Dynamic spectral map workflow with reusable artifacts:

pvx analysis create source.wav --output source.pvxan.npz && pvx response create source.pvxan.npz --output source.pvxrf.npz && pvx tvfilter source.wav --response source.pvxrf.npz --tv-map controls/mix.csv --output source_dynspec.wav

91-100: QA, Stress, and Reproducibility Challenges

91. Budget-gate every render before execution:

pvx stretch-budget input.wav --disk-budget 10GB --requested-stretch 5000 --fail-if-exceeds

92. Compare quality at multiple FFT sizes quickly:

pvx chain source.wav --pipeline "voc --stretch 2 --n-fft 1024 | voc --stretch 1 --n-fft 4096" --output source_fft_compare.wav

93. Build deterministic dithered exports for null tests:

pvx voc input.wav --stretch 1.1 --bit-depth 24 --dither tpdf --dither-seed 123 --output out_seeded.wav

94. Generate manifest metadata for every run:

pvx voc input.wav --stretch 1.08 --manifest-json reports/pvx_runs.json --manifest-append --output out_manifest.wav

95. Stress dynamic controls with dense maps:

pvx voc input.wav --stretch controls/stretch_dense.csv --interp polynomial --order 5 --output out_densectrl.wav

96. Test phase behavior by toggling phase engines:

pvx chain source.wav --pipeline "voc --stretch 2 --phase-engine propagate | voc --stretch 1 --phase-engine random" --output source_phase_duel.wav

97. Validate sidechain routing with built-in examples:

pvx follow --example all

98. Run parity benchmark regression module directly:

python3 -m unittest tests.test_pvc_parity_benchmark

99. Run full regression tests after extreme experiments:

python3 -m unittest discover -s tests -p "test_*.py"

100. Build a curated "crazy pack" by rendering 100 variants and scoring them with metrics:

pvx voc input.wav --stretch 1.2 --output candidate.wav && python3 -m unittest tests.test_cli_regression

---

Tips:

• Keep experimental commands in scripts with fixed seeds/options for repeatability.
• For very long jobs, always use --checkpoint-dir and --resume.
• Validate impossible requests with pvx stretch-budget before running expensive renders.