Innehållsförteckning för March 2017 från Future Music

Filter Percussa debut the System 8 We first encountered Percussa in 2008 via their AudioCubes, a range of esoteric little boxes that were pretty forward-thinking in terms of interface design and human interaction. Fast forward eight years and Percussa head honcho Bert Schiettecatte brings us the brand’s next instruments, the Synthor System 8. Sticking with a wireless ecosystem, the System 8 is a “powerful hardware digital modular synthesis system”. The synth is made up of two parts: the base station, also known as Remote, takes care of the control aspect to the synth, whereas the Engine unit runs the Synthor synthesizer software. The Synthor System 8 also utilises the latest version of the AudioCubes as controllers for proximity-based modulation. Having had our hands on a System 8, we love the…

Filter Universal Audio update the Apollo Twin Universal Audio have unveiled a new version of their combined desktop interface and DSP unit, the Apollo Twin. While UA describe the new interface as a “ground-up redesign”, the MkII appears to be more of a refinement of the original’s winning formula, rather than a reinvention. Housed in a similar desktop-friendly chassis to its predecessor and offering the same combination of 2-ins and 6-outs, the MkII boasts completely reworked A/D and D/A conversion, which UA claim offers “increased dynamic range and ultra-low THD”. As with other UA interfaces, the MkII’s preamps can emulate the circuitry of classic Manley, Neve, API and UA gear via the company’s Unison technology. It also adds improved monitor functionality with monitor remote functions and Mono, Mute, DIM, and…

WMD Geiger Counter Pro and Advanced Trigger Sequencer For a place that is dripping in big money and big business, the DIY ethic is palpable on the Alex 4/WMD booth, which holds over ten manufacturers all demonstrating their wares in an audible fashion, not too dissimilar to the Sirens in Greek mythology luring sailors to the rocks. In this case, the biggest rocks seem to be WMD themselves. On a small table in front of a couple of modular set-ups is a familiar sight – the Geiger Counter pedal. The Geiger Counter is a distortion stomp box that deals in heavy lashings of bitcrushing. We’re pretty sure it’s the same high-gain modern preamp driving an 8-bit computer, but this time they’ve added CV modulation with a choice of eight source/…

Filter Make Noise get sampling with the Morphagene Make Noise lived up to their reputation for brilliantly creative Eurorack gear at this year’s NAMM, unveiling the Morphagene, their latest collaboration with SoundHack/Tom Erbe. The module is a sampling module designed to capture sounds from inside and outside your modular rig and play them back in creative ways (Make Noise boss Tony calls it a “microsound and tape music module”). It features a stereo input and SD card slot for capturing sounds. Once captured, sounds can be played back and mangled via controls labelled ‘Splice, Reel, Gene-Size, Vari-Speed, Organise and SOS’. In all honesty, we’re not 100% sure what all of these do, but we’ve heard it in action, and it sounds great!…

Reviews Albums ALBUM REVIEWS ALBUM OF THE MONTH Clap! Clap! A Thousand Skies Black Acre Fast-rising Italian producer Cristiano Crisci, better known as Clap! Clap!, returns with his outstanding second album A Thousand Skies. Following on from 2014’s highly impressive debut Tayi Bebba, the new record is an even more ambitious exploration of the fusion of African rhythms and electronic music. Merging elements of House, Hip-Hop, UK Bass and Footwork with traditional African music, tribal singing and natural field recordings, A Thousand Skies has a wide-ranging and far-flung sound that is at once highly inventive and idiosyncratic. Rich in colour and bursting with life, this vibrant LP unveils a dynamic and potent soundscape that brings live instrumentation, World music samples, drum machines and synths together with a frenetic, but natural…

Stack For Success Create your own new and unique twist by layering sounds Despite the various synthesis types, and your expertise at generating sounds with them, it’s extremely difficult to make even one single sound that’s never been heard before. However, modern DAWs and samplers now give us the ability to position different sounds on top of one another, which can help your sonic palette grow exponentially. For example, layer a churning midrange synth snarl with an analogue sub layer and distorted field recording of a tap running, and you’ve got a completely unique bass composite. Merge classic drum machine grooves with acoustic hits from a drum ROMpler and you’ve created your own live twist on the drum loops of yesteryear. Add processing such as saturation, compression and reverb, and…

