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About the security content of Logic Pro X 10.3.1

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About Apple security updates

For our customers' protection, Apple doesn't disclose, discuss, or confirm security issues until an investigation has occurred and patches or releases are available. Recent releases are listed on the Apple security updates page.

For more information about security, see the Apple Product Security page. You can encrypt communications with Apple using the Apple Product Security PGP Key.

Apple security documents reference vulnerabilities by CVE-ID when possible.

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Logic Pro X 10.3 release notes

Posted in Apple Logic

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New in Logic Pro X 10.3.2

New features and enhancements

  • Includes three new Drummers who play percussion in the styles of Pop, Songwriter, and Latin.    
  • Add new Drummer loops to your song and then customize them with performance controls.
  • The pitch of an audio region can now be transposed or fine-tuned.
  • Alchemy includes an automatic time align feature for improved morphing.
  • New additive effects in Alchemy expand the options for filtering and modulating sound.
  • There is now a key command to Copy Section Between Locators (Global), which copies all content between the locators regardless of selection.
  • In Flex Pitch, there is now a contextual menu item to reset all Flex Pitched notes in all currently selected regions.
  • Adds support for creating momentary buttons in Scripter.
  • The Surround Panner and Surround Balancer have been updated with new Retina-ready interfaces.
  • In the Arpeggiator, it is now possible to adjust the lengths of individual steps in the pattern grid.
  • Option-clicking a MIDI Monitor object in the Environment now clears the contents of all MIDI Monitor objects in the project.
  • There is now a key command to Toggle Help Tags.
  • Pressing Option while showing or hiding Track Alternatives now toggles the setting for all tracks.
  • It is now possible to link L and R controls for Dual Mono plug-ins.
  • There is now a key command Remove Fades.
  • There is now an Audio > General preference to reserve lowered number busses from auto assignment.
  • Shift-clicking when closing in a plug-in window now closes all open plug-in windows.

Learn more about the new features in Logic Pro X.

Stability and reliability

  • Logic Pro no longer quits unexpectedly after performing Undo after the command Copy Selected Regions to Selected Track on a marquee selection is used.
  • Logic Pro no longer sometimes quits unexpectedly when:
    • Using the Repeat Regions/Events command after inserting a note with the Pencil tool in the Piano Roll when Link is off and the Library is open.
    • Opening a project that contains instances of Camel Audio Alchemy 1.5 and Logic Pro X Alchemy.
    • Moving a marquee selected set of flex markers in the Audio Track Editor.
    • Selecting a newly downloaded Drum Machine patch while the Musical Typing window and Drummer Editor are open.
  • Logic Pro no longer hangs when importing audio into an independent Project Audio window when no other windows are open.
  • Logic Pro no longer sometimes hangs when:
    • Arrowing between certain patches in the Library.
    • Copying several times to the Tracks area in quick succession.
    • The Change Gain function is used in the Audio File editor.

Performance

  • Improves responsiveness of the graphical user interface especially on Retina or other high resolution displays when doing the following: 
    • Resizing windows and areas.
    • Dragging and trimming regions.
    • Opening and closing the Piano Roll editor.
    • Zooming and scrolling in large projects, especially those that contain a large number of flex edits or tempo events.
    • Stepping through tracks using the up/down arrow keys. 
    • Adjusting parameters of multiple selected events in the Event List when the Step Editor is also open.
    • Selecting grouped tracks with Flex edits using a EuCon control surface.
    • Adjusting region borders.
  • Adjusting region parameters on audio regions with Flex Pitch active while playing back no longer sometimes leads to bursts of noise.
  • Indexing the Apple Loop library is now much faster.
  • Performance is improved in Alchemy’s Spectral Editor and other real time displays.
  • Dragging regions with a Force Touch track pad no longer sometimes causes the track pad to vibrate unexpectedly.
  • Audio quantization in projects that contain a large number of tempo changes is now much faster.

