Hi all! This winter has seen a flurry of programming here at the labs. Aside from finishing up our new synthesizer, Kaivo, I have done some work fine tuning Aalto and making sure it plays nicely with recent operating systems and hosts.
Aalto 1.5 is out now. As always, you can get the release version by logging in and clicking “My Downloads,” and the demo at the Aalto product page. Version 1.5 has some major compatibility improvements for both Windows and Mac users. Performance should be dramatically improved on some Windows systems. I’ve improved the usability of the Patcher and dial UIs.
On Mac OS, if you have a Retina display, you are in for a treat. As always, you can smoothly scale Aalto to a wide range of sizes, or even zoom it to full screen. This new version has a new OpenGL-assisted renderer so graphics are amazingly sharp, at full Retina resolution, in compatible hosts. It may be “only a graphic thing” but I find this change means that using a tiny little Aalto window is now possible, which can really improve workflow on a laptop screen. (note: unfortunately Ableton Live does not yet support full-resolution rendering.)
Here’s the list of major changes in Aalto 1.5:
- Fixed an issue that was slowing down Aalto dramatically on some Windows systems.
- Fixed an issue requiring a runtime support pack on some Windows systems.
- Improved latency through the patcher when running at large host buffer sizes.
- Aalto now draws at full resolution on Macintosh Retina Display, in compatible hosts.
- Aalto is now compatible with Soundplane version 1.0 and higher.
- Fix mousewheel direction on Mac OS 10.7 and higher.
- Accelerated drawing to the screen on Mac OS with OpenGL.
- Optimized drawing scheduling to avoid glitches, especially in Logic.
- User and factory presets now share the same location.
- Improved ergonomics of patcher with larger handles and smoother graphics.
- Fixed a drawing problem with bipolar dials.
- Improved drag ergonomics for dials.
thank you!
Hi,
i use Aalto now since over year and it`s my favourite virtual instrument - so thx first for this great synth.
after updating to 1.5 i experience some odd behavior:
all of my patches lack of the x vel setting in ENV 1 - so they sound different. this is not acceptable by any means
the gui is slow and the grafix stutter - like when adjust the decay of the envelope it stutters the grafic of the envelope
my system
intel q6600 2,4, ghz quad
win xp SP3
Ableton Live 9.1
Version 1.4.1 worked perfect
so, as long as the above mentioned bugs aren`t fixed, is it possiible to get a 1.4 download to return to the old version?
THX
and greetz
Moritz
all of my patches lack of the x vel setting in ENV 1 - so they sound different. this is not acceptable by any means
eek, a typo in the Windows version somehow made it through testing! I'll send out a 1.5.1 update today.
Thanks for the quick report.
The slower UI is actually by design. Aalto does a lot more drawing than most plugins and this can really bother some hosts. So I have slowed down some things to avoid clicks in the sound in high-CPU situations. I don't like seeing this either but after all, it's the sound that matters! Someday i will have a full OpenGL interface and we can get back up to speed.
The typo actually affected both Mac and Windows. D'oh. I posted a fix, still as version 1.5.0. The release date on these new downloads should read February 16.
k. so i needed to re-download v1.5 for mac, did that.
the release notes still say February 14.
The date on the archive files themselves is what I mean. You should be fine.
Great news! Will try the new version asap. Thanx!
hi randy, the 'key trig' state isn't loaded from presets at all here. lots of my patches use 'key trig' but they all load with it switched off.
also, when using Live and the qwerty kb to play notes, adjusting Aalto's gui makes it unresponsive to the notes. you need to click back on Live interface to play notes.
@garf:
Having to click back on Live's window again to make Aalto responsive to keys again has always been the case...
would love to see this resolved as well, if possible.
its definitely been the only thing that bothers me a bit.
but, currently, i've been sequencing aalto with modular.
Blast. OK, I see the key trig issue and will get a fix out ASAP. Thanks for the report.
ok thanks
Thanks for the update! I just bought Aalto today and have been playing with the default voice. I haven't been able to see or access any other patches in the dropdown menu though. I installed the presets package, and I see the files there in Library>Audio>Presets>(etc). I'm running OSX 10.9.1. Thanks again, I'm looking forward to getting deeper into Aalto!
