PC and Music News

After Bitter Sweet II, Flux today announces the release of its new freebie plug-in called Stereo Tool.

Stereo Tool offers controls and visual feedback for the stereo stage. It features ultra precise controls of input gain and individual pan for left and right channels. A phase inverter is available for each channel. A global stereo pan and a stereo width setting are also implemented to complete the management of the stereo signal. Stereo Tool also offers an accurate visual feedback reflecting the signal content. A vector scope display, Peak meters for both inputs and outputs, and a phase correlation meter permanently monitor the signal. As all Flux plug-ins it features 64-bit floating point processing, up to 8 FS (384 KHz).

Stereo Tool is available for AU, RTAS and VST compatible host applications for Windows and Mac OS X.

CableGuys has just released FilterShaper, a new VST plug-in that aims to "bring life to your sounds and loops".

FilterShaper enables you to draw any curve, assign it to its 4 LFOs and use them to modulate filter cutoff and filter resonance of its filters, or simply modulate the volume. ts drawing possibilities are ultra-flexible, yet easy to use. You can draw any curves you like shaping hard-synced or analogue-sounding rhythms. Create interesting rhythmic strings, shape a bass sound, destroy vocal recordings, create vivid shaker rhythms out of white noise, etc. You can go from subtle changes to extreme modulations, from little sound corrections to nicely filtered rhythmic loops. Its various filters can be set to drastic values from zero resonance up to self-oscillation.

FilterShaper is available as a VST effect plug-in for Windows. The demo version gives you full functionality with the only limitation being that only one instance of the plugin can be used at the same time, so it is essentially free unless you want to use more than one instance in a project. The full license can be purchased for €29 / $44.

Expert Sleepers has released Clocker, a free utility VST plug-in for Windows that sends MIDI clock.

Why would you want a plug-in to do that, when your host app sends MIDI clock perfectly fine? Well, with Clocker you have a separate, adjustable source of MIDI clock. So you can send all kinds of crazy tempo to some of your outboard gear, while the rest of your stuff plays back in time as usual.

KRK Systems has announced the second generation of their industry-standard Rokit monitor. The second generation Rokit incorporates several technologies from the company's flagship VXT and E8B lines, including radically radiused edges along the front of the cabinet. The new Rokits replace the current Rokit 5", 6" and 8" models.

The Rokits leverage KRK's research and development into baffle design and fabrication. The Rokit G2's curved front baffle was engineered to minimize diffraction of high-frequencies, resulting in a sweet spot that is significantly larger than products with square or lightly rounded baffles. The baffle also houses a molded front-facing bass port that minimizes low-frequency phase distortion and unwanted frequency emphasis typical of rear-facing bass ports. The end result is a harmonious yet accurate blend of low and high-frequency components that result in a more accurate speaker. Additionally, the Rokit G2's voicing has been slightly enhanced to provide even better mix clarity and precision.

The new Rokit G2's are available now at a price of $149, $199 and $249 for the 5, 6 and 8 inch versions, respectively.

Voxengo has announced the release of Voxengo Crunchessor v2.0, a major new version of its general-purpose track compressor.

Version 2.0 features a wide range of enhancements over the previous version: namely, multi-platform support, multi-channel operation, mid-side processing, preset manager, and other additions.

New features :

- Multi-channel support.
- Multi-platform support.
- Wet/dry mix.
- Custom key filter adjustments.
- Undo/redo.
- Routing matrix.
- Mid/side processing.
- Preset manager.
- User interface coloration.
- User interface re-scaling.
- Channel grouping.
- Plug-in instance naming.
- Selectable oversampling level.
- Bypass switch.
- In Gain control removed (it is superfluous).
- Better metering.

Crunchessor 2.0 is available now in VST and AU formats for Mac OS X and Windows. One-month introductory price of $39.95 is now effective, which is 20% off the regular price of $49.95. Upgrading from the previous version costs $24.95 if previous version was purchased earlier than 90 days from now: otherwise upgrade is free during this grace period. Demo versions of Crunchessor are available.

