Usine is a universal audio software application designed for live or studio utilization.

Usine is made by musicians and audio engineers to respond to their specific problems in domains like live sampling, effect processing or sound design. Sensomusic describes Usine as a "real" musical instrument - flexible and powerful if you like to transform or resample the sound on stage (not only push the play button of your sequencer), improvise and create unusual effects.

Usine is patch oriented sound software where you can add plug-ins and connect them without restriction. The main purpose of this program is to provide a real time analysis of an input signal and then react with, and modify plug-in parameters to produce the sound.

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.

New in v4.0

• Touch screen management.
• 16 audio in/out.
• Clear/save/open current track command in the main menu.
• New possible location for Interfaces builder windows: patch or parent patch.
• New rack mode : 'grid', 'rack' or 'play all'.
• Customizable layouts for all displayed controls (set the colors you want to all controls).
• Reset + reset values in steps modules (step, step-MIDI, lines, switches, points, array).
• No more auxiliary busses order limitations.
• Expand module command in patches (see manual).
• Some PianoRoll improvements.
• Clear current CC curve in PianoRoll.
• More quantize options in the sampler/ grainSampler: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16 bars.
• New command in the main menu to hide all the popup windows (tab] key).
• New mapper curve module design (shows now a cursor to display the current position).
• New Audio Selector sub-patch in the module library.
• New Wave Display sub-patch in the module library.
• Better record (direct to disk) engine.
• Better multi-thread optimization.
• More precise Send MIDI Time Clock module in the Library.
• New conductor module more powerful; see compatibility notes.
• The color of the line in the remote panel is the same than the control color.
• At the startup of Usine, the last main window position is memorized.
• Debug mode in the setup for user modules developers.
• More precise schedule in the mouse down outlet of the separator/panel module.
• The audio out is cleared when a patch activation is turned off.
• 'visible' inlet/outlet in the Interface Builder module.
• The mapper curve can process audio flow (see 'audio quality' parameter).
• A sub patch can be locked to prevent modifications.
• The master section shows only actives in/out.
• New 'default value' parameter in faders, knobs.
• Preview workspaces/patches info's in the the browser window.
• The conductor now saves all the patches of the grid in rack mode (not only the selected patch); see compatibility notes.
• The 'show remote' button is visible in grid mode (not only in patch design mode).
• French Quick Start.