Version 5.0 of my favorite music software, Native Instruments Reaktor, is now shipping, and I just received my upgrade package. Reaktor is an amazing virtual synthesizer engine that lets you create just about any synth, sound generator, or effect.

Reaktor’s greatest strength is its incredible depth and complexity—ensembles can contain one or more instruments, which can contain macros and modules, all of which can be wired any way you choose. Unfortunately this complexity also means a very steep learning curve, and it’s going to take me a while to get up to speed on the new version.

Volumes could be written about this software, and I’ll be writing a great deal more myself. For starters, here are some first impressions after a few hours fiddling with the new version:

• Price: The upgrade from Reaktor 3.x or 4.x is $169. The full version is a hefty $569.
• Copy Protection: Reaktor 5 uses the same authorize-it-online copy protection as previous versions, and you can have two computers authorized at a time. I had no trouble getting version 4 to work on my PC and iBook concurrently, and 5.0 should be no different. If your music computer isn’t online you’ll have to jump through some hoops to authorize it, but otherwise it’s unobtrusive.
• Core Technology: Reaktor 5’s biggest new feature is probably the hardest to comprehend. The new core system adds another level of complexity to Reaktor, allowing you to create lower level modules. More importantly, it allows other people to create them so you and I can enjoy them. The interface between core and “old” modules is bound to cause a headache or two, but I’m sure I’ll be very happy about this once I figure it out.
• The New Library: Once again Reaktor comes with a library of great pre-made instruments, and they’re more professional than ever—many use core features to create better sounds at lower CPU usage, and most have a great graphical interface. Reaktor would be worth it just for these virtual instruments, but you can also take them apart and customize them.
• User Interface: In the old days, Reaktor instruments could do amazing things internally, but they all looked about the same on the surface, with identical knobs, buttons, and meters. Now the UI is more customizable than ever, and the library includes some very stylized synths. I’m especially excited about the new feature that lets you share an area of the screen between different macros and toggle between them—this will help with my tendency to create instrument panels that grow too large for my screen. This feature appears in many of the new library instruments to great effect.
• Manuals: It somehow feels better to pay this much for software when I get a nice pile of reference manuals. Reaktor 5 includes an expanded Operation Manual, an Instrument Guide for the library (yes, the stock ensembles are complex enough to need their own instructions) and a new Core Tutorial that provides an introduction and reference for the new type of modules. All told, nearly 800 pages of actual paper.
• Stability: Reaktor 2.0 and 3.0 were programs I had to be careful with—close everything before running, save frequently. Reaktor 4.0 rarely crashed, and 5.0 is the most stable version yet—I’m already getting casual about running it, and it hasn’t disappointed me yet.

There’s a detailed list of new features at the Native Instruments site.