Alchemy

  • Alchemy adds five new Additive effects: Saw+Noise, Noise, Comb, EQ, Filter, Strum, Ripples plus additional controls for Pulse/Saw.
  • Alchemy adds 12 new synthesized formant filter shapes.
  • Alchemy now automatically time aligns sources when morphing.
  • Alchemy now offers a Tune control in the Noise section.
  • Alchemy’s modulators now have a new On trigger mode, which allows Effects parameters to be re-triggered on all new MIDI notes. 
  • There are new options in Alchemy’s Note Properties menu, Stepped4, Stepped8 and Stepped16. These options function like the Flip Flop property, but also produce a modulation signal that cycles through equally spaced values between successive notes.
  • There is now a setting in the Key Trigger menu in Alchemy’s arpeggiator Cycle Reset, that insures the pattern always starts at the first note at step 1 of the sequencer.
  • The Browser in Alchemy now includes Newer Than and Older Than column options to constrain the preset list based on the installation date of the content. 
  • The default rate for a new instance of the Arpeggiator in Alchemy is now 1/16.
  • The maximum number of partials in Alchemy’s Great quality mode has been raised from 128 to 256.
  • Alchemy adds 21 new Arpeggiator presets.
  • Alchemy’s Additive Effects knobs for Pulse/Saw - Sync, Shift - Pitch and Magnet - Pitch now show semitones when being edited.
  • Effects in Alchemy’s Effects Rack are now sorted into categories.
  • Copy/pasted modulations now include the full routings assigned to all associated depth knobs.
  • Alchemy’s Keyswitching now defaults to KEYSW1 instead of SNAP1.
  • Alchemy's Zone Editor now handles the display of large numbers of Warp Markers by only showing every 10th markers when there are more than 30 markers to be displayed.
  • The Alchemy interface now responds instantly to mouse input on wide color P3 displays.
  • Alchemy uses up to 40% less memory than previous versions.
  • Apple Loops imported into Alchemy now remain reliably in sync.
  • When changing from Arpeggiator Snapshot to non Arpeggiator Snapshot and back, the Arpeggiator now is switched back on.
  • The sound quality of Spectral Stretch has been improved at low speeds.
  • Auto Gain is now set to Off by default in Alchemy’s Morph XY/Lin mode.
  • It is now possible to modulate Alchemy’s Keyswitch knob with Arp Mod.
  • The last step in the Alchemy Argeggiator/Step Sequencer is no longer unexpectedly tied when a MIDI file is imported.
  • In Spectral mode, adjusting the Simplify control in the Cloud Spectral effect no longer cancels the effect.
  • Random note property modulators assigned to Keyswitch knobs mapped to samples in Alchemy now properly randomize the keyswitches.
  • Setting a Comb Filter’s feedback value to 99% or higher in Alchemy’s Delay effect no longer can lead to uncontrolled feedback.
  • FM Keyfollow now scales properly when two notes are played in a patch with the Voice Count set to 1.
  • When importing EXS instruments, Alchemy now merges EXS groups that are mapped to the same keyswitch or articulation.
  • The browser in Alchemy now retains user choices for column selections when switching from one preset to another.
  • The Waveshaper Bipolar button in Alchemy’s Effects Rack again functions as expected.

Drummer

  • Switching between Drummer characters during playback no longer sometimes causes Drummer to stop playing until playback is stopped and started again.
  • The record button on Drum Machine Designer tracks no longer unexpectedly disables when changing drum kits.
  • The Duplicate Track command now works for Drummer or Software Instrument tracks assigned to Drum Machine Designer or Drum Kit Designer producer kits. 
  • Drum Machine Designer tracks now always appear as expandable Track Stacks in the Tracks Area so that sub-tracks are immediately available for automation or other tasks. 
  • Option-dragging a Drummer or Software Instrument track that uses Drum Machine Designer now correctly creates a Track Stack containing all the kit pieces.

Automation

  • Automation of grouped tracks now works when Project Settings > MIDI > General > Control Change 7/10 controls Volume/Pan of channel strip objects setting is active.
  • Region-based automation is now retained when Take folders are unpacked to Track Alternatives.
  • Automation points no longer sometimes jump to unexpected positions when edited after the Project start position has been adjusted.
  • Volume automation resets as expected when a cycle returns to the beginning
  • The relative automation levels are once again maintained when using the Marquee tool to select and adjust automation on multiple tracks at once. 

Flex

  • Audio regions with Flex edits no longer sometimes snap back to their original lengths when divided if Snap Edits to Zero Crossings is enabled.
  • Velocities for MIDI notes created from Flex Pitched regions are now properly scaled from 0–127.
  • The Transpose region parameter is now available for flexed regions.
  • Flex pitched notes no longer appear to shift in pitch when they are grabbed if the Select tracks on region selection preference is enabled.
  • The pitch of any audio region, not just Apple Loops, can now be transposed or fine-tuned.
  • Audio regions no longer sometimes shift very slightly in time when Flex Pitch is enabled.

Fades

  • When the right portion of a crossfade is adjusted, the left region is no longer selected in order to avoid unintended edits to a previous crossfade.
  • Fades now reliably take immediate effect when created during playback.

Touch Bar

  • Swiping with two fingers on the Touch Bar in navigation mode now repositions the visible frame without moving the Playhead.
  • Global key commands are now available in the Touch Bar when there is no open window.
  • Labels for key commands on the Touch Bar can now occupy two lines, making them easier to read.
  • The Metronome button on the Touch Bar now dims when the Metronome is disabled and a count-in is enabled.
  • The Touch Bar drum pad no longer triggers a duplicate C#1 note from the button that should trigger a crash cymbal with a C#2 note.
  • When the Touch Bar keyboard is set to the melodic Minor scale, certain notes no longer hang when playing a descending scale.
  • Tapping a key command on the Touch Bar when the Key Commands window is open now selects the command in the window instead of triggering the command.
  • The Touch Bar now properly displays the glyph for the "Set Locators by Region" key command.
  • Pressing a modifier key now switched the Touch Bar to display key commands assigned to that modifier.

Takes and comping

  • The Snap Regions to relative value setting now works inside of Take Folders.
  • When the right edge of a Take folder is clicked, the display of the unused audio in the current comp no longer sometimes overlaps the next region in the track.
  • "Flatten and Merge" now works the same whether it is triggered from the widget on the Take Folder or using the key command.