THE TRACK René LaVice Richter Scale Ram Records, 2016 © Joby Sessions INCLUDES VIDEO VAULT.FUTUREMUSIC.CO.UK Over the past 25 years Ram Records have gone from an underground label pushing the darker side of Hardcore Rave to one of the biggest forces in D ’n’ B, unleashing artists such as Sub Focus, Wilkinson and René LaVice on an unsuspecting world. We caught up with Ram’s Canadian banger-specialist René in Saffron Road Studios in his current home of High Wycombe to find out how he created Richter Scale, a genre-skipping main room banger that takes the listener on a journey through EDM, Trap and finally blistering D ’n’ B. Hi René! What’s the story behind this bonkers multi-genre track? “There’s a festival in Toronto, where I’m from, called Digital Dreams,…

PRODUCER’S GUIDE Send FX INCLUDES VIDEO AND AUDIO VAULT.FUTUREMUSIC.CO.UK Effects are the lifeblood of production. They’re what makes a good sound great, and the thing that adds the extra spice to any track. Humble mixing effects such as compressors and EQs are generally added to channels as insert effects, but the real creativity starts on the return channel, where complex chains of interactive processes cook up effects that give your mix the edge. It’s easy to lose the passion for the creative side of life, getting stuck in a rut and giving up before you’ve even started – “I’ll just throw a reverb on that”, or “chuck a delay on it and call it a day”. But over the next few pages, we’re going beyond the basics, aiming…

Basic Send Formulation Here we show you how to get started with send/return effects, and find out why they’re far more flexible The easiest way to load an effect in any DAW is by dragging it directly onto a mix channel – it’s so simple because it’s the default way to bring up a processor for instant gratification. Send effects are a different animal: they’re slightly harder to set up, but they’re far more versatile for getting the mix you want. Below we’ll show you how to set up a send to an FX channel in Studio One 3, and the advantages it has over common or garden insert effects. Your DAW may do it differently – Reason uses the Send and FX Return portions of the mixer, for example…

REVIEWS Arturia MatrixBrute Arturia MatrixBrute £1,879 After several intriguing teaser videos, Arturia’s beastly-looking MatrixBrute is shipping! Dan ‘JD73’ Goldman enters the Matrix… Known first for their software recreations of vintage classics, Arturia went on to launch the compact MiniBrute in 2012 and the MicroBrute in 2014, which featured all-analogue signal paths, a Steiner-Parker filter and the ‘Brute Factor’ control which feeds the synth back into itself, creating anything from subtle to insane distortion/thickening and harmonic driving/feedback. Of course, us synth heads are hard to satisfy and we always want bigger and better. Low and behold, Arturia have now seemingly answered our prayers, delivering the beastly-looking MatrixBrute. Funnily enough, the MicroBrute (with its basic semi-modular patch panel) was a clue to the future and consequently, the MatrixBrute features a flexible and…

THE SOUND OF A 303 The TB-303’s tone has been the subject of many forum rants and YouTube videos, and the belief that nothing matches the real thing has a bearing on the secondhand price. It could be the simplicity of design and limited range of tones that makes it so easy to focus on the subtleties, unlike, for instance, a vintage polysynth. In both these cases though, the difference between apparently identical units should not be underestimated – and don’t expect comparative tests of clones and digital models at similar parameter positions to deliver definitive results either. That is the nature of analogue. The TB-03 sounds very good. There are times when it lacks the original’s magic but others where that bubbling liquid squelch or hollow tone gets exceptionally…

DSP EFFECTS The DSP (Digital Signal Processing) module is a reduction of Erica’s Blackhole DSP module and offers several great-sounding Reverb and Delay modes, a very usable distortion/bitcrusher, along with a Leslie rotating speaker emulation (although a chorus would have been more useful). It also features stereo outputs which is great for a module of this size. The effects really make the system shine – electronic sounds on their own can sound dry due to their lack of natural reverberation, but the delays and reverb on offer here make the oscillators come alive.…

Denon set their sights on the Pioneer DJ crown PIONEER DJ MIGHT BE MAKING INROADS INTO THE analogue synth game, but they have Denon snapping at their DJ heels with the launch of their new range of pro-targeted DJ gear. The SC5000 players and X1800 mixer are both based around the brand’s new Engine Prime software, which is a rekordbox-like application for track management and analysis. The SC5000 features built-in Engine Prime analysis for both beatgrid and musical key info. The unit itself features a high definition, multi-touch display and an eight-inch jog wheel with a central display that shows the current playing track or even custom artwork. The X1800 mixer, meanwhile, features Sweep and bpm-based FX controls and 24-bit/96kHz audio output and, of course, is designed to integrate with…

