GP6.  Many of us love version 5 and just as many don't.   Lets face it, GP is the best at what it does.  It does have some short comings however and I'm going to take a look and see how well they have been addressed in this blog.

  I waited for Arobas to get the affiliate links setup so I could purchase it through TG.  that was a good choice right off because I got an additional $10 off the upgrade price.   The pre-release prices for upgrade was $39 and I paid $29 through TG.  Good deal.

  Getting my product was a bit more complicated than filling out the forms, submitting and waiting for the link to be sent to me.  I had to log into my account from GP 5 and run the 'Forgot Password' utility.  That sent me my license info and password for GP 5 but no password for GP 6.  I had to register the license codes in my name and create a password.  Ok, That put me on the download page for GP 6.  Now we're cooking. 

  GP 5 had 4 files to download.  The program itself and 3 RSE soundbanks.   GP 6 only has 2.  The program and the RSE file.   I like that.  It's simpler.  The RSE file is an incredible 1.7 GB
however and it will take a bit to download unless you have a fast connection.

  Installing the software was easy.  A standard install program did everything including removing any prior versions.  The soundbank installed just as easily.  It located the software and installed itself once I started it.  After installing the two files, you have to close and restart the program.  Not a problem.

  I fired up the program and the first thing I saw was a mostly empty screen.  There was a toolbar on the left side and across the top with the standard menu.   Nothing was active yet so I loaded Hector's GP TAB for Irish Dance.  Along with the TAB, a host of other features opened up and became active.   The tool bar on the left gave me access to the different major areas of the program.  There are 6 icons on the left side bar.  An eighth note, a guitar, a foot pedal, a mini stack amp,  the text 'C7', and a microphone.

  Clicking the eighth note brings up all the possible effects you can add the the score.  The guitar icon allows you to choose the type of instrument you are working with,  the pedal and mini stack both give you access to a nice selection of pedal and amp effects you can add to the music.  The C7 icon is your chord library and the microphone is where you add the lyrics.

  This version is a complete rewrite and has also added a horde of new features on top of what we already thought was a lot.

Here is a list of the new features by categories

 Notation

• Double accidentals

• Free-time bars

• Simple and double simile marks

• Multirests

• Double-dotting

• Configurable n-tuplets

• Fermata

• Accented notes

• Left-hand tapping

• Rasgueado

• Arpeggio

• Two types of grace-notes

• Ornaments (mordent and gruppetto)

• Slash notation (above and/or within tabs)

• Extended barre

• Timer

• Grand Staff for the piano

• Tablatures supporting up to 8 strings

• Concert tone and transposing tone

• Partial Capo

• 3 clefs

• Complete Stylesheet, to entirely customize your scores (symbols, fonts, proportions, etc.)

• Instant switch between classic and jazz styles

 

Edition

• Improved options for multiple selection

• Extended copy/paste (special paste, between tracks, from multiple selection…)

• Chord Library, to enter chords faster on the score

• Simplified capture of grace-notes

• More intuitive capture of accidentals

• Editing over 4 voices, and in multi-voice mode

• Click directly on the elements of the score

• Reviewed and improved automations

• Unlimited Undo/Redo

 

Interface

• Edition Panel

• Instrument Panel

• RSE Panel

• Mastering Panel

• Chords Panel

• Lyrics Panel

• Multi-document interface

• Full-screen mode

 

Sound

• Over 100 instruments available in RSE

• Configurable chain of effects (pedals, amps, racks) for each track

• Global tuning of the master track (compressor, reverb, equalizer)

• 5-band semi-parametric equalizer for each track

• Choice of playing styles (slap, picking ...)

• Humanization of playing styles (stresses, autobrush ..)

• Perfected WAV Export

 

Tools

• Reviewed tuner (more precise)

• Possibility to swap voices, and copy from one voice to another

• Scale-search engine over multiple selection

• Transpose part of a score via multiple selection

 

If I were going to make GP5 better, this is a fantastic step.

  'But Wait!'  you say, 'What about the manual?'  Did they do anything with it?  Oh yes.  This is a new manual with pictures and simplified explanations.  Much improved!

  So what is the big drawback?  Give us the bad news...  You have to learn how to read some music symbology to get the full use of this program.  It's even easier to use, but if you can't read Tab or standard notation then you're going to have some trouble.  Time to learn that stuff you thought you would never need.

  All in all, a really great upgrade and well worth the $30.  I'd buy it again.  Wait, I did! LOL  This is one you want.

 

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