Indholdsfortegnelse for December 2022 i Future Music

SCAN TO GET OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER Whether you’re feeling a squeeze right now, or you’re lucky enough not to have to worry about money, it’s always worth checking that you’re making the most of your music making setup. We’re all probably guilty of picking up plugins or hardware that we don’t explore to their full potential, or overlooking key features of our chosen DAW. While it’s often tempting to seek fresh inspiration by picking up new gear, there are always countless ways to rethink and maximise what you already have. That’s what this issue of FM is all about. In this issue’s cover feature, we’re exploring cheap workarounds and free ideas to help you expand your setup, reimagine your current workflow or affordably create your dream studio. We hope you…

> KRK Audio’s new GoAux portable monitor speakers are, the company say, designed for “travelling audio pros on a budget”. The monitors are available in two sizes, with the GoAux 3 and GoAux 4 offering three- and four-inch speakers respectively, and featuring both 1/8-inch and RCA stereo inputs. You can connect your laptop, phone or other device to them wirelessly over Bluetooth. The GoAux 4 also benefits from several additional features, such as a measurement mic and built-in automatic room correction technology that optimises the speakers’ response to the current acoustic environment. It also trumps its smaller rival by offering USB and 1/4-inch TRS balanced stereo inputs. Both of the GoAux 3 and GoAux 4 setups feature glass aramid woofers along with one-inch soft textile dome tweeters in a bi-amplified…

> Akai have upsized their MPK Mini MIDI keyboard and released a Plus version. This comes with an extended three-octave keyboard, a built-in sequencer, MIDI and CV/Gate connectivity, proper pitch and mod wheels, MPC pads, knobs, transport controls and more. That’s a pretty comprehensive spec list, and puts the MPK Mini Plus in direct competition with Arturia’s KeyStep 37 controller. The 37 slim keys use Akai’s second-generation dynamic bed, while the polyphonic two-track sequencer – designed for creating melodic and drum patterns – comes with Step and Live modes. There are eight notes of polyphony per key step, 16 notes per drum step and an onboard arpeggiator. As well as being useful for drum playing and programming, the pads can also be used for making program changes and triggering additional…

> Novation first arrived on the scene in 1992 – coincidentally at almost the exact same time as issue 1 of Future Music – and over the past 30 years, the British brand has been responsible for some of the most memorable instruments and controllers of our lifetime. Originally launched as Novation Electronic Music Systems, the company’s debut product was the MM-10, a compact MIDI keyboard designed to control Yamaha’s QY10 synth. Novation’s first icon, however, arrived in 1993 in the form of the Bass Station – awonderfully raw and meaty analogue synth capable of thick leads and killer acid basslines. Novation synths have covered a lot of bases over the past three decades. From the shape-shifting digital tones of the Nova series to the thick, hybrid sounds of Peak…

01 > The first element of the hybrid sound would be the choice of kick: “Instead of creating a big, fat techno kick that’s all the way down at 40 or 50hz, I use a DnB kick, which is a lot higher in frequency and a lot punchier with less sub. It means that I can put more sub into the bass.” 02 > The bass sound itself is made using Xfer Serum. “It’s essentially just a simple pluck bass,” Mandi explains. Its creation starts by bringing the decay time right down on the amp envelope, with a near maximum sustain, to create a sharp, percussive sound. 03 > Mandi uses a sawtooth LFO to modulate the filter for a tempo-synced ‘chopping’ sound. “Just to give it the high end…

01 > The first thing you’ll notice upon opening the new Kontakt 7 plugin is that the browser window has changed dramatically. It’s now possible to search all of your Kontakt content at once, and find presets according to Sound Type or Characteristic easily using the tags at the top. This includes all of the factory content plus third party content, so it makes finding the right sound much easier than going through each individual library. 02 > Upon searching for an instrument, sound or vibe, you’ll see a list of appropriate presets pop up. Auditioning these is as easy as clicking on the preset name; you’ll also see a star appear when hovering over the name to make favouriting presets easy, so you can save a certain sound you…

> Physion MkII is the second iteration of Eventide’s powerful multi-effect, which is capable of the same signal-splitting process as its predecessor, but with new features thrown in for good measure. The plugin’s key selling point is its ability to split a signal into transient and tonal information, and apply effects to these parts independently. There are seven effects to choose from in the transient section, and eight in the tonal section, giving you a diverse range of configurations for all manner of creative tasks. Here we’ll explore some of Physion MkII’s features and capabilities. You can buy the plugin for £88.99 (sale price) from Eventide’s website, or download the free demo. Structural split Let’s start by listening to how Physion MkII divides a signal. Click the power button at…

