Heavens*OnEarth has announced the release of Sapphire for Native Instruments' Reaktor 5.
Sapphire is a polyphonic sequencer with 16 sequencer channels. Each sequencer channel can create overlapping notes, sequences, and chords with pitch, velocity, and note duration set for each step. Each sequencer channel can play in clock, mono/poly step, poly layer, or poly fugue mode. In clock, layer and fugue modes, each sequencer has its own tempo and shuffle settings. Any combination of clock, MIDI channels, and other sequencers can trigger and gate each sequencer.
All sequencers can modulate each other's pitch, velocity, and duration. Each sequencer can filter, clip, mirror, transform, and scale pitch and/or velocity (optionally on particular pattern steps) on input triggers and modulations, or on output notes. A note which is triggered on one channel by one sequencer, then modulated by other sequencers, can recursively modulate the trigger and modulation channels, then synchronously output triggered and trigger notes in the same clock cycle. Each pattern sequencer has a dedicated bar sequencer which can change the pattern sequence each bar cycle, with up to 2,048 pattern steps. Each sequencer can trigger automatic snapshot change after a settable number of pattern cycles. Each sequencer can record notes from MIDI and any number of other sequencers, simultaneously playing back the resulting pattern in a different tempo. Each sequencer can output pitch bend, aftertouch, and MIDI controller values with adjustable smoothing rates. Each sequencer supports preset and custom pitch remapping to 38 different scales on output and modulation values.
Any sequencer channel can send its notes to any MIDI output. The number of voices and sustain mode is settable for each MIDI output separately. Internally, 32 separate voice allocators support up to 256 voices and 256 modulations in parallel. Four MIDI outputs may also be directed to other instruments inside the Sapphire ensemble.
The ensemble also includes 150 demo and tutorial snapshots and 8 user banks, with 2 analog-emulation synthesizers and a multimode synth/sampler drum machine. Dynamic help in a separate instrument includes >70 topics, 18,000 words, 3 interactive pictures, and 24 screenshots.
Pricing & Availability
Sapphire for Native Instruments' Reaktor 5 costs $79.99, including a subscription to all updates until 2010. You must already own Reaktor5 of course.
