Shift 2 released: beautiful new resizable UI; AAX64 support

[colin@loomer]

I'm pleased to give you all a beta preview of the forthcoming update of Shift 2, our multi-tap diatonic pitch shifter. This build adds AAX64 Native plug-in support, plenty of fixes, but perhaps most interestingly, heralds the move over to resizable interfaces.



The UI can be resized from between 50% to 400%, with preset sizes from 50% to 200% available under the Options / Zoom menu. You can also drag the interface to any size using the bottom right corner. You can also restore the UI to its standard size by holding Shift + cmd/alt + R at the same time; handy if you've made it so large that you can't reach the options or right-hand corner.

Any feedback, bugs, or queries would be most appreciated. I can be contacted either by posting here, by PM, or via the general Loomer support email. There been plenty of changes both to the UI and audio processing code, so if anyone discovers anything amiss I'll set about correcting it with my usual bug-squashing haste.

Note the PDF documentation is still for v2.2. This will, of course, be updated before the official release.

Shift 2.3.0 for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux can be downloaded here:

Windows
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzRR2B ... sp=sharing

Mac OS X
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzRR2B ... sp=sharing

Linux 32-bit
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzRR2B ... sp=sharing

Linux 64-bit
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzRR2B ... sp=sharing

A full list of changes:

• (new) AAX 64-bit Native plug-ins for Windows and Mac OS X.
• (new) New modern flat-style UI.
• (new) UI can now be dynamically rescaled.
• (feature) Keyboard entry of rotary parameter values. Rotary controls can now be typed directly into by clicking on the text value below the control.
• (improvement) Improved performance on real-time and very low-latency systems.
• (improvement: Windows) The 32-bit and 64-bit VST plug-ins are now installed as separate components. You can choose which one(s) to install, as well as selecting different install folders for each architecture.
• (feature: Linux) Added "Show Directory" to the preset browser, which will will reveal the selected preset directory in your window manager.
• (improvement: Mac OS X) Installer and all installed components are now signed in compliance with Mac OS X's Gatekeeper system.
• (improvement) Significantly improved UI response speed; reduced CPU usage when parameters are automated whilst the UI is open.
• (improvement: Linux) Presets and configuration files are now located to comply with the XDG Base Directory Specification. Older installations will still use any existing preset library location to maintain backwards compatibility.
• (fix: Mac OS X Audio Unit) Fixed minor memory leak in parameter names.
• (improvement) Fixed CPU spikes which could occur when changing quickly cycling through presets.
• (fix) Fixed typo in display when detuning by a diatonic fourth or fifth.
• (fix) Fixed parameter jumps that could occur in certain hosts when modulating parameters using the XY pad.
• (improvement) Added notches to mid-point of bi-directional modulation rotaries to make it easier to set the values to 0.

Thanks!

[taoyoyo]

So far so good Colin, installed without issue.

Looks like most of the UI is retina-friendly too? Nice work!

Is there a way to select a zoom level as a default size for the UI to always open at? This would be a FR if not!

Also... I did get a blank UI screen at one point when opening in Machine... will shoot you an email if I can get a solid repro on it.

Cheers,

Alan

[colin@loomer]

Great; thanks for the feedback! Let me know if you manage to reproduce the Maschine issue.

The UI should open at the same size it was when you last closed it. Which, I have just realised, means that with multiple instances you'd need to close one first in order to set 'this' as the default size. I'll see if I can improve this for the (inevitable) next build!

[jethrobull]

Looks gorgeous Colin. Love it !

[colin@loomer]

Thanks. It's definitely easier on the eye than the previous interface. I'd appreciate any feedback on this style of interface, because in terms of style, flatness and clarity, I'd like it to be the model for all the plug-ins.

[taoyoyo]

I'm also loving the new flat style... would be interesting to see how it might work with Aspect.

[lxegs]

great ! thank for your long term support !

clement

[taoyoyo]

Great; thanks for the feedback! Let me know if you manage to reproduce the Maschine issue.

Could not repro. The only thing I've seen so far that looks out of place is that in Bitwig (1.1.5) the Midi Indicator on Shift UI flashes blue continuously.

The UI should open at the same size it was when you last closed it. Which, I have just realised, means that with multiple instances you'd need to close one first in order to set 'this' as the default size. I'll see if I can improve this for the (inevitable) next build!

Cool, thanks Colin

[Gosh]

looks very nice. can we have a comparable gui update for sequent, please? with regard to sequent i would also prefer a slightly different, more subdued colour scheme for the sequencer (a bit too much orange and purple for me).
cheers

[colin@loomer]

Yes, everything will be heading in this direction as I transition over to vector based scaleable UIs.

[colin@loomer]

Thanks all for the feedback and suggestions. I'm confident that the 2.3 changes haven't introduced or broken anything, so have now uploaded Shift 2.3.1 and made it the official release.

There are a few minor changes since 2.3.0; namely:

• Cyrillic characters are now displayed properly in the preset browser.
• The UI size is persisted when resscale, not just when the UI is closed, so opening a second instance will adopt the size of the current UI.
• Various small UI tweaks.

Shift 2 can be downloaded for Mac OS X, Windows, and Linux here.

Thanks!