01 Overview

A Fulwave session is an ordered list of stages. In Designer, each stage isn't limited to one sound — it can hold as many audio tracks and spoken-text cues as you need, each its own layer with its own timing, gain, and pan. Mix the layers, set how the stage begins and ends, then export the whole session as a single .fws file that FulwaveTimer plays on iPhone.

02 Quick start

The shortest path from a blank window to a session you can send someone.

1. Add Stage to start your first stage, then name it in the Stage panel.
2. Add Audio Layer… or Add Text Layer to give the stage something to play.
3. Set the stage's Duration, and repeat for as many stages as the session needs.
4. Press play on the bottom transport to hear the session as you build it.
5. When it sounds right, use Export Session (.fws)… to save the file you'll share.

03 Sessions & stages

The left-hand list is your session, top to bottom in playback order.

Session settings

Name the session, set how many times the whole thing Repeats, and pick a session Color Tag to keep multiple projects visually distinct in your library.

Adding and reordering stages

Add Stage appends a new stage to the end of the session; drag any stage to reorder it. Each stage gets its own name, color, and duration (hours, minutes, seconds), plus its own repeat count for looping just that stage before moving on.

Session graphic

Give the session artwork from the Session Graphic control: pick an image already embedded in one of your audio tracks, or choose any image file from your Mac. This is the artwork FulwaveTimer shows for the session once imported.

04 Layers: audio & spoken text

A stage's Layers list is where the sound actually comes from.

Two kinds of layer

• Add Audio Layer… — bring in an audio file: a music bed, a coaching voiceover, an ambient pad.
• Add Text Layer — type text and have it synthesized in a Mac voice, so you don't need a separate recording.

A stage can hold as many of either as you like, and they all play together for the stage's length.

Start delay

Every layer can start partway into the stage instead of at the top. Run a 60‑second bed from the start of the stage and drop a 30‑second voice layer in at the 25‑second mark — the delay is set per layer.

05 Mixing a stage

Two mix stages: each layer, then the stage as a whole.

Per-layer gain and pan

Every layer has its own gain and pan control, shown next to it in the Layers list.

Stage Mix: master gain and pan

Below the layers, Stage Mix sets a master gain and pan applied to the summed mix of every layer in the stage. Sliders snap to unity gain and dead-center pan, so the values that matter are easy to land on exactly.

06 Transitions & alerts

Transitions: Begins with / Ends with

Each stage sets how its audio starts and ends, independently:

Voice cues & stage end warnings

Turn on Voice cues to have the exported session announce stage names as it plays. Stage end warnings add a spoken "10 seconds" call and a 3‑2‑1 countdown near the end of a stage. Both are set per session, and recipients can re‑enable everything on their own device even if you ship a session pre‑quieted.

07 Preview & transport

The transport bar at the bottom plays the whole session timeline, not just one stage.

• Scrub anywhere in the timeline to jump to that point in the session; each stage's layers are laid out as lanes so you can see what's playing when.
• Adjust a gain or pan slider while the transport is playing and you hear the change immediately — no need to stop and re-preview.
• Pop the transport into its own window if you'd rather keep it beside your work instead of pinned to the bottom of the main window.

The transport is a preview: it plays one pass through, and doesn't simulate the exported session's baked fades, tones, or repeats. Export and open in FulwaveTimer to hear the final result exactly as recipients will.

08 Lock policy & distribution rights

Lock session

Turn on Lock session before exporting if you want to control what a recipient can change. A locked session lets whoever opens it in FulwaveTimer adjust stage times, haptics, and alert sounds — but not the media, stages, or transitions you built. This is a client‑side policy, not copy protection or DRM.

Distribution rights

Before exporting, check I own or hold the necessary rights to distribute all audio and content included in this session. This attestation is required to enable the Export button — make sure it's actually true for every audio file and voice you've included before checking it.

09 Saving & exporting

Working file: .fwd

Save your project as a .fwd file (⌘S) at any point — layers stay un-mixed and fully editable, exactly like any other Mac document. Reopen it later and keep working.

Shareable file: .fws

When you're ready to share, use Export Session (.fws)…. Each stage is mixed down and baked into one clean audio file on export — a stage with a single untouched audio track and no other layers passes through without re‑encoding, and a text‑only stage stays live (FulwaveTimer synthesizes it on-device, keeping the teleprompter feature working). The Render summary in the Session panel shows exactly what will happen — for example "2 baked mixes, 1 live text."

Send the resulting .fws file to anyone with FulwaveTimer on iPhone — AirDrop, Messages, email, whatever you'd use for any other file. No account or server is involved.

10 Appearance & keyboard

Fulwave Designer follows your Mac's Light or Dark appearance automatically, and is built for full keyboard control — every panel and control is reachable without the mouse. It's a standard Mac document app: your projects live wherever you save them, no sign-in required.

11 FAQ & troubleshooting

12 Support

Questions, bug reports, or feature requests: fulwave.com/Support.