October 2023 Magazine Contents

AIR Music’s Sprite is a multi‑effects plug‑in with a few extra tricks up its sleeves, such as the ability to control certain effect parameters using an envelope follower.

The Triple Cross is a three‑channel stereo crossfader and panner with some rather powerful tricks up its sleeve.

Many manufacturers now offer dedicated products tailored for the distinctive workflows involved in podcasting and live streaming.

A&H’s newest live sound consoles combine powerful processing with user‑friendly features.

With a built‑in analogue compressor, Apogee’s Jam X is designed to get your guitar sound right from the start.

Intended for both speech and music, Audix’s latest microphone demands to be seen as well as heard!

Blackstar have an enviable track record in building genuine valve amps. Can their first modelling plug‑in maintain those lofty standards?

Embody’s mission to make immersive mixing on headphones a practical proposition moves forward with the addition of a second virtual studio.

This software adaptation of Erica’s desktop delay unit boasts plenty of substance, flexibility and attitude.

With the fourth generation of their Scarlett range, Focusrite continue to bring features that were once exclusively ‘professional’ to everyone.

With some neat features to control how the compressor and expander interact, there’s more to this module than meets the eye.

The audio examples on this page accompany the review of the Dynamics 2806 Compressor and Expander module by Frap Audio.

Rating: **** 4/5 Stars. The Lost Reveries library offers ambient drone sounds and were created by Hilyard, an artist well known in the genre and with some 25 album releases to his name.

The Berkeley pedal, from UK-based manufacturers Horrothia, aims to recreate the vintage Uni-Vibe sound but it’s not an outright clone.

In this Sound On Sound exclusive preview, we lift the lid on SEPIA by Karno: a radical new outboard format for the digital age.

Sometimes Knobula’s Pianophonic module sounds a whole lot like a piano, sometimes it just sounds piano‑ish, and sometimes it sounds nothing like a piano.

Are the motorised knobs of Melbourne Instruments’ debut synth a gimmick, or should all synths have them?

Still searching for an ‘always on’ overdrive that works with your guitar’s volume control turned up or backed off? Your search might be over...

Polyend’s hardware tracker has got smaller — and at the same time bigger...

This dual‑distortion box is equally at home with guitars,synths and drum machines, on a dusted‑daily desktop or a filthy stage pedalboard...

Dave Smith’s last synthesizer is a worthy farewell from a man who gave the synth world so much.

Rating: ***** 5/5 Stars. Sonuscore are back with Trinity Drums 2 which includes all 100 themes from the original, but with considerably more content and a refreshed UI.

Plamen is a five‑band saturator, in which each band can be processed using one of five different saturation algorithms.

Rating: **** 4/5 Stars. Spitfire’s flagship ARO series now features a third percussion collection around the theme of metals, with essentials such as piatti cymbals and tam‑tams making a welcome appearance.

Underpinned by rapid developments in AI technology, SpectraLayers Pro 10 promises some remarkable advances in performance.

Can the Synclavier Regen live up to the near legendary status of its ancestors?

Rating: ***** 5/5 Stars. Shift is intended to provide modern sound design elements that film composers can blend into their projects to emphasise specific events and/or musical transitions.

If more is better, then an IEM with no fewer than 21 drivers must be the best ever, right?

Ever wished you could control the level of room sound that’s baked into a dialogue or vocal recording?

The Polish pioneers pair their plug‑in remote control system with a classic analogue compressor.

Embrace the power of Cubase’s Project Logical Editor, and you can become a workflow ninja!

Asked to pick a favourite sound to dissect, American mix master Michael Brauer chooses the vocal sound on Elle King’s ‘Ex’s & Oh’s’.

Working on Trippie Redd’s mixtape A Love Letter To You 5 at Miami’s Criteria Studios gave mixer Koen Heldens the rare chance to mix a rap album to half‑inch tape.

Logic’s Smart Controls allow you to create hands‑on effects macros.

PJ Harvey and her fearless collaborators have navigated three decades and six albums without repeating themselves, and her new album is another masterclass in innovative production.

Pro Tools’ metering options can help you stay on top of your levels.

Any Reaper track can have up to 64 channels, and even in stereo mix projects that opens up a vast world of routing possibilities.

Reason’s new Objekt synth takes physical modelling in a new direction.

Bend Markers let you manipulate your audio timing with ease.

In Part 1, we look at the key principles of drum acoustics and discuss some scientific aspects of drums with respect to making music and creative recording projects.

The parabolic reflector is the ultimate directional microphone setup for outdoor recording. Here’s how to get the best from it.

I want to buy my main vocal microphone. I want a balanced microphone, with a smooth top end to be used with a deep baritone male voice.

I’m trying to drive my Rupert Neve Designs 5057 Orbit summing mixer for some transformer saturation warmth, but I run into digital distortion before the levels are anywhere near to clipping the Orbit. What am I getting wrong?

If you want to see the state of the art in studio design, there’s no better place to look than EDM star Afrojack’s Wall Recordings.

Patriotism doesn’t always come naturally to Britons, but if anything can provoke a swell of national pride, it’s our track record in mixing console design.

Hazel Mills talks us through her impressive career, from working as a touring session musician, being a member of the Will Gregory Moog Ensemble, working with synth maker UDO Audio and releasing her debut solo EP.

American musician and technologist Corry Banks, aka Bboytech, is the driving force behind Modbap.

“I have an impulsive streak,” confesses Puerto Rican‑Italian artist Becca Mancari. That impulsive streak brought Mancari to Music City around a decade ago, and it was in Nashville that they met a host of future collaborators.

The Nagra VI is a visually stunning, operationally simple, and a technologically versatile 8‑track digital audio recorder, derived from a long genealogy of superb‑sounding and beautifully engineered machines...

Xylo Aria talks about her personal journey as a music artist and how it gave her the incentive to create Music Production for Women.