Win Magix Software Worth £1,500/$1700

Deadline: 2012-06-11

For this month's competition, Magix are kindly giving away three separate Samplitude-related prizes. One lucky reader will win the flagship Samplitude Pro X Suite, there's a copy of Samplitude Pro X for the runner-up, and third place will bag the excellent Vandal amp simulator.

Active Nearfield Monitors

Spotlight

With so many active nearfield monitors available, how do you decide which pair is right for you? Here’s a round-up of some of the models we’ve rated highly in the last few years, along with advice on choosing monitors.

Akai EIE Pro

USB Audio Interface

Akai’s latest audio interface boasts a formidable feature set and an emphasis on robust hardware and simple operation.

AKG DMS70 Quattro

Wireless Microphone System

Thinking of going wireless? If you value audio quality and ease of use, this digital system from AKG might be just what you’re looking for.

Analogue Solutions Leipzig S

Analogue Synthesizer

Analogue Solutions make a bid for your cash with a retro-styled synth offering big, fat Moog-style sounds and a built-in sequencer. Could this be their best synth yet?

App Works

Making Music On The Move

Mark Wherry puts 'the new iPad' through its paces and takes a look at Apple Garageband 1.2 DAW for iOS, whilst Paul Nagle examines the Fingerlab DM1 drum machine for iPad.

Big Fish Audio | Guitar Soundscapes

Sample Library

3*

CME Z-Key 61

MIDI Controller Keyboard

CME go minimal with their new controller range. But is less really more?

Electro-Harmonix Analogizer

Guitar Processor

David Greeves gets his hands on this specialist piece of kit that can modify your existing guitar pedals with overdrive and delay effects.

Electrodyne 511

'Lunchbox' EQ

API's 'Lunchbox' 500-series seems to be breathing life into some little-known classic designs of the past, including this unsung hero of the EQ world...

Electrodyne 511 | Media

'Lunchbox' EQ

These audio files accompany the Electrodyne 511 review that featured in SOS May 2012.

Endless Analog CLASP

Tape Recorder Integration System

What’s better, a DAW or real analogue tape? Both, of course! We take a look at an ingenious system that seamlessly integrates the two.

Garritan Instant Orchestra

Sample Library

Instant Orchestra aims to take the pain out of creating orchestral parts — but can such an affordable library still produce the goods?

IGS Audio Tubecore ME

Stereo Vari-mu Compressor

Well known in their native Poland, IGS Audio are now making their products available in the UK. How do they fare against the competition?

KRK Rokit RP10-3

Three-way Active Monitors

Think three-way monitors are out of reach for your project studio? Think again...

Lexicon MPX Native Reverb

Reverb Plug-in

Having wowed the professionals with their Native PCM and LXP reverb plug-ins, Lexicon now turn their attention to the financially challenged!

Maier Sound Turtle

Boundary Layer Microphone Adaptor

Hugh Robjohns looks at this adaptor that can turn any 19-21 mm diameter microphone into a boundary mic, whilst also offering stability and protection.

Moog Minitaur

Analogue Bass Synthesizer

The Minitaur may look like a simple beast, but there’s much more to Moog’s most affordable synth than meets the eye...

MyMix Audio MyMix

Networked Monitoring System

Personal monitor mixes can be tricky to set up, particularly in large sessions. Can this modular system take the pain away?

Orchid Electronics DI Boxes

Active Transformerless DI Boxes

Not all DI applications require the electrical isolation offered by a transformer, and Orchid’s designs offer superb performance at low prices.

Orchid Electronics DI Boxes | Media

Audio Precision Analyser Test Plots

These audio files accompany the Orchid Electronics DI Boxes review that featured in SOS May 2012.

Oto Machines Biscuit 2

8-bit Effects Processor & Synthesizer

Oto’s 8-bit effects box gains a synth and sequencer. Is this the icing on the, er, Biscuit?

Peterson Stomp Classic

Tuner Pedal

Paul White examines this pedal from Peterson that is suitable for live tuning and tuning in the studio, as well as offering custom settings.

Project SAM | Orchestral Essentials

Sample Library

4.5*

Rhythmic Robot | Beat Room

Sample Library

4*

SE Electronics SE2200A MkII

Multi-pattern Condenser Microphone

This update of the hugely successful SE2200A adds switchable polar patterns and a fresh lick of paint!

SE Electronics SE2200A MkII | Media

Multi-pattern Condenser Microphone

These audio files accompany the SE Electronics SE2200A MkII review that featured in SOS May 2012.

Siren Audio Lorelei Suite

Effects & Processing Software

If you’re an electronic musician who’s tired of trying to make generic audio software fulfil specific needs, perhaps Siren Audio’s package is for you.

Yamaha DXR12 & DXR15

Active PA Speakers

These unassuming PA speakers feature high-powered Class-D amps and internal digital processing that helps them deliver clean sound even at high volumes.

