Bitwig has backtracked on its decision to market and sell its new Spectral Suite software as an add-on for its DAW rather than a feature of its chargeable Upgrade Plan.
Spectral Suite contains four devices suitable for mixing and sound design - Transient Split, Freq Split, Loud Split and Harmonic Split - plus a companion sound package containing more than 100 presets and clips.
The original plan was to sell this for $79/€79, even to those customers who had paid for a 12-month upgrade plan, but following complaints from loyal users that it should be included as part of the plan, Bitwig has now relented.
“We've had time to reflect on last week's Spectral Suite announcement and the responses from our community,” says the company on its website. “We apologise for how we handled this and want to make this right.
“Spectral Suite is now part of Bitwig Studio 4.4, which has an official release date of October 5, 2022. Anyone with a current Upgrade Plan now owns Bitwig Studio 4.4 and the four Spectral Suite devices. We will contact everyone who purchased Spectral Suite to offer a choice of a refund or an extension of their Upgrade Plan.
“Moving forward, all of our Bitwig Studio feature development, including devices, will be covered by the 12-month Upgrade Plan.
“Your support of Bitwig Studio (and us) means more than we can say. Thank you.”
The Spectral Suite effects are designed with sonic exploration in mind, with each device focusing on a different musical element (loudness, harmonic content, transients and frequency).
It works by splitting the incoming sound into hundreds of frequency bands, with signals then being grouped into related channels that you can mix with volume and panning controls. You can also throw in other Bitwig devices and third-party plugins.
Find out more on the Bitwig Studio website. Bitwig Studio costs $399; existing users who are outside of an Upgrade Plan should login to their accounts for upgrade/renewal offers.
