Digital Performer 9 released

[memyselfandus]

MOTU is now shipping Digital Performer version 9, a major upgrade to their flagship audio workstation software. Version 9 now includes MOTU's powerful MX4 MultiSynth, plus five new plug-ins, automation lanes and spectrogram display in the Sequence Editor, Retina display support, MusicXML notation export and other new features.

"DP9 is a fantastic upgrade because it gives DP users a powerful synth, five exciting new plug-ins, and top user-requested workflow enhancements, " said Jim Cooper, MOTU Director of Marketing.
MX4 MultiSynth.

Now included with DP, MX4 is a powerful 64-bit virtual instrument plug-in featuring a hybrid engine that combines several forms of synthesis, including subtractive, wavetable, frequency modulation (FM), amplitude modulation (AM) and analog emulation. Included is a new EDM-inspired soundbank with 120 new presets programmed by synth guru Erik Norlander.

Five other new plug-ins include the meticulously crafted MasterWorks FET-76 emulation of the classic 1176 limiting amplifier (revisions D/E), MultiFuzz model of Craig Anderton's seminal QuadraFuzz distortion kit from the 70's, MicroG and MicroB polyphonic octave generators for guitar and bass, and the mind-blowing MegaSynth subtractive synth processor, which lets users turn their guitar into a synthesizer. MegaSynth combines polyphonic octave generation with flexible signal routing, envelopes, LFOS, a pattern generator and macros.

DP9 productivity enhancements:

Automation lanes in the Sequence Editor — Display audio and MIDI automation data (volume, pan, plug-in settings, etc.) in separate lanes below each track for easier viewing and editing. A user can show and hide as many lanes as they wish.
Spectrogram display in the Sequence Editor — View the spectral content of each audio track, side by side with their waveforms, directly in the Sequence Editor timeline with a colorful, informative visual representation of the frequency content of the audio material.
Retina display support — View DP's carefully crafted UI themes like Carbon Fiber, Producer and the all-new DP9 theme in stunning detail on the exceptionally high image resolution of a Mac's Retina display.
MusicXML export — Export DP QuickScribe notation scores as a MusicXML file, which can then be imported into popular music notation applications like Finale and Sibelius. QuickScribe's renowned notation transcription, along with dynamics and many other musical symbols, are preserved during the file transfer.
Create Tracks command — Add many tracks to a project in one step, even different types of tracks (MIDI, audio, aux, master faders, etc.) all at once.
Floating plug-in windows — Keep plug-in windows in front of all other DP windows. Set the floating preference globally or choose to float on a per-window basis.
MIDI Learn for audio plug-ins — Map knobs, faders and switches on a MIDI controller to audio plug-in parameters. Use Digital Performer's powerful Custom Consoles feature to access advanced programming for the connection.
Mute MIDI Notes — Use the Mute Tool to temporarily silence both audio regions and MIDI notes, including multiple selected notes.
Project Notes — Save text notes in a DP project, rather than a separate text document. Log production info, keep a To Do list, build up liner notes.
More searching — Find Markers, Chunks and plug-in preferences faster with newly added search fields.

Pricing:

Full version: $499USD (street price).
Competitive upgrade: $395USD.
AudioDesk upgrade: $395USD.
Upgrade from previous version: $195USD.

http://www.motu.com/

[Orbit-50]

This update is totally laughable. Sorry Motu. You are just way too late to the party with this one.

.-.

[robotmonkey]

This update is totally laughable. Sorry Motu. You are just way too late to the party with this one.

Actually, I think that this update shows that MOTU is taking DP development very seriously. DP8 was released not that long time ago after all and this update does bring some good improvements to a already very polished and fully featured DAW. Hope they have improved the stability on PC though.

[Andywanders]

I tried DP8 on a windows machine a while back and it was terrible. A lot of my plugins wouldn't load and it crashed a LOT. Also I found the work flow to be totally unintuitive, made worse by a lousy GUI with tiny fonts.