Track Alternatives

  • Show/Hide inactive Track Alternatives now works on all selected tracks.
  • It is now possible to rename a Track Alternative by double-clicking its name in the Track Header.
  • The Deselect All command now deselects all hidden inactive Track Alternatives.
  • Regions in the currently active Track Alternative are no longer sometimes lost after performing Undo of the command "Copy Selected Regions to Selected Track."
  • Performing the Repeat Section command no longer causes inactive Track Alternatives to be renamed unexpectedly.
  • Regions in all tracks of a group are now selected as expected when some tracks have Track Alternatives and others don’t.
  • Hidden Track Alternatives are now copied as expected when duplicating a track by option-dragging the track to a new empty track.
  • The Hide all Track Alternatives key command now also works when the currently selected track contains no Track Alternatives.

Track Stacks

  • Software instrument tracks in duplicated Track Stacks now maintain their correct track names.
  • Using the "New track with same Channel" command when the last track in a Track Stack is selected now placers the new track inside the Track Stack.
  • The master track of a Summing Stack no longer doubles the MIDI Thru values for Transpose and Velocity when it is selected.
  • Track names are now properly retained when Software Instrument track stacks are Option-dragged to copy them.

Mixer

  • It is now possible to adjust either the pan or spread position of a Stereo Panner using a mouse or swipe gesture on a Magic Mouse, or two-finger swipe on a track pad.
  • When duplicating a record-armed track, the newly created track is now armed.
  • There is now audio hardware device control for stereo tracks.
  • The solo button in the track header is now consistently displayed when a track is set to "Solo-safe
  • Clicking the solo button in the Track Header of a Solo-safed track no longer disables "Solo-safe."
  • If there are split stereo files in the project, the Edit menu in the Project Audio window now offers options to disconnect a selected split stereo file, or to reconnect all split stereo files.
  • The R buttons on armed tracks now continue to blink reliably after recording is started.
  • A stereo track with a mono plug-in now continues to sound mono when the plug-in is bypassed.
  • I/O Labels are now associated with their correct hardware Outputs in the New Tracks window.
  • Patches saved with plug-ins that use Software Instrument tracks as side chain inputs now properly recall the side chain setting when reloaded.
  • Dual mono plug-ins saved as part of an Aux channel strip setting are no longer converted to stereo when the setting is reloaded.
  • Loading a patch no longer erases existing track notes in a track.
  • Dual Mono plug-ins on a track that has been set from stereo to mono now immediately switch to mono mode.
  • The Create Track command in the Mixer now works reliably.
  • The dry level for plug-ins inserted on Aux channels serving as summing busses are no longer unexpectedly set to zero when a new channel is routed to that Aux.
  • The first note played to a Software Instrument channel strip that includes sends no longer includes an unexpectedly large amount of reverb.
  • Low Latency mode now works as expected on Output channels above Output 1–2 that do not have plug-ins inserted on them.
  • User patches that include routing to channels that include a slash (/) in their name now load correctly.

Plug-ins

  • When importing EXS instruments into Ultrabeat, up/down arrows to navigate sample zones are again displayed.
  • Adjustments to a bandwidth in the Channel EQ made by dragging the vertical helper lines in the interface are now reflected in the channel strip EQ thumbnail.
  • The Arpeggiator now starts over as expected when it receives a new set of notes while running.
  • There is now a preference to control whether the most recently used plug-ins are displayed in the plug-in list.
  • EXS24 now finds sampler Instruments as expected when there is an alias Sampler Instruments folder at the default location linked to a folder on an external drive.
  • Software Instrument channel strips with a MIDI plug-in inserted no longer sometimes stop playing.
  • Automatically playing patches now continue to run when the channel strip is not selected.
  • It is now possible to copy/replace a plug-in in the Sample-Based Processing window by Option-dragging it.
  • The output resolution for the Modulator MIDI plug-in has been increased.
  • There is now a dedicated button to toggle Separation in the Surround Panner plug-in.
  • Undoing a change to the position of a plug-in in a channel strip no longer also undoes the last parameter change performed on a plug-in.
  • When EXS24 is configured to change instruments when receiving certain MIDI notes, those same notes sent to an instance of Drum Designer no longer cause it to change presets.
  • Ultrabeat’s Voice Auto Select now works for muted notes.
  • The EXS24 option "extract MIDI Region from Instrument created from Audio Regions" is now consistently available.
  • Changing parameter values in Sculpture’s factory default setting now activates the Compare button.
  • Dragging EXS instrument files from the Finder onto the Ultrabeat interface now shows visible feedback.
  • Multiple instances of the Modulator MIDI plug-in set to output the Random waveform now each output a different waveform after the project has been closed and reopened.
  • The timing of the modulation of multiple instances of the Modulator MIDI plug-in now remains reliably in sync.
  • The Retrosynth plug-in settings now includes a fourth modulation slider and target.
  • EXS24 now offers a Sample Select Random Offset setting for Groups
  • The Drum Machine Designer interface no longer changes unexpectedly when a new track is created by double-clicking below the last track in the Track header while Drum Machine Designer is open.
  • Custom arrangement of cells in Drum Machine Designer is now maintained when user created patches are reloaded.
  • The decay time in the Correlation Meter plug-in can now be adjusted to Slow, Medium or Fast.
  • The Loudness Meter now continues to show values after bouncing a project.
  • Sample Select Random in EXS24 now does a better job randomizing samples when played with velocity values of 127.
  • EXS24 now shows the correct path to Instruments in cases where there is another Instrument with the same file name in a different folder.
  • The Ringshifter plug-in now offers controls for Delay Low Cut and Delay High Cut.
  • Dragging a control after setting it numerically no longer causes the value to jump to its original value in some Logic Pro plug-ins.
  • The Retro Chorus pedal in the Pedalboard plug-in no longer exhibits excessive warble at higher Depth settings.
  • When the cursor is hovered over the display area of the Channel EQ, the center handles for all bands are now displayed.
  • Program changes are now passed to Software Instruments if there are no saved Performance Channel Strip settings.
  • The MIDI Transposer plug-in now reliably plays the correct notes when a user scale is selected.
  • The Library now always updates as expected when changing plug-ins while the focus is on the plug-in presets. 
  • Parameters set to read-only in Scripter no longer write automation.
  • A Scripter parameter defined as Read-Only will no longer write automation data. 