Native Instruments has just released Kontakt Retro Machines, the latest addition to its Kore Soundpack range of sound libraries for Kore 2 and the free Kore Player.

Based on material from the Kontakt 3 factory library, Kontakt Retro Machines offers an essential collection of charismatic vintage instruments that were formative for many electronic music genres of the past decades. This includes various classic synthesizers as well as several sought-after drum machines, with their creative potential maximized through the powerful capabilities of the Kore platform.

Native Instruments is determined to firmly establish the Kore Soundpacks line as the most valuable, diverse and inspiring range of sound material for studio and stage, and will release a substantial number of additional libraries over the course of 2008.

Kontakt Retro Machines is now available for download purchase in the NI Online Shop for $59 / €49.

Prism Sound will be exhibiting at AES Amsterdam with its newly upgraded Orpheus Firewire interface, which now allows users to convert their audio inputs to ADAT outputs and vice versa. Users will be able to connect the new and improved Orpheus directly to a variety of DAWs, including Pro Tools LE.

The upgraded Orpheus units incorporate an AV/C model that behaves as ADAT Send & Return, but also works when the Firewire cable is connected. This provides users operating in DAW mode with pure audio conversion. Launched in 2007, Orpheus is a 1U, 19-inch rackmount 192kHz-capable unit, offering eight simultaneous balanced analogue inputs, four line-level jack ins and four auto-sensing mic/line Neutrik combo jacks that will accept either jack or XLR connectors. Built-in mic preamps allow the signal at the mic-level inputs to be boosted by up to 60dB (in 1dB increments), and each analogue input has its own adjustable patented Prism Sound Overkiller built in, to prevent signal overloads before the A-D conversion stage.

The SAE Alumni Association is pleased to announce the start of the submission period for the 4th SAE Alumni Awards. As in previous years, the winner in each category can look forward to great prizes, namely a brand-new iMac and a cash prize of €3.000. This time, we are accepting submissions for the following five award categories: Music Production, Multimedia, Short Film, 3D FX/Animation, and (for the first time ever) "Creativity First". The competition is open to students and graduates of state-run and private educational institutions around the world. For more details, please consult our [www.sae-alumni-award.org]official homepage[/]. The submission deadline is August 31st, 2008.

The 2008 SAE Alumni Awards are presented under the patronage of a committee composed of representatives of the media industry and of SAE Institute. Submitted projects will be reviewed by a panel of industry professionals and representatives of the SAE Alumni Association. The winners will be officially announced during the Awards ceremony at the SAE Alumni Convention Party in Berlin on October 16th, 2008.

To improve the series of Black Hole microphones and provide wider choice for customers, JZ decided to launch the third version of Black Hole with a pad of -5db and -10db options.

The new microphone under the name Black Hole PE (BH-3) has a fixed cardioid polar pattern but after numerous requests from real life engineers as addition here comes a pad with options of -5db and -10db. It is used to avoid overloading mic preamps with high output mic signals such as when recording loud guitar amplifiers or cabinets and kick drums. As capsule of the Black Hole could handle 135db SPL this mic can manage also an operatic soprano at close range. Visually it looks similar to previous two versions (BH-1 - multi pattern, BH-2 - fixed cardiod mic) only it is in dark green color.

Together with the new BH-3, JZ Microphones launches also new shock mount and pop filter system for the microphone Black Hole. The new shock mount which is made more in vintage style based on elastic rubber bands is devised to use on crazy applications where included stand holder is not enough to handle all thunderclaps. The package also includes "revolutionary pop filter, whose curved cone-shaped form in close recording applications reduce blasts and blows more than any other pop filter in the market".

The Black Hole PE has also five year warranty and the retail price of it is $1995 / €1395. The shock mount together with pop filter costs $360 / €240. The BH-3 will be presented at AES show in Amsterdam.

Announced at the latest MusikMesse, Toontrack Music has finally released EZplayer pro, the follow-up to their percussive MIDI engine EZplayer Free.

