Another year has gone by and it’s time to bump Mela to the next major version. The main feature introduced in Mela 3 is a Mela MIDI AUv3 plug-in. It’s a MIDI processor plug-in and the initial version comes with 3 modules: Arpeggiator, Pitch and Velocity. You’ll need a host that supports this type of a plug-in, such as AUM on iOS and Logic Pro on macOS. For full details check the User Guide and Release Notes.

Before I discuss Mela 3 pricing and the upgrade path, I need to mention that I’m shutting down my company, Nikolozi Pty Ltd. This is mostly because there’s just too much compliance overhead in maintaining an Australian company. To become more nimble, going forward, I will be releasing my apps as a solo developer. Unfortunately, Apple has no ability to convert a company developer account into a solo one. So, I had to create a new account and transfer my apps over to it. Due to technical limitations, it is not possible to transfer Mela 1 and Mela 2 apps over to the solo developer account. But all other apps, including the new Mela 3 app are under it. Why does this matter? It matters because I won’t be able to offer Mela 3 upgrade app bundle, like I did it with Mela 2. To work around this, until the end of March, Mela 3 will be on sale for only US$5. After which, it will be priced at US$20.

Just a quick reminder, the pricing model I use for Mela is that I release a paid major version once a year. But throughout the year I deliver regular updates for free, adding new features and fixing issues. I’m not a fan of subscription models and I know a lot of iOS users aren’t either. Using my approach allows users to buy new major versions of Mela when they feel like they need it, otherwise, they can keep using the previous versions.

As a bonus, because of the above situation, I will be making Mela 1 and Mela 2 free for a couple of months. After which I’ll remove them from the App Store. Don’t worry, they will remain available for download from your App Store account’s purchases page. Making older versions free will allow everyone to try Mela to see if it’s for them. Big thanks to all users who bought Mela 1 and Mela 2.

From next year, I should be able to bring back the upgrade app bundles. If you have further questions or feedback, check out the Mela FAQ or get in touch.

Grab Mela 3 from the App Store.

Mela 3.0 & Mela 2.5.1 Release Notes

3.0

Mela MIDI Audio Unit:

• Mela now ships with the Mela MIDI AUv3 plug-in. It is essentially a MIDI effect that processes incoming MIDI.
• The initial version comes with 3 modules: Arpeggiator, Pitch and Velocity.
• The modules can be switched on or off.
• The Arpeggiator module has 4 parameters: Mode, Rate, Octave Range and Note Length.
• The Pitch module transposes notes by up to 24 semitones, in either direction.
• The Velocity module offsets and randomizes incoming notes’ velocities.
• The build-in virtual musical keyboard can also be used as a MIDI input.
• As with the other plug-ins, the Mela MIDI parameters can be assigned to the Perform view.

Other:

• Mela now has 3 available color themes to choose from: Tangerine (previously Classic), Plum (previously Modern) and Raspberry (new default).
• Updated the User Guide.

2.5.1

• Fixed a crash caused by a host setting Mela’s parameter to a value that was outside the allowed range.
• Mela no longer uses system buttons for various controls. This means you can keep the Accessibility > Display & Text Size > Button Shapes toggled on, in the iOS Settings app, without worrying about the UI in Mela looking messed up.
• In the Preset Browser, tap and long press gestures on preset and group buttons behave more reliably.
• Toggle buttons now animate state changes.
• Updated the formatting of triplet and dotted parameter values to improve readability.
• Fixed Text Input not working for parameters with non-numeric values.
• Removed the Tip Jar functionality.
• Added a link to Mela 3 in Settings.