While the music industry is angry with the latest Apple iPad ad conveying the message that music can now be made with a single tool, its DAW, Logic Pro, becomes even more powerful with three new AI features—stem separation, saturation plugin, and virtual bandmates.
Apple has unveiled the latest iteration of Logic Pro 11, along with an updated version for iPad, Logic Pro for iPad 2.
“Logic Pro gives creatives everything they need to write, produce, and mix a great song, and our latest features take that creativity to a whole new level,” said Brent Chiu-Watson, Apple’s senior director of Apps Worldwide Product Marketing in the press release. “Logic Pro’s new AI-backed updates, combined with the unparalleled performance of iPad, Mac, and M-series Apple silicon, provide creative pros with the best music creation experience in the industry.”
AI-Assisted Session Bandmates
Session Players expands upon the existing AI-powered Drummer by introducing virtual Bass and Keyboard Players. Developed in collaboration with renowned musicians, using "advanced AI and sampling technologies," these virtual bandmates offer a range of playing styles and can effortlessly follow chord progressions added to the Chord Track, providing users with accompaniment tailored to their compositions.
Users can select from eight diverse Bass Players and tailor their performance by adjusting parameters such as complexity and intensity. They can also fine-tune aspects like slides, mutes, dead notes, and pickup hits, adding nuanced expression to their compositions. The integration of Chord Track further enhances this experience, allowing musicians to define and refine chord progressions seamlessly, with the virtual Bass Player effortlessly following suit.
And the inclusion of the Studio Bass plug-in grants access to a collection of six meticulously crafted instruments, spanning acoustic to electric variants, each meticulously designed to capture the essence of contemporary bass tones and genres.
Stem Splitter
The amount of such products have grown drastically since Deezer released its open-source Spleeter back in 2020. Apparently, four years later, Apple refuses to fall behind.
To streamline the production process, Logic Pro 11 introduces Stem Splitter, a built-in tool that allows users to separate mixed audio files into individual stems, including drums, bass, vocals, and other instruments.
"Most musicians perform their best without the pressure of a formal studio session. These moments are often found in Voice Memos recordings, an old demo cassette tape, or are captured from a live show. Listening back, these recordings can reveal magical performances that are nearly impossible to re-create, making them lost to time. Now, with Stem Splitter, an artist can recover moments of inspiration from any audio file and separate nearly any mixed audio recording into four distinct parts," reads the press release.
ChromaGlow Plug-In
Another notable addition is ChromaGlow, a saturation plug-in designed to emulate the sonic characteristics of iconic studio hardware. Offering five distinct saturation styles, ChromaGlow enables users to add warmth, presence, and character to their tracks, ranging from subtle enhancements to more aggressive distortion effects.
"ChromaGlow models the sounds produced by a blend of the world’s most revered studio hardware by leveraging AI and the power of M-series Apple silicon. [Users] can also choose from modern clean sounds, nostalgic vintage warmth, or more extreme styles that can be shaped and molded to taste."
New features compatibility & pricing
Logic Pro 11 is compatible with Macs running macOS 13.5 or later, while Logic Pro for iPad 2 requires iPadOS 17.4 or higher. Both versions will be available for existing users as a free update, with pricing for new users set at $199.99 for Logic Pro 11 and $4.99 per month or $49.99 per year for Logic Pro for iPad 2.
