Tune into just about any Top 40 radio station these days and it becomes unmistakable that a producer has as much ( or more ) to do with a birdcall ’s arrangement and presentation as the transcription artist . While this has long been the slip with articulatio coxae - hop and electronic tracks , even the music performed by such mainstream artists as Taylor Swift would have far less impact without the succor of the behind - the - shot producer .
This trend has not escaped Apple ’s notice as evidenced by today ’s discharge of Logic Pro X 10.1 . Although the free update admit a vast number of betterment and fixes , its target is clearly the manufacturer and , more specifically , those working with elements of electronic music ( which , again , is just about any of today ’s popular artists and manufacturer ) . Here are some of the highlighting of the latest version .
Give the (electronic) drummer some
One of the key new features of thelast release of Logic Pro Xwas the Drummer track . This track intelligently generates convincing acoustic drum tracks using a kind of sound record by real drummers . By conform the puck on an XY pad you may change the loudness as well as the complexness of this track . you may additionally ask the drummer to add more fills , swing a routine more , and tot or subtract part of his or her outfit .
With variant 10.1 , Apple has added 10 new drummers — or , more accurately , beat programmer . Rather than being equipped with acoustic drums , each drummer play a drum machine . Like the “ genuine ” drummer before them , e - drummers have their own kits , though these are comprised of sounds from a wide variety of metal drum machines — with audio ranging from the classic to the contemporary ( as well as entirely unique sound ) . As with the acoustic players , you may direct your east - drummer to act more simply or with greater complexity via the attitude of the XY pad ’s Robin Goodfellow , fill less or more often , swing ( or not ) , and tot up implemental element to his or her outfit . Each drummer comes equipped with eight preset patterns , but you may create and pull through your own . Within the track ’s Smart Controls area you’re able to prefer from among a handful of patterns for each instrumental group ( kick , noose , and claps ; hi - hat and cymbal ; and percussion section , for good example ) . you’re able to also choose one of a couple of dissimilar expressive style for each .
As with old Drummer tracks , you could control an electronic drummer ’s performance .
If you ’d like corking control over the outfit , you have it in the form of the new Drum Machine Designer plug - in . Within this plug - in you may not only change the intermixture of the various drums and alter their tone in the Effects section , but also pick off each individual drum strait , conform such elements as pitch , length , envelope , distortion , body , presence , pan , and book . ( The controls you see depend on the sort of barrel you ’ve chosen . ) And if you ’d like to swap in an entirely unlike sound for a particular drum , just open Logic Pro ’s legal subroutine library and , from the Kit Pieces category , choose the kind of drum you ’re after ( a kick drum , for example ) and then select one of the available sounds .
The Drum Machine Designer port .
Kickin’ it
It ’s possible that there are masses who delight creating drum machine parts by clicking individual notes into billet on a timeline or banging them out on a MIDI keyboard , but I ’m not one of them . For those like me , Logic tender Modern Note Repeat and Spot Erase features for more easily creating brake drum and software system legal instrument parts .
The approximation is unproblematic ( and familiar , if you ’ve used classic drum auto ) . Select a software instrument track or drum track , expose the toolbar , and tap the Note Repeat icon . opt a repetition charge per unit such as a quarter note , start recording , and jam C1 on your keyboard . As long as your digit holds down the C1 key , the charge drum will be recorded for each quarter note beat . Repeat the mental process for other tone and sound — military press F#1 to set off the Hawaii - lid and assign a value of an eighth government note , for exemplar . ( you could also use this feature with the updated edition of the destitute Logic Remote iPad app and with Logic ’s onscreen keyboard . )
It ’s well-fixed to create beat radiation diagram with the Note Repeat feature .
But there ’s more to it . you could additionally aline the rhythmical value in real meter with a MIDI controller — a luger or wheel , for instance . For instance , specify it to your control ’s modulation wheel and wheel up as you record to increase the frequency that the beats are play ( from 8th note to 64ths , for example ) .
Spot Erase is the other side of this coin . If you ’d care to remove parts from a currently playing software instrument or drum track , enable Spot Erase and then apply down the keystone that triggers a especial note or sound as it plays . You might , for example , find the constant eighth note click of a hi - hat caterpillar track to be too still . To put holes in that track , hold down F#1 for those Federal Reserve note you ’d like to remove as the running plays .
Mind over MIDI
In argumentation with expatiate Logic ’s barrel pallette , Apple ’s Logic squad has enhanced the MIDI tools producer and artist will expend to stimulus and blue-pencil their electronic drum parts . This takes place in Logic ’s Piano Roll ( read : MIDI ) editor .
The editor has been flourish in a variety of way . First , the names of electronic membranophone now appear in the editor rather than simply as note names ( C1 , D2 , and so on ) or piano headstone . This makes it gentle to find precisely the sound you ’d like to edit . There ’s also a new Collapse Mode , which , rather than displaying every note value across the spectrum , shows you only those preeminence that have data assigned to them — C1 for the kick membranophone and D1 for the snare , for example , but not G1 and A1 if no government note appear on those lines . If you ’ve ever spent clock time scrolling up and down through a tall MIDI runway to find just the note value you need , you ’ll take account this feature .
