Bitwig Studio 4 announced (+beta available)!

[antic604]

...for version 4, new musical timelines have arrived.

This means comping for audio clips, both in the Clip Launcher and the Arranger. A new set of Operators, for changing the chance, recurrence, and more of any note or audio event. Random Spread for any expression point (like per-note pitch, or audio panning) with perfect control. And Native Apple Silicon support on Mac, even allowing Intel and ARM plug-ins to work side-by-side.

What's new: https://www.bitwig.com/whats-new/

• audio comping (well, comping)

• operators (basically Elektron-like trig conditions for MIDI & audio events)

• expressions spread (randomised per-note expression parameters)

• import of (most) data from Ableton & FL projects

• more audio file export options (wav, flac, ogg, mp3, opus)

• native Apple Silicon support

Detailed release notes: https://downloads-eu.bitwig.com/beta/4. ... eta-1.html

https://youtu.be/en41BPCubUM

https://youtu.be/DANWf9gG8Vg

https://youtu.be/wzGtsl-opXQ

[PieBerger]

You beat me to it, naturally

[SLiC]

OK, I'll be the first to say it - lots of stuff we all were expecting/hoping for isn't there. If you didn't want comping you will probably be disappointed! personally I did so....

Comping in Launcher and Arranger...they bested Live 11 in that respect
'Operators' and 'Expression Spread'- no one predicted that! Very Bitwig! Love it!

This one is just for me...

Chances are you have more than one music program on your computer. (We do.) So on the import side, you can now import data from your FL Studio (FLP) and Ableton Live (ALS) files into Bitwig.

[PieBerger]

This one is just for me...

Chances are you have more than one music program on your computer. (We do.) So on the import side, you can now import data from your FL Studio (FLP) and Ableton Live (ALS) files into Bitwig.

Oh snap, that's pretty slick actually. I wonder what data you'll be able to bring across!

Edit:

Bitwig Studio version 4.0 can import some data from projects saved in Ableton Live version 8.1 or later.

What's Imported

Main arrangement including clips, tempo, time signatures, cue markers, and automation. Clip launcher scenes including names, colors, and clips (along with applicable playback parameters).
Audio, MIDI, and group tracks (and their contained tracks), along with their data and output routings.
VST/VST3 plug-ins, along with settings and any automation.
MIDI clip features (such as MPE, note chance, and velocity spread) and audio clip features (like pitch/volume modulation and warping) will be imported as closely as possible. Warp modes are converted to the closest match.

Not Imported

Track input routings (MIDI From and Audio From)
Native Ableton devices
Audio Units (AU) plug-ins

[antic604]

Oh snap, that's pretty slick actually. I wonder what data you'll be able to bring across!

I guess it's time to buy that upgrade plan & join the beta!

[jens]

WTF??? They list support for Apple Silicon as a major new feature for V4? That's beyond absurd!

[PieBerger]

Oh snap, that's pretty slick actually. I wonder what data you'll be able to bring across!

I guess it's time to buy that upgrade plan & join the beta!

I guess so!

[SLiC]

For people who don't like links!

Bitwig Studio 4.0 Beta 1

AUDIO COMPING, ANYWHERE
Audio comping is available, for traditional uses and much more

RECORDING TO THE ARRANGER OR LAUNCHER
To record on the Arranger timeline: enable Arranger overdub (+), and new recordings will be added as comping take lanes within existing audio clips
For "cycle recording," just enable the Arranger loop (along with overdub)
To record into the Clip Launcher: from the Play menu, enable Record as Comping Takes, and set an appropriate Take Length
Clips containing take lanes show the comping icon on their top right edge
Since comping lives within the clip, comping clips can be freely dragged between the Launcher and Arranger
Since comping lives within the clip, comping clips can be saved to your library, with take lanes intact and editable

EFFORTLESS EDITING
When a clip containing takes is selected, the Detail Editor Panel displays the Comping expression view for editing
Each take lane is given its own color for visualizing the sources used, and each take can be renamed
Dragging over a portion of any take lane to create a comping region
[SHIFT]-dragging snaps to the beat grid
Clicking on any take lane uses that take for the nearest comping region and selects the region
Pressing [UP] or [DOWN] moves the comp region to the take above or below
Pressing [LEFT] or [RIGHT] selects the previous or next comp region
Double-clicking a take lane selects it in its entirety as the current comp
From the composite lane, dragging the top of any comping region up and down adjusts its gain
From the composite lane, sliding the bottom of any comping region left and right adjusts its timing
Sliding a boundary where two comping regions meet moves their fade point
Sliding a take boundary in the take lanes area also moves the transition point between comp regions
Dragging near a boundary in the composite lane allows shortening a comp region to remove audio (including breaths, etc.)
Deleting a time selection within a comp similarly replaces the selection with silence
[ALT]-dragging a take lane slides the time of that entire lane (and any comp regions pointing to it)
[SHIFT]-[ALT]-dragging a take lane slides the time of that all take lanes (and all comp regions referencing them)
LAYERED COMP EDITING
With multiple comping clips selected, layered editing mode of the Detail Editor Panel allows comp editing of multiple clips at once
In the Comping expression view, the target layer shows all of its take lanes, and additional clips show only their composite lanes
Using any of the comp editing gestures while holding [CTL] ([CMD] on Mac) applies that edit to all comps shown in the editor