I agree with you Orbit-50, this update is an embarrassment. The so-called "productivity enhancements" have been around in other DAWs for many years, and who needs another synth? Not me. The price is too high considering the competition, and the upgrade price - $195 - for existing customers is a joke IMO.

On a Mac system, Logic is a much better choice in all areas, and for those of us who use Windoze, even Reaper beats DP to a pulp.

Having said that, I'm aware there are a lot of happy DP users out there and if they're still happy with DP9, then good for them.

[audientronic]

I hope this means a machfive update is coming soon.

[trimph1]

This update is totally laughable. Sorry Motu. You are just way too late to the party with this one.

Actually, I think that this update shows that MOTU is taking DP development very seriously. DP8 was released not that long time ago after all and this update does bring some good improvements to a already very polished and fully featured DAW. Hope they have improved the stability on PC though.

They better have. DP8 here was, and still is, a PITA. Loads slow, then when I insert an instrument track...crash city. Even Sonar X1 does better...

[kelldammit]

They better have. DP8 here was, and still is, a PITA. Loads slow, then when I insert an instrument track...crash city. Even Sonar X1 does better...

Generally happy user here. Not sure i'd have called it a major upgrade, versus a .5 update, but oh well.

You might want to give the 9 demo a shot, Barry. VST/PC seems a bit better for me this time around, though i was definitely not having anything like the issues you were.

Otherwise, I suppose it's best for some of you guys to get your rage out here, rather than taking it out on your dogs or whatnot...so, enjoy!

[EvilDragon]

I hope this means a machfive update is coming soon.

MOTU isn't developing MF3, it's a different development team (UVI).

[aMUSEd]

It does seem a bit incredible that they are touting midi learn as a major new feature in a version 9 release. From the images the automation seems to be all straight lines, is that correct? I used to think MX4 looked an interesting synth maybe 8 years ago, but isn't it a bit long in the tooth by todays standards?

[audientronic]

I hope this means a machfive update is coming soon.

MOTU isn't developing MF3, it's a different development team (UVI).

Right, but they haven't updated the engine to the latest UVI engine version, so I'm hoping this signals a "refresh". Wouldn't mind a few new bundled instruments as well. But I would take a .3 update. At least so it can run the latest UVI libraries.

[Robert Randolph]

It does seem a bit incredible that they are touting midi learn as a major new feature in a version 9 release. From the images the automation seems to be all straight lines, is that correct? I used to think MX4 looked an interesting synth maybe 8 years ago, but isn't it a bit long in the tooth by todays standards?

DP has had the ability to control plugins with cc/nrpn/sysex for many years from what I've researched (definitely in DP5+), it's just easier now. Before you had to open a dialog and set up the link 'manually', now it's 'turn knob and turn knob'. Keep in mind that with DP you have more options for control than simply CC, and there's a lot of options for pre-filtering the data before it arrives to the plugin. It's a more complete implementation of the feature than I've seen in some other hosts, and at least on par with the best I've seen.

Automation is linearly connected points (that are filtered as necessary), but there are tools to create various shapes with various densities. It also has various shaping tools similar to S1's implementation.

[Robert Randolph]

This update is totally laughable. Sorry Motu. You are just way too late to the party with this one.

.-.

You have to keep in mind the context of the update. DP already has a lot of features that other DAWs don't have, or are 'behind on' as well. Chunks/v-racks are a big one. Sysex/nrpn support is another. 2 Score editors, drum editor, clippings, POLAR, startup items, etc..

While some of these things in the update have been in other hosts, I sit here using DP and wonder why Cubase and Logic don't have anything nearly as good as chunks or POLAR yet.

There are definitely a lot of features that I wish were added, but as a DP8 user, I am very happy with the update.

[Robert Randolph]

I tried DP8 on a windows machine a while back and it was terrible. A lot of my plugins wouldn't load and it crashed a LOT. Also I found the work flow to be totally unintuitive, made worse by a lousy GUI with tiny fonts.

