accSone has announced a free update to crusher-X 12.20 featuring a new Binaural Processor, cleaner voice and instrument pitching, broader audio file support, higher sound quality, and a faster, smoother engine and UI.
Binauralization renders sound with the directional, distance and height cues the ear uses in the real world, so stereo material is heard as a three-dimensional space over ordinary headphones. crusher-X’s Binaural Processor combines specific generated HRTFs, selectable for different head sizes, with a BRIR-based convolution room simulation; both are designed to represent the position, distance and movement of its grain generation in three dimensions.
The update also adds FLAC support (load anywhere WAV and AIFF do, and Wave-buffer save), MP3 playback support for lower sample rates, and a reworked Pitch Tracker with two new Sync modes (Tune Sync and Base Key Sync) for higher-quality, cleaner pitching of voice and instruments, with steadier tracking, correct octaves and a wider frequency range. The grain engine and the user interface have been reworked for lower CPU use and faster fader, parameter and Program-change response, with samples now loading while the editor stays live and lower memory use per open instance. The release also corrects a range of audio-file loading issues across WAV, AIFF, MP3 and sample packs, and removes clicks, warble and colour errors in grain and sample playback and in the Compressor.
Release Notes:
- Adds a Binaural Processor in the Panner that gives stereo productions a surround feel on headphones.
- Adds two Pitch Tracker modes, Tune Sync and Base Key Sync, that lock grains to the sung or played note for a clean voice and instrument pitching effect without warble.
- Adds a Generator Beam fader in the Panner that bleeds an unpanned Generator output into the Granulizer outputs, overriding the Panner.
- Adds Default Prog and Default Pack in the Settings Tab: every new instance starts on your chosen Program and Package (replaces the old Default menu entries).
- Adds automatic tab switching in the mapping editor to match the incoming controller type – until you pick a tab yourself.
- Adds a 2nd click (or shift-click) on the Phase fader title to set Phase so all generators span one modulation period.
- Adds DCO low range down into the LFO domain to 0.001 Hz – useful for very slow LFO frequency modulations.
- Adds FLAC support: FLAC loads anywhere WAV and AIFF do, and the Wave buffer can be saved as FLAC – lossless at about half a WAV’s size.
- Adds support for MP3 files at 8, 11.025 and 12 kHz, which used to fail with a header error.
- Adds a living crusher-X logo in the editor that waves while running, glitches in Glitcher Mode, and rests when bypassed.
- Improves UI responsiveness everywhere – every view, fader and knob costs a fraction of before, so faders stay smooth and the engine keeps its headroom.
- Improves grain processing throughout: idle filters, unused sends and output routing now cost nothing, freeing CPU so bigger clouds and more generators fit.
- Improves the Pitch Tracker: no phantom notes from an open mic or rumble, correct octave on bright notes, range down to bass low E, and full range at 96 kHz.
- Improves Adore fader returning to the intial sound: a fader at zero now restores while the top still gives the full effect.
- Improves clicks and overtones at extreme grain window Tilt (and extreme GCO Scan and DCO Phase morph): now a clean sharp fade, not a stepped edge.
- Improves pitched grains: detuned, swept or reverse Speed now plays cleanly without treble warble, and reverse and delayed grains no longer click.
- Improves samples played by a DCO or the grain oscillator (GCO): tuned or modulated off pitch they keep their treble instead of dulling and warbling.
- Improves the Compressor and Expander at low levels: a low threshold or knee is now followed smoothly instead of smeared into one coarse step.
- Improves OSC message handling on repeating OSC inputs (such as from head-trackers).
- Improves UI and button mouse hover contrast.
- Improves display of long file names and paths: the Audio File, DCO sample name and Settings paths now show where they were cut, keeping the file name.
- Improves multithreaded Granulizer performance by letting generators finish while the last workers hand in their results.
- Improves parameter changes: fader moves, host automation, MIDI/OSC controllers and Program changes cost a fraction of the CPU, dense automation stays smooth.
- Improves Program switch and patch load time to a fraction of before: samples load while the editor stays live, so switching Programs stays responsive.
- Improves memory use: an open crusher-X takes about 75 MB less – roughly a third off – which counts when running several instances.
- Improves GCO waveform quality.
- Fixes the Generator amount changing the output level in the Stereo modes – the level now stays steady as you add or remove Generators.
- Fixes a brief gap in the reverb send at the very start of every Diffuse-routed sound.
- Fixes a click on small fader moves at low volume.
- Fixes a click when toggling the Side-Chain routing to Main Input and DCO.
- Fixes a click when switching a DCO play on or off, which now eases in and out over a short fade.
- Fixes a faint low rumble as a sound faded in – a fade-in now eases up cleanly instead of landing with a bump.
- Fixes seldom crash on OSC input during UI startup.
- Fixes crash and wrong Glitch Mode when loading older Glitcher patches using a long-removed stereo pair mode (e.g. factory patch Glitcher Tilt-X).
- Fixes MP3 and sample pack files loading with a short silence in front, which shifted every position – patches saved before keep their sound.
- Fixes MP3 decoding: harsh grainy edges, wrong colour on loud notes, wrong pitch in 24 kHz files, and 16/22.05/24 kHz files at double length with silence.
- Fixes AIFF and WAV loading: a 32-bit WAV came in upside down, an 8 bit WAV at a wrong level, an 8 bit AIFF as noise, and float or mu-law AIFF would not load.
- Fixes Wave buffer exports to AIFF – the format the save dialog offers first – which no other application could open.
- Fixes Wave buffer export writing only a few seconds: it now covers what the view shows (zoom out for more), and a loaded audio file is written whole.
- Fixes a sample or Wave buffer in an encoding crusher-X cannot read, which loaded as silence without a word and now says what is wrong.
- Fixes the first move of a linked stereo fader pair after loading a Program, which moved only the fader under the mouse – moves after that took both.
- Fixes a Program with a Wave buffer file being marked modified when switched to, and its zoom jumping to that file’s length instead of staying put.
- Fixes the Wave buffer file open dialog not offering MP3 files although MP3 loading is supported.
- Fixes the Program and Bank file dialogs naming both Programs and Sound Packages whatever was actually being imported or exported.
- Fixes a playing sample DCO jumping onto the new Program’s loop, play mode, direction and pitch on switch – it now plays its own loop out as it fades.
- Fixes wrong DCO setup of very old crusher-X programs.
- Fixes a stray sample file name left in the GCO waveform list of some older factory Programs, naming a file never part of the installation.
- Fixes holding shift while opening the editor resetting only GUI Size: it now restores the whole “Every instance” block of the Settings tab to default.
- Fixes dragging a Panner path point sideways in the side view – the point no longer stalls halfway or vanishes before it reaches the opposite wall.
- macOS: Fixes the version shown for AAX Instrument plug-ins, which stayed at the release version instead of the actual build.
- macOS: Improves Apple Silicon performance by spreading the Granulizer engine over the performance cores, giving tight patches room to spare.
- macOS: Improves the installer download, which macOS now identifies as coming from ACCSONE before it is even opened.
- Standalone Win: Fixes missing ASIO sample rate set while the ASIO dialog is open.
- Standalone Win: Fixes crash on changing ASIO sample buffer size while running.
- Standalone: Adds a command line to load, play and record patches without the UI – render to wav, batch a folder, or -smoketest install (-help lists options).
- Standalone: Adds a File menu “Reset…” that reloads crusher-X like a fresh instance, keeping the stored Bank and settings but returning UI Scale to Auto.
Read more about the new crusher-X 12 features here.
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