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Apple Releases Logic 7, New Jam Packs

Posted by pudge on from the mmmmmmusic dept.

RadRafe writes "Apple today introduced Logic Pro 7 and Logic Express 7. Logic Pro now features Distributed Audio, a clustering tool (Xgrid-based?) to exploit the DSP power of multiple Macs, and Sculpture, the long-awaited component-modeling synthesizer. Also out today are two new Jam Packs for GarageBand - though they work in Logic too, now that Logic supports Apple Loops."

21 of 187 comments (clear)

  1. Cubase SX 3 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    is what the cool kids are running thesedays, that full VST experience (gotta love vst plugins), from Steiberg of course
    Clicky

    1. Re:Cubase SX 3 by Brackney · · Score: 2, Informative

      I use Logic Pro and have no trouble w/ VST plugins using FXPansion's VST/AU converter. Works like a charm.

    2. Re:Cubase SX 3 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      IRIX? What the fuck? Cubase was originally an Atari ST program.

    3. Re:Cubase SX 3 by trollus_and_cressida · · Score: 1, Informative

      IRIX? yeah, exactly. wtf? Cubase evolved on the Atari ST from Steinberg's Pro24 - alson on the Atari ST (built in midiport -woohoo!). I believe Steinberg moved to the mac from the Atari and only after that moved to the PC. Music developers tended to heavily favor the mac over the pc. Logic was also originally developed by C-Lab (which changed its name to Emagic) on the Atari ST (8 mhz processor - woohoo!) when it was known as Notator. It then became Notator Logic. Then Logic. Then moved to the Mac. Emagic than developed a PC version - which was good but more buggy than the mac version and always a little behind featurewise. Not surprisingly when Emagic was bought by Mac they gave up the PC version of Logic.

    4. Re:Cubase SX 3 by bobbagum · · Score: 3, Informative

      It's the beowolf cluster of those that makes it newsworthy

    5. Re:Cubase SX 3 by BorgCopyeditor · · Score: 2, Informative
      For what it's worth, I run Logic Express on my 800MHz eMac and do just fine: I haven't really tested the limits, but in one song I have 8 audio tracks with a few (simple) effects and about half a dozen software synths, a couple of individual buses with global effects (reverb, delay), and the main ouput with a multiband compressor on it ... with about 80% or so of CPU power. Logic also allows you to "freeze" tracks, which means running off an audio copy with all the effects already processed, so you can squeeze more tracks/effects in. In comparison, Garage Band isn't very well optimized. I've been very happy with Logic Express, especially since I got it for $150 with an educational discount. And the new Logic Express 7 looks even better, at the same price.

      There's a recent thread on compiling JACK and Ardour for OSX on OS X Audio, which has lots of great info on recording on the Mac: many posters own/run studios, but the place is still newbie-friendly.

      HTH

      --
      Shop as usual. And avoid panic buying.
  2. Re:Macs are expensive by DavidLeblond · · Score: 2, Informative

    its Macs not MACs. And I know my old school (NCSU) is doing stuff with Xgrid. I heard they were trying to get a cluster of all the Macs on campus.

  3. Re:Unbundle GarageBand and reduce OSX price by mkarpinski · · Score: 3, Informative

    GarageBand isn't bundled with OS X.

    It's bundled with the iLife suite of applications...

    --
    As below, so above and beyond, I imagine drawn beyond the lines of reason. Push the envelope. Watch it bend.
  4. Re:Unbundle GarageBand and reduce OSX price by Knobby · · Score: 3, Informative

    GarageBand is not included in Mac OS X.. GarageBand is included in the iLife package, and if you buy both Mac OS X and iLife at the same time you it will cost $50 less than if you buy them separately.

  5. Re:"Scale out" by Wesley+Felter · · Score: 2, Informative

    Latest buzz? Bah, I remember reading about 3D artists stuffing Quadra 950s full of Radius Rockets 10 years ago.

  6. Re:Kind of like... by ennerseed · · Score: 5, Informative

    "Only 192kHz?"
    This is not mp3 bit rates here. This is Pro Audio level sound quality.

    An Audio CD has a sample rate of 44.1kHz.