The editor now includes a Brush tool that , when selected , let you “ pigment ” in note much like you ’d spatter pearl of key on a canvas . This could easy lead in chaos except for the cock ’s power to stiffen short letter by musical scale . you may , for case , brush in just those bill that make up a speed of light venial blues weighing machine . you’re able to then choose a group of bank bill , define them as a brush convention , and then brush in that same pattern elsewhere . This can be an easy way to make vestigial harmonies when sweep over a grouping you ’ve already created — say by starting the 2nd brushed pattern from a eminence a third above the master . Then just edit out or adjust the pitches that do n’t harmonize well .
apply the new Brush tool to paint in patterns of notes .
Making it Mello(tron)
The in vogue logical system is n’t entirely about drum and beats . For those from the Old School ( or who simply desire to emulate it ) there are the unexampled Mellotron instruments . democratic in the late ’ 60s and early ’ LXX ( Paul McCartney open “ Strawberry Fields Forever ” with a Mellotron part ) , this was a keyboard instrument that toy little magnetic tape loops of champagne flute , string , brass instrument , and voices . It ’s a distinctive ( and , for some of us , familiar ) sound that ’s now part of Logic Pro X. With this cat’s-paw you could blend two different Mellotron sounds — Boys Choir and Flute , for exercise .
Finally , thanks to the Mellotron instrument , you may begin that early - King Crimson cover band .
There are over 200 novel synth pawn sounds in this outlet as well . Many of them use MIDI chaw - ins and cart track stacks to make rich ( and sometimes rhythmical ) sounds . You ’ll find them largely within the Synthesizer and Arpeggiator groups .
Bucket list
And then there are the “ I wish it did … ” features that not every player or producer absolutely requires , but make for less wordy study . For example , there ’s region - ground automation . You ’ve always been capable to automate an full track — record a track ’s volume change over clock time or record the move of a modulation wheel to increase the swiftness of a Leslie impression to an harmonium part , for example . But you’re able to now embed automation into individual area within a track . If you move that region to a different part of your cart track , the embedded automation impress with it . And you could do this for multiple regions throughout a track . This does n’t preclude you from also tally mechanization to the entire racecourse , as that characteristic remain .
Logic Pro also includes a unexampled Time Handles feature that affects MIDI eminence . With it you’re able to select a group of notes in the Piano Roll editor and expand or compress them to take up more or less time , severally . You might , for deterrent example , have a percussion figure that takes up one measure . On second thought you decide that you ’d like it to run for at half that hurrying for two measures . Rather than rerecord it , you’re able to rather swop on Time Handles , pick out the notes within the pattern , and then puff a handle that look on the ripe border of the pick to drag it to the goal of the next measure . The formula expands and slow up to half its original speed , but the relative rhythmic human relationship between the notes does n’t alter . The second note will still be half the length of the first , for example .
you could expand or shorten a part with the new Time Handles feature .
While it ’s not something that everyone will care about , I ’m personally proud of to see the new Smart Quantize feature . I ’m a keyboard player and I occasionally add a tucket of notes as I play . But , like just about every other musician on earth , I sometimes like to correct my timing by quantize a part ( which hale notes to a rhythmic power grid so they toy more in clock time ) . The problem is , if you quantise to something like a 16th note grid , 128th note flourishes are turned into unmusical blocks of note . MIDI drummers can have the same job with roll and drum roll . With Smart Quantize switched on , Logic recognizes these government note - deep passage and meliorate their timing while maintaining the intend coil or other flourish . Also , the duration of notes in - between quantized musical note are compressed and thrive proportionally to retain the relative legato of the phrase . In short : quantisation that feels human .
And so much more : the ability to have more than one drummer track in a projection , realtime fade render , a redesign compressor plug - in with Retina - ready interface , the power to make usance plug - in menu , Command - click to un - tongueless or un - solo all line , and improved constancy .
A worthy upgrade
The Logic Pro X 10.1 update weighs in at around 1.1 GB and is completely free for exist users . If you create electronic music , this is a must - have update . And even if you ’re a instrumentalist or producer less interested in electronic enhancement , it ’s worth it for the many improvements and fixes that are n’t marquee feature of this spill .
GarageBand users who are starting to find a small restricted with the tools that app provide will find this as effective a clip as any to throw the $ 199 necessary to own a copy of Logic Pro X. Thanks to the similar interface between the two apps ( and the power to hide advanced features so you do n’t feel overwhelmed ) you ’ll sense right at domicile in no time . And if you ’re entirely young to Logic Pro , you ’d be hard - pressed to find a better steal among existing professional digital audio workstation apps .