EZplayer pro is a VST, AU and RTAS plug in for Mac and PC with extended Map Wrapping capabilities between major drum sampler formats in the market. (FXpansion's BFD 1&2, Digidesign's Strike, NIs Battery, EZdrummer and Superior Drummer in addition to others).

The new multi track MIDI clip arranger offers time stretching, editing and multi layer arranging of MIDI files. EZplayer pro also has hardware learn features enabling live triggering of MIDI arrangements. The MIDI content in EZplayer pro is recorded by drummers David "Fingers" Haynes and Per Mikaelsson.

With the release of EZplayer pro Toontrack also starts working more closely with 3rd party MIDI content creators. First out is Groovemonkee that can be easily reached through the help menu in EZplayer pro.

EZplayer Pro is available now for a fee of $49 / €39. Note that EZplayer pro will also be included as the MIDI engine in the upcoming Toontrack sampler Superior Drummer 2.0.

Ableton has just announced that its "light" version of Live 7 is finally available. Built on the same fundamental concepts as Ableton Live, this version offers most of Ableton Live 7's new features. It includes :

- Studio-quality recording up to 32-bit/192 kHz*
- Sixty-four audio tracks and unlimited MIDI tracks per project
- Powerful and creative MIDI sequencing for software instruments
- More than twenty built-in audio effects, including a host of creative delays, filters, distortions, studio compressors and EQs*
- Two software instruments &mash; Simpler for creative sample-based synthesis, and Impulse for dynamic, sampled drums*
- VST and AU effects and instruments support; automatic plug-in delay compensation*
- Real-time time-stretching and warping of AIFF, WAV, Ogg Vorbis, FLAC and MP3 files for DJing and instant remixing
- Real-time tweaking of Live's controls with any MIDI controller — just MIDI-map it or choose from a list of popular supported controllers for instant mapping
- Single-screen user interface for simple, creativity-focused operation
- Multicore and multiprocessor support

*Live LE is limited to two simultaneous stereo audio inputs and outputs, twelve built-in audio effects, eight built-in instruments, two AU/VST effects and two AU/VST instruments per project.

Live 7 LE is available as a download from the Ableton webshop for €129/$149. The boxed version is available in stores and at the Ableton webshop for €169/$199.

Big Fish Audio has released Found Percussion, a new sample library described with this simple catchphrase : "In kitchens, garages and back yards everywhere, everyday objects lie waiting to be turned into percussion instruments."

There are 85 construction kits of unique and quirky percussion material, using 'found' instruments such as wine bottles, air conditioning ducts, coffee cans, electric fans, welding rods, slack bass strings, suitcases, everything, including the kitchen sink!

Contents :

- 6.16 GB (2.47 GB WAV Files)
- 85 Construction kits in 3 formats
- 2151 Loops in 3 formats
- Format: Apple Loops/REX/WAV/RMX/Acid

Found Percussion is available now for a fee of $99.95. Note that a demo of Found Percussion can be heard on the following address :

MoReVoX has announced the release of Elektromorph 2, a new drum sample library.

Elektromoph 2 gives you several ways to create drums tracks: deep and punchy digital sounds, warm and dirty-valve analog sounds, dry impact drums, explosive roomy wide hits, massive pure natural sounds, classic MoReVoX creative sounds, and more, for a total of 820 samples and 118 Instruments (24bit).

Features :

- 30 Kicks
- 40 Snares
- 6 Toms Racks
- 6 Sidesticks
- 36 Cymbals

Elektromorph 2 is available on DVD ($199) & Digital Download ($189) in the following formats : Drumagog, DrumRehab, Battery 3 and Raw Wav. Audio examples are also available on their web site.

Solid State Logic announces the release of Mynx which is described as "a simple, elegant and cost effective way to get the depth, clarity and characteristic sound of SSL SuperAnalogue processing into your recordings".

Basically, Mynx is a little desktop chassis that allows you to load your choice from the X-Rack module range into a simple two module desktop box. It measures a mere 105mm x 190mm x 185mm and its rugged metal enclosure is made from 4mm thick extruded aluminum. Power supply to the modules is via an external supply and audio connections are made directly to the back of your selected modules. NOTE Mynx has no Total Recall capability.

