Signal Processors

Despite having a name that most British people associate with small, round chocolate biscuits, Viscount are gaining a reputation for affordable MIDI hardware — and the EFX10 could be their best value effects processor to date. Derek Johnson and Debbie Poyser develop a taste for it.

Aphex continue to attack the market with their high quality, value for money processors. Paul White warms to the latest release.

Effects units continue to drop in price while offering more and more features. Digitech's new Studio Twin costs less than £250, but still offers a dual effects mode and MIDI patch control. Paul White is agog.

Axe devotees may be surprised to learn that Marshall released this little-known digital effects processor last year. Paul White gets in his annual half-hour's guitar practise, and finds an overlooked unit worthy of some consideration...

The M2000 takes much of the technology behind its Danish manufacturer's professional flagship, the M5000, and re-packages it with less flexibility but a much lower price tag. Paul White finds out whether it's barking up the right tree.

This is the smallest and least costly reverb unit Alesis have ever produced. Paul White finds out whether you can mind the quality and still feel the width!

Paul White casts a critical ear over TL Audio's new budget dual-channel valve equalisers to see if high quality really is possible at such a relatively low price.

Famous for their Aural Exciters, Aphex continue to diversify. Paul White takes a look at the US company's new valve-based compressor.

Paul White goes into economy mode and tries to coax an extra degree of realism out of a budget studio reverb unit.

Paul White studio tests the JoeMeek Stereo Compressor to find out whether nostalgia really is what it used to be...

Korg have added a vocal harmony generator to their i-series of intelligent arranger workstations, taking advantage of the same harmonising technology that's behind Digitech's market-leading Vocalist series. Gordon Reid finds out whether the new unit has anything surprising up its sleeve...

The predictability of modern digital sound sources, while convenient, may have you longing for some of the chaotic complexity of analogue. Paul Nagle looks at an analogue filter which could put the surprise back into your music.

Offering 5-part harmony at a budget price, the MV5 is Digitech's easiest to use pitch-shifter yet. The David Mellor Singers provide the tune...

Always ready for some off-road action, Paul White scrambles for his XLR adaptors and test drives LA Audio's latest incarnation of the 4x4.

Paul White nervously opens Pandora's box — and realises that instead of being the mythical source of demons and sorrows, it's just Korg's new compact guitar multi-effects processor...

Now that Waldorf have released their 4-pole filter as a stand-alone unit, giving your digital synth an analogue spin is as easy as popping it in the microwave. The result, as Paul Ward discovers, isn't always fast food.

What would modern popular music be like without effects? Can you imagine rock without distortion? Ambient techno without delays? New age without reverb? Effects are second only in importance to the instrument needed to produce the music in the first place. Over the next nine pages, Derek Johnson and Debbie Poyser present their guide to what's on the effects market today...

Paul White explores a few ways of taking nature's most common audio phenomenon and manipulating it to create special effects.

Paul White gets the first ART eight-channel Pro Gate to land in the UK &mdash and discovers that behind the hi-tech facade, it's a bit of a Harley-Davidson.

Inside the GX700 lies a heart of gold: Roland's innovative physical modelling technology. Paul White straps on his guitar and puts this advanced multi-effects unit to work.

Paul White finds Behringer's new 'more of everything' box a plentiful source of cheap thrills.