Magix Sound Forge Pro 14 and Suite are here – what’s new?
Magix has released Sound Forge Pro 14 and Sound Forge Pro 14 Suite. The lastest version of the long-standing audio editing software comes with workflow improvements, better visualization and some performance tweaks.
Magix Sound Forge Pro 14
Less than a year after the release of Sound Forge Pro 13, Magix has updated the software once again. As before, the audio editor for Windows comes in two sizes: Sound Forge 14 Pro and Sound Forge 14 Pro Suite. Let’s have a look at the new features.
The Instant Action Window gives you immediate access to important tools and many common tasks. With several working areas including Actions, Effects, Mastering, Export and Import, this could be a big time saver.
There’s also a new contextual menu for many basic editing tasks. Among other things, it includes options for converting and normalizing audio files. This menu lets you launch frequently used actions with one right click – quite convenient.
Visualization and WaveColor
In addition to this, Magix has worked on visualization. Sound Forge Pro 14 has new meters and a new analyzer. Another interesting new addition is WaveColor, which improves orientation in projects by colour-coding the sonic characteristics and pitch in the waveform view. This makes it easy to spot undesirable frequencies. Furthermore, the spectroscope offers precise frequency analysis using FFT technology.
Stability and efficiency
No update should come without performance tweaks, and Magix has taken the opportunity to optimize the VST engine, which was newly introduced in Sound Forge 13. The developer claims that this improves the stability and speed while scanning and using VST plug-ins. Sound Forge Pro 14 offers ARA2 support and comes with iZotope Ozone Elements and RX 7 Elements.
Sound Forge Pro 14 Suite
On top of what’s included with Sound Forge Pro 14, the Suite version adds 11 coreFX plug-ins. Buyers of the Suite version also receive Steinberg SpectraLayers Pro 6 and the upgrade to SpectraLayers 7, once it becomes available. Celemony Melodyne Essential is also included, as are the Analogue Modelling and Vintage Effects suites with four mastering and three vintage effect plug-ins, respectively. The VariVerb II and Vandal plug-ins round off Sound Forge Pro 14 Suite.
Prices
Sound Forge Pro 14 costs USD/EUR 399. The upgrade from a previous version costs USD/EUR 199.
Sound Forge Pro 14 Suite is USD/EUR 599, with an upgrade price of USD/EUR 299.
A subscription plan is also available. The Pro version is USD/EUR 14.99 per month with annual billing and USD/EUR 17.99 per month with monthly billing. For the Suite version, the subscription costs USD/EUR 26.99 per month with monthly billing.
What about the Mac?
Nothing new from the Mac side of things. Here, Sound Forge 3 is still the current state of affairs, with the exception of the iZotope plug-ins, which have been updated since its release.