Simon Allen, Author at gearnews.com

Simon is an internationally recognised Professional Sound Engineer/Producer with over a decade in the industry. Working mostly in music, his reputation as a mix engineer continues to reach new heights. Sound Engineer (Studio & Live) Freelance Record Producer Pro Audio Specialist / Consultant Pro Audio Journalist Pro Audio Trainer

HK Audio present even more options to chose from with Linear 3 boxes

11 Jun 2017 in Live

German pro audio manufacturer HK Audio must be one of the busiest loudspeaker brands about today. They've just announced 3 new Linear 3 'top-boxes' and 2 more active subs. Oof!

Get yourself pucked up! ISO-Puck isolates your studio monitors

11 May 2017 in Studio

The new portable ISO-Puck speaker isolators are now available, with a new approach to that often underestimated task of mounting your studio monitors correctly.

Genelec piles on the superlatives for ‘The Ones’ compact studio monitors

09 May 2017 in Studio

Ignoring their "low Finnish profile", Genelec show maximum confidence in 'The Ones' - "the world’s smallest three-way coaxial monitor”. Interesting and significant release alert!

Anyone fancy being an audio wizard? iZotope’s RX6 is here!

24 Apr 2017 in Studio

iZotope's RX audio repair toolkit was already considered the industry's secret weapon, and now RX6 has just been announced with some clever new spells.

Are QSC really providing twice the power on their new K.2 PA speaker series?

19 Apr 2017 in Live, DJ

Have QSC really doubled up the power of their well-known K Series active PA speakers, or is the K.2 Series just a marketing frolic?

Plugin-Alliance Lindell 354E Multiband Compressor

Plugin-Alliance’s Multiband “Mastering Beast”: Lindell 354E Compressor Plug-in

19 Apr 2017 in Studio

From the Plugin Alliance camp comes a retooled version of the Lindell 254E plug-in: the 354E, wich boasts multiband Neve-style compression.

Musikmesse 2017: Warm Audio clone another classic, introducing the WA-14

06 Apr 2017 in Studio

Warm Audio continue to produce clones of recording industry classics. The second mic to enter their mic locker is the WA-14, clearly after the AKG 414.

Musikmesse 2017: Audio-Technica display fresh approach with AT5047 studio mic

05 Apr 2017 in Studio

Audio-Technica are adding a transformer stage to their AT5040 microphone, suitably calling it the AT5047! An interesting design, but it doesn't come cheap.

HK Audio extend the meaning of portable PA with LUCAS NANO 602

05 Apr 2017 in Live

Building on their LUCAS NANO 600 and 608i portable PA systems, HK Audio introduce the 602, in turn delivering several compact stereo PA solutions.

sE Electronics X1 S Condenser Microphone

sE make bold claims with new X1 S Condenser Mic

02 Apr 2017 in Studio

sE have announced the X1 S, another 'revision' of their X1 studio condenser microphone; they're even calling it "the new gold standard". Do the initial specs bear this out?

Ferrofish preview Pulse16 and Verto converters ahead of Musikmesse 2017

24 Mar 2017 in Studio, Live

Ferrofish have announced they will be showing 4 new products at Musikmesse. These extend their Pro converter product line including some more AoIP toys...

PreSonus Studio Magic Brainworx bx-opto Compressor

PreSonus publicises Studio Magic plug-ins – but not for everyone!

20 Mar 2017 in Studio

PreSonus have just announced 7 new plug-ins as part of a 'Studio Magic' plug-in bundle for Studio One. But who can access these plugs?

Ploytec and Intelligent Sounds & Music add some “Aroma” to your mix

19 Mar 2017 in Studio

Who wants another harmonic processing plug-in? Aroma looks like a lot of fun and offers four different processes in one easy-to-use GUI.

More transient processing! Plugin Alliance improve SPL Microplugs

14 Mar 2017 in Studio

With a new transient-based processor appearing nearly once a week at the moment, Brainworx re-vamp the trusty little SPL Microplugs by Plugin Alliance.

A ‘double-stereo’ microphone! Check out the Samofix Feature 2S

12 Mar 2017 in Studio

Here's a unique offering for the world of pro audio from Croatia. The Feature 2S is a completely new design of microphone, and it sounds amazing!

Exponential Audio’s new R4 plug-in: “Reverb Royalty”

10 Mar 2017 in Studio

From the reverb legend Michael Carnes, comes a new plug-in by Exponential Audio. While Nimbus was transparent, R4 promises to offer lots of character.

The Eventide ‘structural effect’ mystery is finally solved: We welcome ‘Fission’

06 Mar 2017 in Studio

Over the new year, Eventide teased us with their new developments, and now a new plug-in called 'Fission' is available, uncovering what 'Structural Effect' really means.

Harrison updates Mixbus DAW to version 4, professing improved sound

03 Mar 2017 in Studio

Do you use a selection of DAW's for different aspects of your workflow? If so, could this latest v4 of Mixbus tick all the boxes as the ultimate mixing DAW?

Is Focusrite’s new iTrack One Pre missing something?

02 Mar 2017 in Studio, Guitar

Focusrite are very proud of this little iTrack One Pre interface for iOS mobile recording. While it is cute, can you see what's missing?

Vintage Pultec EQ plug-ins arriving soon from Black Rooster Audio

28 Feb 2017 in Studio

Arriving in the next couple of weeks are these two Pultec-inspired plug-ins from Black Rooster Audio, suitably named the VHL-3C and VEQ-5.

As “accurate” as the NS-10M: Yamaha HPH-MT8 headphones now shipping

27 Feb 2017 in Studio

Two new additions, including the flagship HPH-MT8, for the Yamaha HPH line of headphones are now shipping. Apparently they're just as "accurate" as NS-10's!

Is Yellowtech’s Intellimix 2 the ultimate studio hub?

27 Feb 2017 in Studio

Is this the find of the year? A new touch fader design, modern audio connections and a USB interface - the new Intellimix 2 tries to pack a lot of interesting tech into one unit.

LD Systems Stinger G3 Speakers Portable PA

LD Systems’ Stinger G3 Series: The Nissan Micra of Portable PAs?

26 Feb 2017 in Live

In their third generation and with a name like 'Stinger G3', you'd expect something special. The name, however, might be the only stand-out characteristic for these boxes...

Studio Technologies Model 371 Intercom (Front) Dante Comms

Dante-powered comms: Studio Technologies Model 371 Intercom Beltpack

22 Feb 2017 in Live, Other

While they might not suit every live show, Dante-enabled comm solutions like this new Model 371 Intercom use AoIP technology for even the most basic of live audio tasks.