Nikolozi has updated Mela, available as a FREE download with optional in-app purchases. To celebrate, all Collections now attract a 30% discount ending March 9th.
What’s new in version 6.2:
The Mela 6.2 is a significant update, making the app fully native on macOS by moving away from MacCatalyst. It offers improved stability on macOS, particularly when used as an AUv3 plug-in within a host. It also introduces three new modules—Layer, Effect, and Group—replacing the Sublane module.
- Layer Module
- Layer module lets you create an audio layer easily using its sublane.
- The sublane takes non-Audio signals, MIDI and Pitch or Poly (non-Audio components), as input.
- The output Audio signal (or the Audio components of the Poly signal) is the sum of the module’s input and the sublane’s output.
- All other signal types pass through unchanged.
- While the sublane can transform a copy of the MIDI and Pitch input signals, those aren’t merged at the output, unlike the Audio signals.
- The module allows you to create synth layers, where each layer can have independent processors such as filters, amp envelopes, panners, and pitch transposition.
- The Volume parameter controls the volume applied to the sublane’s output before the Audio signal summing.
- Layer is a Mela Lab module and part of Collection 4.
- Effect Module
- Effect module lets you create self-contained custom audio effects.
- Its sublane, called Wet Path, receives a copy of the module’s input signals.
- The output Audio signal (or the Audio components of the Poly signal) is the mix of the module’s input and the sublane’s output.
- While the sublane can transform a copy of the MIDI and Pitch input signals, those aren’t merged at the output, unlike the Audio signals.
- The Dry parameter controls the level applied to the module’s input before the Audio signal summing.
- The Wet parameter controls the level applied to the sublane’s output before the Audio signal summing.
- Effect is a Mela Lab module and part of Collection 4.
- Group Module
- Group module lets you group a sequence of modules using its sublane.
- It allows you to move the submodules together or bypass them at once.
- The module’s input signals are passed to the sublane.
- The sublane’s output signals are passed to the module’s output.
- Group modules can be nested.
- Group is a Mela Lab module and part of Collection 4.
- Improvements
- Glide: The module now handles non-Poly signals, i.e. it functions properly when following a Note-to-Pitch module.
- Oscillators: The VA and DS Oscillator modules, along with the VPS Oscillator, will no longer animate changes to the Level parameter, except when its sign changes (positive to negative or vice versa). This adjustment improves visibility, as it’s harder to observe how other parameters influence the waveform shape when the Level is near zero.
- DS Oscillator: The module now has the same layout as the VPS Oscillator.
- DS Oscillator: The module now handles zero pitch signal gracefully.
- Preset Browser: On macOS and iPad, you can now secondary-click on a preset to show the context menu instead of the long-press gesture.
- Presets: When the plug-in state is saved or loaded, the “name” field now sets or retrieves the preset name. This ensures that in hosts like Logic Pro, which store presets outside Mela’s file container, the name shown in Mela matches the name of the preset loaded from the host.
- UI: Removed the close buttons from the popovers, as they were redundant. Tap/Click outside to dismiss them.
- UI: The About view is now a popover and follows the zoom setting.
- Fixes
- MIDI Delay: Fixed a bug where MIDI messages were delayed by twice the amount of the set tempo-sync value.
- Preset Browser: Fixed a bug where long-pressing a preset shown in search results would sometimes display a wrong context menu.
- Polyphony: Fixed an issue where the Reuse and Release settings were not set in the audio engine.
- Polyphony: Fixed MIDI-to-Poly’s voice alignment not working for the same MIDI input in some cases.
- Modulation: Fixed modulation not working correctly for the modules inserted after a module causing a Poly-to-Audio signal collapse.
Mela is a modular music-making tool that scales with your needs. With its intuitive interface, you can seamlessly build fully custom polyphonic synthesisers, unique audio effects, and complex MIDI processors. Mela can run as a standalone app on iOS and macOS or as an AUv3 plug-in inside your favourite DAW such as AUM, Drambo, Logic Pro and many more.
In Mela, presets are constructed using modules arranged on lanes, where signals flowing through the lanes are processed by the modules. Audio and MIDI signals can be sent and received to and from the host or routed between lanes using internal buses. Modulator modules can target any module parameter on any lane. Lanes and modules are easily added, removed, or rearranged, allowing you to design presets as simple or complex as needed. Mela comes with 76 modules, with new ones added with every update. The following are some examples from different categories.
Mela can be loaded inside a host as one of the following plug-in types: Instrument, Audio Effect or MIDI Processor. The only difference is the number of audio and MIDI inputs and outputs. Otherwise, the features are identical, and a preset created in one type can be opened by another.
Modules are organised into collections. Collection 0 is free, allowing you to test out Mela’s features. Other collections can be purchased via in-app purchases. The following is a list of all modules.
- Collection 0: Amp Envelope, Arpeggiator, Audio In, Audio Out, LFO, Meter, MIDI In, MIDI Out, MIDI-to-Poly, Note Pad, Poly-to-Audio, Relative Pitch, Stereo Delay, Transposer, VA Filter, VA Oscillator, Volume.
- Collection 1: Balance, Chord, Chorus, Control Change, Compressor, Distortion, DS Oscillator, Envelope Generator, Envelope Follower, Flanger, Glide, Level, MIDI Logger, MIDI Source, Mono, Noise Oscillator, Note Echo, Note Length, Note Range, Phaser, Pitch Bend, Random, Scale, Strummer, Velocity.
- Collection 2: Clipper, Comb Filter, DC Blocker, Degrader, EQ Band, Fixed Pitch, FM Operator, Macro, MIDI Capture, MIDI Channel, Oscilloscope, Pitch Ratio, Rectifier, Vibrato, Voice Activity, VPS Oscillator.
- Collection 3: All Pass, Audio-to-Mod, Correlation, Digital Delay, Dual Pan, Euclid, Macro Button, Mid-Side, Multiply-Add, Noise Gate, Note Chance, Note Event, Phase Inverter, Pitch Follower, Reverb, Ring Mod, Simple LFO, Stereo Pan.
- Collection 4: Delay, Feedback, MIDI Delay, Note-to-Pitch, Note Pulse, Sublane, Vel-to-Amp.
Mela is available to iOS and MacOS users (AUv3).
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