Logic Pro 7.1 is now available from the online Apple Store. (No word yet on whether you'll find it at Apple Retail.) Thanks for the tip, Indicator!
In brief: they've added everything we've been waiting for (US$19.99 upgrade). Most exciting news:
- Better Apple Loops Integration: You can now create your
own loops using Logic or AU instruments, maintaining both audio and
MIDI. The Loops Browser now works the way it does in GarageBand (in
7.01 there were bugs with loop selection and no ability to select
libraries as in GarageBand), plus REX-to-Apple Loops conversion - Full Latency Compensation (finally!) for bus, aux, and
output channels in addition to every other mixer path means users of
Universal Audio and TC Electronic PowerCore hardware will now get
better performance. Apple calls this "delay compensation" but it's the same thing. - Ultrabeat patterns can
now be swapped, copied, and dragged to the Arrange window, finally
making this deep groove machine usable. (Previous versions actually had
no way of switching presets without losing your sequence!) - Bass Amp plug-in for emulating bass amplifiers and direct boxes.
- Hybrid Synth instruments for producing atmospheric synth sounds
- Move plug-ins between channel strips (finally!) using a hand tool, something MOTU's Digital Performer has done for years.
- Follow Tempo for regions makes regions automatically time and pitch shift when you change tempo or key, more like GarageBand and Ableton Live.
- Improved performance (read more…)
There's more, too, including new key commands, an Enhanced Timing
plug-in, more control surface support, rubber-band zone selection in
the EXS24, improvements to various instruments, and more.
Cost: US$19.99 (physical shipment on disc)
Availability: Ships in 2-3 weeks (mid-late April)
Sure, it would have been nice to get this free, but this is easily
worth the $20, thanks to the new bass amp and hybrid synth and suddenly
much-more-useful Ultrabeat drum machine. Think of it as buying a couple
of nice martinis for the development team for doing what we asked them.
(Though the latter would have the advantage of being able to grill them
for power tips.)
Also, notice this coincides roughly with the expected release of OS X Tiger, so this may add 10.4 enhancements Apple isn't talking about yet.