> Amazing set of 107 expertly-crafted presets for Knifonium – Knif Audio’s whopper monophonic vacuum tube-powered synth. They’ve rolled up their sleeves and got elbows deep in the guts of this one, pulling out monster basses, fierce top lines, and a whole host of other meaty keys, pads, tones and timbres. Everything you hear is warm to the ear, and each big, bold, bouncy and beautiful sound will have you grinning like a kid in some kind of store. There’s also plenty of bite to this collection, with some savage saturation and distortion textures to choose from. But, you’ll need the Knifonium plugin to enjoy these presets. And, if you have the extra coin, you’ll wanna upgrade to the Deluxe kit for MIDI and WAV files . Roy Spencer audiotent.com…

M-Audio BX3 & BX4 from £85 Full Review: FM369 Compact and convenient, M-Audio’s new BX monitors expand the appeal of the range and do so at an incredible price. Adam Audio T5V £133 Full Review: FM335 The T5V delivers plenty of clarity, decent imaging and volume from a pretty compact footprint. A tidy package, all at a good price point. KRK Rokit G4 from £133 Full Review: FM348 With punchy delivery and an abundance of EQ options, these are the best Rokits yet, offering power at an accessible price. Kali Audio LP-6 £147 These two-way speakers from relative newcomers Kali Audio offer exceptional sound quality at a very reasonable price. An excellent option for home studios.…

NEW ENTRY Bitwig Studio 4 $399 Full Review: FM390 (Bitwig 4.4) Despite some controversy around the recent rollout of 4.4’s ‘Spectral Suite’, Bitwig remains at the forefront of creative software. Steinberg Cubase 12 £497 Full Review: FM382 Version 12 is a solid and dependable update to Cubase, and offers some excellent new features and small, but important, update to others. Ableton Live 11 Suite £539 Review: FM368 Not an essential upgrade for everyone, but new additions, including comping, MPE and linked tracks, have been smartly done. Live retains its place at the cutting edge. Tracktion Waveform Pro from $119 Review: FM345 Waveform is now friendlier, contains more creative tools and brings workflow ideas you’ll have missed from other DAWs. Apple Logic Pro $199 Review: FM361 Still no Logic 11, but…

> Arturia’s October ‘rendez-vous’ event saw the French outfit unveiling four new releases, touching on both hardware and software. The highlight is the MiniFreak, a polysynth that takes the digital-meets-analogue ideas of the MicroFreak and runs with them. Despite its name, the MiniFreak isn’t exactly ‘mini’; it expands on the form of the MicroFreak considerably and finds room for a 37-note slim, synth action keyboard. Just like the MicroFreak, the Mini pairs a digital oscillator section with a state-variable analogue filter and some neat modulation tools. The upgrades don’t just come down to the size of the hardware though. Whereas the MicroFreak could function as a paraphonic synth to play up to four notes, the MiniFreak boasts a full six voices of polyphony, making it a solid source of morphing…

> The demise of Moog’s Moogerfooger range of effect pedals in 2018 was a sad moment for many people who’d come to love this collection of high-quality analogue stompboxes. Now it’s back, but this time in the form of a bundle of seven plugins. Bob Moog introduced the Moogerfooger brand in 1998, kicking things off with the MF-01 low-pass filter and MF-102 ring modulator, both of which were inspired by his synth module designs. The MF-103 phaser was released the following year, and four further products followed. All seven Moogerfoogers have now been emulated for the DAW generation, with each plugin being based on the original analogue circuits. The effects now operate in stereo and have expanded feature sets; all parameters can be automated and you can create, save and…

“Its funny,” begins the normally interview-shy Dominic Angas. “Until recently, I don’t think I’d ever bettered that album.” He’s talking about his debut LP – the iconic, “I t’s genre-forging masterpiece, Industry. A collection of super processed, forward-thinking, breakbeat science. A jewel in the legendary Moving Shadow label’s crown. And a body of work that forged its own dark, techy and technical drum & bass path, as the g enre was really starting to take giant steps. Not even in his 20s then, Dom (and the Roland sampler that shared top billing with him), bunkered down and made the album he wanted to hear. “I was young and in that life-changing, tumultuous time, I was just doing it for me,” he says. “I don’t think I write, or wrote music…

BEST NEW SURGE XT 1 The open-source and free Surge synth is probably regarded as a “freeware classic” by now, although the Surge team are going strong, having created this new XT version, and having adopted a few other plugins along the way too! FLUCTUS 2 Fluctus is a three-operator FM synth with powerful controls for a free instrument. There’s saturation, filtering, delay and phaser effects, as well as 60 patches to get yourself thoroughly frequency-modulated. CRUX: ELECTRIC BASSES 3 crux: Electric Basses is one of Orchestral Tools’ ‘SINEfactory’ instruments, free offerings that you get for just being signed up to the company’s mailing list. There’s a whole load more offerings available to boot, but Crux is one of the collection’s most vital instruments. VSL SYNCHRON PLAYER 4 Soft Imperial…