King Creosote & Jon Hopkins: Recording Diamond Mine

Interview | Artist

The long-awaited collaboration between singer Kenny Anderson and producer Jon Hopkins has yielded a hypnotic album where not everything is as it seems...

Kojo Samuel: Musical Director

Interview | MD

A leading tour musical director explains how his experience as a producer helps him to prepare hit records for live performance.

Launch Pad

Leader

Paul White's leader.

Nat Lentell: Copyright Law

Sounding Off

Can musicians hope to get a fair deal from copyright law when the legislation itself is so out of date?

Playback

Readers' Music Reviewed

Krojc * Toy Tin Soldier * Mike Henderson * Annie Dressner * Marvin B Naylor * Crazee Baldhead * Big Chief

Ross Hogarth: Van Halen 'Tattoo'

Inside Track | Secrets Of The Mix Engineers

Expectations were high for the first Van Halen album in 14 years — and with eight mics on the bass alone, engineer Ross Hogarth was taking no chances!

Tommy LiPuma: Paul McCartney Kisses On The Bottom

Interview | Producer

Half a century into his career, Paul McCartney has paid tribute to the songs that shaped his musical education with his first-ever album of standards.

Combinator

Propellerhead Reason Tips & Techniques

Explore the potential of complex sound layering with Reason’s Combinator.

Control Room

Steinberg Cubase Tips & Techniques

Learn to switch between monitor systems with Cubase’s Control Room.

Creating & Using Custom Delay Effects

Tips & Techniques

Delay forms the basis for a wide range of effects that can transform your tracks from dull and pedestrian to polished and professional.

Creating & Using Custom Delay Effects | Media

Tips & Techniques

These audio files accompany the Creating & Using Custom Delay Effects article that featured in SOS May 2012.

Expansions For Sonar X1

Cakewalk Sonar Tips & Techniques

The Pro Channel is a highlight of Cakewalk’s Sonar X1 Producer — and some new add-ons make it even more powerful.

HDX

Avid Pro Tools Tips & Techniques

Should you upgrade your Pro Tools rig to HDX? And if you do, what pitfalls await?

Mix Rescue: The Mountaineering Club

Mixing & Recording Advice

This month, as well as revealing a few unusual tricks, our mix engineer demonstrates how to achieve power and clarity by focusing on the contrast between the sounds of different instruments.

Mix Rescue: The Mountaineering Club | Media

Mixing & Recording Advice

These audio files accompany the Mix Rescue article that featured in SOS May 2012.

Multiband Dynamics Plug-in

Ableton Live Technique

If you’re mystified by Live’s complex-looking Multiband Dynamics plug-in, let us offer some help...

New iPad v Mac

Apple Technique

While the iPad users are getting all the attention, let’s learn to love our Macs again...

Soften Guitar Tracks

Cockos Reaper Technique

Cut out nasty noises and soften your spiky guitar tracks in Reaper.

Soften Guitar Tracks | Media

Cockos Reaper Technique

These audio files accompany the Reaper Techniques article that featured in SOS May 2012.

Studio SOS

Your Studio Problems Solved

The SOS team visit a London studio in a building directly under a busy road — and with another studio in the room next door!

The Mix Review | May 2012

Analysing Commercial Productions

• Pixie Lott 'All About Tonight'
• Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds 'Death Of You And Me'
• Laura Marling 'Sophia'

Using Takes & ESX24 To Create Glitch Effects

Apple Logic Tips & Techniques

Use Takes and ESX24 to create glitch effects in Logic.

Whitney Houston 'I Wanna Dance With Somebody'

Classic Tracks

'I Wanna Dance With Somebody' was a huge global hit, but it also represented a tour de force in coaxing the perfect vocal from a singer, as explained by producer Narada Michael Walden.

Windows 8 For Musicians

PC Notes

A consumer preview version of Windows 8 has been released to mixed reviews — but what does the horizon look like for musicians?

Notes From The Deadline

TV Music From The Inside

If, at times, music for media feels impossible to break into, that’s because it is. And there’s a good reason for that.

Off The Record (US Edition Only)

Music & Recording Industry News

** This article was originally printed in the US Edition of Sound On Sound only, but is available online to all subscribers. **
Though the industry may be struggling to support the large studios that once thrived in Manhattan, the need for such creative centres is still very much alive.

Studio File: Record Plant, Los Angeles

Inside The World's Pro Studios

In this new regular feature 'Studio File', we open the doors on some of the world's most interesting professional studios with photographer Hannes Bieger. This month's studio is Record Plant in LA.

Q. Are some analogue signal graphs misleading?

Q. How can I warm up my recording without using EQ?

Q. How do I record a hammered dulcimer?

Q. Should I apply an effect to the whole mix, or use effects on each track?