The Big Knob is back MACKIE’S BIG KNOB GETS AN UPDATE AND NOW there are three of them. First, Big Knob Passive offers analogue path switching between two sources and two monitor pairs, with volume control via the eponymous large dial, and features Mono, Mute and Dim buttons. It doesn’t need a power supply. Big Knob Studio and Studio+ combine source and monitor switching with USB 2.0 audio interfacing. Big Knob Studio supports three sources and two monitor pairs, while Big Knob Studio+ can handle four sources and three monitors. Both feature a pair of Onyx mic preamps with phantom power and two (Studio) or four (Studio+) outputs, dual headphone outs, trim controls, direct input cue mixing, input metering, an integrated talkback mic, a choice of recording paths, a mini-jack…

CLASSIC ALBUM Cut Chemist The Audience’s Listening Warner Bros. Records, 2006 When it came time for Cut Chemist’s first full-length solo album he knew he wanted to push himself, and the boundaries of his craft of sample-based music. Quite the task, considering the height he’d already set the bar at with tracks like the cut ‘n’ paste masterpiece Lesson 6, and the catalogue of funky beats he’d gifted his Rap crew, Jurassic 5. To clear his mind before the big push, he assembled every loose loop, nagging sample, and chopped-up beat he’d been toying with up to that point and created the epic mixtape, The Litmus Test, as a way of purging old ideas. “It helped me clear my desktop of half-finished things and older projects, and it let me…

Pro tips for building your own unique sample packs Cultivate your own unique-sounding productions by compiling bespoke sample collections 01 > Set aside dedicated sound design sessions away from creative writing sessions. This will keep you focused on the task at hand, and you’ll stock up your arsenal with plenty of ammo to fuel your compositions. To begin, create a bespoke sound design template project in your DAW, complete with send/ return effects, your favourite instruments/ effects, ready-to-go routing and more. 02 > Stay focused by setting yourself strict sound design targets. Allocate an hour or two in the studio and aim to create an arbitrary number of sounds – 10 pad patches, 15 layered kick drums, or 20 analogue bass loops. To demonstrate, we’ve automated Serum’s first macro to…

Devil In The Details Often, it’s the subtler things in life that have the biggest impact… So here’s how to make better tracks using tiny details In electronic music, the dominant parts such as the kick drum, bassline, lead synth and main vocal take centre stage, and work together as one cohesive unit. However, look past the obvious and you’ll notice that it’s the subtle details that subliminally reach out to the listener and add that special something to proceedings. We’re talking about those small sprinklings of organic magic that are hardly noticeable upon first listen, but would undoubtedly be missed if muted. In the following steps, we’ll outline three examples of production subtlety that you can use to add instant life, depth, groove and spice to any track. First…

In The Studio With Throwing Snow Throwing Snow Ross Tones continues to push the boundaries with his second Throwing Snow album, Embers. Whether working from his hometown Bristol, an underground cavity in Seven Sisters or his new canal boat, Danny Turner finds a man happy to let the machines do the talking Ross Tones’ debut album Mosaic (2014) was a fascinating Techno-Bass hybrid, digesting and reworking multiple genres into an expansive instrumental electronic palette. His latest release, Embers, sees the experimental producer delve yet deeper into the world of generative rhythmic structures. Most inspiring is how Tones is able to generate such a complex and multifaceted array of sounds despite constantly switching between locations and operating from a primarily hardware-orientated base. We visit him in his temporary North London studio…

MODULAR MONTHLY A trip to the West Coast We check out Sputnik Modular and their West Coast inspired modules First let’s go over the idea of West vs. East Coast synthesis. East Coast synthesis is no doubt the most familiar approach, based around rich waveforms mixed into a filter for harmonic shaping before going into a VCA for amplitude control. West Coast synthesis, meanwhile, takes simple waveforms, often sines and/or triangles, and modulates those to create richer, often more abrasive timbres. Exploring the Sputnik Modular range we’ll use the Dual Oscillator for tone generation, Quad Function Generator for modulation and the Quad VCF/VCA for frequency and amplitude modulation. Adding the CV Processor we can mix, amplify and offset signals to tweak our modulation further. With the dual oscillator we have…

