Issue No. 100

Accessories, Tools

SwirlyHook headphone holder

by SwirlyGig  |  reviewed by Pete Weiss

Headphones tend to get dropped, placed, or temporarily forgotten on the studio floor - right? And then stepped on, tripped over, and/or kicked and busted. And once they are broken, they need to be...

Consoles/Summing, Control Surfaces

Sweet Ten 500-series rack, Moiyn module, Cans II module

by Purple Audio  |  reviewed by Chris Koltay

The 500-series market has seen a flood of new products, to say the least. I keep waiting for Dyson to come out with a 500-series vacuum. Or maybe Bodum will make a milk frother for the format. The...

Acoustics

Unpainted Nebraska diffuser, DMD acoustic fabric

by Diffuser City  |  reviewed by Garrett Haines

While making acoustic adjustments to one of our control rooms, we decided more absorption and diffusion were needed for the front wall. Diffuser City is a small company that makes one-of-a-kind...

Microphones

Z-67 tube mic

by ADK Microphones  |  reviewed by Ryan Hewitt

The Neumann U 67 is one of my favorite mics of all time; I use it on nearly every tracking date that I do, on a variety of instruments, including electric and acoustic guitars, as well as vocals. When...

Consoles/Summing, Control Surfaces, Software

Scratchpad for iPad

by Cakewalk  |  reviewed by Alan Tubbs

I have seen the future, and it is touch. And fun. Cakewalk's Scratchpad is their first foray into iOS apps and is exactly what it sounds like. The main portion of the on-screen interface is divided...

Plug-Ins, Software

RX 3 Advanced

by iZotope  |  reviewed by Larry Crane

When I began work on what would become Elliott Smith's New Moon album in 2006, I knew I might have a few noise issues to tackle. One song in particular, "Angel in the Snow," had been recorded onto...

Consoles/Summing

RED48 Summing Console

by Coleman Audio  |  reviewed by Garrett Haines

The RED48 is the love child of a control-room monitoring system and a 48-channel summing mixer, housed in a 2RU- height rackmount box with a companion desktop remote. I don't know if anyone else...

Microphones

RK-47 mic capsule, RK-12 mic capsule, 990B PCB Kit

by Microphone Parts  |  reviewed by Joseph Lemmer

What do you get when you combine the guts of a Porsche 911 with the body of a VW Beetle? You get a high-performance sports car that does not look like one. This is analogous to what is offered by...

Mic Preamps

B173 mic preamp

by Black Lion Audio  |  reviewed by Pete Weiss

Lately, Chicago-based Black Lion Audio has been earning praise for its sensibly-priced homages to classic audio gear. In particular, the B12A preamp, a half-rack-format API-inspired mic preamp, has...

Interfaces

ONE USB audio interface

by Apogee Electronics  |  reviewed by Jeff Elbel

After making enhancements to the company's two-channel Duet [Tape Op #65, #89] and introducing the four-channel Quartet [#93], Apogee went on to upgrade 2009's original ONE audio interface [#78]. Now...

Amplifiers, Mic Preamps, Signal Processors

Heider FD312 500-series mic/line preamp

by Classic Audio Products of Illinois  |  reviewed by Adam Kagan

So there are two companies called API? Sort of. The original API, or Automated Processes, Inc., started manufacturing modular mixing consoles in 1969 and moved on to develop the 2520 op-amp,...

Dynamics

HOC1 optical compressor

by Hamptone  |  reviewed by Larry Crane

I've been using a pair of Hamptone HOC1 single-channel compressors on my mixing and tracking sessions for several months now, and they have become my favorite tools. I think this is a very unique and...

LDCs, Microphones

NT1 condenser mic

by RØDE Microphones  |  reviewed by Garrett Haines

The original NT1 was a big deal when it hit the market. Back then, most large- diaphragm studio condensers cost over a thousand dollars. Australian company RØDE aimed for the small studio and...

Accessories

LED covers

by LightDims  |  reviewed by Adam Kagan

Over the past year or two, I have had many pieces of both professional audio gear and consumer electronics that employ exceedingly bright LED lights. In the studio, these lights can be especially...

Effects

500-series Analog Delay

by Moog  |  reviewed by Chris Koltay

I tend to think of things in reference to a chronology of gear purchases. Like, "Oh yeah, we had just gotten that mic when we tracked those vocals!" Along those same lines, my studio's chronology...

Accessories, Microphones

P-84 SK stereo condenser mic kit

by Peluso Microphones  |  reviewed by Francisco Botero

Every time I try a new mic, I have to be able to justify the purchase, because it has to be useful enough to earn its place in the mic locker at Studio G Brooklyn [Tape Op #41]. The place is filled...

Effects, Interfaces

EXTC 500-series guitar effects interface

by Radial Engineering  |  reviewed by Geoff Stanfield

My wife: "How was your day, Honey?" Me: "Oh, it was awesome. I ran the lead vocal of this song I'm mixing through a cool fuzz pedal made for bass and an analog delay made for guitar and cranked up...

LDCs, Microphones

Sterling ST6050 condenser mic

by Sterling Audio  |  reviewed by Mike Jasper

Sterling Audio teamed up with legendary engineer/producer Allen Sides of Ocean Way Recording to create an affordable go-to FET condenser mic, the Sterling ST6050. Recently, I was lucky enough to try...