Mynx will begin shipping in early June at a MSRP of $595.

Having introduced the free mixing and host software Vienna Ensemble 2 in November 2007, the Vienna Symphonic Library team has released the follow-up, Vienna Ensemble 3, which is described as the first MIDI and audio LAN solution that enables users to set up a cross-platform network of Macs and PCs using a simple Ethernet cable, without any additional audio hardware.

Developed for and to be used exclusively with Vienna Instruments, Vienna Ensemble 3 aims to make conducting a full-blown orchestra over a network a breeze. While using a sequencer or notation software on the master computer, Vienna Ensemble 3 can host numerous Vienna Instruments plug-ins on any number of slave machines and route all of those audio streams back to the main machine via an Ethernet cable. Assigning the Vienna I ...

Nomad Factory and BBE Sound announce the release of the high-resolution D82 Sonic Maximizer multi-formats plug-in that includes the original processing technology and proprietary BBE Sound's algorithms that can be found on the original BBE 882i Sonic Maximizer hardware.

Features :

- High quality signal processing algorithms
- Stereo Low Contour control (0 to 10)
- Stereo Process control (0 to 10)
- Output Level control variable from -12dB to +12dB
- Bypass control (BBE Process)
- Full Automation for all parameters
- Easy-to-use modern interface.
- Windows XP / Vista32 and Mac OS X (Intel & PPC) supported
- VST, AU and RTAS supported
- 24 bit / 192 kHz supported

The D82 Sonic Maximizer is available now at a price of $129. Note that demo versions are also available. For more information, please visit their web site.

IK Multimedia has announced that AmpliTube Metal is now shipping. Based on IK's AmpliTube 2 software, AmpliTube Metal is a guitar amp and FX modeling software dedicated entirely to heavy metal gear, with an arsenal of 48 models of modern and vintage amps, cabinets, stompboxes and rack effects.

Features :

- 5 separate modules: tuner, configurable Stomp pedal board, Amp head, Cabinet + Mic, and Rack Effects
- 14 Stomp effects
- 5 classic high-gain Amps
- 13 cabinet and 6 microphone models
- 9 post-amp FX Racks
- 2 fully configurable rigs with up to 32 simultaneous effects
- Digital tuner
- Stand-alone and VST/AU/RTAS plug-in for all popular DAWs
- Includes SpeedTrainer for playing along with or your favorite recordings
- Includes AmpliTube X-GEAR for seamless integration with all the other "Powered by AmpliTube" products, MIDI control and StompIO integration
- Mac OS X (including Leopard) and XP/Vista compatible

AmpliTube Metal is available now and costs $269 / €199.

Blue Cat Audio has announced the enlargement of its audio analysis plugins offer with the release of the Blue Cat's Oscilloscope Multi plug-in, a multiple tracks real time waveform renderer and comparator.

Blue Cat's Oscilloscope Multi is able to display, measure and compare waveforms from multiple tracks on a single screen. It includes both a multiple waveforms display and an XY phase scope view to compare the waveforms of several instances in real time.

Features :

- Multiple tracks real time oscilloscope.
- Unique data sharing technology with multi-core processors support.
- Zoomable display with precise measurement capabilities.
- Easy phase cancelation and mono compatibility issues detection on multiple tracks or within an effect chain thanks to the XY phasescope view.
- Save the curves for easy A/B comparison.
- Opacity control for the user interface.
- Undo/Redo.
- Import/Export presets and share them between the directX and VST versions.
- Skinnable user interface.
- Full automation support (all parameters can be automated, with smooth and continuous update)
- Real time MIDI control with advanced settings (MIDI channel and CC numbers, with complete response curve control) and MIDI learn.
- Any sample rate supported.

Blue Cat's Oscilloscope Multi is available for Windows in VST and directX formats as a separate product or within the new "Blue Cat's Multi Pack" Bundle as well as the larger "Blue Cat's Analysis Pack". Demo versions can be downloaded on the Blue Cat Audio website. Note that a special introduction price is available for one month, and special offers are available for registered customers.