The new Virus is one of the most affordable ever and currently the cheapest way to get a slice of Access' Total Integration technology — but does cheaper mean compromised?
Art Vista's new sampled piano won't break the bank or send you running out to buy a new hard drive — and it's still a sophisticated and versatile instrument.
If you wanted to make an authentic hardware tape delay today, you could do a lot worse than commission a designer who used to work for Watkins, makers of the seminal Copicat. So that's what Blue Coconut did...
Graphical Programming Environment For Audio & MIDI
There may not be many new features, but MaxMSP 5 benefits from a fundamental overhaul that brings Cycling 74's open-ended media programming toolkit into the modern world of multi-processing and slick interface design.
If you've not yet built up much of a microphone collection, a dedicated drum-mic kit can be a sensible investment — and the price of this one puts it within reach of even entry-level users.
You can get a lot of audio interface for your money these days. The latest from ESI offers 18 ins and eight outs for a very reasonable price, and could be ideal if you need to record lots of sources simultaneously.
SampleTron gives you the sound of the Mellotron and many of its more obscure cousins, not to mention some serious potential for sonic malarkey, courtesey of IK's SampleTank player...
The Nocturn uses Novation's sophisticated Automap technology to give you integrated, hands-on control of your software — and all for an almost unbelievably low price.
Many companies make multicore cables, but Planet Waves have come up with a simple modular system that covers most eventualities without the store needing to stock dozens of different configurations.
The latest incarnation of Tascam's Gigastudio introduces support for 64-bit operating systems and the ability to address up to 128GB of RAM. Are there any catches? Let's find out...
With a new synthesis engine, some new ideas about interface design and 50GB of novel samples ranging from lightbulbs to burning pianos, Omnisphere will be Spectrasonics biggest soft synth yet. Its creator, Eric Persing, gives us a sneak preview.
As Live has gradually made the transition towards fully fledged DAW, the recording side of the program has become increasingly sophisticated — so we're going to look at some tricks to make basic recording easier.
When it comes to the Sonar mixing console, you don't have to simply take what you're given, because there are lots of ways of making it fit your working methods. We explain how, and pass on some handy shortcuts along the way.
How do you create a four-minute masterpiece out of just a few measures? And what's the best reverb to make you sound like that drumming gorilla on the TV ad? These questions, and more, answered in this month's Digital Performer workshop...
Following last month's introduction to reverb, we take you through the tips and tricks of some of the world's best producers, many of whom are thinking about the reverb sound they want long before they get to the mix.
For some, the jury is still out on Steinberg's ambitious SoundFrame and MediaBay concepts, but for certain tasks they can definitely be useful — getting your loop library organised, for example...
A track from Dutch band Awash gets the benefit of fixes for tightening up backing vocals, creating a bigger drum presence and making a DI'd guitar sound more natural.
Even if you pack your PC with a full 4GB of RAM, you may only be able to access between 3GB and 3.5GB of it, and a single application is normally limited to using just 2GB. We explain why, and what you may be able to do about it...
Not everyone finds drum programming easy, and if you're one of the rhythmically challenged, Logic's Ultrabeat drum synth could be your ticket to more interesting and sophisticated percussive parts.
At the first Apple Worldwide Developers Conference to be billed as a joint event for both Mac and iPhone developers, the iPhone took centre-stage and Apple dropped some breadcrumbs of information regarding the next major version of Mac OS X: Snow Leopard.
Very low-cost PCs with apparently good spec are not hard to come by these days — you can even pick one up at the local supermarket. But not all computers will work well for music and audio, so how do you avoid making a big mistake?
From humble beginnings, Diane Warren has gone on to write hundreds of hit songs. Her secrets? Hard work, good titles... and no time wasted cleaning her writing room!
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