5 of the Best Christmas Albums That Capture the Festive Spirit

Merry Christmas Folks! To get you into that festive mood, we've selected some of the best Christmas albums recorded in the last century.

Merry Christmas 2024: GEARNEWS Wishes You a Happy Holiday Season!

Like every year, Christmas is just around the corner. And we at GEARNEWS say: grab your instruments and make some music!

Mixing vs Mastering: Can You Do It All?

So you've started creating tracks in your home studio, but what are the next steps in the process? We're looking at mixing vs mastering.

Synthy Xmas Hits and Misses! Our Pick of the Bunch

We all love a good Xmas song, but what are the best and worst Synthy Xmas tracks that we love to hear or are desperate to avoid?

Acoustic Covers: 5 Lighter Takes on Rock Classics

Experience rock classics reimagined with acoustic covers, offering stripped-down, soulful renditions that highlight the essence of each song.

Studio Christmas Gifts for Musicians

Looking for a special gift for the musician in the family this holiday season? Here's a list of Studio Christmas Gifts to help you decide.

Best DJ Gear of 2024: 5 Top DJ Controllers & Mixers of the Year

What was the best DJ gear of 2024? If you’re thinking it was something with MKII in the name, pat yourself on the back, you’re right.

A Touching Tribute to the OSCar and its Creator: Synth Journal

Cherry Audio releases a Polivoks filter plugin, Noise Engineering has new firmware, and Dave Spiers pays homage to the legendary OSCar and its creator.

The Best ADAT Preamps for your Home Studio

We look at some of the best ADAT preamps for multitrack recording, analogue mixing, or incorporating hardware into your DAW workflow.

Sounds and Presets: The Best Presets of 2024

This week, I take a look back through my Sounds and Presets column to pick out the best presets that we featured in 2024

The Best Microphones of 2024: Affordable Recording

In this roundup, we're looking at some of the best microphones released in 2024 for streaming, content creation, and home recording.

From Bedroom to Pro: Upgrading Your Home Studio

Looking to take your music production and recording capabilities to new heights? We check out different ways of upgrading your home studio.

The Best FM Synths for your Music Production Setup

Looking for a way to get into FM synthesis? We've selected some of the best FM synths with both sound design and song-creation tools.

Highs and Lows of Synth Collecting: Tops and Flops

When synth collecting, not every synth can fit you like a glove. These are the best and worst synthesizers to pass through my studio.

7 Synths That Were Victims of Bad Timing

Too early? Too late? Here are seven synths that were victims of bad timing.

6 of the Best SSL SiX Alternatives for your Studio Setup

An analogue mixer is still a practical solution for a home studio, so here are some of the best SSL SiX alternatives for music production.

A Synth World View of a Superb 2024: Synth Journal

For my last entry into this year's Synth Journal, I thought I'd take a retrospective look at some of the things that caught my eye in the synth world of 2024.

5 Top AI Composition Plugins to Increase Productivity

Whether you're a professional music producer or a beginner starting out, AI composition plugins are useful to streamline your workflow.

Sounds and Presets: A Huge Sackful of Fantastic KORG Presets

KORG's microKORG2 takes the legendary microKORG to new heights, much like the opsix did for FM synthesis. Check out these new KORG presets and more in this week's Sound and Presets.

The Best Plugins of 2024: Top Audio Processors

We look back at some of the best plugins designed for music production, mixing, and mastering released over the course of this year.

The Best Studio Gear 2024 for Recording and Mixing

We look at the most exciting preamps, processors, DAW controllers, and mixers released this year. Here's the Best Studio Gear of 2024.

Mixing on Headphones: Myth or Masterplan?

We explore some of the important factors to consider when mixing on headphones and how it compares to working with studio monitors.

Minimoog Plugins: Nostalgia On Tap

Which Minimoog plugins are best to recreate the sound of this legendary analogue synth? We look at some of the top emulations available.

Tops and Flops: High Fade, 90s Amps and Discontinued Products

This week's Tops and Flops, the rediscovery of a forgotten amplifier, a live performance from High Fade, and the sad demise of one of my favourite products.