.dspreset

What it is

A .dspreset is the instrument file for Decent Sampler, a sampler plugin that is free on desktop. The format is XML, so the whole preset is readable in a text editor.

The preset holds no audio. Each sample element names a WAV by a path relative to the preset file, and adds the note it was recorded at plus the key and velocity range it should cover.

Kit Name.dspreset
Kit Name/
  Piano C4 soft.wav
  Piano C4 hard.wav
  ...

What is inside

Groups sit inside the preset and samples sit inside the groups. One group per velocity layer is the usual arrangement, with every note for that layer listed inside it.

<DecentSampler minVersion="1.0.0">
  <groups>
    <group>
      <sample path="Kit Name/Piano C4 soft.wav"
              rootNote="60" loNote="59" hiNote="61"
              loVel="0" hiVel="63" />
    </group>
  </groups>
</DecentSampler>

Vocabulary

Decent Sampler says preset where Logic says instrument and MPC says keygroup program. The mapped set of samples inside it is a multisample.

A .dslibrary is a different thing: a packaged bundle of presets and samples for distribution. The .dspreset is the instrument itself.

What reads it

Decent Sampler, on macOS, Windows, iOS and Linux, as a plugin or standalone. The plugin is free, which is why it has become the default way to hand a playable instrument to someone who may not own a sampler.

Sample paths are relative to the location of the .dspreset, so the preset and its sample folder move together as a pair.

The limits

The minVersion attribute declares which build of Decent Sampler a preset expects. A preset using newer features opened in an older build will not warn you in any useful way, so it's worth setting the floor honestly rather than optimistically.

Relative paths mean the preset breaks the moment it's moved without its sample folder. Move the pair, not the file.