Selection-Based Processing

  • Selection-Based Processing applied to a marquee selected portion of a looped region now only affects the selected area.
  • Selection-Based Processing now recognizes a marquee selected area that previously saved in a newly opened project.
  • When canceling a Selection-Based Processing operation using Command–Period (.), the Selection-Based Processing channel strip no longer remains in the Tracks Area.

Global

  • Setting the beat grouping in the Transport Display Time Signature menu now works as expected.
  • It is again possible to copy the timecode position of a locked marker.
  • There is now a visible indication when dragging regions from the Tracks area to the Marker Global Track.
  • Command-clicking a marker in the Marker track again adds it to the current selection.
  • Option-dragging a signature again copies it as expected, instead of simply moving it.
  • Zooming with the mouse scroll wheel no longer deselects items in Global Tracks.
  • Command-dragging a marker to the time ruler when the Global Tracks are closed now enables Cycle, as well as setting the locators to the range encompassed by the marker.
  • Dragging markers to the right now works consistently.
  • Logic Pro no longer quits unexpectedly when naming a marker in the Marker track whose name had previously been removed in the Marker List.
  • When a new Time Signature is added, the field for the numerator is again pre-selected.

Exporting and sharing

  • Exported Music XML files are now more compatible with Dorico.
  • Tempo events are now reliably included in exported MusicXML files.
  • The dialog asking whether changes made to a project shared to GarageBand for iOS should be imported will no longer be shown again if ‘No’ is chosen the first time it is displayed. 
  • The Filename Example in the Export Track dialog now reflects the actual cycle range values when the "Export Cycle range" option is selected and Bar Range is one of the Elements selected for the Pattern.
  • File names for exported tracks that include the Bar Name element are now more reliably formatted and sometimes truncated.
  • It is now possible to bounce with audio tails when bypass effects option is enabled. 
  • Music XML files exported from Logic Pro now include TAB Staff Styles when opened in Dorico.
  • Bounce-in-place now works for Drum Machine Designer and Drum Kit Designer track stacks.
  • Bounce-in-place now works for MIDI regions on tracks assigned to auxiliary channels receiving input from a multi-out Software Instrument.

Import

  • When importing Final Cut Pro XML projects containing multichannel audio files, Logic Pro now reliably maintains channel assignments.
  • Large Final Cut Pro XML files now load more quickly.
  • Final Cut Pro X XML files now reliably import with the correct Sub-Role Names.
  • Logic Pro now creates a Summing Stack for each Parent Role when importing FCPX XML files.
  • It is now possible to import content from a track where the currently active Track Alternative is empty, but other Track Alternatives have content.
  • When importing a track with assigned sends and take folder regions, the dialog for managing the routing of those sends now appears just once, rather than repeatedly for each take, when you choose to re-route a send to an existing auxiliary. 

Logic Remote

  • The labels for the buttons that halve and double the delay length in the Stereo Delay plug-in are now labeled correctly in Logic Remote.
  • The Sync Time control in the Tape Delay plug-in is now visible in Logic Remote.
  • Logic Remote now immediately updates the Track display in the Mixer and LCD after the track order is changed in Logic Pro.
  • Logic Remote now reliably displays all plug-in parameters.

Control surfaces and MIDI controllers

  • The Crumar Mojo controller can now be used to control the Vintage Organ.

Accessibility

  • VoiceOver now accurately states what the Stop/Go to Beginning button will do depending on whether Logic Pro is currently playing or not.
  • VoiceOver now correctly announces the contents of a cell within the List Editor rather than the title of the column.
  • It is again possible to select a Drummer using VoiceOver.

Score

  • The behavior of snapping of objects in the Score is improved.
  • The Toggle View key command in the Score now toggles between all three available view modes.
  •  Markers are now displayed in the ruler of the Score even when Global Tracks are hidden. 

