Is MultiTrackStudio the first MIDI 2.0 DAW?

MultiTrackStudio
(Image credit: Bremmers Audio)

We’ve heard a lot over the past year about what MIDI 2.0 will offer, but its name still isn’t cropping up on many software and hardware spec sheets. Credit, then, to Bremmers Audio Design, which has become the first company - as far as we’re aware - to put MIDI 2.0 in a DAW.

We’re told that MultiTrackStudio 10, which runs on PC and Mac, uses MIDI 2.0 internally throughout - which means higher resolution - while MIDI 2.0-registered per-note controllers and per-note pitchbend are also supported. The software also supports MPE (MIDI Polyphonic Expression) - which shouldn’t be confused with MIDI 2.0 - and conversion between the two standards is applied where appropriate.

Similar MIDI 2.0 and MPE functionality can be found in MultiTrackStudio for iPad, which has now reached version 4.

MultiTrackStudio has been around since 2001; while not a particularly high-profile DAW, its tape-style recording workflow makes it easy to understand. However, these latest developments demonstrate that it’s anything but low-tech.

You can find out more about the MIDI 2.0 and MPE support, and how it affects VST/AU plugins and MultiTrackStudio’s own instruments, on the MultiTrackStudio website. The Pro version costs $119, while the Standard edition can be had for $69.

The new version is available free of charge for users who purchased the program after 28 October 28, 2013, while older versions can be upgraded for $39 (Pro) or $23 (Standard).

The iPad version is available from the Apple App Store priced at $30/£29.

Ben Rogerson

I’m the Deputy Editor of MusicRadar, having worked on the site since its launch in 2007. I previously spent eight years working on our sister magazine, Computer Music. I’ve been playing the piano, gigging in bands and failing to finish tracks at home for more than 30 years, 24 of which I’ve also spent writing about music and the ever-changing technology used to make it. 

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