Kangas Sound Editor for Mac

Kangas Sound Editor for Mac allows the creation of completely custom sounds and waveforms. It's an advanced and complex software that has a considerable learning curve, but once you get used to it, you'll be impressed by its power. The downside is its complex and rather unusual installation process, which can be perplexing.

Kangas Sound Editor for Mac comes with a 12-step installation process, which installs several dependencies alongside the app. It's a sophisticated procedure that requires, among other things, the entry of a root password for a MySQL database. Once you're done with the install -- it will take a while -- you'll be greeted by a cluttered interface that packs a lot of options. What we liked is that the app utilizes waveforms and other completely customizable graphics for visualizing the different sounds and frequencies, offering you an ingenious way to create sounds, which you can then easily export and use in other apps. While testing the app, we created a basic waveform and exported it out of the app. The export process was speedy: less than five seconds for a 20MB file.

A tool developed for a niche user base, Kangas Sound Editor for Mac won't appeal to the average Mac user. But if you're a sound engineer or music producer, the blend between physics and sound waves the app features allows for the creation of entirely new types of software instruments, making it thoroughly enjoyable. The learning curve is steep, though, even for a power user.

• Fix to prevent a dialog 'Kangas Sound Editor QI Install.app is damaged and can't be opened'.
• Changes to new installation sample database.
• Made the extent of Recorded Sound boxes sensitive to the Volume multiplier field in the containing Sequence box.
• Fixed bugs with .WAV sound file handling.