This episode I was fortunate to have John Bowen on the show. A staple in the synthesizer community for roughly 40 years, John has been instrumental in many of the legendary synths of our time. Join us as we walk through a piece of synth history and cap it off with a discussion of his amazing Solaris synthesizer.
for more info check out Johnbowen.com
Orange Amplification Launch Their First
Dual, Discrete Op-Amp UK RRP £42.00
Orange Amplification has launched the new Dual Discrete Op-Amp which has been specifically designed for audio use. It is one of the most musically sounding of its kind on the market today.
Built to a high specification, the Dual Discrete Op-Amp has been constructed for superior musical audio performance purposes. Unlike existing products, it only contains the gain blocks that are needed to give good clean audio. Each of the individual transistors and resistors are of the highest quality, so the Op-Amp runs as close to pure Class A as possible instead of the class B operation seen in IC Op-Amps. It has been designed to be 8 pin DIP compatible, and comes with a socket, so is easy to drop in and replace. The DC offset of Orange’s Op-Amp is low, which means they can be used almost anywhere, even active filters.
‘We wanted to design something purely for audio’, explains Adrian Emsley, Orange Amplification’s Technical Director, ‘Many Op-Amps perform well on paper but the trouble is the human ear does not hear quite the same way as test equipment. To me, this Op-Amp sounds more musical, more natural, with the transient sound feeling more real and less synthetic.’
To find out more about the Orange Op-Amp and its full specifications please go to ” https://orangeamps.com/shop/op-amp and to see Adrian Emsley talking about the new Op-Amp check out this video here
Tracktion Corporation is proud to announce the release of Waveform, the latest in their long line of innovative DAWs. Transcending the award-winning T7 in look, feel and feature set, Waveform maintains the open, intuitive characteristics of its predecessor. In addition to providing a solid recording platform, the Tracktion team has developed an array of new tools designed to speed up and expand creative composition.
All good DAW’s have the ability to record, edit, mix and share music however, Waveform may be the only application evolving at the same pace as modern music production. Since acquiring ownership of the platform in 2012, Tracktion has completely re-factored the application, adapting it to the latest production trends, on a yearly basis. No other DAW can make this claim. In addition, Waveform is laser focused on music production so it avoids the complexities inherent in most of today’s DAWs as they struggle to support everything from film mixing to enterprise operations or live music performance.
Beyond sheer efficiency, Waveform inspires creativity with an unprecedented suite of composition tools. Intuitive MIDI pattern generators allow even untrained musicians to quickly assemble entire musical arrangements while built-in virtual instruments such as the FM Synth and new Collective™ sampler/synthesizer provide a wealth of new sounds and blending options for a truly sophisticated sonic palette. Of course, Waveform is also compatible with all VST and AU plugins such as Tracktion’s popular BioTek™ Organic Synthesizer.
“Our goal is to continually gain market share by remaining more current and flexible than our competitors,” explained Tracktion Corp CEO, James Woodburn. “Our constant re-factoring process means that we can track emerging production trends and incorporate the best ideas into our codebase. Watch on-line tutorials detailing how today’s top producers like to work and you’ll find that Tracktion seamlessly fits into those workflows.”
Despite the remarkable power of this application, Waveform’s highly refined code remains efficient enough to support even the relatively tiny Raspberry Pi platform. This allows the app to run smoothly on almost any modern Windows, Mac or Linux computer but also opens it for use as an embedded solution in the growing DIY maker community.
Waveform is available from the Tracktion website, HYPERLINK “https://www.tracktion.com/” tracktion.com, as well as top retailers, with prices starting at $99.
Arturia are set to release a limited number of “Black Edition” KeyStep, BeatStep, and BeatStep Pro sequencer-controllers.
Known and loved throughout the industry, Arturia’s trio of DAW controlling, step-sequencing hybrids are now available in a sleek black finish. Offering something for every musician, the Step range synchronizes the analog and digital worlds, letting musicians control hardware instruments, outboard modules, virtual instruments, and reco
Each of the new Black Edition models comes complete with CV cables, giving you immediate access to the sequencer’s hardware control functionality.
rding software simultaneously.
Arturia KeyStep Black Edition – 149 US$ / 119 €
This small format keyboard sequencer features a 32-note slim-key keybed with aftertouch, and lets you sync with & control any software or hardware instrument through its comprehensive connectivity, including USB, MIDI in & out, CV gate, and Sync in & out. Create evolving, polyphonic sequences up to 64 steps long, with real-time recording and rewriting.
Arturia BeatStep Pro Black Edition – 299 US$ / 249 €
Arturia’s cutting edge, 3-part step sequencer now has a sleek new look. Featuring two separate melodic sequencers and a dedicated 16-track drum sequencer, BeatStep Pro gives the adventurous musician a powerful palette of tools to create dynamic, exciting tracks without the need for a computer screen.
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Arturia BeatStep Black Edition – 129 US$ / 99 €
Packing 16 pressure and velocity sensitive pads and 16 rotary knobs into a neat package, BeatStep is an affordable way for musicians to get creative with simple monophonic step-sequences. Able to control outboard synths and virtual instruments alike, BeatStep’s versatility also makes it a great DAW controller. |
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The Black Edition KeyStep, BeatStep, and BeatStep Pro will begin shipping worldwide at the end of April 2017.
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* Breaking news, ZetaOhm have ALREADY reached the goal and are not even halfway through the campaign!*
Recently at Knobcon 2016 I was very lucky to meet an enterprising young man by the name Tenkai. Not only did he save the day (I had a catastrophic computer failure) but he debuted an amazing new eurorack modular sequencer he was working on. Continue reading
Hex Inverter the mind behind the Mutant Drums series of Eurorack Modules returns to NAMM 2017 with a new filter, Rim shot and wild noise source oscillator. Winston from Balcones Whiskey steps in to assist with this coverage so big thanks to Winston and the crew at Balcones whiskey.
New Synthesizer Modules from Hex inverter at Namm 2017!