Apple has unveiled the next version of Logic Studio with major upgrades to Logic Pro and MainStage and more than 200 new features to simplify complex tasks. Logic Pro 9 features new Amp Designer and Pedalboard plug-ins offering realistic virtual guitar amps and stomp box effects to create amazing custom guitar rigs. A new Flex Time toolset allow Logic users to manipulate the timing and tempo of audio quickly and easily.
MainStage 2, Apple’s live performance application, includes the new Playback and Loopback plug-ins to provide backing tracks and creative, real-time loop recording for performing on stage. Logic Studio also includes the new Soundtrack Pro 3, with new multitrack audio tools for video production, and Compressor 3.5 for encoding in a variety of formats.
“The new Logic Studio is ideal for professional musicians, live performers and GarageBand enthusiasts who want to take their music to the next level,” said Apple senior product marketing VP Philip Schiller. “Guitar players are going to love Amp Designer and Pedalboard and the new Flex Time tools allow you to quickly improve your recordings and create tighter performances.”
Logic Studio Pedalboard
Guitar Sounds
Logic’s Amp Designer and Pedalboard plug-ins give guitar players new recording and sound design capabilities. Amp Designer recreates 25 legendary vintage and modern amp heads and 25 paired speaker cabinets that emulate the sound and feel of a guitar running through a real tube amplifier. Guitar players can create custom rigs by mixing/matching amps, cabinets, reverbs and EQs, and can choose from three different mic types that can be positioned in 3-D space to capture the ideal guitar tone. Pedalboard adds an assortment of 30 guitar stomp box pedals including overdrive, distortion, fuzz, delay, chorus, flange, phaser, tremolo, treble boost, wah and more.
Flex Time
Flex Time is a new collection of tools letting musicians quickly manipulate the timing and tempo of recorded audio, including vocals and instruments, for tighter tracks. Using the Flex Tool, individual beats in a waveform can be moved effortlessly with a mouse click, without the need for tedious slicing and editing. Audio Quantize can instantly fix or adjust the timing of an entire performance by aligning notes and beats to a musical grid with a single menu selection. Varispeed provides the ability to slow down and then speed up an entire multitrack production for recording challenging parts. Also with Flex Time, recorded tracks can be moved between different Logic projects and matched together, even if they were performed at different tempos. All Flex Time edits are performed non-destructively and in real time, even in the highest quality settings.
Goin’ Live
MainStage 2 lets musicians use all the instruments and effects from Logic Studio to turn their Mac into a powerful live performance rig. A new Playback plug-in provides musicians with a backing band, for performing with pre-recorded audio, like drums, sound effects and other accompaniments that can be triggered to play during live performance. A new Loopback plug-in lets users record, layer and jam along with their own performance.
Soundtrack Pro 3
Soundtrack Pro 3 adds powerful new audio editing tools including Voice Level Match, which extracts volume information from the vocal content of one clip and applies it to another without altering any other audio
content, so editors can easily correct mismatched voice levels. An enhanced File Editor includes new tools to make sophisticated edits and fine tune volume adjustments by targeting specific frequencies such as the rustle of a paper or the bump of a desk without affecting dialog.
The new Advanced Time Stretch feature stretches and compresses audio with incredible precision using three Apple-designed algorithms or other algorithms available as third party plug-ins. Soundtrack Pro and Compressor are also available as part of the new Final Cut Studio (also
announced today—go to www.apple.com/finalcutstudio for more details), allowing Final Cut and Logic users to collaborate and share files.
Pricing & Availability
Logic Studio is now available for a suggested retail price of $499 (U.S.). Existing users of Logic Studio and Logic Pro can upgrade for a retail price of $199 (U.S.). For more detailed information on Logic Studio and full system requirements go to www.apple.com/logicstudio. Logic Express, a streamlined version of Logic will ship in August for a retail price of $199.