Native Instruments have added a huge incentive in the Komplete 14 Standard package for those trying to decide between Select and Standard, and that is the integration of Ozone 10 Standard, courtesy of Native Instruments’ partnership with iZotope. Ozone has long been heralded as the one of the best ways a home recordist or bedroom producer can get professional level mastering results in their DAW, and the plugin has evolved over the years to become easier than ever to use. That’s especially true with version 10 of Ozone, which now features an improved AI-assisted workflow to speed up your mastering. We’re going to take a very brief overview of the software to get you acclimated so you can start using it with your Komplete productions. Let’s dive in. 1Add Ozone…

There are four different versions of Komplete 14 to choose from. Komplete 14 Select is the lowest tier and will set you back £179. Komplete 14 Standard is the next level up and includes more than 125 instruments for £539. Komplete 14 Ultimate comes with a price tag of £1,079 but includes enough content to keep you busy for a lifetime – more than 200 products. And if that’s not enough, there’s Komplete 14 Collector’s Edition, which includes everything possible (over 250 products) for £1,619. Note that Native Instruments does offer upgrade pricing so it’s worth logging in to your account and seeing if such an offer exists. And it’s also well known at this point that NI does an annual sale around December where prices for many of these…

Harnessing the stars to create celestial wavetables, George FitzGerald’s brilliant new offering, Stellar Drifting, is the fruit of his new studio, a lockdown obsession with the Hubble Telescope and a desire to turn photographs of space into synthesised sound. Stellar Drifting sees FitzGerald enlist the vocal talents of labelmate Panda Bear, Derry singer/songwriter SOAK, and London Grammar who return the favour after FitzGerald contributed to their 2021 album, Californian Soil. Following a move to his new studio in Bermondsey, FitzGerald downsized some of his analogue synth collection and dove deeper into his soft synth arsenal to brilliant effect on standout tracks, Passed Tense (with the aforementioned Panda Bear) and the otherworldly, Ultraviolet. Whilst exploring these new sonic territories, FitzGerald has retained the genre-straddling skill that made previous albums, Fading Love…

> To any synth aficionado Vangelis, needs no introduction. Famed for his film and TV soundtrack work, his sound palette and approach is immediately recognisable. Two elements in particular that come through strongly are his use of expansive reverb alongside the regular use of sounds created on his beloved Yamaha CS-80. The reverb halo that surrounds many of his most famous soundtracks (such as Chariots Of Fire and Blade Runner) was created with the then relatively new Lexicon 224 digital reverb unit. The new technology available in units like this allowed users to create huge sonic spaces at the flick of a switch. This, combined with the expressive power of Yamaha’s top-flight analogue behemoth, allowed Vangelis to create music that embraced synthesis in a very organic way – and it…

NEW ENTRY Cableguys ShaperBox 3 $89 With its focus on custom modulation, multiband nature and wealth of presets, ShaperBox is an essential go-to for adding movement and bringing sounds to life. ValhallaDSP Valhalla Delay $50 Full Review: FM344 Combining a range of excellent-sounding delay modes with some great ambient tools, this is a must-have plugin at a great price. Output Thermal £84 Full Review: FM360 A well-equipped and creative distortion effect that’s capable of a wide range of musical, often inspiring results. Soundtoys Effect Rack $299 A longtime favourite of many pro producers, Soundtoys’ hardware-inspired multi-effect can do everything from faux analogue crunch to out-there FX inspiration. Arturia Dist Coldfire €99 Described as a ‘dual distortion reactor’, Arturia’s latest original effect is a powerful combination of virtual analogue and digital…

> You’ve got delays and you’ve got reverbs, but Spectral Plugins say that their new Spacer effect, “is like no delay you’ve ever heard, and no reverb you’ve ever dreamt of. All together.” This supposed marriage made in plugin heaven promises five types of “spatial experience”. Or, to put it another way, it offers five reorderable modules: Reverb, Convolution, Grain Reverb, Delay and Grain Delay, plus a Utilities tab and a multi-voice Chorus. Each module also contains a two-band EQ plus Mix and Gain controls, while Spacer’s granular engine – which includes pitchshifting technology – comes courtesy of Zynaptiq. The Convolution module comes with 110 impulse responses, or you can load your own. Options in the Utilities tab include Saturation, Presence and Air controls, and an Age effect that introduces…

Electronic musician, Cong Burn label head and developer John Howes’ music lives on the boundary between chaos and control. On the one hand, his work is largely produced using systems and tools of his own design: rhythms and notes are generated using Strokes, a sequencing environment he’s developed, synth patches are meticulously constructed on his Nord Modular G2 and Elektron Machinedrum, while parameters are modulated using another self-built software tool, the global modulation matrix Dispatch. But though he’s rigorous in his command of the creative process, Howes tells us, it’s when he begins to let go that the magic happens, through generative music-making and semi-autonomous agents that possess what he’s called “lo-fi AI”. His latest release, a self-titled project under a new alias, derives its name from Paperclip Maximiser, a…

