Mela – AUv3: Synth, FX, MIDI
iOS Universel / Musique
Mela is a modular music-making tool that scales with your needs. With its intuitive interface, you can seamlessly build fully custom polyphonic synthesisers, unique audio effects, and complex MIDI processors. Mela can run as a standalone app on iOS and macOS or as an AUv3 plug-in inside your favourite DAW such as AUM, Cubasis, Drambo, Logic Pro and many more.
In Mela, presets are constructed using modules arranged on lanes, where signals flowing through the lanes are processed by the modules. Audio and MIDI signals can be sent and received to and from the host or routed between lanes using internal buses. Modulator modules can target any module parameter on any lane. Lanes and modules are easily added, removed, or rearranged, allowing you to design presets as simple or complex as needed. Mela comes with 95 modules, with new ones added with every update. The following are some examples from different categories.
- MIDI processors: arpeggiator, chord, Euclidean sequencer, note echo, note modifiers, scale, strummer.
- Synth building blocks: virtual-analog oscillator, FM operator, phaseshaping, noise, VA filter, amp envelope.
- Modulators: envelope follower, envelope generator, LFO, macro control, MIDI source, random.
- Audio effects: chorus, delay, distortion, flanger, phaser, dynamics processors, comb filter, EQ, stereo panner.
- Utilities: level and correlation metering, audio oscilloscope, MIDI capture, MIDI logger, notepad.
Mela can be loaded in a host as an Instrument, Audio Effect, or MIDI Processor plug-in. The only difference between them is the number of audio and MIDI inputs and outputs. Otherwise, all features are identical, and presets created in one type can be opened in another. Mela includes over 200 presets that showcase different ways to combine modules and shape your unique sound.
Modules are organised into collections. Collection 0 is free, allowing you to test out Mela's features. Other collections can be purchased via in-app purchases. The following is a list of all modules.
Collection 0:
Amp Envelope, Arpeggiator, Audio In, Audio Out, Group, LFO, Meter, MIDI In, MIDI Out, MIDI-to-Poly, Notepad, Overlap Remover, Poly-to-Audio, Relative Pitch, Stereo Delay, Transposer, VA Filter, VA Oscillator, Volume.
Collection 1:
Balance, Chord, Chorus, Control Change, Compressor, Distortion, DS Oscillator, Envelope Generator, Envelope Follower, Flanger, Glide, Level, MIDI Logger, MIDI Source, Noise Oscillator, Note Echo, Note Length, Note Range, Note Stack, Phaser, Pitch Bend, Random, Scale, Strummer, Velocity.
Collection 2:
Clipper, Comb Filter, DC Blocker, Degrader, EQ Band, Fixed Pitch, FM Operator, Macro, MIDI Capture, MIDI Channel, Oscilloscope, Pitch Oscilloscope, Pitch Ratio, Rectifier, Vibrato, Voice Activity, VPS Oscillator.
Collection 3:
All Pass, Audio-to-Mod, Band Pass, Correlation, Digital Delay, Dual Pan, Euclid, Macro Button, Mid-Side, Multiply-Add, Noise Gate, Note Chance, Note Event, Pitch Follower, Reverb, Ring Mod, Simple LFO, Stereo Pan, Stereo Tool.
Collection 4:
Crossover, Delay, Effect, Feedback, Gain, Gain Computer, Groove, MIDI Delay, Note Hold, Note Pulse, Note-to-Pitch, Phase Distortion, Quantiser, Stack, Vel-to-Amp.
Mela's capabilities continuously improve, evolve and expand, driven by its long-term vision and user feedback. Feel free to get in touch for anything Mela-related.
Say Hello: nikolozi.com/contact
Tutorials: nikolozi.com/mela/tutorials
Changelog: nikolozi.com/mela/changelog
FAQ: nikolozi.com/mela/faq
Mela Classic vs Mela: nikolozi.com/mela/user-guide/#mela-classic-vs-mela
Quoi de neuf dans la dernière version ?
MIDI Processor Modules
- The On parameter of MIDI Processors is now more performance-oriented, meaning that even when turned off, they continue to monitor input and update their internal state as needed.
- This prevents them from sending unnecessary note-off messages when turned off.
- For example, turning off Euclid, Chord, or Transposer releases the held notes and retriggers the input note-on events.
- Turning them back on sends the corresponding note-off events for the inputs and retriggers the output.
- The new behaviour makes them more robust and user-friendly while helping prevent stuck notes.
- Updated modules so far: Euclid, Chord, Control Change, Groove, MIDI Channel, MIDI Delay, Note Chance, Note Length, Note Pulse, Overlap Remover, and Velocity.
- Modules to be updated in future versions: Arpeggiator, Note Range, Note Stack, Quantiser, Scale, and Strummer.
- Transposer: Adjusting the Semitones parameter now releases held notes and triggers the new transposed notes.
- Note Event & Note Hold: Removed the redundant On parameter.
- Note Hold: Fixed an issue where the Hold button wouldn't always display the correct state when modulated.
- Note Pulse: Fixed the Sync parameter defaulting to 4 bars instead of 1/4.
Chord Module
- The Note On and Pitch parameters now retrigger note-on and note-off events when their values change.
- This allows adjusting the parameters and hearing changes instantly without needing to feed the module a new note-on event.
- Modulating these parameters can lead to interesting algorithmic compositions.
- It's recommended to place an Overlap Remover module after the Chord module to prevent earlier note-off events from interrupting the latest notes.
- Velocity parameters now use percentage units, controlling how much the note velocity moves toward its minimum or maximum value: -100% moves fully toward 1, +100% fully toward 127.
Note Length Module
- The Length parameter was renamed to Time.
- The new Length parameter adds 3 modes, supported only in Note-On trigger mode: Min, Fixed, and Max.
- In Fixed mode, the module behaves as before.
- Min mode ensures notes last at least as long as the specified value, while Max mode ensures they don't exceed it.
- The Sync parameter now supports up to 16 bars.
- The module is now more compact.
Oscillator Modules
- Improved phase control in DS Oscillator, FM Operator, VA Oscillator, and VPS Oscillator.
- Phase parameter is now updated in real-time instead of only on note-on.
- Can be modulated at slow rates for vibrato or at audio rates for custom PM synthesis.
- Phase range shifted from 0º…360º to -180º…+180º, simplifying bipolar modulation.
- Added Trigger parameter to control phase on note-on: Free, Retrig, Legato, or Random.
- Free: ignores note-on events.
- Retrig: resets phase to the Phase parameter value.
- Legato: resets phase unless another note is already held.
- Rand: assigns a random initial phase.
- Updated module UIs to support the new features.
- FM Operator: Level parameter range expanded from 0%…100% to -100%…+100%.
Reset-to-Zero Envelope
- The Amp Envelope module gained a new Reset parameter for controlling reset-to-zero behaviour.
- Supports three modes: Off, On, or 1 ms.
- Off: On note-on, the envelope restarts from its current value.
- On: On note-on, the envelope restarts from zero.
- 1 ms: Delays audio by 1 ms and fades it to silence before restarting from zero, enabling clickless voice stealing common in synthesisers.
Other Changes
- Lane Presets: Add, Insert, and Replace Lane actions now create a new lane with a chosen module in one step.
- Noise Module: Renamed the Noise Oscillator module to Noise.
- Clipper: Added the "-0.3 dB" preset to the Peak parameter.
- Factory Presets: The new "2-Note Symphony" and "Evolving Chord" presets in the MIDI FX group showcase the new features.
- Factory Presets: Added the "Based" preset to the Bass group.
- Factory Presets: The total number of presets just passed 200.
