SOUND ON SOUND
Paul White tests a mic that's outstanding in its field — without going out and standing in a field.
In recent years, samplers have become almost exclusively rackmount devices, widely used as production workhorses, but less so by the gigging musician. With the release of their first keyboard sampler in several years, Emu are hoping to change all that. Paul Wiffen heralds the return of the performer's sampler.
It looks like a flagship reverb, yet it checks in at the price of a jet ski. Paul White cuts a dash with Yamaha's versatile new digital reverb.
With more zones than a one-day Travelcard and an impressive array of physical real-time control options, the keyboard version of Kurzweil's K2500 represents a new frontier in digital synthesis. Paul Ward heads for the border...
Paul White ponders the benefits of a DAT recorder with a 40kHz audio bandwidth.
This month, Paul White tests out a new drive system.
Cubase, in its many guises, has established itself as an industry standard on Apple and Atari platforms, and now looks set to be the benchmark by which other PC sequencers will be judged. Kevin Pawsey investigates what Steinberg has to offer the score-producing musician.
Expandable and user-friendly, Ensoniq's new synth module favours preset sounds and effects over editing and programming options. Julian Colebeck asks how the Mr Rack stacks up.
Mike Collins concludes his look at the available TDM software plug-ins, concentrating this month on those made by third-party manufacturers.
Several software houses are producing modestly priced programs which take advantage of the audio capabilities fo the Apple Power Macs. The result can be high-quality multitrack digital audio at a suprisingly low cost. Paul D. Lehrman finds he's got the Power...
The SOS team review 4 discs of synth sounds.
After a hiatus of several years, Yamaha return to sampling with the cheapest, most portable dedicated sampler yet. Derek Johnson coins a phrase...
Not satisfied with pitching their previous Technox synth fairly obviously at the dance music market, German manufacturers Quasimidi have now gone all out with the in-your-face Raven. But is it capable of techno-by-numbers? Paul Ward climbs aboard and flies into a rave...
Squelchy as a Minimoog and programmable as a PC, it's time to re-evaluate the Moog Source — so says Stephen Bennett.
Paul White checks out a signal processor with no knobs, no buttons and no display, designed to add valve warmth to 8-track recording.
The new version of Opcode's flagship sequencer/ hard disk recording package almost extinguishes the differences between audio and MIDI recordings, allowing unprecedented control over your compositions. A hitherto MIDI-only Martin Russ broadens his horizons...
The SOS team review a soldering iron from Portasol.
Paul White plugs into the all-singing, all dancing digital box that can perform graphic, parametric and shelving EQ functions all at once — and even handle real-time room analysis and auto EQ'ing during its quieter moments...
The construction might be solid steel, but you don't need the strength of Samson to lift this little mixer, as Paul White discovers.
Andy Davies casts his eyes, ears and fingers over two new products from Oberheim: a controller keyboard which aims to replace your piano, and an organ module which threatens to do the same with your Hammond...