Sibelius hands-on workshop :: Saturday 1 June @ Kenridge Primary School.

Developed by Universal Audio and Allen Sides, the Ocean Way Studios plug-in for the UAD Platform rewrites the book on what’s possible with acoustic space emulation.


By combining elements of room, microphone, and source modelling, Ocean Way Studios moves far beyond standard impulse response players and reverbs — giving you an authentic replication of one of the world’s most famous recording studios.

John Mlynczak from PreSonus, shows us some of the basics of running live sound and recording a school jazz band with the AudioBox 1818VSL.

Reason’s virtual rack is the heart and soul of Reason. Synths, drum machines, samplers, effects, and little gadgets that tweak and freak one another are the building blocks of your music.


In this walk-through, we check out the Reason rack in more detail and get you up to speed with some of it’s powerful tools.

On Alt-J’s recently completed U.S. tour, the band counted on their PreSonus StudioLive 24.4.2 digital console to deliver monitor mixes. As front-of-house engineer Lance Reynolds explains, he had been interested in checking out the StudioLive, and the tour presented an ideal opportunity.





















L-R: Joe Newman (ld voc / gtr), Lance Reynolds (FOH), Gwil Sainsbury (gtr / bass / voc), Thom Green (drums), Ron Sharpless (monitors), and Gus Unger-Hamilton (kbd / voc). Photo: Kevin Graft


“I was really attracted to the layout of the StudioLive,” says Reynolds. “The input gain, the channel faders, and the master output are always right there in front of you -no page flipping or knob sharing to access the essential controls. I had originally wanted to try the new 32-channel console for FOH but the tour was kicking off before it would be available. But in talking about it with the band, everyone agreed that the 24.4.2 seemed like a good fit for monitors. It had everything we needed in a nice, compact footprint.”

Reynolds says the StudioLive’s snapshot recall has been a major asset. “The consistency factor is great -it saves us a lot of setup time, especially going into a different venue every night. And the small form factor makes it easy to get it on and off the stage.”

Monitor engineer Ron Sharpless uses the StudioLive to generate several stereo mixes for the band’s in-ear monitors. “I’m doing four mixes for the band, including a ButtKicker for the drum mix,” he explains, “plus a mix for me, another for the guitar tech, and an extra monitor mix. It’s great to be able to squeeze that many stereo mixes out of a console.”

Sharpless also gives high marks to the StudioLive’s onboard DSP. “The reverbs sound really rich. With everyone on in-ears, it’s important to be able to make the mix sound good, and the effects in the console really go a long way.

“The ability to multitrack with the StudioLive is another cool feature,” Sharpless continues. “We didn’t have as many opportunities to record the gigs as we would have liked, but when we did, it was amazing how easy it was. You just plug in a FireWire cable and click on Capture.”

“I did get to use the StudioLive at FOH on a few occasions,” Reynolds reports, “and Capture enabled me to record a soundcheck and immediately play the mix for the band. Plus, I was able to solo, mute, and change individual levels. Very cool. We also brought in the StudioLive to do a live gig at a radio station in a very small room, and I was able to multitrack, give everyone their monitor mixes, and mix the show for the live audience.”

“Especially for a club tour, or a tour like this where a band’s doing a mix of clubs and mid-sized venues, it’s really the perfect console,” says Sharpless. “For a desk this size, at this price point, the amount of power and features it offers is just amazing.”

For Reynolds, it comes down to the sound. “I’m a reluctant player in terms of digital, and for the most part I prefer to stay in the analog world,” he acknowledges. “That said, I appreciate the benefits of digital, and have been in situations where I was very happy to have the ability to recall a mix. Ultimately, if it sounds good I’m happy-and the StudioLive sounds really good.”

Now, version 7 offers integration of all instruments—in and out of the “box”—with MIDI out. Automatic audio slicing and audio quantize enable quick fixes or style changes of recorded performances—even conversion of those recordings into REX loops for further creative possibilities in the rack.

