Scaler 2

Empower the Composer Within

Scaler 2 is an inspirational and powerful music theory workstation that gives you access to a world of new ideas, expressions and melodies. With powerful detection of MIDI and audio, Scaler 2 can determine what key and scale you’re in and suggest chords that match your music. The plugin helps you discover the perfect melody with performance expressions, and can even suggest ways to change from one key to another.

Already Own Scaler 1?

Upgrade to Scaler 2

If you already own Scaler 1, you can upgrade to Scaler 2 HERE.

Scaler 2 makes finding chords and progressions intuitive and fun! It’s a comprehensive but easy to use toolbox that will help anyone make better music.

Benefits

• Discover your music’s key and explore alternative scales and chord sets
• Choose from hundreds of keys, quickly build progressions in the sequencer
• Over 200 artist chord sets from the likes of Carl Cox, MJ Cole, The Temper Trap, Mitekiss, CeCe Rogers and Mike Huckaby
• Over 200 genre and mood-based chord sets such as Chill, Drum & Bass, Jazz, Cinematic, EDM, Progressive…
• Browse chord variations to get suspended chords, extended chords, dominant sevenths and jazz chords
• Use the arpeggio or strum features to perform in real-time and synced to your DAW
• Discover chord substitutions that lend variety to your progressions
• Experiment with different chord voicings to spread notes across the keyboard
• Export MIDI to your DAW simply by dragging and dropping
• Assign any VST / AU instrument to Scaler 2 to control your favourite synths
• Play and record one-finger chords and melodies using Scaler 2’s Bind MIDI function

What's new in version 2?

• Redesigned from the ground up with over 200 new chord sets, hundreds of new scales, and 30 new instruments
• Play melodic expressions with over 200 phrases, performances and rhythms by professional musicians
• Establish your scale with audio detection as well as MIDI detection
• Keys Lock helps you create emotive melodies by locking keys to your chords
• MIDI Capture lets you perform inside Scaler 2 and then export the results as MIDI
• Modulation suggestions give you new ways to reach musical destinations
• Get more natural-sounding melodies and expressions with the humanise function
• Edit Mode for adjusting length, inversion, octave and more per chord in a pattern
• Pad View helps you to arrange multiple patterns and key switch between them
• Audition new progressions in context with DAW Sync playback 
• Voice Grouping can keep your chords within a certain range for voice leading
• Chord editing and moving tools include lasso, drag n drop, replace and insert 
• More than 100 new expressions in triplet feel and across several time signatures including 3/4, 5/4, 6/8, 12/8
• New Chord Create / Editor mode - create chords by searching & selecting from the circle of fifths or by entering note by note on your keyboard
• Control individual notes and velocities in each chord
• Generate bass lines adapted to your current scale and chords with Bass Mode
• Generate melody lines adapted to your current scale and chords with Melody Mode

How it Works

Detect

Scaler 2 can listen to incoming MIDI or audio data and detect the key your music is in. After this, it will suggest chords and chord progressions that will fit with your song. Scaler 2 can send MIDI to a virtual instrument in your DAW, and it has 30 onboard instruments to play with as well.

Chord Sets

Scaler 2 comes with over 200 song and genre-based chord sets and over 200 artist chord sets to inspire new progressions and melodies; plus, choose from hundreds of scales and modes to get your creative juices flowing. Simply drag the chords you want into the sequencer to build a pattern that’s unique to you.

Explore

Explore alternative chords that’ll fit with your progression, with loads of voicings, chord extensions and variations on particular chords to help you choose the perfect feeling with every step of your song.

MIDI Capture

New Audio Detection Technology means you can detect and analyse chords and scales from existing audio sources. With MIDI Capture, you can record Scaler 2’s output – whether you’re clicking keys or chords, or playing progressions – in order to drag the resulting MIDI to outside the plugin. 

Keys Lock

Lock keys to your chords to create complex melodies by intuitively moving around on your MIDI controller. Humanize Scaler 2’s performance by introducing variations to velocity and/or timing. Voice Grouping lets you automatically invert notes to restrict playback within certain octaves or by using open voicing.

Edit

Edit Mode lets you dial in Duration, Octave, Inversion and more parameters per chord, and there are new ways to edit chords when right-clicking. DAW Sync links your chord patterns to your DAW’s playback, making it easy to audition new progressions or alter existing chord patterns alongside your DAW project. Pad View makes it easy to construct entire arrangements, moving chords and whole progressions on a higher level.