Making Richter Scale’s smashing D ’n’ B drums Gigantic drum grooves are one of René’s trademarks. This is how he made his earth-shaking beats 01 > “I wanted to do something that had a fairly straightforward groove to it that sounded nice and heavy.” He takes a composite snare comprising live and sampled snare sounds that he made in another project, and uses Logic’s Channel EQ to boost the fundamental so that it fits into the mix and sounds heavy. 02 > The high-end of the snare is EQ’d with SonicBirth 5 Band EQ. “I don’t really discriminate with what plug-ins I use,” René reveals. “I really like stuff that actually doesn’t have a graphical interface, because then you have to listen to what sounds good,…

Send Basics Where you place an effects processor has a huge bearing on the sound you get and, with that in mind, there are two main categories of effects placement: insert and send. Insert effects are the ‘standard-formula’ way to process a channel’s audio, and are placed near the very start of a channel’s flow through the mixer, altering the signal fully. Send effects are different: by ‘tapping off’ some of a channel’s signal, and sending that to its own channel in the mixing desk, you get an entire channel to sculpt your effect – level it, pan it, add an extended chain of processors, and get other mix channels in on the same action. It’s a far more flexible way to handle effects, and so it’s worth mastering as…

Essential tools to improve any send/ return path Make sure you’re equipped with these four tools to sculpt your effects chains 01 High-pass filters will cut lows, preventing your mix from clouding over and focusing the effect on a specific range. Low-pass filters can tidy up a signal before you add distortion, preventing it from getting messy. 02 A delay effect can work wonders on a send when set to 100% wet. This re-times the entire send, giving breathing space between the original signal. Delay before reverb gives you predelay, while delay on a percussive signal helps make a send dance around the beat. 03 Pitchshifting can be a secret weapon for sends, pushing the new signal away from the original. Use in large amounts to make a very distinct…

In The Studio With Rival Consoles Rival Consoles With its spiky, propulsive rhythms and grainy atmospheres, Ryan Lee West’s latest Rival Consoles album Night Melody treads a darker path than he’s been to before. Danny Turner probes the producer on production techniques and awakening the ghost in the machines © Will Ireland Originally from Leicester, where he studied sound engineering at De Montfort University, London-based electronic producer Ryan Lee West first came to attention ten years ago as Aparatec with the EP Vemeer. The release was the first on the renowned Erased Tapes label, now home to respected neo-classical musicians such as Nils Frahm and Ólafur Arnalds. The same year saw West’s first Rival Consoles EP release, The Decadent, a brooding collection of acid-tinged IDM. Defined by its gritty, distorted…

Reviews Steinberg Cubase Pro 9 Steinberg Cubase Pro 9 £468 Cubase is the latest of the big DAWs to get a major update. Bruce Aisher gets creative December, the month of Christmas cheer and Cubase updates. Steinberg have hit an annual rhythmic stride with their major (and half-step) updates to this long-running DAW. So it was, with a buzzing crescendo on the forums, that Cubase Pro 9 hit the streets on 7th December last year. Being one of the big increments there is always some trepidation as to what might be in store – software updates inevitably being a mixture of brand-new features, tweaks to the existing look, feel and functionality, and sometimes the retirement of features. The modern DAW now, necessarily, has to cater for a wide range of…

Reviews Nektar Impact LX+ Nektar Impact LX88+ £249 If space isn’t an issue a piano scale keyboard controller is a satisfying option. Jon Musgrave investigates Nektar’s latest The pads and some buttons are backlit and colour-coded to show their function Today’s buyers of keyboard controllers are spoilt for choice, but if you’re looking for a full piano size 88-note keyboard, said choices are more limited. One option is Nektar’s Impact LX88, which has just had an upgrade. Like its predecessor, the LX88+ combines an 88-key semi-weighted USB-powered keyboard with extensive DAW control via nine sliders, nine buttons, eight knobs, eight pads and transport controls. These include dedicated Mixer and Instrument buttons for pre-mapped control of mixer settings (level, pan, mute and solo) and virtual instrument parameters (envelopes, filter and so…

