Gear Reviews

Following on the heels of Spark 1.5, Spark XL is a new version for Pro Tools users who would like to use their TDM plug-ins inside of Spark. Spark 1.5 is a stereo, real- time audio editor with mastering processing tools for the MAC. XL adds the TDM FX window that allows up to four Pro Tools TDM...

One thread that runs quite regularly through the PC-based recording newsgroups I monitor involves mic preamps. Not, so much pertaining to "which ones sound the best?" but more often- "uh, what do they do and why do I need one?" Desktop recording these days is increasingly made...

When studio recordists think of Trident, they envision the classic English console, a stately oak trimmed board, eleven feet long, suitable for the world's great studios and costing many tens of thousands of dollars. And most of the consoles bearing the triangular Trident logo live up to that...

About five years ago I was one of the many folks who "rediscovered" the late Clarence White's super-cool faux- pedal steel guitar techniques with the Byrds and very much wanted to install a Parsons-White "B-Bender" in my old Telecaster. For those in the dark, a B-Bender is...

The Royer microphone couldn't have come at a better time. With every electronic company in Christendom exploiting the availability of Chinese condenser mic capsules (and entire microphones) for OEM or rebranding, the market is absolutely flooded with nearly identical condenser mics. Their...

More and more the computer is becoming a part of the studio. In many studios it has even replaced the tape machine. Because of this many companies are putting a lot of effort in to creating tools for getting good sound in and out of the computer. This is a challenging job because there are things...

Several years ago I was looking around for a tube mic for my studio. There were very few "non-vintage" offerings out there, and I ended up buying a used Manley Cardiod Reference mic, which I never regretted. Nowadays there's quite a few tube mics on the market and they're...

My interest in recording doesn't go much beyond recording myself and or my own band. Consequently, my studio is not intended to be useful to any other customer beside myself. I have been involved in recording in a wide variety of contexts for well over a decade, but come at it strictly from a...