Gear Reviews

REAL-WORLD ASSESSMENTS OF RECORDING EQUIPMENT BY WORKING PROFESSIONALS.

NO. 165 Gear Review

Groove Synthesis: 3rd Wave Synthesizer

REVIEWED BY John Baccigaluppi
January 15, 2025

If you are a synthesist, we currently live in a golden age of instrument design. The original “East Coast” and “West Coast” analog synth designs that were supplanted in the mid-‘80s by digital synthesizers have evolved into a huge palette of options to consider when shopping for (or designing) a new...

NO. 165 Gear Review

Solid State Logic: 2+ MKII Interface

REVIEWED BY John Baccigaluppi
January 15, 2025

Though there are many two-channel computer DAW interfaces on the market, I’m often a bit stymied when friends call and say they need a decent, affordable unit for themselves or for their kid just getting into recording. After using the Solid State Logic 2+ MKII, that question is much easier for me to...

NO. 165 Gear Review

H2 Audio: 0011 Mic pre/EQ

REVIEWED BY Michael Urbano
January 15, 2025

When H2 Audio reached out about getting their 0011 mic 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 Puig,...

NO. 165 Gear Review

Serato: Hex FX Multi-Effects Plug-In

REVIEWED BY Geoff Stanfield
December 15, 2024

Hex FX from 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 “wrapper” plug-in, such as PatchWork...

NO. 164 Gear Review

AudioScape Engineering Co.: XL-305R Spring Reverb

REVIEWED BY Brian Tarquin
November 15, 2024

I have always loved a good sounding reverb unit, one that is authentic and usable in real life mixes. I used to own the magnificent AKG BX20E spring reverb, housed in a beautiful 3.5 foot tall wooden tower made in Austria. It sounded even better than it looked, utilizing helix springs with long time...

NO. 164 Gear Review

Trident Audio Developments: 80B-EQ 500 Series EQ

REVIEWED BY Brian Tarquin
November 15, 2024

I’m a faithful Trident user and have had several Trident recording consoles over the years. Trident Studios was formed by two brothers, Norman and Barry Sheffield, in 1968, with artists such as Manfred Mann, The Beatles, David Bowie, and Elton John recording there. When the studio upgraded from 16 to...

NO. 164 Gear Review

Randy McNutt: Historic Recording Studios (book)

REVIEWED BY Larry Crane
November 15, 2024

This 399-page, large format book, Historic Recording Studios: America’s Sound Factories and the People Who Made Them, is actually Volume One (A to M) of “A Scrapbook and Encyclopedia” by producer, musician, journalist, and music fan Randy McNutt. It’s an updated and reformatted continuation of his 2001...

NO. 164 Gear Review

Mountainroad DSP: Lumina Delay Plug-In

REVIEWED BY Adam Kagan
November 15, 2024

A new delay plug-in, you say? I already have dozens of delays and have been pretty happy with my options – but sure, I’ll check it out. Mountainroad DSP may not be a familiar name, but it’s bound to be soon. Over the past few weeks, their Lumina Delay has become a staple in my mix template, regardless...

NO. 164 Gear Review

PSP Audioware: PSP Datamix A567 EQ Plug-In

November 15, 2024

In over 20 years of talking shop with notable engineers and producers, I’d never heard one mention of Datamix consoles. But then I had a very informative conversation with a good friend who is a casual historian of vintage studio tools and brilliant designer of modern studio innovations, and I learned...

NO. 164 Gear Review

Darwin Audio: Beer & Soda Can Microphones

REVIEWED BY Larry Crane
November 15, 2024

Kendra Lynn, our former long-term studio manager and now staff engineer at Jackpot! Recording Studio, recently gifted me with a very unique-looking (and sounding) microphone. Housed in a vintage steel can that used to contain Pittsburgh Brewing’s Olde Frothingslosh’s Pale Stale Ale (circa 1969), there’s...

NO. 164 Gear Review

Jon Bellona: ABCs of Audio Recording (book)

REVIEWED BY Larry Crane
November 15, 2024

A 9-inch square, 32-page hardcover book, ABCs of Audio Recording is a delightful children’s read featuring a page-by-page alphabet of audio terms, with short descriptions and simple illustrations or photos. “A is for Amplifier” or “T is for Tape” will give you an idea of the content, and topics like...

NO. 164 Gear Review

BandLab Technologies: Cakewalk Sonar DAW

REVIEWED BY Alan Tubbs
November 15, 2024

The latest release of Cakewalk’s PC-only DAW is out, and what a long, strange road it’s been. Is it called Cakewalk now? Or SONAR? Before the 20th century ended, Cakewalk began the new millennium by designing a new audio engine for their DAW and calling it SONAR [Tape Op#116]. SONAR added improvements...

NO. 164 Gear Review

Universal Audio: UA LA-6176 Plug-In

REVIEWED BY Cochrane McMillan
November 15, 2024

If you asked me whether you should try this UA LA-6176 Signature Channel Strip plug-in – or any of the company's plug-ins, Apollo hardware units, or their near zero latency console-like digital workflow – I'd say, “Yes!” The UA LA-6176 is one of the newest offerings, capturing the essence...

NO. 164 Gear Review

iZotope: RX 11 Advanced App & Plug-In

REVIEWED BY Larry Crane
November 15, 2024

I’ve been using iZotope RX [Tape Op#123] for over a decade, starting with RX 3 [#100], and this "audio repair toolkit" has become an integrated part of my workflow on every music project I do. Most RX users are in post-production, and I can imagine why. Dealing with location sound, sound effects,...

NO. 164 Gear Review

Lauten Audio: Rim Mount Mic Clip

REVIEWED BY Mike Kosacek
November 15, 2024

I had ruled out mic mounts that attach to a drum’s rim after trying some in my studio years ago, only to find that they transmitted way too many bad sounds directly through the mount. I’ve been happily using mic stands since. However, I also play drums in several bands, and sometimes I notice the live...

NO. 164 Gear Review

PreSonus: Quantum HD8 Interface

REVIEWED BY Liam Nelson
November 15, 2024

I was mixing the record that would never die – or at least would never go to mastering. You may have been there yourself; you start mixing, and then the artist goes to another studio and adds a bunch of tracks, and now you’re dangerously close to having to start over. Except, the client definitely doesn’t...

NO. 164 Gear Review

ART: ProChannel III

REVIEWED BY Rich Hardesty
November 15, 2024

I’m a songwriter and musician who composes and records at home. Once in a while, I may bring in another musician buddy with a special skill on a particular instrument, but when it comes to recording I work solo 90% of the time. I also tend to use the least amount of gear possible; mainly due to the...

NO. 164 Gear Review

Ableton: Move

REVIEWED BY Dana Gumbiner
November 15, 2024

Like a lot of Tape Op-ers, I started my recording expedition with a cassette 4-track. For a young songwriter, the 4-track was nothing less than a joy engine – a new way to capture ideas and shape song demos, wrapped into a studio that I could take with me that unlocked a whole new creative landscape....