Music Technology News and Trends

Royer’s cheapest ever ribbon!

On the heels of its recent acquisition of Aphex, DWV Entertainment in Park City, Utah, has taken the first steps toward revamping, revitalizing and integrating the Aphex audio brand into DWV's expanding ventures. The company announces that its DW Collection division of high-end audiophile technologies will relocate from its present location in Salt Lake City to the newly expanded DWV Entertainment headquarters in Park City, Utah.

On July 26, Earthworks Inc. in Milford, N.H., appointed Bill Norton {pictured) to the newly created position of Chief Operating Officer (COO). Recognized throughout the professional audio industry for his expertise in a wide range of sales and marketing initiatives, Norton will oversee all aspects of Earthworks’ sales and marketing operations, including sales expansion into new market segments; the development and implementation of all marketing campaigns and literature; strategic product placement; and the development of new, innovative products.

129th AES Convention Technical Tour Co-Chairs Jessica Livingston and Jeff McKnight have planned Technical Tours of audio facilities and venues in the San Francisco Bay Area as part of the 129th AES Convention, which will take place in San Francisco's Moscone Center November 5-7, 2010. The AES states that times and dates have yet to be finalized, but is offering an advance look at some options.

Mix Magazine Announces Mix Nashville 201 at Soundcheck Nashville

This new FM plug-in instrument includes Neuron Sequencer, which can trigger seven percussion-tuned FM voices and easily creates rhythms and patterns. Axon offers onboard effects and mixing, and full MIDI I/O capabilities (in the VST version only).

In this guitar software, the guitar player has been transformed into a step-sequencer system that allows control over playing styles, chord progressions and song structures. Guitarist can also be played live.Users can choose from factory chords or create their own on the fingerboard. The Action section allows users to tweak the sequence in real time and apply time-stretch, looper or other effects.

This extended version of the CabGrabber accommodates larger amps and cabinets. Constructed of durable aluminum tubing, the CabGrabber-XL is light weight but capable of holding microphones securely and firmly in place, including large-diaphragm condenser mics weighing up to 16 ounces.

Focusrite Saffire Pro 14 released

Brainworx launch stereo-widening plug-in for guitars

Created by some of the most respected producers from a wide range of genres, each DJ MixTools package is broken down into long "progressive" mix stems including drum grooves, percussion tops, synths and bass lines

This 8-input, 6-output FireWire audio interface is designed for home-studio musicians wanting a simple but high-quality I/O device for a Mac or PC. Featuring two Saffire mic preamps, flexible I/O routing and 24-bit/96kHz AD/DA conversion with JetPLL jitter-elimination technology, it's capable of providing studio-quality recordings . 


Flux releases these new products that can be purchased as a bundle or separately.

Shure has created a Special-Edition Super 55 microphone that features a sharp new red-and-black color scheme and is available only at Guitar Center.

Ever wanted to make your own kicks, snares and noises to make your percussion more personal?   It's a difficult road to tread, with cheesy beats tripping your confidence along the road to self sufficient sound production.

But never fear!   Here are 5 top tips to remember when synthesising your own drums!

1. Pitch drops

By having a really fast pitch drop from a high to a low note, you can get anything from a tom to a dancey kick to a dirty low sub bass drum.   Just alter the speed of the drop (One-shot LFOs or preferably envelopes are really good for this) and you can modulate the sound to your heart's content!

2. Snare Secrets

Want to get that punchy undertone to a snare but the noise generator isn't quite cutting it?   Let's think logically - an undertone is just that.   We need more than noise to make the punch, so filter a low sine wave underneath (make the frequency of the sine around the 200hz mark - if it's in key with the song then so much the better!) and listen as it punches like Mike Tyson in an annoying person convention (I'd advise never going to one of those).

3. Parallel distortion

That essential beef is only added when you route the sounds through distortion, then mix the newly distorted version with the original clean one.   That way, you maintain the clarity and introduce some gritty awesomeness to the tone!

Tube distortion works particularly well - if you have a guitar amp (or a guitar amp sim) try running your samples through it for some insta-grit to your beats!

4. Don't be afraid to layer

Samples are there for a reason!   Maybe by layering your home-grown sound with a sample, you can get something closer to what you want!   Try high-pass filtering a one shot sample from XXL Hip Hop Drums and putting a simple dancey kick underneath - Electro House-tastic!

Band Pass filtering can be a blessing here as well, allowing you to filter multiple sounds without overlapping the frequencies, making some really unusual and synthetic sounds.

5. A resounding yes!

Resonance is great for getting some weirder harmonic overtones from your drums, so don't be afraid to introduce it in droves when creating less conventional percussion!