Editing

  • Adjusting velocity with MIDI Draw now only affects selected notes.
  • Drum names now display properly in the Piano Roll when zoomed out.
  • The Event List now updates more quickly to reflect the selection of regions in the Tracks area.
  • The Select Cable Origin command in the Environment now reliably highlights the cable port on the connected Environment object.
  • Paste at Original Position again places notes at the expected position in the Piano Roll.
  • Performing Undo after moving objects in the Environment no longer sometimes causes Smart Controls to be deleted.
  • Horizontal Auto Zoom now reliably sets the correct zoom level the first time it is used in the Piano Roll.
  • It is now possible to record past bar 2000 in the Piano Roll.
  • Logic Pro no longer displays an "Illegal Region Number" dialog when the Step Editor is opened while an audio region is selected.
  • Scale quantize values set in the Piano Roll no longer sometimes set to their enharmonic equivalents after the Piano Roll is closed and then reopened.
  • It is again possible to type a plus symbol (+) and a number to increment the musical position of an event in the Event List.
  • The map in the Environment Transformer edit window now reliably updates with all Conditions when the operation for Databyte 2 is set to Reverse
  • The Length/Info column in the Event List again shows names of Meta events.
  • Horizontal and Vertical Auto Zoom now work as expected in the Step Editor.
  • The horizontal zoom in the Step editor is now constrained to the project length.
  • MIDI regions that start within a bar no longer sometimes extend unexpectedly in length when editing notes in the Piano Roll.
  • Right-clicking on the Catch button in the Piano Roll when another window is currently in focus now correctly adjusts the Catch setting for the Piano Roll instead of the focused window.
  • Selecting a note in the Event List no longer causes the view in an open Piano Roll to scroll to the Playhead position instead of keeping the selection in the visible area. 
  • The Mapped Instrument and Touch Tracks editors again maintain the correct zoom level when closed and then reopened.
  • The channel splitter object in the Environment no longer sends an unexpected Program Change 0, MIDI CC7 value 0 and MIDI CC10 value 0 message when the channel splitter is selected and MIDI Out is active in the Environment.
  • The Piano Roll no longer continues to show Help Tags when they have been disabled in the Display preferences.
  • Disabling Help Tags in the Display preferences now also applies to Help Tags in the Piano Roll.
  • Using the Increase/Decrease Last Clicked Parameter by 10 key command now shifts the note or notes in the Event List up or down by 12 semitones instead of 10.
  • The Audio Track Editor now consistently updates to display the currently selected Take.
  • Notes in the Piano Roll now correctly return to their original pitches when the velocity has been adjusted after the Scale quantize setting has been changed, then disabled.
  • Rubber-band selecting notes in the Piano Roll with Horizontal Auto Zoom enabled no longer leads to unexpected scrolling.
  • MIDI editors now update the content of SMPTE locked regions when the tempo is changed.
  • The Piano Roll no longer intermittently switches off Drum Names display mode when cycle recording to a Drum Machine Designer track with Merge enabled.
  • The Q button in the Step Input window now lights to indicate it is active.
  • Note Force Legato now works when the Piano Roll is in One Track view.
  • Clicking below the last lane in the Step Editor with the Line tool no longer sometimes causes the region to unexpectedly change in length.
  • Option-dragging multiple selected MIDI Draw points no longer sometimes places the copied points at the wrong position.
  • The time ruler labels in the Audio File editor are now correct after switching from the Audio Track editor.
  • The Physical Input object in the Environment no longer changes in size unexpectedly when other objects are moved.
  • Auto zoom in the Piano Roll now behaves as expected in projects that start before 1 1 1 1.
  • The Event List again displays the correct contents in the pop-up menu for the Info/Length column when Additional Info is enabled.
  • Catch is now consistently re-enabled by a Go To Beginning command issued after editing MIDI Draw in an Edit window.

