NAMM 2015: Apple Logic Pro X 10.1 arrives!

NAMM 2015: In typically secretive style, Apple has just updated Logic Pro X to 10.1. The update is a biggy, incorporating a significant bulk of new features which the company bills as ideal for drummers and electronic-based genre's such as EDM and hip hop.

We'll have a full report shortly but, in the meantime, the facts and figures from the update are below. Highlights include new Drummers, a brand new Drum Machine Designer plug-in, a redesign for Logic's much-loved Compressor, a new, expanded sound library, and the ability for Retro Synth to make wavetables from imported audio. Plus, there are many other fixes and productivity tweaks.

Logic X 10.1 is a free update on the Apple App Store and is rolling out now. Logic X costs £150/$200 for new users.

There's also a boost to the popular Logic Remote for iPad, which moves to version 1.2, while the live-orientated Mainstage has been updated to 3.1.

Logic Remote remains free, hitting the App Store now with Mainstage been a free update and £23/$30 for new users.

Details below. More soon!

Apple Logic Pro X 10.1 new features

  • 10 new Drummers that produce beats in a variety of electronic and hip hop styles including Techno, House, Trap, Dubstep and more
  • Drummer provides specialized sound and performance controls for dialing in electronic or hip hop drum grooves
  • New Drum Machine Designer plug-in offers new sounds and features for customizing electronic drum kits in a variety of styles
  • Create a sequence of notes with a single mouse gesture using the new Brush Tool in the Piano Roll Editor
  • New view options in the Piano Roll Editor let you see more notes in less vertical space and help identify drum sounds by name
  • Easily compress or expand the timing of selected notes with new time handles in the Piano Roll Editor
  • Note Repeat and Spot Erase modes allow classic drum machine style techniques for creating beats in realtime
  • Smart Quantize proportionally corrects the timing and length of notes to preserve the musicality of your original performance
  • Redesigned Compressor plug-in features scalable, Retina-ready interface and 7 models including the new Classic VCA
  • Retro Synth can now create wavetables from imported audio and is able to stack up to 8 voices
  • Expanded sound library includes over 200 new synth patches and 10 classic Mellotron instruments
  • Automation can now be part of a region, not just the track, which makes it easier to use effects creatively
  • Manage large-scale mixes more easily with the addition of console-style VCA faders
  • Relative and Trim Automation modes extend the options for fine-tuning existing automation
  • Mixer now allows remote control of microphone and other input settings for compatible audio interfaces
  • Realtime rendering of fades allow them to work with Flex Pitch and speeds up project load times
  • The Plug-in Manager now allows you to customize the organization of your menu
  • Support for Mail Drop and Air Drop in OS X Yosemite makes it even easier to share your Logic projects

Logic Remote 1.2 for Logic Pro X and GarageBand

  • New plug-in view provides access to Logic or Audio Unit plug-in parameters
  • Use Multi-Touch gestures to shape the tone of your tracks with Visual EQ
  • Remotely add or re-order plug-ins
  • Control the microphone and other input settings for compatible audio interfaces

MainStage 3.1

  • Redesigned Compressor plug-in features scalable, Retina-ready interface and 7 models including the new Classic VCA
  • Retro Synth can now create wavetables from imported audio and is able to stack up to 8 voices
  • Expanded sound library includes over 200 new synth patches and 10 classic Mellotron instruments
  • The Plug-in Manager now allows you to customize the organization of your menu
  • Turn your favorite hardware synthesizers into sampled instruments using new Auto Sampler plug-in
  • Assign and manage custom shortcuts using the new Key Command editor
Daniel Griffiths

Daniel Griffiths is a veteran journalist who has worked on some of the biggest entertainment, tech and home brands in the world. He's interviewed countless big names, and covered countless new releases in the fields of music, videogames, movies, tech, gadgets, home improvement, self build, interiors and garden design. He’s the ex-Editor of Future Music and ex-Group Editor-in-Chief of Electronic Musician, Guitarist, Guitar World, Computer Music and more. He renovates property and writes for MusicRadar.com.