SOUND ON SOUND
Tinnitus and other permanent hearing damage are apparently reaching near-epidemic levels. To help warn people when their hearing is at risk, the hearing-protection specialists Sensorcom have produced the Soundcheck key fob.
Having built their reputation on knob-heavy modular synths, British manufacturer Analogue Systems surprise everyone by bringing out a menu-driven additive synthesis module! But don't worry — the optional expander is covered with things to tweak and turn...
The ART Head Amp provides simple headphone monitoring for several performers. It's built into a small folded-steel...
The tools available in Magix's highly regarded recording package cover every stage of the recording process, from MIDI sequencing to mastering and CD burning. Version 8 adds some neat extras including analogue-style processors, a virtual drum machine and an Acid-style beat-mapping tool.
Valve warmth or solid-state transparency? You decide with this flexible new hybrid preamp.
For the first time ever, Digidesign's Pro Tools recording software is available as a stand-alone product, which can be used in conjunction with any of five audio interfaces from M-Audio.
Completing the quartet of vintage synth emulations they began with Moog Modular V, Arturia's latest plug-in aims to reproduce the sound of the greatest semi-modular of them all, ARP's 2600. We see how it fares up against the original...
Espousing the simple, easy-to-use, Apple-type philosophy seen in tools like GarageBand, Glaresoft's virtual drum machine has you piecing together beats in minutes. And it costs just £39! We check it out...
At £1099, the Xa is the most affordable keyboard in the Fantom range. But, inevitably, features have been removed to make it such a bargain. Have Roland thrown out the works from the workstation?
Pioneering digital amplifiers are combined with PMC's proven transmission-line cabinet designs to deliver spectacular monitoring performance at a project-studio price.
Joining the growing market for one-box devices that combine audio and MIDI interfacing with control-surface functionality, Tascam's latest Firewire unit might be all you need for multitrack recording and mixing.
Yamaha's original Motif Rack was a fine-sounding, well-specified synth module, but it suffered from MIDI timing problems when reviewed in SOS. Two years on, we put the follow-up Motif Rack ES to the test...
Mindprint cram mic and line channel strips, monitor control, and talkback into a single desktop unit.
If you are attracted by the idea of Linux and open-source music software, but put off by the thought of installing it on your PC, there is another way: a bootable CD-ROM containing both the OS and all the software you need, ready to go.
Two years on from its original release, Native's virtual drum module gets its first full upgrade. Is it all John Bonham tom mayhem, or is it limper than a Kraftwerk drum solo?
From the same team that brought you Virtual Guitarist, Groove Agent has had an impressive upgrade, and is now claimed to work better under non-Steinberg hosts. We put it through a proper multi-platform test.
Two new half-rack boxes offer considerable operational flexibility and pristine sound in both the analogue and digital domains.
Terratec's range of affordable audio interfaces now includes two attractive Firewire options: the eight-in/out Phase 88 Rack FW and the two-in/four-out Phase 24 FW.
Korg's Microkontrol was a highly versatile, yet compact MIDI controller — but perhaps, with its three octaves of miniature keys, it was too compact. The Kontrol 49 looks set to put that right with its four-octave, full-size keyboard.
Edirol have pioneered USB 2.0 as a format for connecting audio interfaces, and their latest unit offers 10 inputs and 10 outputs, plus high resolution, at a price that compares well with Firewire alternatives.