I agree with you Orbit-50, this update is an embarrassment. The so-called "productivity enhancements" have been around in other DAWs for many years, and who needs another synth? Not me. The price is too high considering the competition, and the upgrade price - $195 - for existing customers is a joke IMO.

On a Mac system, Logic is a much better choice in all areas, and for those of us who use Windoze, even Reaper beats DP to a pulp.

Having said that, I'm aware there are a lot of happy DP users out there and if they're still happy with DP9, then good for them.

Windows support was pretty terrible when 8 came out. There's no doubt about that. It was improved and v9 appears to be much better as well. Personally, I still wouldn't use it on Windows for anything more than doodling, but there are plenty of people that use it seriously according to the postings on motunation.

FWIW, I hopped on board with DP8 after spending dozens (if not hundreds) of hours demoing other DAWs. I ended up with DP8 as I felt it was the most capable software for what I do (primarily audio work, heavy editing, tracking, mixing). In my experience, Reaper and Logic were quite far behind, and Cubase was just about on par.

I'm not biased at all, and was ready to go with whichever DAW worked best for my applications. I was moving from HDX, and I'm quite satisfied now. I'd be curious what you feel is lacking in DP that makes you say such a strong statement.

[Orbit-50]

This update is totally laughable. Sorry Motu. You are just way too late to the party with this one.

Actually, I think that this update shows that MOTU is taking DP development very seriously. DP8 was released not that long time ago after all and this update does bring some good improvements to a already very polished and fully featured DAW. Hope they have improved the stability on PC though.

They have in fact not addressed the PC issues. It shows that they are just trying to move on from that fiasco, and use DP8 as a "bogus we are moving into the future with features that should have been there for 10 years already update cash cow" for it's Mac users. I can't possibly see any Windows user's falling for this update when DP8 2 years later, is still the worst performing PC DAW in history.

Dude, let me tell you, in the 5 minutes that DP seems to take, to load up, in the end, it tells me that a bunch of plugins had serious problems and could not load. What? They seem to work fine in every other DAW I have. That's just ridiculous man. I don't know what criteria DP goes by when groping VSTi on startup, but I do know that it is completely out of touch with everything going on in this day and age. There is no way that this is acceptable in the year 2015. I'm sorry.

Having said that, I will say though, that if the Mac users can get passed the "more than even Steinberg has the balls to charge for this type of update" price of $195, then they will be happy with this update because they at least have a pretty stable working product. I'm happy for you.

I tried DP8 on a windows machine a while back and it was terrible. A lot of my plugins wouldn't load and it crashed a LOT. Also I found the work flow to be totally unintuitive, made worse by a lousy GUI with tiny fonts.

I agree with you Orbit-50, this update is an embarrassment. The so-called "productivity enhancements" have been around in other DAWs for many years, and who needs another synth? Not me. The price is too high considering the competition, and the upgrade price - $195 - for existing customers is a joke IMO.

On a Mac system, Logic is a much better choice in all areas, and for those of us who use Windoze, even Reaper beats DP to a pulp.

Having said that, I'm aware there are a lot of happy DP users out there and if they're still happy with DP9, then good for them.

Mirrored!

They better have. DP8 here was, and still is, a PITA. Loads slow, then when I insert an instrument track...crash city. Even Sonar X1 does better...

2 years and still no improvement.

It does seem a bit incredible that they are touting midi learn as a major new feature in a version 9 release. From the images the automation seems to be all straight lines, is that correct? I used to think MX4 looked an interesting synth maybe 8 years ago, but isn't it a bit long in the tooth by todays standards?

I was floored. I had to read it over and over to see if there was...well...something?
As I said, if there are rabid DP users out there and they have $195 to burn, then this update will suffice. I guess?

[Robert Randolph]

While I'm here, I may as well complain about the lack of an absolute grid still. *shakes fist*