The software most associated with mapping video and LEDs has v6 in beta now. There’s a lot of new stuff, but the big banner feature is timelines – alongside new track, marker, and clip features.
A lot of what’s in this update is about handling time and events:
Timelines work with any parameter and include Bezier, Catmull Rom, linear, or uninterpolated curves.
Montage Tracks let you mix media as if you’re in your favorite non-linear editor.
Audio tracks now have FFT analysis which opens up both new visualization and AV sync possibilities – because you can place markers right on a spectrum view.
Markers inside timeline tracks can have follow actions based on logic and interactivity. (I wish this were standard in audio software… maybe it’s another case where Ardour already doe sit.)
MAD Clips are short, repeatable, loopable segments – so yeah, a bit like Clips in tools like Ableton Live.
MAD Conductor is a dedicated view with the overview of the project. And there’s MTC and LTC support in the software now, too.
Export the full mapping, including laser, DMX, video, and audio elements, all in one go.
DMX Outputs right within video surfaces – and use a DMX canvas just like you would another surface.
Plus Project Workspaces, Offline Library, and a more optimized UI.
Check the forum announcement which includes a link to release notes.
MadMapper 6 beta [garageCube forum]
They’re also offering a discounted $99 preorder on the upgrade, after which the price will rise to $129.
I’ll be interested to see how this is received. MadMapper has gradually evolved from just “that mapping tool” to a media server in its own right. I don’t expect that will mean you’re likely to dump your other tools any time soon, but I imagine some users will be glad to be able to do stuff right in MAD without jumping out to another tool all the time – especially when you’re in crunch time.