Usine is featured in our roundup of the best Music Production Software

Usine is a music production application designed for both live and studio utilization.

Usine is first and foremost designed by musicians for musicians. It is a solution to specific audio production needs whether be it live effect processing, sampling, or sound design. The Usine is described as an instrument in itself, having flexibility and able to transform or resample the sound real time for creative improvisations and personalized effects.

Usine is a patch oriented software where you can add plug-ins and connect them without restriction. The main feature of Usine is to provide a real time analysis of your current audio signal and then react, modify and express yourself better by tweaking the patch system and other parameters.

Features:

• Build modular sound processing: create patches with "modules" and connect them by virtual wires very simply.
• Analyse input or generated sound, for example pitch, peaks or dynamics, to create adaptive effects; modify any parameter in real time.
• Use the built-in virtual mixing table to mix the sound produced by different patches on each track (up to 16).
• Create huge, creative or stupid audio routing within the mixing table. For example, routing a patch output to another patch input, or create a virtual master effect send and return, etc.
• Manage 16 external audio sources (8 stereo) and apply different effects to any of them.
• Create flexible Surround or 5.1 projects: all audio tracks are 5.1 or 6.0. The output sound can routed to any of the 16 available outputs, depending on your sound card.
• Create inserts patches on any input / output channels. For example a master limiter or a master reverb.
• Complete VST processing: You can use any VST instrument or effect in patches and modify any VST Parameter in real time. Create a front-end simple interface.
• Complete MIDI automation: assign any Usine visual object to a MIDI controller very simply by using the MIDI-learn command. Complete integration of motorized external controllers.
• Complete MIDI input/output management, for VSTi instruments or external expanders.
• Load up to 256 patches in memory in a "grid" and activate them as you want in real time.
• Synchronize patches and VST plug-ins with a master tempo. Use unusual and absurd tempo from 0 to 10000000000!
• Record your creations directly on the hard disk in real time: separate tracks, inputs and outputs.
• All Usine functions are "real-time", and you can resample, modify, input sound on the fly.
• Save patches, complete workspaces, and configurations, for a very quick adaptation to different projects.
• Use any sample rate, depending on your ASIO sound card.
• Usine has a 32 bit floating point audio engine.

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New in Usine 5.50.80.015

• Improved buffering system
• Bugfixes for SMPTE Position issue and loading issues with strings
• Added Step by Step mode in Piano Roll Synchro
• Option to disable Panic codes sent to MIDI outputs

New in Usine 5.50.80.013

• New Matrix Seq Groove ii patch
• Fixed bugs MIDI learn on Channel Aftertouch doesn’t work properly
• VST export doesn’t work properly since the [5.50.80.012]

New in Usine 5.50.80.012

• Bugfix for reported issues
• new Linkwitz-Riley filter module
• new Parametric EQ module
• better Mackie-Control hardware devices integration

New in Usine 5.50.80.011

• new Parametric EQ module
• new Linkwitz-Riley filter module
• improved Mackie-Control hardware integration

New in Usine 5.50.80.006

• new Looper Looper-rc51 in the Usine library
• new layout set
• new template set
• Fixed reported bugs

New in Usine 5.80.022

• Easy OSC learn technology.
• Easy OSC management with the new OSC Lister module.
• The Matrix Pack by Martin Fleurent storage in patches is now lighter.
• New Oscilloscope Audio in the patch library.
• A better Zero Crossing implementation in the Sampler module.
• Better synchro between UsineVST and hosts.
• More accurate point selection in Curve of Points module; new select tolerance option.
• New Smooth Freeze in the patch library.
• New Auto freeze in the patch library.
• New Rec on the fly in the patch library.
• New DJ Scratcher in the patch library.
• New sub-patch module A (Attack).
• New sub-patch module R (Release).
• Clickless Forward Reverse in the patch library.

New in Usine 5.70.034

• Added a new couple of lines in the control panel layout to adjust the size of the ON/OFF button
• Improved layout details
• Trace data option in the HID Device
• Global pre listen level fader in the Setup/Audio Out/
• Conductor module bugfix

New in Usine 5.70.032

• DBAP Panner 2D modified (5.70.030)
• Quadratic distance 2D note added. (5.70.030)
• Piano Roll and Sampler synchro section needs translation. (5.70.030)
• Minor Bug fixes

New in Usine 5.70.029

• Improvement of the gesture engine.
• Pan gestures: up, down, left, right bi points (see Getting Gesture Info)
• Fixed the Random Midi Module
• Fixed the single short click and the single long click gestures

New in Usine 5.70.025

• Formant Filter was created
• Other bug fixes

New in Usine 5.70

• Master Track - you can define a track as a master
• Create a VST - export your workspace into a stand alone application or a VST
• Conductors are now lighter, faster and smoother
• Now works in 4 languages - English, Spanish, Français and Deutsch
• Matrix - route audio and MIDI sources to several outputs (up to 16×16)
• Granulator Module - creates audio grains from an incoming audio source
• Always calculated module to force the current patch to be calculated even if the engine/track is Off.
• Current Patch Settings module, to set or get more info about the current patch. In sub-patches, this module allows realtime modification of the polyphony.
• Get CommaText Multi available as a script.
• option fast mode in OSC Receive for a faster and full reception of OSC data’s.
• Setup module to change various options of the setup
• Web Browser module to display an Internet page in your workspace.
• Math modules sign module.
• Selector string module
• Get Url File module is now threaded for a faster response.
• Hint implementation in the main window.
• Inverse option in Midi Learn & Key Learn panel to invert the course of a fader.

Usine 5.50
Includes a new technology called poly.
All sub-patches can now be duplicated according a poly parameter. For example, you can build a single sample player and decide to duplicate it 8 times to obtain 8 independents sample players with their own interface.

New in v5.50.55

• [library] new DJ delay II patch.
• [library] new DJ Hold patch.
• [usine] MIDI learn are memorized during the apply polyphony operation.
• [modules] strange behavior of the math/logical operators led output.
• [modules] fadein is applied sampler in MIDI mode.
• [usine VST] the MIDI In module doesn't work properly.

New in v5.50

• [patching] polyphony for sub-patches.
• [module] new Draw Objects module more powerful and faster.
• [module] mapper data up to 256 value.
• [module] new X-1 module.
• [module] new BLOC DURATION module.
• [touch screen] contact surface information now available in all interface modules.
• [library] new grain engine FX.
• [library] new Reverse FX.
• [keylearn] allows now multiple keypressed at the same time.
• [MIDI learn] soft take over implemented: option in the setup.
• [interface] trace OSC out messages.
• [interface] new color selector window.
• All reported bugs fixed.

New in v5.17

• Improvements: Master output soft clipping option in the setup.
• Improvements: MIDI learn is allowed on curve settings of the sequencer.
• Improvements: Caption font size option in the ControlPanel layout.
• Improvements: After an IB reorganisation panels are now in track order.
• Improvements: New SendInternalMessage procedure in scripts.
• Fixed Bugs: GetSmptePos, SetSmptePos and GetLoopMarkerPos is missing in Script.
• Fixed Bugs: The main IB is not cleared properly.
• Fixed Bugs: We can't use several send MIDI to Usine module at the same time.
• Fixed Bugs: Various curve setting bugs in the sequencer.
• Fixed Bugs: Various display bugs.