GET SORTED 1Creativity and efficiency can be awkward bedfellows and it’s true that happenstance can sometimes lead you in creative directions you hadn’t envisaged. Still, being organised tends to reap benefits in the long run. In your hardware environment this could be as simple as ensuring all your equipment including cables, mics, headphones and so on are clearly labelled so that when you plug something up it’s quick and predictable. In the software domain it’s very easy for your system to become a fragmented web of content that can be slow to access from your DAW. It can be beneficial to organise your sessions and samples into separate folders or drives even, although be aware that moving files around can cause later problems when you try to open sessions, so…

01 > Each instrument in 40’s Own Keys has an A and B layer for an instant, layered sound that is sure to evoke the kind of atmosphere Drake’s music has been known for. The A-Macro knob is always going to be assigned to the balance between the two layers, so that’s a quick start to see what textures exist in that balance. 02 > To select what sample is being used for each layer, simply click on the sample name, or just the left and right arrows to scroll through them. Clicking the search icon will bring up a search window where you can see just how many sample sources are available. 03 > The seventh Macro knob controls the “40” amount of each patch; however this is much…

THE PROS & CONS + It does an amazing job of combining the design elements of three classic synths into one new synth There are a lot more programming options available beyond the front panel controls It can create that classic-era Oberheim sound with ease, but also offers more flexibility than its predecessors - None of this comes cheap! Some Page 2 features might have benefitted from dedicated frontpanel controls No dedicated patch compare button The day has finally arrived – anew Oberheim synthesiser is here. And it’s not just any old synth with the Oberheim name stuck on – it’s the real deal. In a similar manner to Dave Smith’s journey back to using the Sequential name, Tom Oberheim can again create synths under his own name. Interestingly, there…

> Let’s get this out of the way – this isn’t just another orchestral percussion library offering variations on a well-worn theme but just bigger and apparently better. Instead, this new collection from Spitfire Audio claims to take a new approach by exploring some of the less obvious modes of percussion-based sound creation with world-renowned percussionist Dame Evelyn Glennie. So, whilst this doesn’t entirely do away with single percussion hits, it does embrace unusual mic techniques and combines these with a playing style which emphasises the instruments’ resonant qualities (as opposed to transient bombast) – hence the name. As with many recent Spitfire releases, this collection employs their own plugin as its front end, and the functionality will be familiar to even those who haven’t bought one of their premium…

NEW ENTRY UDO Super 6 £2,195 Full Review: FM367 The Super 6 is an impressive machine; even more so for being a first release. Intuitive, super-versatile, totally unique sounding… a pleasure to get lost in! Arturia PolyBrute £2,299 Full Review: FM362 Arturia’s first polysynth is packed with unique features and has bags of character. A worthy flagship for the Brute range and a top-tier poly. Oberheim OB-X8 £4,799 Full Review: FM390 | This is a beautiful synth destined to be a classic in its own right, but there’s no escaping the fact that it’s also rather expensive. Moog Matriarch £1,979 Review: FM355 The Matriarch is very inspiring. It’s well built, has the classic Moog Modular sound and it’s complex yet intuitive. This is a future classic! Sequential Take 5 £1,229…

Korg SQ-64 £269 Full Review: FM367 | An intuitive, nostalgic and very musical bit of gear. Recently updated to v2.0, adding a new drum mode and more. Arturia KeyStep Pro £319 Full Review: FM359 For melodic sequencing duties and flexible hardware control, this is one of the best keyboard devices around. Novation SL MkIII from £540 Full Review: FM338 For those who work with both hard and software, this may be the best studio centrepiece on the market. Pioneer DJ Toraiz Squid £467 Review: FM351 Features like Groove Bend and speed modulation put a new spin on your sequencing moves. Arturia BeatStep Pro £196 Review: FM296 A modern classic, offering great connectivity, sequencing and controller capabilities, all without breaking the bank.…

Novation Launchkey 88 Mk3 £200 Full Review: FM386 Launchkey 88 is a solid performer that makes a great standalone controller but is best coupled with one of the script-supported DAWs. Arturia KeyStep Pro £339 Full Review: FM324 For melodic sequencing duties and flexible hardware control, this is one of the best keyboard devices around. Akai MPK mini mk3 £90 Review FM363 A very decent upgrade with genuinely pro features, that cements its position in the top handful of mini keyboard controllers available. NI Komplete Kontrol A-Series | from £119 Review FM338 A quality controller combined with a well-rounded software bundle. Novation FLkey 37 £200 Review: FM383 There might be little in the way of competition when it comes to FL Studio controllers, but Novation’s FLkey is a genuinely slick keyboard.…