This isn’t exactly new news, but on September 12 Apple announced the release of Apple Logic Pro 8. For some a long overdue upgrade with outstanding features, and for others too little, too late. The biggest news is the price drop; from $999 for Logic Pro to $499 for Logic Studio. Gone are the Express and Pro versions, just one universal version for everyone, pros and amateurs, same product all for the same low price. But you aren’t getting the usual bundle of Logic plug-ins and synths and Wave Burner-they are throwing in Soundtrack Pro 2 and Compressor from the Final Cut Pro 2 bundle, a souped version of MainStage from Garageband and thousands of Apple Loops.
At the heart of Logic Studio is Logic Pro 8, now with an intuitive single-window interface for instant access to powerful music creation and production functions, including snap-to-transient selection and sample accurate editing directly in the Arrange window. New audio production tools such as Quick Swipe Comping and dynamic channel strip creation speed up common tasks. Logic Pro 8 also includes end-to-end surround production capabilities with innovative surround panning controls, multichannel tracks and busses, and support for True Surround software instruments and effects.
The team at Apple did a pretty good job listening to their users and sampling from the competition to implement some cool features. Logic users now have take management similar to ProTools. Simply record different takes over a region and the takes are organized and can be selected form a context menu, renamed, flattened and sent to new tracks. Quick Swipe Comping, which I think comes from the Sonar world, allows you to use the mouse to highlight areas of different regions on the same track to create comp tracks, rather than the usual cut and mute. Once you’ve created your comped part, the feature allows automatically applies cross fades. The new snap-to-transient feature looks like it can be used like Beat Detective in ProTools. A major change, one which I’m not sure I’m going to like, a single-window interface which gives Logic a standard application look and feel. I personally liked arranging the different components how I pleased across my 2 monitors, but we’ll see what I think after I buy the upgrade from 7. Which reminds me. Another excellent feature that isn’t highly touted; Apple didn’t change the Logic file format, which means Logic 8 and Logic 7 users can collaborate using the same project files! No more converting your projects to the new file format, that is unless you are still using version 5 or 6. Other cool features; Apple Remote operation- this would have come in handy on many occasions and cool if you have a new Mac; portable settings so you can bring your Logic preferences, channel strip settings and more to whatever Logic studio you’re working in. The most exciting and most widely requested feature is XS-key free operation. No more USB dongle!
I haven’t made the move to Logic 8 yet, but I will soon. And when I have I’ll be posting a more detailed review.
