Mac and Music News

Wonder Warp Software Group has announced the release of SimpleChord 1.7.1, which fixes and refines many aspects of SimpleChord. This includes the way accidentals are displayed, and adds the option to have tooltips for the keys to display the note name (good for beginners).

SimpleChord is a quick, handy reference to chords for musicians. It can aid in learning new chords, building progressions, transcribing, and other tasks. It displays the notes in a chord, their positions on the keyboard, and can even play the chord aloud in any General MIDI instrument.

SamplingSounds.com announces the release of its Mega Sampler, Sampling Library CD. This CD offers over 500 individual samples from five of their most popular sampling libraries on one CD in both WAV and SoundFont Format. This CD is available for $34.95 at www.samplingsounds.com and contains all of these individual sample libraries: Classic Keys, 70s Analog Synths, 80s Digital Synths, Vocoder Tracks and Synth FX.

The dual format CD is compatible with most samplers and sampling keyboards on the market today. SamplingSounds.com is a official SoundFont developer and offers all of its sampling libraries in the SoundFont format (as well as WAV) for easy import into Mac software samplers like: Steinberg's Halion, Emagics EXS24, Vsamp and many others.

Clavia now releases the V2.1 Software Upgrade for the Nord Electro 2 and Nord Electro. The V2.1 upgrade features 'Selectable Keyboard Velocity Sensitivity' for the piano sounds: you can now select between 10 different velocity sensitivity curves for the piano sounds. The V2.1 Software Upgrade also features some minor bug fixes.

This update is free of charge and needs a Mac with a MIDI interface, the latest version of OMS, and Mac OS 8.6 but not OS X.

Channel D announces the availability of an update to its Mac OS X native audio signal analyzer and signal generator suite, Mac the Scope. Mac the Scope 4X 4.2 includes a
versatile signal generator, vector FFT analyzer, sonogram and more.

The new version, compatible with Mac OS X 10.2.3 - 10.3.x, includes enhanced support for CoreAudio.

Rolled out with D-Control is the new Pro Tools 6.4 software, which should be available sooner (maybe at Frankfurt). Most new changes are only for HD but a later issue promises to support MIX systems.

New features include:
- Auto Delay compensation (both plug-in and routing delays)
- An option for having fader gain at +12 dB over 0 dBfs (currently fixed at +6 dB)
- TrackPunch (record-enable and punch on the fly)
- An Input button on each channel (to switch between input and playback)
- Enhanced plug-in organization through a new folder system
- Enhanced clip indication (clips will show on channel plug-in plates, on the show/hide list and on the D-Control surface)
- Absolute track numbering (forcing an optional absolute track number before each track name)
- An extra transport bar embedded at the top of the Edit window
- Input and Record Enable alert lights next to the REC button on the transport
- The ability to redefine current feet/frames position
- Support for 23.976 timecode rate

Thanks to Mix Magazine and Digidesign for the infos

SoundHack Spectral Shapers is a group of four plugins based on the SoundHack program. After the VST version, this 4 plugins package comes out as Audio Units version making it compatible with Digital Performer 4.1, Emagic Logic, and Apple GarageBand as well as all other Audio Unit hosts.

It is being released as a downloadable bundle ($150) which also includes VST versions for OS X and OS 9 . A boxed CD will soon be available.

Ed: Mew & Zach is broadcasting later in the week this week, my mistake while I'm on the road. Catch you soon. -PK

Ableton has announced the availability of his leading software Live in version 3.0.3. The focus on this update is only to improve the understanding of Live. The main features of Live 3.0.3 are: a new Session and Arrangement demo song, a tutorial explaining the Session demo song and an index for the english pdf manual. This updates also fixes bug : crash on Quit in ReWire depending on the installed ReWire slaves. This update is a free download for registered users.

AcidMusicLoops.com announced the release of three new loop based Groove Constuction Kits: HipHop Kit, Dance/Techno Kit and Pop/Rock Kit. Each kit contains over 320 loops for quick and easy construction of original music with programs like Cubase, Logic Audio, Apple's Garageband and of course Acid. Each Groove Construction Kit contais a generous helping of pounding drums, booming basses plus lots of synths, guitars, keys and more. Each kit retails for only $24.95 and can be ordered directly from www.acidmusicloops.com with free shipping!

AcidMusicLoops.com offers dozens of other titles like Mega Guitar, eXtreme Guitar, Analog Heaven, ethnoLOGIC, Warped and Twisted, Sonic Textures and more. Their Mega Guitar and Analog Heaven CDs just received the highest praise from the UK's Digital Music Maker Magazine.

Kreativ Sounds releases ACTIVE eBASS, a downloadable refill for Reason 2.5.
This is not just another bass sample collection, AeB is a Hybrid Bass Refill. AeB combines additive, analog and guitar basses. AeB Refill features:
- 40 bass multisamples + lots of ones shot FXs, all 44KHz/24bit wavs for maximum quality;
- 110 NNXT Advanced Sampler Patches with True NNXT Guitar mapping;
- 210 NN19 Sample Patches for quick setups;
- 150 SubTractor Patches more oriented to analog bass modeling;
- 150 Malstrom Patches more oriented to guitar bass modeling;
- 30 Scream4 Patches - enhance your basses using these presets. We also tried to emulate some bass amps;
- absolute ALL Malström and Subtractor Patches include the Mod Wheel variations for extra sounds and control.