FOLD TO TAKES FOR COMPING ANY SOURCE
Wrap any audio clip into takes by selecting Fold to Takes
Select either how many takes to create, or the length for each take
Drag any audio file from the Browser Panel to the take lane area to add a new take lane
Right-click on any take lane header for Fold to Takes of that individual lane (in case a file is longer than the current comp, etc.)

OPERATORS FOR ANY NOTE OR AUDIO EVENT
Operators change when and how events are triggered. Devices have modulators; now notes and audio events have Operators. One or more modes can be used on each event.

MODE: CHANCE
Sets the likelihood that any event will occur, adding probability to make any loop dynamic
Is visualized on events like the face of dice
A higher die value represents a higher probability
For notes, a Chance expression editor is available beside velocity

MODE: REPEATS
Causes retriggers within the original event, turning a single event into a ratchet, or polyrhythm, or…
Repeat Value can be set two ways:
Values below 1 set the note rate for repeats (e.g., 1/2, 1/3, 1/12…)
Values above 1 set the number of slices the event is cut into
Right-clicking on this value provides a menu of common note rates
Repeat Curve bends the repeats to either start closer together, or to speed up at the end
For notes, Repeats End Velocity sets a relative target velocity for the end of the note repeat
This is also editable from the velocity expression lane
[ALT]-dragging on the end velocity point adjusts the velocity curve of the repeats
Is visualized on events as slices where the repeats happen, just like the event restarts at each of those points
Right-click on any event to Slice At Repeats, turning each repeat into an independent note or audio event

MODE: OCCURRENCE
Sets conditions for each event
One Condition can be selected:
Always → Plays unconditionally
on First → Plays on first cycle
never First → Skips the first cycle
with Previous → Plays when last event did
without Previous → Plays when last event didn't
with Prev Key → Plays when this key's last event did
without Prev Key → Plays when this key's last event didn't
Fill on → Plays when Fill mode is on
Fill off → Plays when Fill mode is off
The Fill button is a global performance control
It is available from the Play menu, and can be pinned beside the menus
It can be mapped to MIDI controller, or automated from the Master track under Transport > Fill
Is visualized by displaying the condition icon on the event

MODE: RECURRENCE
Gives each event its own looping timeline
Recurrence Length sets the number of loops per cycle, from 2 to 8
Toggles are then available for each loop
So if the length is set to 4, four toggles are provided. And if only the first and last toggles are enabled, then this event will trigger on the first and fourth loops of this clip. (And then the fifth and eighth loops, etc. etc.)
Is visualized on the event by a series of shaded (on) and empty (off) rectangles

GENERAL WORKFLOW
A new inspector section for Operators is available when note or audio events are selected
All Operator settings are neutral by default, creating events that always sound
When an Operator mode has active values, the mode is visualized on the note/audio event as described above
Each mode icon represents a toggle that can be turned off and back on at any time

TAKE A CHANCE ON PREDICTABILITY WITH EXPAND
Right-click on any Launcher clip and choose Expand to print any number of loops into a new clip
Unlike Bounce options, Expand generates the type of clip you started with (so an audio clip will create audio clips, and a note clip will create note clips)
Expand removes any Operator that can be calculated ahead of time (particularly good for "cycle-aware" options, like Recurrence, or the First conditions of Occurrence)
Options are available to:
Preserve Chance values, instead of printing their result
Preserve expression Spread values, instead of printing their result
This provides clips with predictable notes, and a visualization of how Operators are actually creating larger patterns within patterns
When Chance settings are used, Expand a clip several times to glimpse into different possible timelines

