Suno Studio Updates and New Audio Tools

Suno has updated its Studio editor, adding new features for more convenient audio work. Users can now more precisely align a cappella vocal parts thanks to improved beat detection. A stretch gesture has been added to change the duration of audio clips: holding Shift and dragging the edge of a clip allows you to change its duration. For more precise adjustment of sound decay at clip boundaries, exponential and logarithmic curves have been added in addition to linear ones. The synthesizer and effects windows can now be moved independently of each other, including to a second monitor. However, these features are only available to Premier subscribers for $30.

On October 5th, Suno introduced "Albums," allowing users to publish song collections. Subscribers will receive notifications about new albums. These albums remain within the Suno platform and are not sent to external services like Spotify or Apple Music.

Drumway: Splitting Drum Parts into MIDI

Drumway is a standalone instrument that works as a DAW plugin and as a standalone program. It is designed for splitting drum parts into individual components. The program analyzes a loaded drum loop or stem and separates it into six categories: kick, snare, toms, hi-hats, and cymbals. Recognized hits are converted into MIDI data with velocity information. Before exporting, you can add or remove notes, adjust velocity, and then transfer the audio and MIDI to your DAW.

Drumway offers sensitivity and swing settings, as well as note maps for popular instruments, including Addictive Drums and Toontrack. This allows, for example, replacing low-quality cymbal recordings with samples while keeping the other elements of the part. The developer warns of potential recognition errors, such as when an unusually sounding snare drum might be identified as a hi-hat. Analysis occurs after loading the file, without ARA support.

In free mode, you can analyze and listen to all six categories without time limits, but MIDI export is only available for kick and snare. A paid license unlocks audio and MIDI export for all parts. The license cost is $49 until November 30th, after which the price will increase to$69. The program is available for Windows and Mac (including Apple Silicon).

Wave Prompt by Disco DSP: Music Generation with Melody Control

Wave Prompt by Disco DSP is a free application that allows you to generate music directly on your computer. Its key feature is the ability to define melody and chords before generation begins. The application uses the UA2 model and operates offline after the model is downloaded. It can generate loops, short vocal phrases based on user text, and songs up to 4 minutes long.

The melody can be drawn in a piano roll, and along with the audio, the MIDI data of this melody can also be exported. For audio, WAV 48 kHz, 24-bit, and AAC formats are available. The current version supports hum-to-melody import: a recorded vocal part can be converted into a melody up to 16 bars long and used for generation.

For macOS, a minimum of macOS Tahoe 10.16 and 16 GB of RAM is required (32 GB is recommended for longer songs). The model and engine occupy approximately 10 GB of disk space. A Windows version is also available; generation speed depends on graphics card performance; the process is significantly slower on CPU. Russian is not supported for short vocal phrases.

The model has a non-commercial license, but an additional license is available for musicians and content creators. Private users can publish, sell, and monetize generation results without additional royalties to the model's authors, provided they comply with the terms. Companies must negotiate separately for commercial use of the model weights themselves. This license does not grant rights to third-party recordings or lyrics.

Song Builder in the Plugin: Variability and Arrangement

Song Builder, which appeared in the plugin on October 8th, allows users to turn ideas into arrangements while maintaining access to individual parts. The order of sections can be changed, the "energy" of the composition can be controlled, and individual parts can be regenerated, saving successful fragments. The result is exported to MIDI or WAV, including individual tracks.

Built-in AI algorithms or a hybrid approach are available for working in a DAW. The AI and hybrid modes require a separate free module that runs locally and is in public beta testing. The plugin works on Windows and Mac (including Apple Silicon). The standard price is $10, but with the promo code MIDIA AI, it is available for$6.99. This is a one-time purchase with free updates. The plugin does not restore damaged audio.

Spectral Engine: Automatic Frequency Conflict Resolution

Spectral Engine, announced in open beta on October 8th, helps automatically resolve frequency conflicts between tracks. Plugin instances on different tracks exchange data and analyze frequency masking, eliminating the need for manual sidechaining. Priorities can be set, for example, protecting the lead vocal and allowing background instruments to yield to it in the frequency range. Visualization of conflicts and monitoring of the suppressed signal are available.

The beta version costs €29, with a 14-day trial period. Currently, macOS, AU, and VST3 are supported. The developer is testing the plugin in Cubase, Logic, and Studio One. A Windows version is under development. It is noted that the plugin may not work correctly with "dirty" stems where synthesizer sounds might have bled into the vocal part. However, with well-isolated vocals, it can be effective.

R-Store Research: Restoring Old Recordings

R-Store Research, published in September, focuses on the restoration of historical music recordings. The system allows for independent adjustment of high frequencies added by a neural network during the restoration process. The audio is separated into six components: vocals, accompaniment, broadband noise, impulse damage, residual signal, and synthesized high-frequency extension. The levels of these components can be adjusted independently, allowing for a reduction in the level of added high frequencies while preserving the rest of the processing. Audio examples are available on the project page. This is a research system, not a ready-to-use plugin.

Italian Regulator Investigates Suno

On October 6th, the Italian regulator initiated an investigation into Suno's user agreement terms. Clauses concerning subscriptions and price changes, as well as account and content access termination, are being reviewed. Questions have also arisen regarding user content rights and dispute resolution terms. It is noted that there are no explicit violations at this time, but as access to user projects is being discussed, it is recommended not to store the sole copy of materials exclusively on the Suno platform.