So the whole world has been split between people who love it and people who laugh at it, but the iPad has undoubtedly made an entrance onto the scene, competing with laptops and building up quite a reputation.

But does its intuitive interface lend itself to high quality music production?   Let's take a look at some of the pieces of software available for it that explore its musical side...


Synths

The first port of call on our journey through the iPad's musical expertise is synths - can it generate its own sounds?   Well, the short answer is - yes.

Much like the iPhone, there are synth apps available for it, such as "miniSynth Pro", which allows for subtractive and FM synthesis with 2 oscillators amongst other features.

The large screen allows for a keyboard display of many keys that can be easily played (they've opted for a clever two-level organ-esque approach to fit more keys on screen at once) and the touch screen makes it seem that bit more authentic and fun to play with, rather than interacting through a dehumanising (perhaps a bit of a harsh word, but you know what I mean) mouse.

The results are perfectly useable as well.   High quality sound and some useful arpeggiator options mean it is a versatile and playable tool.


Samplers

So how about importing your Prime Loops library to the iPad?   Well, if you want to start playing with your XXL Hip Hop Drums one shots, then look no further than Akai Synthstation.

The MPC is a massive influence as you'd expect, so you can load up your one shots and cut-up loops into the familiar pads, or compile things in a looping fashion in the grid edit mode.   It's basically an MPC translated into software - very cool.


Recording software

This is perhaps where the iPad is lacking, mainly because it's not got a fantastic amount of input ability (though some companies have come up with ways to get microphones and line level inputs into the device), but some software companies have still had a go.

"StudioTrack" by Sonoma Wire Works, for instance have made an 8 track sequencer that can apply effects, allow you to mix your track and acts as a nice, quick mixing tool.   What it lacks in versatility and depth, it makes up in accessibility, again with the touch pad allowing users to go back to the days of authentic mixers and move faders around like in the good ol' days!


Sheet Music

It's not all about sound coming directly from the iPad - as it's good for books, sheet music seems like a logical extension of that, allowing a pianist to keep all of their music in one place and for it to scroll automatically as you perform your piece!   Convenient, huh?


MIDI Contoller

need some more dynamic input for your DAW since the mouse/keyboard combo isn't cutting it?   Things like Cubase iC, Trixmix 2, TouchOSC, pOSCa, MRMR, iGOG and Spectrasonics Omni Live (to name but a few) are creating a stir in the hardware industry.   Anyone with an iPad can use the wonders of wifi to make virtual midi connections to their favourite software and control their synths and samples so much more easily!

Sequencer for live gigs and DJ sets

Looptastic and iSequence have both thought that bringing a versatile looping and sequencing to the live arena from your favourite apple tablet is clearly the way of the future!   With many FX, sounds and loops to choose from, it's definitely got the potential to work its way into the live sets of touring DJs who like to keep everything in one place!

Stand alone instrument

It's not just limited to synthesis, as iElectribe and Tenori-On have proven - their devices map perfectly to the rectangular screen and allow some really cool hands (or tenori) -on access to the whole of your electronic music performance!

Groovebox

Devices like moxMatrix, Propellerhead ReBirth and our friend TouchOSC have proven their worth as grooveboxes on the 'Pad (there really is no need for that apostrophe, but there are so many "i"s floating about that it's starting to get dangerous), providing anything from old school techno to modern electro productions quite literally at your fingertips.

Other useful studio gimmicks

How about TC electronics polytune tuner, the BPM Counter, Metronome, Rhyming Dictionary... the list goes on as far as the apps store will let it.   Which is pretty far.


Overall

So in conclusion, it looks like it's not quite a professional DAW-beater just yet, but there are definitely some useable pieces of software for live performance and getting ideas down when you're away from the studio.   All-in-all a great tool for inspiration, since the accessibility will no doubt unleash your want to start actually getting back in touch (aha) with your musical creativity!

Studio Unknown Confessions of a Small Working Studio Remote Recording Column

Mix executive editor George Petersen summarizes the history of Shure's 55 Series microphones and Unidyne 55 unidirectional microphone, and reviews the new Shure Super 55 Special Edition Vocal microphone.

Steven Wilson Writes About information about musicians in new column In the Mix in Electronic Musician September 2010 issue

IBC is Europe’s premiere annual event for professionals engaged in the creation, management and delivery of audio, video, film and broadcasting for entertainment and news content professionals worldwide. Last year’s expo attracted more than 45,000 attendees from 140 countries around the world, exhibiting more than 1,300 of the world's key technology suppliers.