EFFECTS PROVISION APLENTY ARQ offers a dedicated Effects section with Filter, Delay, Reverb and Master FX options. Pressing on one of these allows you to manipulate key parameters from the base unit, with the rotary dials below the interface controlling these. The Master FX section offers several effects types, including Limiter, Distortion, Bitcrushing and Reverse Delays. However, it’s much more fun to manipulate effects by lifting the Ring Controller out of its cradle and using its built-in Accelerometer to control these instead; as you tilt the Ring Controller, you’ll hear parameters being modified, letting you introduce Delays, increase Reverb Decay length or add Filters to sequences and patterns as they play back. The Ring Controller provides access to these four Effects areas via dedicated buttons, so you can engage one…

This Issue BONUS SAMPLES See this month’s selection of free demos at vault.futuremusic.co.uk https://splice.com 01 Splice Sounds Liquid Trap Massive Presets 02 Splice Sounds Varien Cybernetic Visions www.loopmasters.com 01 Loopmasters Urban Stories Hip Hop & Rap Acapellas 02 Loopmasters Jazz Series 02 Ashley John Long Upright Bass 03 Loopmasters Presents Dimensions Experimental Soundscapes 04 Frontline Producer Funk & Disco Guitars 05 Micropressure Hy2rogen Presents House Chords 06 Capsun Presents Zilla Pure Bass Shots Vol.1 07 Loopmasters Pres Future Bass Generation 08 Organic Loops Traditional Brazilian Percussion…

Teenage Engineering’s PO-32 might be the best Pocket Operator yet TEENAGE ENGINEERING’S NEW PO-32 TONIC DRUM SYNTH might be the most ‘serious’ addition yet to their Pocket Operator range of micro synths and grooveboxes. Alongside a range of drum synth sounds and sequenceable effects, it boasts tight integration with Sonic Charge’s MicroTonic drum machine plug-in. TE asked Magnus Lindström of Sonic Charge to work on this project a while ago and finally he relented. In just six months he recoded MicroTonic to talk to the Pocket Operator hardware. Transfer of sounds between the two is handled via a built-in mic and old-fashioned modem technology (ie holding the PO up to a speaker while your computer makes that horrible noise you used to hear every time you connected to the internet…

Antelope unleash the Orion32 HD High-end interface outfit Antelope Audio have unveiled the latest addition to their Orion range – and their first Pro Tools compatible interface – the Orion32 HD. The HD is a 64-channel audio interface featuring HDX and USB3 connectivity, along with MADI, ADAT, and S/PDIF ports, plus a 32-in/32-out analogue DB25 port. The Orion32 HD also boasts hardware-based FPGA effects, offering a growing library of modelled vintage effects that run with extremely low latency, all of which come free with the interface. Also included is Antelope’s mixing software console for Mac and Windows, featuring its colour-coded routing matrix and movable and resizable panels to help make the best use of your desktop real estate. There is currently no word on price or availability.…

Filter Pittsburgh Modular launch more Lifeforms Pittsburgh debuted their Lifeforms range at NAMM last year and it has grown rather a lot in just 12 months. This year they have launched six new modules ranging from oscillators, to filters, envelopes, modulation and routing. The main attraction was the Double Helix Oscillator, which is a modular waveform generator with analogue oscillators paired with voltage controlled shape contouring and a performance ready voltage-controlled modulation matrix. Also at the show was a chance to see the Lifeforms Percussion Controller for the first time, which was launched late last year. The four-channel Percussion Controller features your classic drum machine layout, allowing for very quick and easy beat-making.…

Bastl bring the Klik This year Bastl Instruments hooked up with Bitwig and Irrupt Audio to create a set-up for the show to demonstrate Bitwig Studio 2, a bespoke Irrupt Audio sample pack and their own new module called Klik. It is a dual line level analogue clock to modular converter. Hooking up with the new Reset and Clock devices in Bitwig, Klik will amplify the signal from your audio interface to acceptable levels for Eurorack. It does this by converting audio line level (or headphone) output signals from any sound card and makes perfect synchronisation pulses in the modular level. Klik is a simple, effective and cheap solution to a problem and retails at just $49.…

LIKE IT? TRY THESE… Cut Chemist The Audience’s Following Ten-year anniversary follow-up LP made up of stuff that never made Cut’s original cut. ADD THESE TO YOUR PLAYLIST: Siesta (The Quiet Storm), Sea Of Time, Big Brother Kid Koala Carpal Tunnel Syndrome More ‘turntables as an instrument’ vibes here from fellow DJ/producer. Check Fender Bender against Spat for similarities. ADD THESE TO YOUR PLAYLIST: Fender Bender, Naptime, Strut Hear DJ Woody The Point Of Contact The UK’s finest turntablist artist dropped his first full-length at the end of last year. Bold, creative, and exciting. Check it! ADD THESE TO YOUR PLAYLIST: Ready For War, Odd Job, Let Go Cut Chemist Lesson 6: The Lecture EP This cut ‘n’ paste opus was the…

