SOUND ON SOUND
Roalnd's D50 became the sound of the late '80s. Does it still have a place in the late '90s? Paul Ward takes a trip around LA...
Paul White tests one of the few-low cost tube enhancers on the market, from a new name in excitement.
It's small, sleek and extremely covetable. David Mellor opens the box.
Peter Ridsdale gives his personal impressions of cult shareware program Cool Edit.
Digital audio recording on computers has been possible for several years now, but without expensive multi-channel I/O units, the inputs and outputs from computer-based systems have been limited to simple stereo jacks. Now, several inexpensive multi-output PCI I/O cards are coming onto the market. Paul White looks at Emagic's solution, and decides he knows what he likes...
Some of the most prestigious names in monitor design are getting into the project studio market. Paul White auditions Quested's new baby powered monitors, affordable enough for the project studio owner and portable enough for the producer on the move.
A very, very big piano inside a very, very small box: Derek Johnson investigates Alesis' latest impressive conjuring trick.
Much hard graft has been put in by electronic instrument manufacturers over the years in an attempt to transfuse the essence of the tonewheel organ into a MIDI-compatible keyboard. Nick Magnus dissects Roland's latest virtual modelling approach, and pronounces the operation a complete success.
How much more can Creative cram onto a single PC Soundcard? Paul White finds out.
Paul White revs up his valves and zooms off to see the big Squeeze.
Hugh Robjohns checks out a range of keenly-priced condenser mics from over there that look set to do rather well over here...
Take an Atari Falcon, strip away the outer casing, add some major circuitry and a host of external connections and package in a sturdy rackmount box. Stir in a copy of Cubase Audio, connect up a CD recorder, and the result is the new Sunrise Audio Workstation. Dominic Hawken checks out this unique new recipe.
All the warmth of valve circuitry, and it's shiny on every surface too. Paul White tries out a hot piece of kit with tubes that groove.
Is it a hi-tech bathroom scale? Is it a 21st-century computer game? Is it Darth Vader's toilet seat? No, it's an innovative LED-laden MIDI step sequencer, with the power to wring new life from your old synths. Paul Nagle pulses and flashes with excitement.
Yamaha brought the price of an automated digital mixer crashing to below £2000 with the release of the ProMix 01. They then followed up with the fully-featured 02R, but at over £7000, it wasn't cheap. Now there's the 03D, which seeks to combine the features of the 02R with the amazing value of the 01. Hugh Robjohns checks out the 03D's zeros and ones...
Paul White tries out Roland's MBD1 Bass and Drums Sound Expansion module and discovers a wealth of really useable off-the-peg sounds.
The first in Drawmer's new budget range of processors aims to give you high-quality gain reduction at a compressed price. Paul White comes to the conclusion that they've got the balance right.
Mike Collins investigates the versatile AardVerter — a 16-bit converter packed with features.
The Dimension Beam translates physical movement into MIDI data, offering theremin-style control over your keyboard rack. Dominic Hawken explores this new device.
When it comes to cloning people, or even sheep, there's always an outcry, but where do you stand on the issue of plug-in card that effectively turns your Lexicon PCM90 into two Lexicon PCM90s? Paul White feels that first in the queue would be the appropriate location!