I spoke with the Bitwig crew

Off camera I was speaking to them about people calling them vaporware and rumors that THEY were ableton etc etc… as the internets like to do. So I decided to do an on the record video about them working hard on getting this project done. and getting it out to the masses when it’s solid. also the beta is still closed 🙁 understandable but still sad) the mapping system in bitwig looks really great and fast. the Nektar controller was being used at many booths this year and was very nice)

I had a chance to tweak out on the Mini ms-20 take a listen to how it sounds!

I had only a few short seconds to grab this unit and plug my recorder in so I could not really get involved with patch making, instead I just did some quick random tweaking to get some actual audio. I will say when it comes to build quality.. an MS-20 this is not. the knobs felt absolutely terrible. I mean really really cheap. the plastic felt like if u squeezed the knob you could break the knobs in your had. the unit is very light (plus for some negative for others) and the keybed and mod wheel felt very toyish. (good thing it can be controlled via CV inputs) the sound…. to be perfectly honest I am still on the fence about. it really didn’t grab me. In truth even though I believe it is supposed to be the same as the monotron… I think the monotron sounded a bit fatter to me. and yes I am comparing it to a $60 synth… silly. I still love the sound of the filter. and I can see myself wanting it, but the build quality really makes me hold back and want the other new affordable analogs that have been released recently. given it’s about the same price point as the arturia minibrute… I’d go mini brute.

NAMM 2013 thoughts

Ok so with NAMM in full swing I have been getting a lot of questions about what is the big show stopper. What is really grabbing attention?  The truth is this years NAMM isn’t quite the intense show it was last year but there are still some real gems.

First up I would call to attention the MOOG SUB PHATTY.  the Layout is gorgeous and the build quality feels great. It’s funny.. it seems a cheap moog is to the standards of an expensive synth by just about anyone else. the Knobs feel much better than the slim and lil phatty knobs (not as light/loose) and the body actually feels very rugged. Continue reading →

So im posting this from my phone. After leaving bright and early at 5am to catch my flight from philly to san fran I got to sit on the tarmac for 3 hours. Then I was told what was a direct flight to san fran now had to stop for gas in st. Louis. I land In st. Louis and now the plane is broke so I am stranded trying to book a new flight thanks usairways.

Ok so now that my flight was cancled im stuck here in st lousouis for a good 5 hours till I can fly to phoenix then to cali. Yep it sucks.
Ive seen a few things posted up like m audio making more mido controllera with 12 drum pads on em (wth are they thinking) and akai cashing in on the mpc name with mpc branded headphones (and loosing its last shred of dignity)
Also a 8 pad sample trigger that is a stand alone piece of dj gear. Great Idea thats about 12 years to late. Every dvs out there can do what this future obsolete piece of kit does and likely any dj not using a dvs has much cheaper options or is so out of touch with the scene that this is probably a non option. What ever.

NAMM 2013 RUMOR PAGE!

The big Rumors I have been hearing so far are coming from some of the larger companies.

1) Korg possibly set to show a new MS-20 based synth with the size factor of the legacy controller and the new chip innards developed for the monotron series.

2) also from Korg rumors of a Polytron or full on poly analog synth to be aggressively priced. Continue reading →

[polldaddy poll=6758289]

With NAMM fast approaching I thought I would toss up some speculative polls to see what you all thought might show it’s face at NAMM this year?

there Is A LOT of speculation this year.

are you heading to NAMM? let me know (I’m still trying to obtain my pass for this year!)