Some audio examples and demo refill is available for download. The full version has 65Mb and costs 17.5 EU / 23 USD and available to purchase via the website.

AudioFinder, the playing, scanning and extracting audio software from Iced Audio is growing again to a new version : 3.1.5. This new version add a lot of improvements including: fixed a bug in the Tuning Fork, added MIDI input for controlling pitch via a MIDI keyboard and changed the Sample Extractor to work with multi-selection.

AudioFinder is a USD 49.95 donationware and is available for download on the Iced Audio web site.

TC has decided strengthen their focus on the PowerCore platform, and to discontinue further development of Spark XL/LE, and Native Bundle.

PowerCore and its related plug-ins now account for almost 90% of the companies computer recording revenue.

The rumors have been running for more than a year regarding Digidesign's release of a comprehensive remote surface for Protools. Now, the it's official! Digidesign announces its new system, ICON (including the new D-Control console, the X-Mon monitoring interface and Protools HD Accell).

D-Control features:

Each channel includes 2 x 32 segments, VU meters, and 6 rotary encoders assignable (per track) to the aux sends, pans, i/o selections, plug-in selections, plug-in parameters... Each encoder is surrounded by LEDs with the ability to change their colors according to what they are displaying (e.g., Green = Volume, Orange = VU Meter, Red = Peak Hold). Under each encoder, there is a fluorescent display showing the function assigned to the encoder, and two switches assigned to pre/post ...

Apple sent a mail announcing Apple Expo 2004:

Dates and location:
- Tuesday August 31 to Saturday September 4, 2004
- Opening hours: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
- Paris expo, Porte de Versailles, Hall 1
- the Keynote of our dear Steve Jobs will take place at the Palais des Congrès on August 31 at 10 a.m.

This year, to speed up the registration process, the badges will be sent by E-mail.

Pierre Couprie created an emulation of the famous EMS AKS Synth for OS X and he just finished the Beta version. He would thus need testers for this version of the soft.

If you want to beta test this software, just drop him an email!

Native Instruments Traktor Final Scratch was updated to version 1.5.1 and it is now fully compatible with Mac OS 10.3 Panther. Aside from the new highly optimized ScratchAmp drivers, version 1.5.1 also adds the following features:

· High-quality key correction (preserves pitch when changing tempo)
· Record Lead-In graphics in wave display
· Stripe Preview in browser deck
· Customize "Needle Display Position" in wave display
· Shading of played track portion in stripe view
· Flashing stripe in track end warning zone
· Fully resizable interface
· 4 font sizes
· Larger sound stripes

This update is available via download (49 euros) or as an update CD (69 euros).

We announced it in january on MacMusic, it is now available ! The Mayhem VST plug-in suite by Audiodamage is a collection of four different effects designed to provide new tools for aggressive contemporary musical styles. Included in this package are Filterpod (a low-pass filter with LFO), Crush (the World's Most Dangerous Compressor...), MasterDestrukto (a plug-in featuring four different distortion algorithms for massive audio manipulation), and TimeFnk (a rhythmic delay).

Mayhem pack is available for Mac OS 9 and Mac OS X and costs 149 euros.

Native Instruments has announced that the new Reaktor 4.1 update is now available. New features in Reaktor 4.1 include: savable screensets for managing individual window arrangements, a batch converter for analyzing audio files and converting Reaktor 3 instruments and a new Total Recall system for saving all settings with a song.

The 4.1 update for Mac is available as a free download for all registered Reaktor 4 users.

Facing all the competition for data storage and even more so for musical storage, MiniDisc needs a serious lifting. It's almost done as Sony has announced the release in April of it's Hi-MD. It will contain up to 45 hours of music at 48kbps and also serve as a 1 GB USB removable Data storage.

The 1 GB Hi-MD discs should cost about 7 euros each. As for the current minidiscs they should be compatible with the new players, these should cost less than 400 Euros.

Steven Philips has released volume 1 of his sounds for FM7. The CD includes 20 banks - each including 32 patches for Native Instruments FM7. More details on the included sounds can be found here.

Berkleemusic, the online extension school of Berklee College of Music, is now enrolling three brand-new online music production courses for their April 5th semester. Essential knowledge for engineers, producers, or hobbyists who have their own home studio up and running, Mixing and Mastering with Pro Tools will provide you with a greater understanding of advanced mixing and mastering techniques using Pro Tools. Sound Design for the Electronic Musician walks you through the necessary steps to create your own electronic sounds and musical productions, as well as explores more detailed aspects of sound creation and manipulation using the software synthesizers provided in Logic and Reason.

Learn to create musical-sounding MIDI arrangements and gain a firm understanding of the roles of the various instruments and arrangements used in the creation of dance and blues music in the MIDI Sequencing Intermediate course. Berkleemusic's Student Advisor is available toll-free at 1.866.BERKLEE (237.5533) for one-on-one advice or questions on any of these courses. To view the complete course catalog, or to enroll in an online course, please visit: