Zebra 3 Public Beta 2 Revision 20552

[Urs]

UPDATE: A new version is here: viewtopic.php?t=628418



Hi everyone,

first, thanks so much for your enthusiastic engagement and all the feedback, improvement ideas and bug reports you posted in the weeks following the release of the first Zebra 3 beta. It was quite overwhelming at times (and time consuming).

We've been quite busy the last few weeks, thinking about all the constructive criticism, incorporating some of the suggested improvements, and fixing a gazillion of bugs.

We've added tools to help with hunting down modulation assignments. Each modulated parameter now displays a visual clue (a small dot) at all times.
A context menu on each parameter allows to add or remove modulation sources, shows all assigned sources and lets you switch the active source for quick mod depth adjustments.
A context menu on all modulation sources allows to view, remove, reassign or swap targets. And the new Target Finder adds some optional visualizations to quickly locate all assigned targets on the GUI.

Let us know how it works for you.

There's a new preference to deal with scroll bars and parameter changes via the scroll wheel. You can now choose to use the scroll wheel exclusively for scrolling the UI, or to keep adjusting parameters and being able to scroll the UI too.

As per your request, we added a Wedge mode to the Distortion module. It's not exactly the same as in Zebra2, so please check it out and let us know how it sounds.

We fixed multiple crashes, but since it was hard for us to reproduce some of them, we are not sure if we caught every issue. If you keep experiencing crashes, please contact our support so we can collect data and fix the remaining issues asap.

The list of parameters exposed to host automation has changed, many parameters got new IDs. Parameter automation in existing projects will most likely be broken. There will be further changes to the parameter list before the final release, so please be aware that project automation might break again while using these betas.

We've added a few module presets for the Oscillator and FMO modules. Over time, we'll also add module presets for the other modules.

We'll continue collecting all your feedback and bug reports, so please keep 'em coming.

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Downloads:

Zebra 3.0 Public Beta 20552 Mac Updated to 20552 on January 21
Zebra 3.0 Public Beta 20552 Windows Updated to 20552 on January 21
Zebra 3.0 Public Beta 20552 Linux Updated to 20552 on January 21

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Licenses, Pricing

Everyone eligible for a free upgrade (owners of both Zebra 2 & The Dark Zebra licenses from before they became Zebra Legacy) should already have their license in their account. Head over to our My Licenses page to request your license card.

Zebra 2 license owners (from before it became Zebra Legacy) can upgrade to Zebra 3 for 30€ - just also head over to our My Licenses page, your license email contains a link.

During the beta phase, everyone else can purchase a Zebra 3 license at the introductory price of 179,-€ here (note, this is 70€ off from 249€, so this is better than anything we'd be able to offer owners of Zebra Legacy):

Pre-Order Zebra 3 for 179€

And for everyone who just wants to test Zebra 3 for a while without running into the demo restrictions, we got a beta license card (it'll expire at some point...):

Download the Zebra 3.0 Public Beta License Card

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Changelog (changes since the first public beta, revision 20399):

New or Improved:

* Improved modulation overview system
* New preference to deal with scroll bar and parameter control
* Distortion: Wedge mode added
* Voices are now released sooner if MSEG is used as VCA and there is no more signal
* Osc and FMO got a few module presets, other modules will follow later
* Browser: Double-clicking a preset now switches to the Synth tab
* Improved FMO phase behaviour

Fixed Issues:

* Multiple crashes
* Exciter trigger issue
* Modal resonator arp repetions were not distributed linearly
* Osc curve morph modulation could result in dropouts
* Filter palette was missing some visuals if Filter 1 wasn't loaded yet
* Filter FM could cause the filter to explode
* LFO could get out of sync if modulated
* LFO slew could cause unwanted artifacts
* MSEG curve morph modulation could cause clicks
* Envelope wasn't releasing voices if "Release" was used as trigger source
* TextureVerb could produce unwanted clicks
* TextureVerb Freeze button could accidentally be modulated via matrix
* TextureVerb Freeze button visuals could get stuck on Windows
* EQ display issues when switching modes
* Pitches: Post modulation quantization wasn't working correctly
* Vector mixer animation could slow down the UI on Windows
* Multiple issues when using Undo/Redo
* Browser: Discover folder now respects the search root
* Browser: Showcase folder didn't stay hidden
* License card could not be installed if Windows user account name contained special characters
* Wavetable export was stored in Zebralette 3's wavetable folder
* Crash on Linux when soloing modules in the grid

Known Issues:

* Beta Tester license card takes precedence over user license (workaround: delete the beta card)
* Automation parameter IDs have changed, existing project automation might break
* Loading the Init preset will not reset all parameters in Bitwig using CLAP (Bitwig bug)
* Mouse sensitivity issue on some Windows systems (switch off "Hide Mouse on Drag" to fix it)
* VST3 failing plugin scan in Digital Performer
* MIDI table scrollbar is invisible
* Preset adapter to load Zebralette 3 presets inside Zebra 3 is not finished yet
* Waveform import from .wav files is an experimental feature
* Animations might be slow on some Windows systems (there's a preference to switch them off)
* The key control selector does not adjust its position when using the scrollbar
* Modulation depth indicator UI glitch when swapping Osc FX slots
* Some quirks and small bugs in the curve editor still remain
* Guide curves are currently only saved for MSEG 1, not for 2-4
* The plot graph can cause audio glitches on Linux (switch off the plot to fix it)
* The preset context menu misses the favourites and junk icons on Linux
* The Pitches page UI is very broken on Linux
* Crash or Freeze when soloing modules in the grid (Linux only)
* Mouse cursor quirks in Pro Tools on Windows
* No module preset option for curve sets yet
* No multicore support yet
* No MPE support yet

