For ADE, there’s always the possibility a visitor could come back the next year as a performer. To make this possible, Waves are making their ADE debut by introducing The Art Of The Mix, a four-day event series featuring mixing workshops led by some of dance music’s biggest stars including Dave Audé and Omid 16B. In between sessions, Yoni Leviatan of Waves will be demoing the Element synth and give visitors a chance to play it themselves.
Even though JBL are not that well know in Europe for their product line of reference monitors, unlike in the US, their new 3 series may help with this. The new 3 series are JBL entry level reference monitors that come in 2 models. The LSR305 with a 5″woofer and the LSR308 with a 8″woofer. We will test the LSR308 and compare them with the competitors in the same price range. To that extent the price range isn’t entry level for your average producer. But of course there is a difference in sound quality. So these monitors are more like the 2nd pair you’d buy if you learned your first monitors don’t cut it anymore.
Elektron have, together with Goldbaby, released a new sound pack for the Octatrack. The MPC Memories Sound pack pays a tribute to the MPC60, the beat making machine that forever changed the course of musical history. Goldbaby has put this gem of an instrument to work and has used it to sample hundreds of vinyl hits, drum machine one shots, and FX sounds. From now on, the Octatrack can’t stop, won’t stop.
Below are some of the new releases we have encountered this week on the Loops and Samples front. Just like the quality of the audio software we use these days the quality of the content we use (loops and samples) equally matches the high standards of this software. Below is this weeks selection.
Due to overwhelming demand, a repress of I DREAM OF WIRES: HARDCORE EDITION has been announced, an independent documentary epic exploring the history, demise and resurgence of the ultimate electronic music machine, the MODULAR SYNTHESIZER. Available to order now from the new SCIENCE WITH SYNTHESIZERS webshop, and coming soon to other select retailers.
Six very different sound designers have created a wide range of new sounds covering everything from classic analog vintage leads and pads, FM pianos, evil distorted rave basses and complex performance patches with multilayered synchronized arpeggiating monsters and much more.
This week Akai Pro have released the latest version of the MPC Software (version 1.5). Next to several maintenance improvements of the sofware, Akai has added some new features as well. In the video below Dan Gill shows off some of these new features of the 1.5 version software.
Melodyne offers unique possibilities for the enhancement of audio – from vocal tuning to rhythmic editing and even harmonic restructuring. In the course of a series of free seminars, Celemony explains how to make effective use of these possibilities to correct and polish recordings.
The Future Retro Mondovox provides new ways to play, control, and breathe new life into your MIDI sound modules. With the Mondovox, you can polyphonically play up to 16 monophonic synthesizers in ways you would expect to find in features-laden polysynths, expanding upon those ideas for many new and exciting possibilities.
The very attentive users on the Sequencer.de forum did catch another ‘booboo’ from a retailer. It seems that Sweetwater already have printed their coming catalog and already posted a new line of Minifoogers by Moog. The new series are all analog effect pedals and consists of a MF Trem, MF Delay, MF Ring, MF Boost and MF Drive.
We heard some rumours about a new MASCHINE through the grapevine for a while now, but rumours are rumours. We were pretty excited, but also cautious if these rumours would carry any truth with them. But today, the rumours were confirmed by Native Instruments as they announce MASCHINE STUDIO and MASCHINE 2.0 – the new flagship groove production studio and next generation of MASCHINE software.
One of the major issues of getting a mix right is to know how well the mix translates on any given speaker system. How more worse it sounds the better in that case. That’s why I use the stock audio system in my car because it sounds abysmal which is perfect to check mixes. Also when your monitors aren’t that pristine, when you are listening to a mix, you’ll often miss out on details. The other way around applies as well. Even when you have a mastering grade sound system you may wonder how it will sound on a consumer grade sound system. Of course you can create your own impulse responses of various environments and use them with a impulse response plug-in to create this effect but that takes effort and time.
With the MOTU Artist Spotlight series, MOTU offers us an insight in the methods and workings of artists, DJs and producers who use their software and equipment. The most recent episode is with Virtual Boy and their use of MOTU audio interfaces and other hardware.
Below are some of the new releases we have encountered this week on the Loops and Samples front. Just like the quality of the audio software we use these days the quality of the content we use (loops and samples) equally matches the high standards of this software. Below is this weeks selection.
The Aleph is a a Linux-based open source sound computer designed and developth my Ezra Buchla and Brian Crabtree. It is a open scource device that you can transform in a synthesizer, sampler, drum computer, whatever you like or want it to be.