PC and Music News

AudioWarrior has released the Studio Acoustic 12-String Guitar Plugin.

The 12 String Acoustic Guitar is a special featured virtual rhythm guitar that can be manually strummed, or, will Auto-Strum in any key and any tempo with a wide variety of songwriting chords that can be used to build complete rhythm guitar tracks via AudioWarrior's exclusive iStrum MIDI Patterns and AudioWarrior's Pat Pending G-Mapped chords.

Studio Acoustic 12-String Guitar Plugin is available now for Mac OS X and Windows in VST, AU and Standalone versions for a fee of $49.

VOX unveils JamVOX, an integrated monitor and software system that extracts the guitar from any MP3 and plugs you into the mix of your favorite bands.

JamVOX gives guitarists instant access to dozens of legendary amps and effects all in one easy to use "drag and drop" software interface. Revolutionary Guitar XTracktion (GXT) technology lets you remove the guitar part of your favorite song with the push of a button. Best of all, you can then take the lead yourself with instant rock star tone! Alternatively, you can extract or isolate the guitar part, slow down the tempo, and practice any style of music without changing the pitch.

Features :

- Revolutionary new GXT (Guitar XTracktion) function lets you cancel or extract the guitar part of an existing song.
- 19 famous guitar amps and 54 effect units ranging from vintage to modern are provided as software.
- Easy-to-use "drag and drop" interface enables guitarists to create their "dream guitar rig" without any advanced knowledge of amps or effects. Sound famous fast!
- A music player feature with convenient functions for jam sessions or practice.
- Import music files to jam along with from your favorite CDs, music library or MP3 player.
- A dedicated USB monitor speaker is included, and there's no need for complex wiring or specialized knowledge of computer music.
- Two guitar play-along CDs containing 28 famous rock classics.

Pricing and avaibility TBA.

SPL has just announced the release of Phonitor. The name already implies the key feature: SPL announces that with the Phonitor headphones now become a full alternative to monitoring speakers. To allow for control of sound impressions comparable to speakers in a room, the Phonitor offers new parameters such as Crossfeed, Speaker Angle and Center Level.

Based upon SPL's unique 120 V technology which was initially developed for their mastering product series, the Phonitor aims at high-end users to fulfill highest demands in sound quality. It is SPL's flagship of a new sort of headphone amps they call Headphone Monitoring Amplifiers.

The SPL Phonitor is available now at a suggested price of €1599.

Waves has just released the Jack Joseph Puig Collection which includes the following plug-ins :

- PuigChild 670, an emulation of the famous Fairchild 670 compressor/limiter
- PuigTec EQP-1A, an emulation of the legendary Pultec EQP-1A
- PuigTec MEQ-5, another emulation of a Pultec EQ

The Jack Joseph Puig Collection supports TDM, RTAS, VST and AU plug-in formats on Windows and Mac OS X. The native versions cost $800 whilst the TDM version is $1600. The collection is also available in Waves Mercury - Mercury owners covered by Waves Update Plan can download their copy today. All purchases and upgrades include one full year of Waves Update Plan coverage.

For more information, please visit the link below :

Audioloop is a new online community dedicated to computer based music production. They're building a growing archive of samples, midi's, tips, tutorials plus lots more. But Audioloop is about music - not just a place to download cool stuff.

To celebrate the launch of Audioloop they teamed up with Steinberg to bring you the first Audioloop remix competition.

The track to remix is 'Reason' by Ian van Dahl. Your entry must be based on the track, but don't play copy cat - you're advised to move away from the original arrangement. Be original, the files in the remix pack are merely for guidance. The style is entirely up to you, but since Audioloop is an electronic music orientated website - a dance track with an commercial edge would be the best shot.

The competition ends Sunday 13th July. The winner will receive a free copy of Steinberg Cubase 4, a free Audioloop VIP Membership and maximum promotion of the tune.

Mackie unveils 3 new powered mixers : the PPM608, PPM1008 and PPM1012.

Ultra-light and completely self-contained, every PPM mixer features two ridiculously robust power amps for Mains and Monitors (500W + 500W in the PPM608; 800W + 800W in the PPM1008/1012). With up to 1600 watts of system power, these mixers provide all the raw power that you need.

Features Highlights :

- Dual powerful internal class-D Fast Recovery power amps
- Premium Mackie preamplifiers
- Mackie 3-band EQ straight from VLZ3 line
- Individual channel inserts
- Dedicated in-line compressors bring simple but sweet dynamics to our PPM mixers
- Dual graphic EQs with tight, constant-Q filters
- High-resolution 12-segment LED metering with super-quick response time
- 32-bit RMFX+ processor featuring 24 "Gig Ready", useable reverbs, choruses, and tap delay for live applications

For more information, please visit their website.

Edirol announced a new version of its UA-25 24bit/96kHz USB audio interface. The UA-25EX succeeds the UA-25, and adds pro-grade microphone preamps, a newly developed analog compressor/limiter, and ground-lift functionality for studio and stage.

Features :

- High-resolution 24-bit/96kHz performance with newly developed mic preamps and analog compressor/limiter
- USB bus powered, low-noise, wide-range power supply
- Two mic preamps and XLR/TRS combo jacks with 48V phantom power, Hi-Z port for guitar-direct connection, S/PDIF optical I/O, MIDI in/out
- Ground lift for studio and live stage use
- Bundled with Production Plus Pack from Cakewalk By Roland

The UA-25EX is Mac/PC cross-platform compatible. It supports WDM, ASIO 2.0, and Mac OS X Core formats. For more information, please visit their web site.

HowAudio.com has just released a new tutorial video called "Cubase 4: Essential Training". It features 8 hours of instruction with long-time Cubase user and Steinberg product specialist, Matthew Loel. T. Hepworth. Not only will it help beginners learn the basic fundamentals of Cubase with the HA! QuickSTART Overview, but more experienced power-users will benefit from Matthew's invaluable real-world tips and coverage of advanced topics. Chapters include integration of external audio and MIDI hardware, real multi-channel surround sound, VST3 instruments and effects, Cubase's Universal Sound Manager and Score Editor, notation and score printing, and more!

"Cubase 4: Essential Training" is available as a standalone DVD ($34.95), or become a HowAudio.com member for $199/annually or $19/monthly and get complete access 24/7 to every tutorial in their library—over 1100 movies on 40 topics—presented by working music professionals who are experts in their respective fields.

Roland has announced the GW-8 which is the next generation of Roland's GW-series workstations with intelligent backing-track functionality.

Features :

- Contemporary music workstation with high-quality 128-voice sound engine derived from Roland's renowned sound-module lineup
- Wide variety of contemporary sounds and intelligent backing styles, plus additional banks of ethnic sounds and styles from around the world
- USB Memory Player feature allows direct playback of MP3, WAV, AIFF, and SMF files from USB key; Centre Cancel feature for audio files enables karaoke-style sing-along
- Newly designed graphical display, plus Style Select button, Analogue Modify knob, and D-BEAM
- Style Converter and Playlist Editor software included
- Onboard 16-track sequencer for saving your interactive performances

Native Instruments has just released Deep Transformations and FM8 Transient Attacks, two new Kore Soundpacks for Kore 2 and the free Kore Player. FM8 Transient Attacks delivers 200 newly created FM8 sounds with a raw, edgy style while Deep Transformations represents the first multi-effect Kore Soundpack.

These release confirm NI determination to firmly establish the Kore Soundpacks line as the most valuable, diverse and inspiring range of sound material for studio and stage.

Deep Transformations and FM8 Transient Attacks are available for download purchase in the NI Online Shop for a suggested retail price of $79 / €69 and $59 / €49 respectively.