Samplitude – Detailed Review & Infos:

First of all we have been taking a closer look at Samplitude ‘s mixer. It is built up very clearly and its usage can be described as intuitive. With the new mixer layouts it can be configured individually. This could be helpful in various recording, scenarios and might be a real time saver.

Because of the new routing manager tracks can be routed pre- or post fader to different outputs. Thats important for the usage of effects such as reverbs, delays etc. or if you are planning to integrate an analog summing device. The VCA faders allow it to control grouped tracks the same way as you would on an analog recording console.

Samplitude Pro X3 allows it to create up to 999 audio- and midi- tracks with 256 in- and outputs. Projects in the 16 to 32 bit format and sample rates up to 382 kHz are supported. The used 64 bit hybrid audio engine is very neutral sounding.

This is especially important when mastering, as the sound should not be colored through the audio engine. This is a big plus in Samplitude as other DAW’s have a clearly audible color. Therefore a neutral judgement of the songs and audio material isn’t possible anymore.

The Suite version includes amongst others the full version of Sound Forge Pro 11, the loudness EBU meter (R128/ ITU-R BS.1771), the “Cleaning & Restoration Suite”, as well as the True Peak Limiter, a DDP export function, the ability to create Red Book CDR’s, a new “Encoder Preview” Plug-in and the “Analog Modelling Suite Plus”.

The DDP export function was missing in previous versions, however this is an essential add-on if you are mastering for cd releases & duplication. This was only available in its “bigger brother” Sequoia before. The DDP format already replaced the Red Book CDR. The file including a checksum can be sent online to the replication plant and is in many cases safer as a CDR, which can be damaged during shipment.

Furthermore convinced us the integration of Melodyne Essential and the new Encoder Preview Plug-in. The Encoder Plug-in allows to monitor the AAC & Mp3 conversion process. You can instantly hear quality losses and adjust your master accordingly.

For example if you recognize that  the highs are lost during the conversion and a song sounds muffled, you could work out lost frequencies better. This is very important if you are mastering for iTunes in order to be approved for the “mastered for iTunes” section in the Apple store. With Melodyne Essential you can comfortably correct the pitch of a recording. Wrongly played or sung notes can now easily be corrected within the Melodyne editor.

The VST3 link allows the integration of all popular third party VST Plugins such as Steinberg, Waves, Native Instruments, Universal Audio and much more. The added “Analog Modelling & Vintage Effects” Suites are another big bonus and are perfect for analog hardware emulations.