MPC Pad 187 is an editor for the Akai MPC 1000, which allows users to editi and create MPC 1000 program files. It can edit all values that are found in the Slider, Mixer, and Program modes of the MPC 1000 (Pads 1, 8, and 7) including their sub-windows. It has been updated to version 1.1. and features drag & drop capabilities, audition samples by clicking the pads, and keyboard shortcuts.

MPC Pad 187 Editor for Akai MPC 1000 is free and needs Mac OS 10.3.

Tascam released the VL-S21 monitoring system, designed for home recording and multimedia use, which bundles a pair of thin speakers (5 W) and a powered subwoofer (15 W). The speakers use NXT technology, which provide wider dispersion and more uniform frequency response.

This system costs $129.

Sample Manager, made by Audiophile Engineering, is a full-featured batch audio processor includind Change Gain, Fade, Trim, Reverse, Convert, Process with AudioUnit, and many others, with full support of Aiff, Wave and Sound Designer II audio files. This 1.4.2 update improves support for Waves plug-ins, adds speed improvements on "large" audio files, and fixes several bugs.

This shareware is available from the MacMusic Softwares section.

Metro is a fast-operating, easy-to-learn high-powered sequencer for the design of professional audio projects. It stands alone as a complete and integrated MIDI, audio and video production system. Sagan Technology has announced updates to v6.2.1.7 for Metro, Metro LX and Metro SE. These updates are free.

List of new features and bugfixes available from the MM softwares section.

Digidesign released MassivePack 3, a powerful plug-in bundle offering unprecedented savings on plug-ins. This pack bundles third party plugins : Echo Farm, Filterbank, H949 Harmonizer, MC2000, MDW High-Res Parametric EQ, Oxford OXF-R3 EQ, Slightly Rude Compressor, Smack, SoundBlender, Speed, and TL Space.

This bundle costs US$1,195, and the Pro version (bundle and one HD Accel card) costs $3,495. MassivePack 3 will be available on Sept. 30.