General

  • Click-dragging over audio regions with the Fade tool now selects them.
  • The key command to open the Plug-in Manager now works when there is no project open.
  • Audio files dragged into the Tracks area with names that contain a combination of single and multiple digit numbers now sort as expected.
  • There is again a progress bar to show copying audio files when performing a Save As operation.
  • Catch Playhead now works reliably when using the Go to Beginning button when the beginning is not in the current view.
  • Key command sets created in Logic 9 again work correctly.
  • Manual vertical track zoom settings are now stored separately for automation on and off views.
  • The  Hide All Empty Tracks key command no longer hides the currently selected track if it is empty.
  • When adjusting one of several selected regions in then Project Audio window, the view no longer scrolls unexpectedly to the lowest selected region.
  • The Set Optimal Region Sizes command again works on folders.
  • The Capture Last Take as Recording command now includes data from Smart Controls and the Touch Bar.
  • The Horizontal Auto Zoom command now works correctly with folders.
  • Moving a region in the topmost track at high vertical zoom levels no longer obscures the Bar Ruler.
  • When a file that is being previewed in the Media tab is dragged into the Tracks area, it now stops playing back.
  • Choosing a project from the File > Recent menu while the Startup window is open, with the option "Open Last Project" selected, no longer causes Logic Pro to load the last project in addition to the project selected from the Recent menu.
  • Activating region solo no longer sometimes causes the view to scroll unexpectedly to the beginning of the project.
  • Undo now works after performing the Color Tracks by Region command.
  • Undo now works after performing Join per Track in cases where one of the selected tracks contains only one region.
  • Performing "Duplicate Track with Content" after performing Undo no longer unexpectedly changes the name of the track and channel strip. 
  • Adjusting the left border of an Alias now converts it to a real MIDI region to properly maintain the timing of events in the edited Alias.
  • Deleting a patch from within a folder in the Patch library no longer moves the focus out of the folder.
  • The Horizontal Auto Zoom in the Tracks Area now only includes the Cycle range if the option Play from Cycle is enabled.
  • Closing an independent Audio File Editor window no longer unexpectedly removes undo steps for previous audio region edits.
  • The scissors tool now works as expected after scrubbing with it to find the desired edit position.
  • Unpacking folders no longer creates an extra unneeded track for the first region in each folder.
  • The "Reset All Preferences except Key Commands" command now works reliably.
  • The last digit of incoming 3 digit velocities is no longer cut off when the LCD is set to Custom.
  • The Playhead now reliably displays at the correct position when Horizontal Auto Zoom is enabled, and the window width is changed.
  • The tab key now properly shifts the focus from one field to the next in the My Info panel in the Preferences window.
  • It is again possible to set the Freeze mode for a track to Source Only in the Track Inspector.
  • When the down arrow is used to scroll through loops while pre-listening in the Loop Browser, the currently playing loop is now reliably in view when the down arrow has released.
  • Optimized audio files now include the area covered by crossfades applied to the regions.
  • Printing from the Note Pad now defaults to black text on a white background.
  • Moving or copying audio regions no longer rarely unexpectedly shortens regions to the right of the moved or copied regions.
  • The Trim Region Start to Previous Region command is now available in the Edit menu and the contextual menu.
  • When the Volume Tool is assigned as the secondary tool in a screenset, switching to another screenset and back no longer causes it to reset to the Pointer tool.
  • When a frozen Software Instrument track is selected, adding a new track no longer results in an unnecessary warning that the track is frozen.
  • It is again possible to toggle the Metronome during recording when the "Only during count-in" option is enabled.
  • Clicking a region in the Tracks area now immediately moves the focus to the Tracks area.
  • Key commands are now passed through to an open Key Commands window when the Musical Typing window is also open.
  • Global key commands now work reliably when the Tracks area does not have focus.
  • The song length display in the LCD now displays correctly when a value over 999 bars is typed in.
  • Open plug-in windows now remain visible when Logic Pro is switched to full screen.
  • Overlapping audio regions on a track no longer sometimes playback simultaneously with certain crossfade and region gain settings.
  • Double-clicking a region with the Marquee tool and then double-clicking a second region no longer unexpectedly applies the second edit to the previously clicked region.
  • The cursor now reliably changes to the correct tool depending on its position. 
  • External MIDI tracks now accurately follows the "Delay in milliseconds (ms)" track inspector setting when it is set to values below -100ms. 
  • The Apple Loops browser now has dedicated tabs for selecting the Instrument, Genre, and Moods categories of keyword buttons. 
  • Quick Help pop-ups can now appear directly next to areas where the pointer is located.
  • Moving or copying flexed regions on grouped tracks will no longer shorten regions following the edits in some specific scenarios.
  • In the Track Inspector, setting the "Delay in ms" parameter for an external MIDI instrument track to a value lower than –110 now delays the track by the amount specified. 
  • The No Transpose checkbox in the Track Inspector now has just two states, as expected. 
  • The quality of the graphic display of waveforms in the Tracks area is now more consistent across all zoom levels, and when using the Waveform zoom feature. 

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MainStage 2.2: Performance may appear to decrease on some dual-core computers

Posted in Apple Logic

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This may occur if you use the I/O Safety Buffer setting in the Audio Preferences. When this setting is enabled, MainStage adds an additional output buffer to protect against overloads due to unexpected CPU spikes. The size of that additional buffer changed in MainStage 2.2. In MainStage 2.1.x it was two times I/O Buffer Size while in MainStage 2.2 it is equal to the I/O Buffer Size setting. As a result, the CPU load is increased, but the round trip latency is less than with the same settings used previously in MainStage 2.1.x.

To set MainStage 2.2 to the same latency and CPU performance as MainStage 2.1.x:

  1. Set the I/O Buffer Size to the next highest setting for example, if you were running at 128 samples, set it to 256 samples
  2. Turn off I/O Safety Buffer.  

Note: You may notice that the Resulting Roundtrip Latency number shown in the Audio Preferences with I/O Safety Buffer enabled is not any different between MainStage 2.2 and earlier versions, despite a smaller I/O Safety Buffer size. This is because MainStage 2.1.x did not correctly report the roundtrip latency for the I/O Safety Buffer. The latency was higher than shown in the preferences window. MainStage 2.2 accurately shows the amount of latency.

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Logic Pro/Express 8 and 9: Tips on troubleshooting project files

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Prevention

One of the best ways to protect against issues with your projects is to save versions as you work. One strategy is to start each session by saving a version of the project with the current date as part of the name. You can save these versions of the project in the same project folder to avoid duplicating the assets. If for example you are working on a project named MyProject, and the current date is March 1, 2008 (2008-03-01), you could start your session by choosing File > Save As... and naming the new file MyProject 03_01_08. Each day that you work on the project, save a new version of the project with that day's date appended to the project name.

