Music Unfolding has released two new Audio Units plugins for Mac OS X :

- hD 1.0 is a distortion effect. It can also directly add note harmonics — up to two octaves higher — and it contains a sub-octave generator. The harmonic generators are optimized and located to enhance the distortion. They can also be used to generate 12-string guitar effects and as a note doubler. hD ships at $19.99.

- xEQ 1.0 is a straight forward parametric EQ/Tone Control. It consists of Low and High shelf filters and three Peak/Cut filters. It is very useful for placing around distortion effects. Place before as a tone control and after to simulate a speaker cabinet's frequency response curve. xEQ is available as a free download.

FracturedSoftware announced today the immediate availability of Rondo 2.0, an update to its Midi Player for OS X. This latest version of Rondo now includes several larger pianos and a Midi library with playlists to help you store, organize and play your MIDI files. Rondo has been designed specifically to help you follow the music as it plays. Its vertical piano roll with horizontal keyboard located directly over the scrolling notes makes it very easy to see what notes are about to sound. And features such as looping, tempo control and separate audio and visual track filtering help you focus on just a part of the melody so that you can play along.

Rondo 2.0 is priced at US $25. Early purchasers will also be eligible for a free upgrade to version 3. Rondo 2.0 is a free upgrade for existing customers.

MHC announce Universal Binary versions of the Audio Units in the Studio Setup plugin bundle. The Audio Units in the Studio Setup plugin bundle have been updated to version 2.0.4. This is a Universal Binary release making the plugins compatible with Intel Macs. The Studio Setup plugin bundle includes the Space Synth, Voxynth and Fatsondo synthesizers and the Space Effect, Vox FX and 7 effects in the Flex FX package.

Price is still $99, including the 12 plugins in the bundle.

IZotope has updated, in RTAS, Audio Units and VST formats :

- Spectron to version 1.09
- Vinyl to version 1.73
- Ozone to version 3.10
- Trash to version 1.09

These new versions are free and improve processor performance with Pro Tools.

Digidesign is offering "Signal Tools" a new serie of plug-in for free included in the Digirack. Composed of SurroundScope and PhaseScope, it brings you the essential for real time analysis of audio signal , in stéréo or surround (onProtools HD). Theses plug-in are available for free under RTAS and TDM HD format on the Digidesign website