Alesis Matica 500

Power Amplifier

The latest addition to the Alesis dream studio line are the Matica 500 and 900 power amplifiers. Paul White checks out the 500.

Allen & Heath GS1

8-buss Recording Console

Paul White checks out what must be one of the smallest 8-buss recording consoles around, which sports MIDI muting and MIDI machine control and still maintains a very afordable price tag.

Fostex XR7

4-track Cassette Multitracker

The mid-priced XR7 is at the top of the new Fostex cassette multitracker range. Shirley Gray checks it out.

Funky Rhythms You Can't Live Without

Sample Library

4*

JL Cooper Cuepoint

Universal Autolocator

JL Cooper's new remote controller could become the nerve centre of your studio, driving all your MMC-compatible studio equipment from its front panel. Control freak John Harris checks it out.

KRK K-Rok

Nearfield Monitors

American company KRK have gained quite a reputation for distinctive monitor design since their inception less than 10 years ago. Paul White checks out their most affordable speakers, the nearfield K-ROKs.

Moog Taurus

Bass Pedals (Retro)

Paul Ward gets bullish about one of Robert Moog's lesser-known creations - the Taurus bass foot pedals, famed for their thunderous sound and association with some of the 1970s prog rock scene's greatest stars.

Polestar Magnetics Drum Tools

Sample Library

4*

Ridge Farm Gas Cooker

2-Channel Tube DI Box

Despite the preponderance of digital technology in the modern recording world, many independent manufacturers continue to produce valve-based processors for the subjective warmth they add to recordings. Paul White looks at one of the latest, Ridge Farm's new valve DI box.

Rode NT2

Capacitor Microphone

Just when you thought all the bargain mics came from the former Eastern Bloc countries, the Australians turn up a bargain of their own. Paul White decides whether it's as good as their wine or merely as good as Neighbours.

Roland GI-10

Guitar MIDI Interface

Paul White packs away the keyboard and plugs Roland's new guitar-MIDI interface into his sequencer.

Roland JS30

Sample Workstation

The JS30 forsakes the familiar rackmount sampler format for desktop presentation, and aims for simplicity and immediacy of operation. Derek Johnson checks it out.

Roland XP50

Music Workstation

Roland's latest attempt to part you from your savings boasts no less than 1700 patches, a well-specified sequencer, comprehensive effects section and expandability via Roland's popular wave expansion boards. Julian Colebeck takes it for a spin.

Soundfield ST250

Stereo Microphone

Paul White takes a SoundField ST250 Stereo Microphone to a live recording session to see if the reality lives up to the legend.

Widgets

CIS Studio Desk Pro Mk2; Active Instrument Lead

The SOS team explore a piece of kit designed to keep your studio organised, and discover a viable alternative to a DI box for guitars and basses.

Yamaha MU5

Tone Generator

It's 28-voice polyphonic, with 128 sounds and a computer interface — and comes in a box the size of a video tape. Derek Johnson finds out whether size matters after all.

Zero Phantom Horns

Sample Library

5*

Adrian Utley: Portishead Sound Shaper

Interview | Artist

With Portishead's much acclaimed Gold selling debut album, Dummy, riding high in the charts, the West Country finally have an act to make a song and dance about. Jonathan Miller gets the low down on fame, fortune and M16 from co-producer and band member Adrian Utley, a man of many talents.

BBC Radio One FM: On The Net

Exploration

Martin Russ tunes into a very different BBC Radio One...

Dave Ward: Gateway Celebrates 20 Years Of Audio Education

Interview | Education

Though there's now no new shortage of recording and music technology courses available, the situation was rather different 20 years ago, when the Gateway School was first established. Paul White talks to pioneering co-founder Dave Ward about almost a quarter of a century of audio education.

Hector Zazou

Songs from the cold seas

French musician Hector Zazou's quest for sounds and songs with a difference took him North, to find ethnic drumming from Siberia, joik chanting from Lapland, and the disappearing folk music of the World's northern tribes — which he combined with contributions from himself and world-famous artists, to create a unique musical experience. Paul Tingen gets some Northern Exposure.

Martyn Ware: Record Companies Should Seek New Talent

Opinion | Music Production (Production Lines)

Today, back catalogue sales account for much of the revenue generated by record companies. Here, producer Martyn Ware considers what will happen when there is no longer any back catalogue left to exploit...

Steve De Furia: Behind The Scenes At Lexicon

Interview | Manufacturer

Paul White discusses the future of digital effects processing with Lexicon's Steve De Furia.

A Question Of Trust, Part 2: Working With Music Industry Professionals

Exploration

Having wondered last month about the reliability of your gear, David Mellor discusses the even less predictable nature of music business people...
• Read Part 1

Analogue To Digital: Changing From 8-track Tape To Hard Disk Recording

Exploration

Stephen Bennett chucks his trusty 8-track tape setup in favour of one of the new hard disk multitrack systems — but not before doing some thorough research. Here he reveals the factors that influenced his decision...

Cheap Sampling With PC Soundcards

Tips & Techniques

Are you about to buy an expensive stand-alone sampler? Think again. If you have a PC, you already own much of the technology required for sampling. Panicos Georghiades puts the case for 'soundcard and PC'-based sampling systems, and compares four popular soundcards.

Choosing A Microphone: Types & Uses

Tips & Techniques

Every studio needs at least one mic, but which type and which model is best? Paul White provides some guidance.

Creating A Cubase MIDI Mixer Map For Yamaha SY85, Part 1

Tips & Techniques

Cubase's MIDI Mixer Module allows you to create Mixer Maps to help you edit and control your MIDI insruments. In part one of this two-part series, Simon Millward takes you through the construction of a Mixer Map for Yamaha's popular SY85.
• Read Part 2

How To Use Amiga's MIDI Facilities

Amiga Notes

Something a little different this month, as Paul Overaa provides details of how the Amiga's MIDI facilities can be used from BASIC...

Planning Your First Home Studio, Part 4

Tips & Techniques

Paul White looks at the multitrack recording console and its role in your multitrack recording system.
• Read Part 1
• Read Part 2
• Read Part 3
• Read Part 5

QuickTime With Everything

Apple Notes

Martin Russ rounds up the latest Apple hardware and software news, kicking off with tidings of QuickTime with everything...

RT300; Video On Your PC; 1995 MEMS

PC Notes

Brian Heywood reports back from the 1995 MEMS show, and looks at an interesting new way of getting video onto your PC...

The Eagle Atari Clone

Atari Notes

Following the resurrection of the Falcon under C-Lab (as reported in last month's Atari Notes), GE-Soft of Germany has just launched the Eagle, a TT-compatible Atari clone. Vic Lennard takes a look...