Logic also automatically keeps a backup history of the past 10 saved versions of a file. These backups are stored in a folder named "Project File backups" in your project folder. However, you can more easily find a version of your project that predates any issues by manually saving new versions as described above. Note that Logic creates a set of 10 versions for each project name within the project folder, so when you choose File > Save As... a new set of backups will be created, as shown here:

Use only validated Audio Plug-ins

A practice you can adopt that may help keep your project files from developing issues is to avoid using Audio Unit plug-ins that do not pass the validation test in the Audio Units Manager. Plug-ins that do not pass the validation test are automatically disabled in Logic.  In some cases it is possible to force Logic to use disabled plugins in the Audio Units Manager, but you should avoid this.

To confirm you are only using plug-ins that have passed validation, choose Logic Pro< (or Logic Express) > Preferences > Audio Units Manager… Click Disable Failed Audio Units at the lower-left of the window. If you have any plug-ins that do not pass the validation test, check the manufacturer website for updated versions.

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Logic Pro 9 and MainStage 2: Using royalty-free loops in commercial work

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The Logic Pro and MainStage software license agreements state:

"Title and intellectual property rights in and to any content displayed by or accessed through the Apple Software to the respective content owner. Such content may be protected by copyright or other intellectual property laws and treaties, and may be subject to terms of use of the third party providing such content. Except as otherwise provided, you may use the Apple and third party audio file content (including, but not limited to, the Apple Loops, built-in sound files, samples and impulse responses) (collectively the “Sample Content”), contained in or otherwise included with the Apple Software, on a royalty-free basis, to create your own original soundtracks for your film, video and audio projects. You may broadcast and/or distribute your own soundtracks that were created using the Sample Content, however, individual Apple loops, audio files, sound settings, samples and impulse responses may not be commercially or otherwise distributed on a standalone basis, nor may they be repackaged in whole or in part as audio samples, sound files, sound effects or music beds."

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Logic Pro: Node status buttons sometimes show wrong state

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This sometimes happens until the song is played for the first time after it's loaded. When you first load a song with tracks enabled for node processing, you may see that some of the track node buttons show that they are syncing data with the node:

Other tracks may show a node state of Enabled/Inactive:

After a short time, the tracks that show they are syncing may switch status to Enabled/Inactive. When you play the song, the node status for all node activated tracks changes to Enabled/Active:

The node buttons then continue to show the correct status even when playback is stopped.

It's normal for node enabled tracks to show the Enabled/Inactive status until the first play. Tracks that never show Syncing when the song is loaded simply sync so quickly, that the status seems to immediately show Enabled/Inactive.

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Logic Pro, Logic Express, MainStage: Disable or remove Audio Unit plug-ins to troubleshoot issues

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In many cases, you can troubleshoot issues with Audio Unit plug-ins by disabling them in the Audio Units Manager. If you can't use the Audio Units Manager because Logic or MainStage won't open, you can remove the plug-ins.

To open the Audio Units Manager:

  1. Click Logic Pro, Logic Express, MainStage, or MainStage 3 in the main menu bar.
  2. Choose Audio Units Manager or Preferences > Audio Units Manager from the drop-down menu. The Audio Units Manager will open.
  1. Disable Audio Units by deselecting their respective checkboxes in the Logic or Use column and in the Node column (depending on the application). 
  2. Click the Done button.
  3. Quit and reopen Logic or MainStage for the changes to take effect.

If you are having trouble opening Logic or MainStage and suspect an Audio Unit plug-in may be the cause, you can troubleshoot by manually removing plug-ins.

  • Most Audio Units install to this location:
    /Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/Components
  • Other Audio Units install to:
    ~/Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/Components

To disable any Audio Unit for troubleshooting purposes, simply move the file from one of the above locations to another one, such as the desktop, before opening Logic or MainStage. If you don't know which plug-in may be causing the issue, move them all from the above locations.

To access ~/Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/Components

  • In the Finder choose Go > Go to Folder from the menu.
  • Type ~/Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/Components in the "Go to the folder" field.
  • Press the Go button.

If Logic or MainStage behaves correctly without your Audio Unit plug-ins, you need to find out which one caused the erratic behavior. To do so, put them back into the original folder one after the other, or a few at a time, checking after each plug-in or group of plug-ins to see if Logic or MainStage still behaves correctly. As soon as the issue recurs, you've discovered the affected plug-in.

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Logic Pro/Express 9: Defining Custom Bank Messages

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Logic offers several preset bank select message formats, but in some cases you will need to define a custom message format to change banks on a particular synthesizer. Most synthesizers use a combination of Control 0 &lpar;Bank MSB&rpar; and Control 32 &lpar;Bank LSB&rpar; events to trigger bank changes. MSB and LSB stand for "most significant byte" and "least significant byte," respectively. Consult the MIDI implementation chart for your synthesizer to determine the particular combination it requires for bank changes.