    --
    "If we knew what it was we were doing, it would not be called research, would it?" - Albert Einstein
  7. Re:Kind of like... by RiotXIX · · Score: 4, Informative
    Actually, 192Khz seems to be the most professional audio cards seem to be able to cope with. M-audio, who make professional audio cards and instruments, are just about to release there latest model [http://www.samash.com/catalog/showitem.asp?ItemID =32398] in the next few days/weeks, and that's (only?) 192khz . Apparently that's quite high in terms of hardware parts for professional recording. And you may like to know, it is reported at several locations even though manufacturers like creative claim their parts are 192 khz, the music is resampled at a lower rate least once before output so it's just advertising garbage. I only know this because I've been searching for the best soundcard to get for audio playback [exclusively], and this seems to be the best option..if any one knows any more on this, then please do correct me.

    Thanks a lot by the way..now I probably can't keep moderating this quite interesting thread ;-)

    --
    "You know you don't act like a scientist, you're more like a game show host." Dana Barret
  8. Re:Not a lot of new features.... by alset_tech · · Score: 3, Informative
    Not a ton of new features. The distributed DSP is interesting though.....

    I guess that means you didn't read the pages of online documentation of download the PDF, because I see many new features. Add to the list:

    A new drum synth, an FM synth, a component modeling synth, an amp modeling plugin, match EQ, linear EQ, new ring modulation, pitch correction, vocal modulation, multi-meter, spectrum analyzer, phase correction, AAC support, ID3 support, global tracks for tempo and key adjustments, automatic cross-fade, QWERTY MIDI control, DSP templates, external instrument tracks, Apple Loops support, etc etc etc.

    RTGDFA

    --
    Standing on the shoulders of giants.
  9. Re:Not a lot of new features.... by alset_tech · · Score: 2, Informative
    Like I said, not a ton of new features. Cross Fade and Tempo/Key Adjustments are about the only things I'd use......

    What you would use has nothing to do with what was added. You're trolling when you intentionally omit or skew information to make a point. Last count: 38 new features.

    --
    Standing on the shoulders of giants.
  10. bit rates versus sample rates by Thumpnugget · · Score: 3, Informative

    To expand on this for people who are missing the distinction: mp3 rates are bit rates, meaning that the audio stream is reduced to a certain number of bits per second. The sample rates for digital pro audio equipment refer to how many samples (of varying width, usually 16 or 24) are taken represent the analog audio stream.

    So, one can see intuitively that a stereo 24-bit 192Khz audio file will be 24 times larger than a stereo mp3 file that is 192kpbs. The difference in clarity will be almost as striking as the size difference. ;)

    --
    Free yourself. Everything else will follow.
    1. Re:bit rates versus sample rates by Smurf · · Score: 2, Informative

      So, one can see intuitively that a stereo 24-bit 192Khz audio file will be 24 times larger than a stereo mp3 file that is 192kpbs.

      No, as far as I understand it's 24 bits per sample per channel. So if it's in stereo, the file would be 48 times larger than the MP3.

  11. Re:Infinite Loops! by MasonMcD · · Score: 4, Informative

    Notice how they advertised infinite loops as a feature. Seems like they're copying Microsoft advert strategies now...

    Or likely playing off of Apple's Cupertino address, 1 Infinite Loop.

  12. Re:Is this a replacement? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    Not a replacement. Soundtrack is a loop based program, like Acid Pro. Logic is for MIDI and audio production. While both might overlap each other, they are targetted at different markets.

  13. Re:Kind of like... by 33degrees · · Score: 3, Informative
    Is this kind of like Fruity-Loops by FL Studio?
    Comparing FruityLoops and Logic is really comparing apples and oranges. Fruityloops is a great program in that it does certain things very well, but it's quite limited in many regards (doing any kind of heavy duty audio editing is pretty much impossible). Logic can be complicated for doing simple things, but it can do very complex things quite simply too.
    Only 192kHz? I'm not terribly sure that's worth the $999 price tag they're asking.
    You're confusing kHz with kbps. kbps is a measure of bits per second, whereas kHz is a measure of samples per second, with the size of the sample being the bit depth. 16bit stereo audio takes 32 bits per sample, so 1kHz = 32kbps, and in the case of 24bit/192kHz audio, it's 12 288 kbps. Does that make the $999 price tag more appealing?
  14. I am impressed. by Steve+Cowan · · Score: 5, Informative
    Logic Pro 7 includes a ton of the stuff I've been waiting for, and when you consider all the bundled synths and effects it's actually a pretty damn good value.

