Black Lion Audio: PG-1 MKII Power Conditioner
reviewed by Gus Berry
Since setting up my mix studio in Portland, I’ve been a bit annoyed by the noise floor of my Ocean Way Pro2A monitors [Tape Op #116]. It wasn’t until I saw an ad for Black Lion...
Gear Reviews
The means contribute to the end. Usually.
MAAT Labs GmbH: FiDef JENtwo Psychoacoustic Processor Plug-In
reviewed by Garrett Haines
This is a new one. FiDef is a psychoacoustic process MAAT licensed from FideliQuest LLC for inclusion in thEQblue (which is a sweet EQ – but that’s a different discussion). Now available...
SAMAR Audio Design: AL95 Ribbon Microphone
reviewed by Mike Kosacek
I love the sound of ribbon microphones, and I put one in front of a guitar amp nearly every time I record one. I ran across the Samar Audio Design AL95 online, and after reading about it, I had to...
BABY Audio: Crystalline Reverb Plug-In
reviewed by Dave Hidek
BABY Audio is quickly developing a reputation for boiling plug-ins down to their essential components and reshaping them into concentrated, powerful production tools. With their newest release, a...
Apogee Electronics: Duet 3 Interface & Dock Accessory
reviewed by Scott McChane
Fourteen years ago, Apogee Electronics released their original Firewire Duet [Tape Op #65] – arguably opening the floodgates for one-knob desktop interfaces that focus on portability and ease of...
Alice Gu (director): Really Good Rejects (film)
reviewed by Gus Berry
Attention guitar nerds: A new documentary by Alice Gu premiered at SXSW this year that spotlights Reuben Cox, the man behind Old Style Guitar Shop in Los Angeles. Reuben is responsible for developing...
Trace Audio: Blank Patch Bay Labels
reviewed by Garrett Haines
If you have a single rack space 1/4-inch patchbay from the likes of dbx, Behringer, Samson, or Neutrik, you understand the challenge of marking things clearly. Nashville’s Trace Audio has an...
Solid State Logic: BiG SiX Mixer
reviewed by Adam Kagan
Solid State Logic, better known as SSL, boasts a four-decade history of producing leading products for commercial studios, broadcast facilities, and live sound. However, SSL has recently directed...
Mic Sentry: MS-Series Mic Slipcovers
reviewed by Larry Crane
You know the scenario: You’ve mic’d up a whole band, did the first day of tracking, and are shutting down for the night, coming back tomorrow for more takes. There are over 25 microphones...
DDMF/MagicDeathEye: MagicVerb Reverb Plug-In
reviewed by Dan Knobler
There is absolute magic contained in the plastered walls of classic studios’ echo chambers. I’ve been lucky enough to make many records at Sound Emporium Studios in Nashville, which has...
Noise Engineering: Plugin Bundle 1 Instrument Reverb Plug-Ins
reviewed by Brian Bender
Texture still seems to me to be the hill on which the battle between us analog Luddites and the digital future is raging. Though digital emulations are now, broadly, pretty good and getting better,...
Raising Jake Studios: True Mid/Side Plug-In
reviewed by Larry Crane
Every stereo mix has a phantom center, or middle channel. This “mid,” includes any audio that is not panned (or recorded) exclusively to the right and left “side” channels, and...