Camel Audio have announced the release of version 1.3 of their synthesizer Cameleon 5000. Cameleon 5000 is an additive synthesizer with morphing and resynthesis abilities. Version 1.3 adds a host of new features including the ability to convert bitmaps to noise. Sounds may also be exported as bitmaps, so that they may be edited in a graphics program and then reimported. Cameleon also adds support for microtuning, and has had significant CPU optimization allowing it to be run at lower latencies. It now responds to MIDI bank and program changes. The update also offers a number of sound quality improvements including improved reverb and chorus effects. Other improvements include voice mute buttons, longer LFO cycles, multi-sampling of bitmaps and support for Mac OS 9.

Cameleon 5000 is supp ...

Gmedia Music posted a 1.0.1 release of ImpOscar, the virtual recreation of legendary Oscar synthesiser, released in 1984 and which became a favourite instrument of Ultravox, S-express, Jean Michel Jarre and Underworld. This VSTi plugin version adds new features such as polyphony, improved UserWave editing, enhanced filter modes, synchronised LFO and increased LFO waveforms, delay and chorus effects.

More info on MacMusic software section.

Fresh from Precisionsounds comes Dusty Electric MKII. Formatted for HALion and Kontakt the 24 bit samples are taken from a well tuned 1980 Rhodes Stage Piano Mark II (Seventy Three). Weighing in at a respectable 235MB, each of the 520 Mono Wav files has been looped to maintain realism while not being too resource hungry. For a true representation of the original instrument you get up to 5 velocity layers and 3 velocity release layers.

Prices start a $63 USD for a downloadable version.

Steinberg released Cubase System|2, an integrated music production system, featuring M 2, a 2-channel USB Audio and 16-channel MIDI interface, and Steinberg's sequencer Cubase SE with 5 virtual instruments (The Grand SE, D'Cota SE, Virtual Guitarist EE SE, Groove Agent SE, HALion SE).

Cubase System|2 for Mac OS X is expected end of june for 419 euros.

MPCsounds.com announces the debut of "Orchestral Percussion", a new sound library for the Akai MPC1000/2000/XL/3000/LE/4000 drum machines.

Full "Orchestral Percussion" instruments list: Drums (concert snare and piccolo snare, concert bass drum, concert toms, tympani), Cymbals (crash cymbal, piatti cymbals, splash cymbal, ride cymbal, tam-tam gong, and automobile brake drum), Tuned percussion (glockenspiel, marimba, xylophone, and orchestral chimes), and Orchestral percussion (claves, woodblock, castanets, jam block, tambourine, agogo bells,
sleigh bells, slapstick, bell tree, vibraslap, temple blocks, cowbell, cabasa, and shakers).

The "Orchestral Percussion" library is available on MPC CD-ROM, Zip disk, Floppy, or as Downloadable sets. Prices start at $29.95.