SPREAD FOR ANY EXPRESSION POINT
Expression automation points each have a Spread value now, defining a range for the point that will be randomly selected each time the clip loops
Notes have these per-note expressions that can use Spread:
Velocity (just defined at the beginning of each note)
Pitch
Timbre
Pressure
Gain
Pan
Audio events have these expressions that can use Spread:
Gain
Pan
Pitch
Formant (used by some stretch modes)
Random values will glide to and from their neighboring points, just as regular automation would
[ALT]-drag on any expression point to define its Spread
When the clip is not playing, the Spread range will be visualized with a color gradient showing the bipolar range
When the clip is playing, the randomly selected values will be shown at the beginning of each loop cycle
Spread values are also accessible in the Inspector by:
Selecting individual expression point(s), and using the Spread field in the automation Point section
Selecting a clip (or multiple note/audio events) and using the parameter's histogram, which now has a value for Spread of that parameter
To grab a reproducible random sequence, each clip now has a Seed parameter
By default, the value is Random, producing different results each time the clip is triggered
By clicking this field, a particular Seed value is produced and saved (displayed as a shiny bit field)
To produce a new Seed value, just click the field again. Or click the die icon to return to total Random.
When recording a performance from the Clip Launcher to the Arranger, the Seed value used during recording will be preserved in the new Arranger clips, preserving the exact sequence playback as what you heard during performance.
This Seed functionality applies to all expression Spread values within a clip, as well as any Chance Operators used
MACOS: NATIVE APPLE SILICON SUPPORT
Bitwig Studio now runs natively on Apple Silicon
Thru Bitwig's unique plug-in hosting, Intel VSTs can still be used alongside ARM VSTs

LOCALIZATION OF BITWIG STUDIO
The Bitwig Studio application is now localized in Chinese, Japanese, and German
The language is set in the Dashboard under Settings > User Interface > Language, at the top of that page
Device and parameter names are the same, but most functions, labels, and in-app documentation (for the 300+ devices and modules) are translated
Improvements will keep being made throughout the beta period

IMPROVED EXPORT OPTIONS
Export Audio function and dialog has been revamped
You can now choose from various audio formats to export:
WAV
FLAC
Opus (information here)
OGG Vorbis
MP3
Appropriate profiles are available for each format
Multiple formats can be exported at once (in case you want a lossless version for your listening, and a lossy version to email, etc.)
The Sample Rate for exports can also be set now
If a time selection is made is the Arranger, that is used as the export Time Range

NEW FEATURES
Import of some data from FL Studio project files (FLP)
Import of some data from Ableton Live project files (ALS)
Auxy can now export a Bitwig Studio project file
Waveforms are now shown in a Perceptual scale by default, for easier reading (setting is in the Dashboard under Settings > User Interface > View > Waveform display)
Anonymized, optional usage data collection is now possible (details here), to help us improve Bitwig Studio

IMPROVEMENTS
Gain handles are now available at the top of each audio events and clips, both on the Arranger and in the Detail Editor Panel
Time sliding handles are now available at the bottom of each audio event in the Detail Editor Panel
Polymer/ Grid modules (Filters): Many filters now handle extreme resonance and modulation cases more smoothly

[antic604]

I guess so!

$142 at JRR Shop with "group" code

[antic604]

For people who don't like links!

...but prefer a wall of text?

[SLiC]

For people who don't like links!

...but prefer a wall of text?

Makes it easier for people to cut and paste out specific things they want to complain about

I have downloaded and am already running BW4 (working from home today )

[PieBerger]

I guess so!

$142 at JRR Shop with "group" code

Knew about this already and budgeted appropriately in anticipation . $142 is £101, very reasonable!

[SLiC]

OK- going off line to make some music with Bitwig 4 for a while!

Fist impressions- it isn't pastel! Looks the same - few new buttons up top left ('fill' for operators and comping takes) and at the bottom you now have show note expression (that now includes probability natively)

Comping and Probability of events are obviously both in Live 11 as new features so....

Still no 'network sharing' that was announced in V1! I thought that was definitely coming!

Still no grid midi out which to be honest is the thing I most wanted, but comping was second so....

'Operators' looks like the interesting one. Will dig in, but to me this is more like a 3.4 release (unless you are an M1 user maybe!) but ultimately I bought the 3.3 release and got this one free so....can't complain!

[antic604]

Comping and Probability of events are obviously both in Live 11 as new features so....

Well, Live has MIDI comping as well, which - for me - was much more important than audio comping, especially if it would be working in hybrid tracks (e.g. bouncing in place a MIDI clip would put audio clip on the timeline, whereas MIDI would be pushed down to comp lane). Big dissapointment for me, frankly

But probability stuff in Bitwig is 10x more advanced now than in Live, that only gives you note probability & velocity range. Operators + Expression Spread are HUGE

[PieBerger]

I'm happy enough with audio comping and so will most people who need it for vocal and or instrument recordings. I don't do any recording but it's super useful for splicing together different lead variations etc, so it's a welcome feature. I'm a bit gutted they didn't add MIDI Grid, but keeping pace with Live on comping and operators and offering M1 support ahead of it, was a smart move imo.