Modulation

Scaler 2 makes Modulation Suggestions for movement between your current key and a destination. The majority of suggestions have been sourced from professional musicians, and some are generated algorithmically.

Performance

With Performances, Phrases and Rhythms created by real pianists and musicians, Scaler 2 isn’t just about creating chords and arpeggios – it can lay down melodies as well. Over 200 Expressions let you experiment with riffs and melodies, which can be locked to notes of your scale or a chord.

What's new in version 2.3.0?

Playback

• Add new Riffs to Melody mode
• New 70’s Funk & Soul chord sets
• Prevent notes from hanging when triggered by multiple sources at once.
• Prevent overlapping notes from hanging in performance/phrases/rhythms/melody/bass modes.
• Fixed hung notes due to key switch not resetting properly after being pressed.
• Fixed a playback issue when using alt-click to preview chords.
• Keys-Lock: Improve chord extension handling of altered chords.

UI

• “Undo/Redo” is now accessible from the Scaler Logo - Right-Click menu.
• "Import/Export State” is now accessible from the Scaler Logo - Right-Click menu.
• EDIT panel: labels now refresh properly when changing chord parameters.
• Add bigger “Bind” buttons on all screens.
• Fix highlight of chords in Pad-View when using multi-pattern selection.
• Added the ability to search by style in the Scales panel.

Other Improvements

• Audio detection from a file can now be run multiple times in a row
• Sync between instances now maintains multi-selection of patterns.
• Prevent a crash when changing parameters on a chord in the EDIT Panel after removing/reordering patterns.
• Prevent unexpected behaviours caused by the UI Keyboard creating notes with no velocity.
• Fix a calculation error creating notes with a velocity higher than the maximum allowed.
• The installer will now automatically move the sound library when using a custom location.
• Improve stability of the audio detection for sample rates up to 96KHz.
• Prevent a crash when resetting the playback.
• Prevent a crash when changing a chord voicing after deleting the parent pattern.
• Prevent a crash when removing Scaler from a track during playback.
• Fix a voicing calculation error when extracting/applying a voicing to a chord. 
• “Right-Click > Detect” now refreshes the panel properly every time.

System Requirements

Mac

• OS X 10.8 and later (macOS 11 Big Sur compatible)
• 64-bit compatible only

Apple M1 Mac compatibility: Scaler is compatible with M1 machines natively and under Rosetta, we recommend using Rosetta for better stability. Here is a guide on how to start Logic using Rosetta.

Formats

• AAX
• Audio Units (AU)
• VST2
• VST3

Windows

• Windows 7 and later
• 64-bit compatible only

Formats

• AAX 
• VST2
• VST3

Scaler 2 Compatibility

Important Note: Scaler 2 is only 64-bit compatible.

Mac

• Cubase 9.5 - OK
• ProTools 12.8 - OK
• FL Studio 12 - OK (VST, not VST3)
• FL Studio 20 -  OK (MIDI routing available from VST2 only)
• Studio One 3 - OK
• Studio One 4 - OK
• Studio One 5 - OK
• Ableton Live 9 - OK
• Ableton Live 10 - OK
• Logic Pro X - OK
• Reaper - OK
• Bitwig Studio 2 - OK
• Bitwig Studio 3 - OK
• Maschine 2 - OK - No MIDI Routing: Use Blue Cat Audio Patchwork for MIDI Routing
• Reason - OK - No MIDI Routing: Use Blue Cat Audio Patchwork for MIDI Routing

Windows

• FL Studio 12 - OK
• FL Studio 20 -  OK (MIDI routing available from VST2 only)
• Cubase 9.5 - OK
• ProTools 12.8 - OK
• Studio One 3 - OK
• Studio One 4 - OK
• Studio One 5 - OK
• Ableton Live 9 - OK
• Ableton Live 10 - OK
• Reaper - OK
• Bitwig Studio 2 - OK
• Bitwig Studio 3 - OK
• Maschine 2 - OK - No MIDI Routing: Use Blue Cat Audio Patchwork for MIDI Routing
• Reason - OK - No MIDI Routing: Use Blue Cat Audio Patchwork for MIDI Routing

Important Note: Scaler 2 is only 64-bit compatible.