FINDING YOUR OWN WORKFLOW When starting out, we all listen to our favourite artists and wonder how those incredible sounds come together. Take Dutch supergroup Noisia, well-known for their innovative sound design. As discussed in our In the Studio sessions, they have a very specific method for designing and compiling sounds: they spend entire sessions synthesizing and sculpting all types of sounds, with no aim of using them in a track. As they go along, they’ll compile the various permutations of their custom creations into organised folders labelled by date. They’re essentially designing a steady stream of bespoke sample packs that they can draw upon. In contrast, amateur producers fire up their DAW wanting to lay down an entire track from a blank page, but then get distracted when it…

QUICK TIPS For Unique Arrangements Ride the faders In a world where we can all delete and copy blocks on a screen, make yourself unique by introducing track elements via volume movements. Fade key sounds in and out of a track by ‘riding the fader’ – ie, live volume automation – to give your projects that human touch. Step to it Step sequencers have been key in electronic music production for decades, as they inspire unique patterns, grooves and arrangements. Instead of drawing monotonous blocks in a piano roll, hook up a MIDI step sequencer (hardware or software) and program your beats and synths the old-school way. Go all out zen Having a specific idea for a track’s structure can be great, but other times this might block other creative…

Manual Mix Tricks Three hands-on mix techniques to help you customise your sound As producers, we’re bombarded with shiny new toys on a daily basis – from hot new freeware plug-ins through to the latest do-it-all piece of outboard gear. This can often complicate your decision-making when mixing – after all, why shouldn’t you fire up all eight bands on your new automatic mixing contraption? Yet in the majority of mix sessions, the simplest route to a solution is often the best – and that often means getting hands-on in the search for a lively, interesting mix. If that carefully-crafted network of compressors isn’t levelling out a vocal transparently enough, then consider automating a bog-standard gain plug-in instead. Or, if your auto-pan plug-in’s sweeps sound a little too predictable, then…

Tell me more about what the Heat can offer? “It has eight different analogue circuits modelled on either overdriving the mixer or standard saturation, all the way up to some ridiculous distortion. For any incoming signal, there’s an envelope follower, which means that every time the kick comes in I can tell it to control something, so at the end of your analogue signal chain you’ve got something that almost acts as a compressor. All these things that have suddenly come about, like Overbridge, mean that I can finally do what I’ve always imagined.”…

YOUTUBE MORE UNMISSABLE VIDEO FEATURES FROM FUTURE MUSIC Meet our line-up of exclusive YouTube goodness. Head online for all this and more! Top producers go in-depth on the sounds, ideas and techniques behind their latest releases. Keeno, Enigma Bristol-based D ’n’ B producer Keeno invites us into his studio to show how he created the lush, multi-layered strings and driving beats of his latest track, Enigma. DON’T MISS: Disciples, Daylight The UK trio talk us through the writing, recording and production process behind their catchy, club-ready House track, Daylight. Jonas Blue, Perfect Strangers We head to London to watch Jonas Blue break down the sounds and ideas behind his massive crossover Tropical House hit. Swindle, Connecta feat. Ricardo China We meet up with the UK producer…

QUICK TIPS 1 EQ your send against the original in order to mix the two together. If you’ve introduced extra frequencies in the return channel (using distortion for example), you may wish to cut out the higher parts of the mix channel and the lower parts of the send. 2 Add a short delay (set 100% wet) at the start of the return channel’s signal chain to slightly mistime it in relation to the original. This works especially well with percussive material, since the effects will land just after the original sound, standing out more. 3 With a longer delay at the start of your return chain, the effect becomes a rhythmic tool. Even longer delays can run into glitch/stutter territory, as we cover on the final page of this…

