We are excited to announce that the Avid Pro Tools family of products has been updated and enhanced with three new offerings:
- Pro Tools Artist for music creators just starting out
- Pro Tools Studio for serious music creators and producers
- Pro Tools Flex for audio post and high-end music professionals and facilities
These products build on and replace the current Pro Tools product lineup with significant new software capabilities, as well new virtual instruments and other content. And best of all, all current Pro Tools and Pro Tools Ultimate customers with active subscriptions or perpetual Software Updates + Support Plans will automatically get the new software capabilities and applicable content introduced free of charge. That means if you have Pro Tools, you’ll now have Pro Tools Studio. If you’re a Pro Tools Ultimate subscriber, you’ll be transitioned to the Pro Tools Flex subscription bundle. If you have a Pro Tools Ultimate perpetual license with an active support plan, you’ll get all the new enhancements of the latest software.
In addition to exploring our new product lineup, be sure to check out the new features introduced in the Pro Tools 2022.4 software update in this separate article.
So let’s dive in and take a closer look at the details of each of these new offerings.
PRO TOOLS ARTIST
Pro Tools Artist (offered as a $99 annual or $9.99 monthly subscription) is a brand-new offering specifically designed for the millions of next-gen music creators looking to produce great songs and includes everything needed to make beats, write, record, and mix studio-quality music. And as the Pro Tools session format is the industry’s universal language, they can take their project to any producer or studio around the world to collaborate and take their music to the next level. With hundreds of inspiring instrument sounds and loops and over 100 included plugins, as well as easy-to-use MIDI tools and industry-standard editing and mixing workflows, aspiring music creators now have a professional yet affordable solution to create any style of music.
- Make music easily with up to 32 audio tracks and 32 instrument tracks
- Record up to 16 audio sources simultaneously
- Get inspired with over 100 virtual instruments and plugins, including the new Pro Tools | GrooveCell and Pro Tools | SynthCell virtual instruments
- Support for any Core Audio, ASIO, or WASAPI-compatible interface
See what’s included with Pro Tools Artist
PRO TOOLS STUDIO
Pro Tools Studio ($299 annual or $39.99 monthly subscription) enables serious music creators, producers, and engineers to easily create and mix large projects. Pro Tools Studio builds on the current Pro Tools offering with numerous enhancements like increased track counts, surround and Dolby Atmos® mixing and advanced automation features (both previously only available in Pro Tools Ultimate), and more.
- Create huge mixes with up to 512 audio tracks (increasing from 256 to 512)
- Surround and Dolby Atmos® mixing (previously only in Pro Tools Ultimate)
- Advanced automation and Clip Effects editing (previously only with Pro Tools Ultimate)
- New Pro Tools | GrooveCell and Pro Tools | SynthCell virtual instruments
See what’s included with Pro Tools Studio
PRO TOOLS FLEX
Pro Tools Flex ($999 annual or $99.99 monthly subscription) is Avid’s solution for high-end music professionals and audio post and music facilities who require the full power and advanced workflows of Pro Tools to tackle the most challenging and complex projects. Pro Tools Flex is a subscription bundle that includes an enhanced version of Pro Tools Ultimate software, plus additional content and third-party licenses to deliver an unprecedented level of performance. As before, Pro Tools Ultimate software is still required when running Pro Tools | HDX or HD Native systems.
Active Pro Tools Ultimate subscribers will receive the full Pro Tools Flex subscription bundle, including the latest version of Pro Tools Ultimate, while Pro Tools Ultimate perpetual license customers with active plans will get the Pro Tools Ultimate software enhancements.
See what’s included with Pro Tools Flex
COMPARING THE NEW PRO TOOLS OFFERINGS
Here is a high-level overview of the three new offerings:
See all Pro Tools comparison details
CUSTOMERS WITH CURRENT LICENSES
Current Pro Tools subscribers and perpetual license customers with active plans will automatically transition to Pro Tools Studio and receive all of the software enhancements and applicable content free of charge.
Active Pro Tools Ultimate subscribers will receive the full Pro Tools Flex subscription bundle, including the latest version of Pro Tools Ultimate, while Pro Tools Ultimate perpetual license customers with active plans will get the Pro Tools Ultimate software enhancements.
UPGRADING YOUR EXPIRED SOFTWARE UPDATES + SUPPORT PLAN
What happens if you own a perpetual Pro Tools license but your support contract has expired? Not to worry—we’ve got you covered, too. You can easily get back on a current Software Updates + Support Plan for $349 (Pro Tools standard) or $749 (Pro Tools Ultimate). By upgrading your perpetual license and getting current, you get all the new software enhancements and virtual instruments plus one year of software updates and can renew your support contract as normal. Of course, you always have the option of purchasing a subscription and keeping your perpetual license, as well. Visit your Avid Account for options and pricing.
HOW TO BUY A NEW PRO TOOLS LICENSE
As you may have already noticed, Pro Tools Artist, Pro Tools Studio, and Pro Tools Flex will only be sold as annual or monthly subscriptions to new customers, but as explained above, existing perpetual customers are not affected by this change. Note that any perpetual licenses sold by Avid resellers automatically convert to the new equivalent offering. This means that Avid resellers will be able to sell their existing stock of perpetual licenses and customers will be able to redeem and convert these licenses to the new, equivalent product offerings.
NEW VIRTUAL INSTRUMENTS
Along with the three new Pro Tools software offerings, we’ve also introduced two new virtual instruments: Pro Tools | GrooveCell and Pro Tools | SynthCell.
Pro Tools | GrooveCell is a new virtual drum machine and sequencer that makes it easy to create intricate beats and drum patterns in Pro Tools. Designed for quick workflows and inspiration generation, it’s built for serious creators who want total creative control over their grooves. Centered around a classic 16-pad layout, Pro Tools | GrooveCell has all the parameters you need to tweak single samples or a whole kit at once. You can use the included sounds and presets or build custom drumkits by dragging and dropping your own samples onto the drum pads (MP3, .WAV, or .AIFF). Layer up to three samples per pad, control the pitch, envelope, EQ, distortion, and more, and add distinct flavor with texture emulations of the legendary E-mu SP-1200, Korg Super Percussion, and more in the Drum Mode menu. Plus, shape your sounds further with creative Drive and Dynamics presets.
Pro Tools | SynthCell is a modern virtual synth that enables a wide palette of sounds in Pro Tools—from old-school familiar to the truly unique. Sporting two oscillators, two multi-mode filters, an LFO, envelopes, an arpeggiator, and a variety of effects, you can start sculpting your own sounds from scratch, building from a sine wave on up. Or cruise through the library of presets and instantly find something organic, distorted, smooth, chaotic, analog, and more, without ever touching a knob.
Both of these powerful new virtual instruments are included with all current Pro Tools software licenses.
SOUNDFLOW
SoundFlow is a state-of-the-art workflow automation platform that enables Pro Tools users to reduce complex, many-step tasks to single keystrokes or presses on a touch surface. SoundFlow Cloud Avid Edition is included with all annual Pro Tools Flex subscriptions, providing access to over 1,600 prebuilt macros and commands for Pro Tools that can be custom assigned and triggered by keyboard shortcuts, MIDI controllers, and HID devices. Whether bouncing stems, navigating plugins in large sessions, or triggering complex workflows, SoundFlow saves users significant time and enables them to stay in their creative flow.
