Logic Express 9 Upgrade Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Why should you upgrade to 9? Because Snow Leopard introduces the ability for intel powered Mac's to move up from 32 bit to 64 bit for some choice software. Logic being just about the choiciest.
Do you really want to move to 64 bit? It isn't necessary. If you like to work with Logic's EXS sampler, you can reconfigure in 32 bit if you'd like to take advantage of assigned virtual space on your hard drive. But if you got 9 (and you download the free apple upgrade), and if you got more than 4 gigs of ram, you can get that extra ram assigned directly to your sampler. Or if by chance you have any sampler laden 64 bit 3rd party software (Omnisphere, a lot of NI's stuff), same thing.
On the other hand most 3rd party plugs have not made the leap to 64 yet. They still will run on the upgraded system, but without any advantage. We're still early here in what now seems a significant (and in a few years' time will appear quaint) upgrade. If your relatively new to this and not heavily invested in 3rd party plug-ins, this probably is a great time to set yourself up for the future. Otherwise, there's no rush.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Logic Express 9 Upgrade


Record, edit, and mix your music on a Mac using the new Logic Express 9. Open your GarageBand files and get right to work, or start from scratch with a new composition. Logic Express 9 is a guitar player's dream, with Amp Designer and Pedalboard, two new plug-ins that re-create the sound of legendary amps and stompbox effect pedals. You can build your own amp model and try any combination of stompboxes. An improved set of music creation tools makes it even easier to capture and develop your musical inspirations. Use the new Flex Time tools to easily manipulate audio timing and tempo. And make music right out of the box with over 100 instrument and effect plug-ins from Logic Studio.

Upgrade Version
Upgrade from retail versions of Logic Express 6, 7, or 8; or Logic Audio 5 or 6.

Logic Express 9. Record, edit, and mix music on your Mac.

Top Features
Perfect for capturing and developing your musical inspirations
Seamless compatibility with GarageBand files
Flex Time features that make editing audio timing and tempo easier than ever
More than 70 studio-quality effect plug-ins, including vintage and modern compressors, delays, reverbs, and more
New Amp Designer plug-in to help you re-create the sound of 25 legendary amps and 25 speaker cabinets
New Pedalboard plug-in with an assortment of 30 virtual stompbox pedals inspired by the classics
36 software instrument plug-ins, including the Ultrabeat drum synth and beatbox, ES2 synth, and EXS24 sampler

Related Products
Complete your music studio with a Mac Pro workstation and two 24-inch Apple LED Cinema Displays. Take a MacBook Pro with you and make your music anywhere.

AppleCare
Offering solutions for businesses of any size, AppleCare provides ongoing product coverage, including the AppleCare Protection Plan for Mac systems and Apple flat-panel displays. To augment your experience with Apple professional software, AppleCare Professional Video Support and AppleCare Professional Audio Support offer direct access to Apple's professional support staff. For more information, visit www.apple.com/support/products.

Click here for more information about Logic Express 9 Upgrade

Read More...

CAKEWALK Dimension Pro Virtual Synthesizer Win/Mac Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I started with Dimension LE bundled with Cakewalk Home Studio 6 XL, but upgraded to Pro when they ran an upgrade deal. The more I use Dimension, the more I like it... it's now the primary synth in my virtual rack. Free upgrade sound packs and a software update are available on the Cakewalk web site, be sure to download. The grand piano is particularly striking, as are all the string patches in the Garritan Pocket Orchestra; very realistic sounding.
The manual is pretty weak in terms of describing how to create new sounds beyond the presets (there are whole books available on that topic), however the synth is capable of quite an array of sounds and includes a large number of built-in effects that can be chained together. The envelope generation editors allow envelopes to be applied to just about every facet of the sound module; thus using the included analog waveform samples (saw, square, etc.) you can actually make some pretty interesting analog synth-style sounds; check out some of the presets to see how this is done.
So right in the box you get a very nice sampler synth, that also can be programmed like an analog synth using raw waveform samples and the effects/oscillators, capable of stacking up to four samples at once each with separate envelopes and useful effects, that is even capable of firing MIDI sequences/loops as well, with MIDI controller/note mapping any of the settings in the patch... this is pretty much a "work horse" synth.
As a result I find I reach for Dimension as my first choice when adding a virutal synth. It's simply a great, versatile, all-round synth with a huge library of presets (counting the free downloads something like 8 _Gig_ of samples!) and an amazing amount of control to find that perfect sound. The user interface is indeed a bit daunting, so I would probably recommend getting one of the books available on Amazon if you want to dig deeper than the presets (of which counting the free addons must be around 2000 or so presets).
It may not be the perfect sampler synth, or the perfect analog-sound synth, or the perfect loop player... but it does a very decent job of all three of those with a high degree of controllability for the musician, so it's quite a nice "1-stop shop" once you get to know it.

