June 7, 2026
OB-Xd 3.22 and Bliss 1.14 released
We're pleased to announce updates to OB-Xd and Bliss, featuring expressive aftertouch on ordinary keyboards, full MPE for the Bliss sampler, automatic loop cue extraction, tracker module import, and a host of sample editor improvements.
OB-Xd 3.22
OB-Xd is a classic virtual analog synthesizer that recreates the Oberheim OB-X with enhancements like micro random detuning, polyphonic unison, and bi-directional MIDI control.
Version 3.22 brings expressive aftertouch to ordinary keyboards - no MPE required - with multi-destination routing, invertable response, and a Poly AT mode for per-finger controllers. Plus fixes for Windows HiDPI knob rendering and popup menu scaling.
What's New
- Aftertouch for Non-MPE Keyboards: Channel pressure can drive any combination of Cutoff, Pulse Width, PW Offset (Osc2), Cross Modulation, Osc2 Detune, Pitch, Pan, and Amp simultaneously - the same destination set as MPE Y/Z. Depth and Mod Wheel Scaled controls let you set how far pressure pushes each destination, and optionally ride the amount from your mod wheel. Invert flips the response so pressure ducks the destination instead of boosting it - close the filter, pull pitch down, or duck amplitude as you press harder. Reads both mono channel pressure and polyphonic aftertouch - poly drives per-voice, mono fans out to all voices. Live LED previews on every routed destination. The Aftertouch menu appears only when MPE is off, so the two never conflict.
- Poly AT Mode: Controllers like the ROLI Lightpad in Multi Channel mode - per-finger MIDI channel but no MPE handshake - now drive per-voice aftertouch. Channel pressure is re-routed to the last note played on that channel. Mutually exclusive with MPE - enabling Poly AT disables MPE and vice versa. Notes on any channel are accepted, with per-channel bend collapsing to the global wheel. The setting is saved per-instance and globally, so new instances inherit your last-used choice.
- Windows HiDPI Knob Rendering: Knobs no longer render blank at 150%/200% display scaling - tall high-resolution filmstrips are now sliced past the Direct2D size limit.
- Popup Menu Font Fix: Menu text no longer double-scales on high-DPI Windows displays.
This update is free for all OB-Xd 3.x customers. OB-Xd is available for Windows, macOS, and Linux in VST, VST3, AU, AAX, LV2, and Standalone formats, and Standalone and AUv3 for iOS.
Bliss 3.14
Bliss is a professional sampler with VST/AU and hardware instrument recording capabilities, Visual Key Mapper, built-in wave editor, and comprehensive format support including AKAI S1000/S3000/S5000/S6000, NKI, EXS, SFZ, SoundFont2, and CD-ROM disk images.
This is a consolidated update covering five Bliss releases shipped over the past month, headlined by full MPE support, automatic loop cue extraction, tracker module import, three new sample effects, and a significant set of Sample Editor improvements.
What's New
- Full MPE Support: Per-voice X/Y/Z expression with per-channel pitch bend, timbre and pressure routed independently to each note - works with ROLI, LinnStrument, Osmose and other MPE controllers. Dedicated MPE panel with six routing slots (X/Y/Z) assignable to any modulation destination, each with an amount knob and invert. Configurable MPE settings: enable, Poly Aftertouch, timbre CC (default 74), pitch bend range and per-axis rest position. Automatic MPE configuration via RPN, so most controllers enable MPE and set the bend range on connection. MPE preset system with save, load, copy, paste and reset, plus a Paste > Program to Bank option. Live preview shows incoming MPE expression depth on the destination knobs. Manager-channel pitch bend and pressure are routed as global so hybrid controllers behave correctly.
- Tracker and Buzz Sample Import: Native import of classic tracker module sample formats (.mod, .xm, .s3m, .it) and Jeskola Buzz wavetable samples (.bmx) - access decades of demoscene and tracker sound libraries directly inside Bliss.
- Automatic Loop Cue Extraction: Analyzes beats, harmony and timbre to place cue markers around repeating loop segments automatically - turn any loop into a properly cued, ready-to-play sample with one click.
- New Sample Effects: Sin Drive and Tanh Drive add musical saturation and warmth; Spectral Mirror provides real pivot-based spectral inversion; Erosion Clip delivers gain-compensated stackable clipping for aggressive textures.
- Sample Editor Multi-Zone Operations: Cmd/Shift+click and drag multi-selection in the zone list, with multi-zone support for Export, Resample, Time Stretch, Render Pitch Shift, and Trim by Loop Points. Double-click on the Sample Editor divider auto-fits zone list width. Adjust Root Note detects and sets zone root note from waveform.
- Sample Editor Workflow: Go to Zone submenu for quick zone selection. Virtual Keyboard Root Note menu to view and shift the on-screen keyboard octave. Toggle to show or hide the Sample Editor zone list with a keyboard shortcut. Auto-Adjust Zone List Width option that fits the list to the widest zone name. Change Zone by MIDI Note menu item.
- Forward-Compatible Modulation: Modulation-destination serialization is now enum-growth-safe, so patches saved today keep working as we add new modulation destinations in future updates.
- Improvements: Renamed Export menu items and unified the Export All Zones dialog. Relocated Editor Zone Export functions to File Export for consistency.
- Bug Fixes: Fixed sample editor selection being ignored after a second selection. Fixed knob changes not applying to shift+click and drag-selected zones. Fixed lost active zone when reopening Sample Editor. Fixed Sample Editor keyboard focus loss and modifier-key note triggers. Fixed playback cursor advancing past the cue stop boundary in pitch shift mode. Fixed section header preset dropdown arrow not showing on narrow buttons. Fixed VST audio silenced after Reset Program when Delay or Reverb on. Fixed Windows build of VST audio fix. Fixed compiler warnings across parameters, GUI and sample editor.
This update is free for all Bliss 2.x and 3.x customers.