Reviews Roland TB-03 Bass Line Roland TB-03 Bass Line £349 The latest Roland classic to get the Boutique treatment is the TB-303. Bruce Aisher gets his Acid on with the all-digital TB-03 It offers the quirkiness of the 303’s sequencer as well as aStep Recording Mode Roland’s latest Boutique box is a silver unit laden with the small knobs and miniature button keyboard recognisable to any Acid House aficionado – those of the TB-303 Bass Line. The new TB-03 is Roland’s second shot at a 303-style box. The TB-3 Touch Bassline (part of the Aira range) revived the single oscillator synth plus sequencer combo idea, but with a very different approach to design and functionality. It drew criticism for being too much of a departure, especially as the marketing hyped…

VERSION EXCURSION As always there are different flavours of Cubase, with Cubase Pro 9 – the subject of this review – sitting at the top of the heap. However, given that going ‘Pro’ costs nearly £500 it is worth considering the other options. Cubase Artist doesn’t skimp on that much and is nearly half the price. The important additions in the latest update, such as MixConsole History and the Sampler Track, remain. However the supplied plug-in pool is slightly smaller and VariAudio (the graphical pitch-editing engine) as well as some more advance mixer options are not included. A full comparison can be found at www.steinberg.net/en/products/cubase/comparison.html Don’t forget that students (and teachers) can get educational pricing (which knocks off about 40% of the price below). FULL VERSIONS Pro 9 – £468,…

Reviews Erica Synths Pico Erica Synths Pico System 1 €1,000 It’s the world’s smallest modular system, but does it retain modular flexibility? Philip Wise investigates Latvian company Erica Synths started out in 2014 with a DIY Eurorack version of the classic Soviet Polivoks synth and they now boast an impressive line-up of products that seem to be constantly revised and updated. This year they shocked the Eurorack world by releasing the whole Pico range at one go – 20 modules in all! With this new Pico System, Erica Synths have brought together 14 of these modules in a 42HP sturdy metal case about the size of a lunch box. Although tiny, the Pico system is well laid-out with the majority of the jacks at the bottom, leaving the knobs and…

Reviews Slate Digital VMS1 Slate Digital VMS £1,099 In a characteristically bold move Slate Digital release a microphone with multiple personalities. Stuart Bruce dons his white coat… Both the mic and the pre are constructed to a very high standard, and metalwork and finish are excellent Classic large capsule condenser microphones are without a doubt amongst the most sought-after and expensive items on anyone’s wish list. With an original Neumann U47 commanding up to $10,000, most of these mics are out of reach for the average studio owner, and certainly only possible for a tiny minority of home studios. So in theory, if you can emulate them with software then you should be on to a winner. There have been a few plugs over the years which have claimed to…

Your Production Problems Solved ADVICE Should I care about binaural audio? Binaural audio is recorded as your ears would actually hear it, and is often captured using microphones that are positioned in an ear-like position on a dummy’s head. When it’s played back directly into your ears, it can create a 3D effect and give you a more immersive sound. It’s back in the news again thanks to VR, with manufacturers looking to give users a 3D listening experience to match the visuals. In fact, Sennheiser recently announced the AMBEO Smart Surround headphones, which have built-in mics and enable you to capture binaural audio on your phone. Does any of this matter for music making? Not at this stage, but as the way we consume audio visual content changes, it…

Nord Stage 2 Live Tips How can I set up my Nord Stage 2 for a multi-sound which includes piano, organ and strings? The Stage 2 is still one of the best options around for bread and butter live duties due to its hands-on menu-diving-free interface and plethora of available acoustic, electromechanical, organ and sample/synth instruments. Having been a users of the Stage series live for many years, we’ve now got ours set up very efficiently for minimal patch changing on gigs and have just one main patch with around four variations that can cover most instrument/stylistic requirements. Here’s how to set up a basic main patch to build from……

Advice Rockschool PART 6: IT’S ALL IN THE DETAIL Rockschool course tutors Hannah V and Sam Vasanth take us through their graded Production Syllabus Popular ’hit’ songs have similar character traits, ranging from arrangement, instrumentation and chord structures. Unique and unusual sounds can also make a modern composition memorable and outstanding – Justin Bieber’s ‘Dolphin Synth’ (Where Are Ü Now), Bruno Mars’ layered synths (24 Karat Magic) or Rae Sremmund’s ‘Nintendo’ type pad (Black Beatles) are only a few examples. These sounds are very prominent in the songs. There are numerous subtle ways to elevate standard sound sources or patterns. Yes, these programming techniques take knowledge, creativity, precision and time, but the pay off is worth it – you can stamp your individuality on your songs! So let’s dig straight…