Click Here to see more reviews about: CAKEWALK Dimension Pro Virtual Synthesizer Win/Mac

Dimension Pro combines real instruments with advanced synthesis. This two-DVD sound library has over 1500 sound programs, with tools that are ideal for preset addicts, while its deep editing and sound generation capabilities should appeal to sound designers. It offers n abundance of sounds that range from pristine realistic acoustic instruments, thumping basses, cutting leads, to complex, evolving atmospheres.Multi-stage effects sections and filters -insert and send effects for each part including -Bit reducer and Decimator 16 filter types; 5 tone drive modes; 3 stackable parametric EQs; 6 delay types; 3 chorus types; LFO filters; Autopan Room simulation and modulation effects Mix and layer up to 4 stereo parts per program Vector Mixer for real-time sound morphing - morph sounds by gliding between the different elements of a program Drag-and-drop MIDI into host applications for groove manipulation

Click here for more information about CAKEWALK Dimension Pro Virtual Synthesizer Win/Mac

Read More...

Logic Express 9 Retail Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I am a hobbyist, not a pro, so keep that in mind as you read this; however, I have over the years used the old Logic when it was made by eMagic, Cubase, and landed on MOTU Digital Performer for a few years. I took a wrong turn and ended up playing with Reason and Live for a while, and then quit altogether. After a few years, I recently picked up Native Instruments Komplete 6, and never having found an ideal DAW, decided to dip my toe in the water with the new version of Logic Express. Having used many packages, I can tell you this is a robust package that strikes a nice balance between ease of use for a musician and powerful features for a producer. The Express version is not defanged, and can happily handle tons of tracks, Audio Units plug-ins (no VSTs), and without reading the manual I could record MIDI tracks, use software instruments, and record audio the same day I installed it. There are some really nice features and if you need the pro version you simply pay the difference for the upgrade, making this pretty exceptional value. I'm still fine with Express, but knowing the upgrade is easily available at no penalty is a nice policy. This is an intuitive and thoughtfully designed piece of software that has definitely reduced barriers for me at least in terms of getting the ideas that are in my head down and playing with them until they sound great.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Logic Express 9 Retail


Record, edit, and mix your music on a Mac using the new Logic Express 9. Open your GarageBand files and get right to work, or start from scratch with a new composition. Logic Express 9 is a guitar player's dream, with Amp Designer and Pedalboard, two new plug-ins that re-create the sound of legendary amps and stompbox effect pedals. You can build your own amp model and try any combination of stompboxes. An improved set of music creation tools makes it even easier to capture and develop your musical inspirations. Use the new Flex Time tools to easily manipulate audio timing and tempo. And make music right out of the box with over 100 instrument and effect plug-ins from Logic Studio.

Logic Express 9. Record, edit, and mix music on your Mac.

Top Features
Perfect for capturing and developing your musical inspirations
Seamless compatibility with GarageBand files
Flex Time features that make editing audio timing and tempo easier than ever
More than 70 studio-quality effect plug-ins, including vintage and modern compressors, delays, reverbs, and more
New Amp Designer plug-in to help you re-create the sound of 25 legendary amps and 25 speaker cabinets
New Pedalboard plug-in with an assortment of 30 virtual stompbox pedals inspired by the classics
36 software instrument plug-ins, including the Ultrabeat drum synth and beatbox, ES2 synth, and EXS24 sampler

Related Products
Complete your music studio with a Mac Pro workstation and two 24-inch Apple LED Cinema Displays. Take a MacBook Pro with you and make your music anywhere.

AppleCare
Offering solutions for businesses of any size, AppleCare provides ongoing product coverage, including the AppleCare Protection Plan for Mac systems and Apple flat-panel displays. To augment your experience with Apple professional software, AppleCare Professional Video Support and AppleCare Professional Audio Support offer direct access to Apple's professional support staff. For more information, visit www.apple.com/support/products.

Click here for more information about Logic Express 9 Retail

Read More...