THE MEANS CONTRIBUTE TO THE END. USUALLY.
Iām frequently asked by friends and clients which audio interface they should upgrade to for their studio. My usual advice is to focus on features, as most modern interfaces deliver similarly-excellent sound quality. However, after using the newBURL Blackseries interfaces, I must retract that...
Universal Audio recently released an update to all five of their flagship Apollo audio interfaces, so we got our hands on the newApollo x8p Gen 2for testing. The Apollo range has now been in the market for over a decade, with fully matured hardware/software integration and specs that rival the...
The two-channelCarnaby HE2is the new flagship version of the Carnaby Harmonic EQĀ® designed by Cranborne Audio. What do I mean when I say, āHarmonic EQ?ā It operates like a multi-band saturator that presents as a 3-band EQ strip. Itās obviously helpful to think of it as an EQ, but it functions...
Chase Blissā latest original pedal design,Clean, delivers an all-analog, two-stage stereo "creative compressor." I've been obsessing over pedals as creative outboard tools for some time, using them in a dedicated setup with the Radial EXTC-Stereo [Tape Op#146] effects re-amper...
Throughout its nearly 20-year history, Orchestral Tools has established itself as one of the premier voices in orchestral and cinematic sample libraries. Iāve always viewed them as one of the ābasic food groupā companies for any composerās tool kit. From the large ensembles of the Berlin and...
Let's talk about gear snobbery behavior. "Tubes are better than transistors." "Transformers are better than servo-balanced circuits." "Discrete op-amps are better than integrated circuit (IC) op-amps." Sure, sometimes these statements are correct, because...
Subtitled āWhere cymbals go to die,āSilenceris a plug-in that claims to remove drum bleed on the individual tracks of a drum set recorded live, a problem I frequently deal with while mixing. I hate resorting to drum samples and would prefer to use the real drum tracks sent to me for mixing, but...
Universal AudioāsTopline Vocal Suiteoffers an entire vocal chainās worth of UAD analog effects in a single Native plug-in. Rather than overwhelm you with options,Toplinedivides its eight individual effects into three helpful sections: Tuner & Shift; Channel Strip; and Modulation, Delay, & Reverb....
Whether working in a live venue, a professional studio, or at home, every recordist knows the importance of having a reliable DI unit. I use a DI on almost every session, so I was excited for the opportunity to try the Grace Designm303. As soon as I took it out of the box, I noticed its solid,...
For over a decade, Iāve been using a pair of Tascam VL-M3 [Tape Op#77] monitors with my Universal Audio Apollo Twin [#101] interface for in the box editing and overdubbing in my small home office studio space. Theyāve served me well, sounding better than built-in computer speakers or cheap...
If you are a synthesist, we currently live in a golden age of instrument design. The original āEast Coastā and āWest Coastā analog synth designs that were supplanted in the mid-ā80s by digital synthesizers have evolved into a huge palette of options to consider when shopping for (or designing) a...
I have seen the future, and it isthisinstrument. In an industry that overuses terms like ārevolutionaryā and āgame changer,ā Expressive EāsOsmoseis an amazing new instrument with an extremely elegant and refined culmination of over 40 years of research into sound synthesis and electronic musical...
Being a loyal Trident console user, I jumped at the chance to review Malcolm Toftās [Tape Op#26,#165online] newEQUATE: Eight channels of six-band EQ in a three-space rack unit built in the UK. Malcolm has been in the audio recording industry as a gear designer, an engineer, and even a professor...
When H2 Audio reached out about getting their0011mic preamp/EQ reviewed, my good friend and session drummer Michael Urbano came to mind. Michael has worked on records with Todd Rundgren, Trina Shoemaker, Sheryl Crow, Eric Valentine [Tape Op#45,#133], Cracker, Matt Wallace [#128], Jack Joseph...
Whoa! A plug-in recreation of the Undertone Audio UnFairchild 670M II vari-mu compressor [Tape Op#125]? Sign me up. The hardware UnFairchild is a beast, ranking highly on my desert island gear list. Eric Valentine [#45,#133], the crew at Undertone, and Mixland
Recently, Iāve been working on streamlining my studio setup, and part of that plan was to ditch my patchbays and integrate all of my beloved analog gear via hardware inserts. I donāt run a commercial studio (Iām the sole engineer), so my main goal is to simplify my personal workflow. I have an...
My home studio is very simple, and is mostly used for editing audio, prepping mixes before using my "real" studio, recording remote interviews, doing my voiceovers, and mixing in the box. An old pair of Dynaudio BM6A speakers [Tape Op#22] and a Dangerous Music D-Box [#61] monitor...
Hex FXfrom Serato is a virtual multi-effects rack that works as an AU or VST3 plug-in and is compatible with Serato Studio, Ableton Live [Tape Op#160], Apple Logic Pro [#74], Native Instruments Maschine, and FL Studio. It can also be used with Pro Tools via a conversion āwrapperā plug-in, such as...
InTape Op#159, we published anoverview of theUAFX Pedalline. This summer, theUAFX Amppedal line expanded with two new models: theANTI 1992 High Gain, and theEnigmaticā82 Overdrive Special. Though their form, physical size, rear panel, and connectivity options are similar to the Lion ā68 Super...
Subtitled āHow Something Comes From Nothing,ā this heavy, beautifully designed and written, 423-page book explores the ācelebration of the art that happens when instinct meets rigor.ā Author Moss interviews 43 creative folks, ranging from visual artists, filmmakers, and musicians to playwrights,...