[wilx]

Congrats team! Just playing now - new modulation stuff is v helpful. I'd love to (eventually) see something that indicates where the modulation is putting the parameters in real time - I know that's been a contentious ask, but there are much subtler ways to do it than Pigments. For example Equator 2 or Alchemy, or some brand-new implementation that allows us to just see that information in an easy to access way, even if it's behind a contextual menu or on the matrix rather than the source or target. It could be low-contrast so it doesn't look like a flashing neon light, it's just visible if you're specifically looking for that information.

Just for things like - I can hear the sound being affected by something pulsing in semiquavers - not sure if it's distortion, a filter, or something else. And being able to visually go 'oh yeah, that thing is moving up/down/pulsing in semiquavers, let's see if that's the thing I can hear...

But this is a really solid step and does a lot of the work needed I think.

EDIT - I'll add that the general design (so far) makes it a really pleasant synth to sit with for a while and tinker. I'd love a light version, but the contrast/colour/spacing works really nicely, so kudos to the GUI people.

[ashone]

Great! New version.

[p3tr0m]

Amazing improvements, really love the better modulation visualisation. The modulation hinting dot seemed a bit subtile to immediately notice the modulation setup.

Trying out the new changes I was thinking if it might be possible to always display all modulation previews on the parameter control in multiple rings. Selecting a modulation source from the context menu could just grey out the others or hide them entirely, to have the same visual representation of the selected modulation as currently. When no modulation source is selected the multi colored ring could be displayed. A colored dot at the modulation sources to better indicate what modulation source it represents would make the assignment very clear. For a case where like 4+ modulation sources are controling a parameter its totally fine to hide those further ones.

Zebra3UI Suggestion.jpg

Something additional that came to mind:
When adjusting modulation depth of multiple parameters without the matrix view it requires to jump trough these selections, I was thinking about a modulation quick edit panel showing up when pressing on the modulation rings, or the modulation indicator dot. Could need to hover over it for 1s then the dot fills green, pressing pulls up a modulation quick assignment plane, where a list of all modulation sources are present with a dragable circle to edit the modulation depth.

I am not sure how well this integrates into the workflow, as I am currently pretty much fine selecting the modulation I want to edit.

For me mainly seeing all modulations and how they affect parameters clearly without the need of selecting any sources is the main wish for improvement.

[PieBerger]

The new modulation management system is very welcome, thanks!

Edit: is there a way to save a custom init preset? If not, could there be?

[enCiphered]

I appreciate the minimalist dot but when modulation is this deep, I was hoping for something closer to a light show.
The UI feels like the neighbor politely asking it to keep the noise down. Like a Zen reminder that modulation exists somewhere.

Give us blink blink all over the place. If an LFO moves, the knob should panic a little! Eye candy feedback, something impossible to ignore

[PieBerger]

I appreciate the minimalist dot but when modulation is this deep, I was hoping for something closer to a light show.
The UI feels like the neighbor politely asking it to keep the noise down. Like a Zen reminder that modulation exists somewhere.

Give us blink blink all over the place. If an LFO moves, the knob should panic a little! Eye candy feedback, something impossible to ignore

I don't want that and it's unreasonable, insofar as it's not expected from any other dev, to make it optional

[stippenstoh]

Do we need to backup self made presets / module presets before updating or are they preserved?

Give us blink blink all over the place.

Please don't

[XorXisT]

Hell no !

Please no distracting crap.

[ffx]

OMG! Xmas again!!

I am all for modulation visualization 120%, let it blink in all colors of the rainbow!

[tasmaniandevil]

Do we need to backup self made presets / module presets before updating or are they preserved?

Presets and module presets you create yourself won't be deleted by an update.

[0matt]

No more visual feedback at the cost of CPU or the audio engine. What’s visualized is already well thought out, and the scope can be used for everything else.
Lasers and tentacles

[stippenstoh]

Presets and module presets you create yourself won't be deleted by an update.

Thanks!

[Funkybot's Evil Twin]

Something very weird happening with presets/Zebra's audio engine on my system:

Reaper, Windows, CLAP

1. Load Zebra3 on a new track
2. Go to the preset browser > Public Beta COllection
3. Click on the Ice Worlds preset
4. Play some notes

Result: no sound

5. Change to the "Ice Stranding" preset

Result: there's a pop and distorted sound, seemingly from the release of the Ice Worlds preset as you change to the Ice Stranding preset. Reaper's meters go into the red but not enough to trigger an Auto-Mute.

6. Play some notes

Result: the Ice Stranding preset makes no sound either. You'll get ocassional loud pops followed by reverbs just leaving it running.

7. Move to the Hush Morph preset

Result: that one's ok.

Not sure what's going on. Gotta run to work but figured I'd get in a quick report.

[tasmaniandevil]

Something very weird happening with presets/Zebra's audio engine on my system:

Thanks, I can confirm. They suddenly stay silent over here too.
We'll look into it.
Could be the TextureVerb module.