    I've been using Logic since version 2, and I have watched it evolve from a do-everything MIDI sequencer to a full-fledged DAW suite.

    I'm frustrated to read so many negative comments from people who have obviously never used serious music software before, so I'm going to address a few things:

    First, this is very relevant to apple.slashdot.org because Apple owns Logic, and a lot of us have been very eager to see just what Apple was going to do with Logic for version 7.

    Is it anything like Fruity Loops or Garage Band? No, not really. You could probably pick up any of the above to create a piece of dance music, but Logic is the only one of the three that is wide open - if there's something a computer can do with audio, Logic Pro can probably do it.

    I doubt Cubase is more popular than Logic in the studio. Once you get used to working in Logic, Cubase feels like a toy. I'll admit I haven't used it in a few years so maybe it has improved.

    Somebody posted that Logic is unstable and doesn't draw right a lot of the time, but this has not been my experience - in fact version 6 has been rock-solid for me. I know that cracked copies of Logic tend to not work very well.

    A few people have said that there aren't a lot of new featured, but I downloaded the Logic Overview PDF from the Apple site, and I see TONS of stuff:

    • Distributed Audio Processing. Yes this is cool stuff, maybe other software does it too, but how scalable is it? Apple is claiming they can stuff 512 mono streams over a gigabit backbone. That's cool stuff, and makes a pretty neat case for a few XServe cluster nodes. (By the way, this appears to not be XGrid-based, as the nodes don't seem to share a single distributed task - instead you choose which node you want to work on which track from the Arrange window.)
    • Sculpture. Sorry but I don't know of any DAW app that includes a professional component modelling synth at any price. Emagic's synths have always sounded great to me, and I'm anxious to hear this.
    • Ultrabeat. A drum machine. Well here's some Fruity Loops functionality - as a matter of fact this looks like a kick-ass drum machine, something I've been anxious to see in Logic. It's got virtual analog, FM, component modelling and sample playback. The only drum machine I know of that's as versatile on paper is the $1100 USD MachineDrum, if ya wanna order one from Sweden.
    • EFM-1 - another synth - this one looks like a simple FM synth. I reserve judgement, but it's probably nice for metallic and buzzy sounds.
    • Inclusion of Garage Band Instruments is awesome, and was much-anticipated by Logic composers. Garage Band has a kick-ass sample set, and I'm sure they will find their way into my bread-and-butter work (commercials).
    • Apple Loops first appeared in SoundTrack, then in Garage Band. It looks as though it is actually possible to create Apple Loops, which means that Logic now has Ableton Live! / Acid - like functionality at last. Live is a lot cheaper at around $400, and Acid is Windows only, but they both lack the flexibility and plug-in set that Logic has.
    • Guitar Amp Pro is also pretty damn cool. People's jaws drop when they hear the amp simulation in Garage Band, so its inclusion (with the addition of a few extra parameters) in Logic is a no-brainer - it had to happen. Still, it's here, and I will be using it.
    • Other Effects like Ring Shifter, Vocal Transformer, Pitch Correction are fun effects to play with, and offer lots of opportunities for creative use.
    • New Mastering Plug-ins: Linear Phase EQ (I haven't heard it, but Logic's EQ's are already pretty good, and from its description this is a bona fide mastering EQ), and Match EQ (
  15. Re:Broadcast Wave by flimflam · · Score: 3, Informative

    Broadcast Wave is actually becoming the standard audio file format for the film industry. It is used in most of the new digital field recorders (Aaton Cantar, HHB PortaDrive, Zaxcom Deva and the various Fostex field recorders.

    The support of this format in Logic is significant as it's the first Apple software to support it. Hopefully this means will see it soon in Final Cut soon.

    --
    -- It only takes 20 minutes for a liberal to become a conservative thanks to our new outpatient surgical procedure!