The presets (both user and "factory") should be in ~(your home directory)/Library/Audio/Presets/Madrona Labs/Aalto. It could be yours are in /Library, on the root directory?
I heard some people are having problems with the preset installer on Mavericks. I'm going to sort this out for a 1.5.0 release very soon.
Meanwhile, I uploaded all my presets here:
Aalto Presets.zip
You can just copy the "Aalto" directory to its destination.
Sorry for the confusion!
Thanks! That did the trick. I moved my presets folder from the root /Library into my own user /Library/Audio/Presets/Madrona Labs/Aalto.
It could be confusing for some, since on Mavericks the user Library directory is hidden my default.
It could be confusing for some, since on Mavericks the user Library directory is hidden my default.
Right. And yet that is where Apple wants us to put things like presets. I think the best solution is to write a nice preset manager as part of the plugin, but I haven't gotten around to that yet...
hmm..
drop down menu still disappears on drop down, and have to do it again to access presets.
cpu spikes here and there.
os x 10.8.5 macbook pro i7 8g
curious,
can i see a screenshot of the updates to the Aalto interface ?
as far as changes go.
not sure what the difference are.
also, i only use aalto in Live 9.1.1 on os x.
Hi Randy! I am experiencing some problems when using Aalto 1.5 in FL studio producer edition 11.0.0. Some patches seem to have volume issues. The sound suddenly drops away and the patch silences completely. This seems to happen when env 2 controls the level. Also, when i open 2 or more instances of Aalto on 2 or more channels, channel 2 is mute.
curious, can i see a screenshot of the updates to the Aalto interface ? as far as changes go. not sure what the difference are. also, i only use aalto in Live 9.1.1 on os x.
It doesn't look that different. Just twice the resolution on OS X w/ Retina :-)
But not in Live :-(
Hi Randy! I am experiencing some problems when using Aalto 1.5 in FL studio producer edition 11.0.0. Some patches seem to have volume issues. The sound suddenly drops away and the patch silences completely.
There's a lot to check out here, and these are all new issues for me, can you email me at support @ madronalabs please? First I'm wondering which patches if consistent, and if it happens on both 32/64 bit.
I only used the 64-bit version. I will check out where the glitches are this weekend and email it.
Update looks great. I have been playing around all morning and coming up with new sounds. It's amazing what just a little tweak to the GUI can inspire... I am also afraid to admit that after having Aalto for over a year only today did I realize I could make the work area bigger =O
hi randy, thanks for the update, but i see that there is still the problem with the x vel button in env 1. it does not work, there is no sound at all when this button is pressed...
OK, I'll get on this ASAP.
Awesome semi-modular synth you've build my friend! Thumbs up and thnx for the great update :)
Hi Randy,
I purchased version 1.2 back in 2011. I just discovered this new version v1.5 but when I registered in the website I did not see any download link associated with my e-mail. Is the full version available for download to the purchasers of v1.2? If yes, could you please fix my account link? If my information is lost I can send you the original Paypal e-mail receipt. Thank you!
@jcancelo No problem, I brought your license up to date so you should be good to download 1.5 now. If you have any more questions, please send me an email at support @ madronalabs.com.
Hi Randy,
First of all thanks for the amazing work done with Aalto, this is probably my favourite instrument at the moment.
I work with a friend making music and we share the projects with each other and we are having some diferent results with the same project.
We both use:
Aalto last patch
FL Studio 11
Same processor (only motherboard and some other components are different)
There is this project that runs perfectly on my computer but when he runs it on his computer there is a patch with the sequencer running with the INT clock that runs out of tempo or at least the pattern when playing a chord sounds very diferent. The patch is exatly the same!
Do you have any idea why this is happening?
We have tried everything :(
Thanks,
J.
Aalto 1.5 has a bug (known about for 4 months now...) where the Key Trig switch's state is ignored when loading a preset - so it will always be switched off, leading to slightly different results every time. maybe that's the issue you're seeing.
This is fixed for 1.6. I had to spend a long time working on Kaivo 1.1 so I realize it has been a while. Aalto 1.6 is my next order of business and won't take nearly as long.