To configure Logic to send custom bank messages:

    &NewLine;&Tab;
  1. In the Environment, select the Multi-Instrument for the synthesizer for which you would like to define custom bank messages.
  2. &NewLine;&Tab;
  3. From the local Options menu, choose Define Custom Bank Messages.
  4. &NewLine;&Tab;
  5. A Bank Select Event List will open, with an MSB message for 16 banks already defined. This event list is similar to the normal MIDI edit event list, with one difference: Under the Position column is a bank number instead of the usual timeline position.
  6. &NewLine;&Tab;
  7. Click Create and then click Controller to add a controller event. A new CC7 message will be added to the top of the list.
    &NewLine;&Tab;
  8. &NewLine;&Tab;
  9. To change the CC7 message to a CC32 message, click "7" in the Number column and select 32 &lpar;bank LSB&rpar; from the pop-up menu that appears. Change the value to whatever your synthesizer requires to call up the specified bank. If necessary, adjust the Control 0 Bank MSB event's value.
    &NewLine;&Tab;
  10. &NewLine;&Tab;
  11. If your synthesizer requires that the Control 0 and Control 32 messages be received in a particular order, you may specify the order by changing the letter in parentheses to the right of the bank number. Earlier letters will be sent before later letters.
  12. &NewLine;&Tab;
  13. Continue to add and edit events until you have defined the messages needed to call up each bank on your synthesizer.&NewLine;&Tab;

    Note: If your synthesizer has more than 16 banks, create multiple Multi-Instruments for groups of up to 16 banks each.

    &NewLine;&Tab;
  14. &NewLine;&Tab;
  15. Double-click on the Multi-Instrument to open the Multi-Instrument Window and set the Bank Message to &ast;Custom Bank Messages&ast;.
    &NewLine;&Tab;
  16. &NewLine;

 

 

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Logic: About I/O buffer size and monitoring latency

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When you monitor audio in Logic and other audio software, it is necessary for the computer to buffer some of the incoming and outgoing data to protect against dropouts, clicks, or pops. The size needed for the buffer varies depending on factors including the speed of the processor, type of audio driver, sample rate, and more. In general, the more powerful the computer, the smaller the buffer can be without undesirable audio artifacts. The I/O buffer size affects the amount of "input monitoring latency" for the computer. Input monitoring latency is the slight delay you hear when you feed audio into your interface or when you playback software instruments. The smaller the I/O buffer size, the less delay you will hear.

Here are settings that may directly affect the amount of latency you will hear when monitoring audio through Logic:

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  • I/O Buffer Size: smaller sizes produce less monitoring latency. The setting represents the number of samples Logic uses for the input and output buffers.
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  • Sample rate: higher sample rates result in less latency at the same buffer setting. For example, if you set a buffer size of 128 samples, the latency added by the I/O buffer with a sample rate of 88.2 kHz will be half as much as with a sample rate of 44.1 kHz.
  • &NewLine;

The basic formula for determining how much latency a particular I/O Buffer Size setting will contribute to overall audio monitoring latency is

&lpar;I/O Buffer Size/Sample Rate&rpar;&ast;2

The quotient of the buffer size and sample rate are multiplied by two to account for both the input and output buffers.

To change buffer size and sample rate settings, choose Logic Express &lpar;or Logic Pro&rpar; > Preferences > Audio... and select the Devices tab.

Lower buffer sizes and higher sample rates may result in less monitoring latency, but these settings require more computational power. If you set the I/O buffer size to a value too low for your computer to handle smoothly, you may hear dropouts, clicks, pops or other artifacts in the audio. In some cases, these may be saved to your recorded tracks and may be a challenge to remove later. Likewise, higher sample rates require proportionally more computational power, so higher sample rates also require higher I/O buffer size settings for good performance on a computer. The type of audio interface you are using also may affect the optimal buffer size setting. It's not recommended to use a setting lower than 128 with Firewire interfaces. It may be possible to set the I/O buffer size as low as 64 on PCI/PCIe based systems.

In Logic 8 and 9 you can fine-tune the monitoring latency with another setting:  I/O Safety Buffer.  When you select this option, an additional buffer is added to the I/O buffer size.  Simply put, with this buffer you can select "in-between" settings.  In most cases, you can leave this option unselected. 

The I/O buffer size and safety buffer are not the only sources of monitoring latency on a computer. The analog to digital &lpar;AD&rpar; converters in your audio interface will typically add 1-2 milliseconds of latency. The audio driver will also add a few milliseconds of latency and the digital/analog &lpar;DA&rpar; converters will also typically add 1-2 milliseconds of latency. The specific amount of converter and driver latency will vary from one audio interface to another. The complete audio monitoring latency of a configuration, often referred to as the roundtrip latency, is the sum of:

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  • AD converter latency
  • &NewLine;&Tab;
  • Input portion of the I/O buffer
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  • Audio driver latency
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  • Output portion of the I/O buffer
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  • DA converter latency
  • &NewLine;

The roundtrip latency when playing software instruments live through Logic will typically be less than when monitoring audio. It is the sum of:

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  • Audio driver latency
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  • Output portion of the I/O Buffer
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  • DA converter latency
  • &NewLine;

Note: Buffer size and sample rate values are variable&semi; converters and audio driver values are fixed.

One more source of monitoring latency while recording can be certain plug-ins that induce latency. However, the effect of these can be eliminated by enabling Logic 8' and 9s Low Latency Mode while recording. Note that Low Latency Mode only affects the latency caused by any plug-ins you may be using.

 

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