For mixing, Propellerhead adds a spectrum analyzer with visual EQ controls to “see” the audio and tweak equalization settings of any tracks in mixer. One-click group and parallel mix channels go beyond what is possible in physical large format mixers—instantly exposing the world of modern parallel effects and automation.

...and to inspire, Reason 7 makes importing audio from users’ music libraries and the web with support for mp3, aac, wma and more a snap. An enhanced Factory Sound Bank comes with tons of new loops and drum kits supplying the latest sounds ready to be thrown into tracks.

Audiomatic Retro Transformer takes its place alongside over 100 third-party instrument, effect and utility Rack Extensions (RE) already available for Reason. Designed for use on any instrument, channel or even group mix, Audiomatic oozes character to the sound. Inspired by retro phone apps, Audiomatic, with 16 snapshots going from Vinyl and VHS tape to PVC pipe and Gadget, immediately evokes an auditory mood, place or time.

The RE is included free in Reason version 7 but is available to owners of Reason 6.5 and Reason Essentials too, as a separate purchase. As with any Rack Extension, all users can try a fully functional version free for 30 days.

Pricing & availability:

 
• Reason 7 :: R4999 Incl Vat
 
• Reason Essentials 1.5 with free downloadable update to Reason Essentials 2 :: R1399 Incl Vat
 
• Reason 7 Upgrade (from any previous Reason version) :: R1999 Incl Vat
 
• Balance (includes upgrade to Reason 7 for earlier versions of Reason) :: R4999 Incl Vat
   
• Audiomatic Retro Transformer Rack Extension (RE) :: EUR €39 / USD $49 :: On-line Only - (FREE for Reason 7 owners)
 
• Purchasers of certain previous-version Reason products may qualify for a free upgrade to Reason 7 :: For details see: www.propellerheads.se/freeupgrade

Helpful links:

 
• Reason has a rack to inspire (video)
 
• Reason has a rack for instruments (video)
 
• Reason has a rack for mixing (video)
 
• Reason 7 overview (complete information and Reason 7 video)
   
• Rack Extension (RE) store (browsing, trials and purchase
 
• To purchase Reason or upgrades

In this Micro Tutorial we take a look at audio slice markers in Reason 7. Whether you’re quantizing your audio tracks for flawless timing, adjusting individual notes to re-imagine your phrasing, or just looking to experiment into unknown realms Audio Slice Markers are a powerful tool. And the best part? Thanks to Reason’s legendary time stretch, it sounds amazing.


Reason 7 is on sale today!

In this tutorial we will show you how to bypass Duet’s internal Mic Pre Amps connect an external Mic Pre Amp.

They won a MIPA Award last year for the Kronos…


...and again this year year for the Kronos-X

Congratulations Korg!!

Here’s the skinny on some changes that they’ve made recently to the original TwinQ….

 
• The microphone input transformer is permanently assigned to the “Mic” Input. The “IRON” switch now optionally sends the “Line” input through the transformer, to add some colouration to Line sources.
 
• The input “GAIN” control now operates over the range 18dB to 60dB, with improved resolution in the crucial 25dB-45dB range. Microphone inputs up to +4dBu can be accommodated without distortion (+24dBu by using the “PAD” switch).
 
• As before, with the “LINE” input selected the gain is unity (0dB) at the top of the dial; the gain range is now -19dB to +22dB.
 
• The “Instrument” input now has a gain range of 0dB to +40dB.
   
• “PEAK” LEDs now light at +16dBu (2dB below Full Scale Digital).

They started with high quality Burr-Brown IC’s for the preamp, added an extremely musical EQ section and an optical compressor for that signature “Meek” sound. Then they included some new and innovative features, like an “Iron” switch that switches the IC front end to a transformer - completely changing the topology of the circuit. It even has 24bit, 96k A/D converters built in.

All of this comes housed in a rugged 2u chassis with a beautifully sculpted aluminium faceplate.

With sonic quality rivalling mic pre’s priced thousands of dollars more, the twinq2 sets a new standard for dual channels.

Have a gander at the review below.