AlphaTheta and Bitwig have teamed up so that Bitwig Studio can now open your Rekordbox library and read the analysis data you’ve built up in it.
Alongside the integration, AlphaTheta has launched Studio Plan, a way to rent Bitwig Studio Essentials (Bitwig’s entry-level version) for $7 a month after a 30-day free trial.
You don’t need the subscription to get the integration, though. It’s in Bitwig Studio 6.1.4, out now for owners of any version with an active upgrade plan.
What is Bitwig?
Bitwig Studio is music production software (a DAW, like Ableton Live or Logic Pro), made by a Berlin company founded by former Ableton staff. It works in a similar way to Ableton, but it’s much less widely used than Ableton, Logic or FL Studio.
So what does the integration do?
With Rekordbox 6 or later installed on the same computer, your library appears in Bitwig’s browser.
Open a track and Bitwig creates a new project at its tempo and key, with your hot cues as markers. You can chop it into clips using Rekordbox’s phrase analysis or your own cues, and show vocal positions as placeholder clips.
Beatgrids come across too, including any edits you’ve made in Rekordbox, although streaming tracks and intelligent playlists don’t show up. Bitwig says stem separation is coming to all versions this winter.
And what’s Studio Plan?
AlphaTheta is selling Bitwig Studio Essentials on subscription under the Rekordbox name, as Studio Plan. However, it doesn’t include Rekordbox, it isn’t part of any Rekordbox plan, and cancelling one doesn’t cancel the other.
You need an AlphaTheta account, a Bitwig account and a new app called Studio License Manager, and one subscription covers up to three computers. If you don’t subscribe after the free trial, Bitwig drops back to its limited free demo mode.
Is this AlphaTheta’s answer to Serato Studio?
In May, Serato added its own DAW, Serato Studio, to Serato DJ Suite at no extra cost, so one purchase gets you both Serato DJ Pro and Serato Studio, sharing one library and sending edits straight back into your DJ sets.
Here, the DAW comes from another company, it’s a separate subscription, it’s a one-way integration, and any Bitwig owner gets it. So despite appearances, the two aren’t really comparable.
Pricing and availability
Studio Plan is available now from AlphaTheta for $7 a month, or $72 a year. Bitwig Studio Essentials costs $99 to buy outright from Bitwig, including 12 months of updates. Both include the integration.
(Splice also offers the full Bitwig Studio on rent-to-own, at $15.99 a month for 25 months, after which you own it. AlphaTheta’s Studio Plan, by contrast, is a straight rental – stop paying and you lose access.)
First Thoughts
Yet another subscription from AlphaTheta! But if you like the idea of having your Rekordbox library and analysis data inside a DAW, you can now do it, and Bitwig owners with an active upgrade plan can just update.
Anyone else can try it free for 30 days through Studio Plan, then decide whether to buy Bitwig outright, carry on renting Essentials through AlphaTheta, or rent-to-own the full Bitwig Studio through Splice.
