SynthFest UK 2017: show report

Sheffield hosted the second UK SynthFest on the 7th October presented by Sound On Sound magazine. I walked the floor, played with all manner of synths and noise machines and met the people who made them.

Moodcaster, a Telecaster that reacts to more than just a strum

Joseph Morinelli, guitarist of the US band Joywave, has a seriously moody Telecaster - dubbed the Moodcaster - which changes its mood whenever it (or he?) gets all hot and bothered.

Grow your own soundscapes in the Folktek Resonant Garden

The culmination of 10 years of cultivating vibrational interfaces the Resonant Garden pollinates manipulated strings through Alter DSP effects engines to seed beats, glitches and ethereal soundscapes.

Almost there: FL Studio for Mac beta version now available to download

Finishing up and releasing FL Studio for macOS has been high on Image-Line's priority list and is only a matter of time and effort. Interim, IL published a beta version for 64-bit Mac computers...

The Zoom ARQ AR-48 Aero RhythmTrak is ready for lift-off

A cross between a disco lamp and an all-in-one audio workstation, the Zoom ARQ AR-48 Aero RhythmTrak is a production and live performance instrument that looks like something from a toy store...

Elektron will update the original Octatrack to the MK2’s operating system

In a move that will surely delight owners of the original Octatrack, Elektron announced an upcoming software update for the machine which will bring its operating system in line with the MK2 version...

This week: pedals by Massive FX, BSM and Electro Harmonix

This week we have boutique octave fuzz pedals, Richie Blackmore's box of tricks and a polyphonic, effects-laden synth pedal for you all to check out.

Bare Knuckle gets heavy with Ragnarok Misha Mansoor signature pickups

These brand new signature pickups from Misha Mansoor of Periphery look set to take the modern humbucker into hitherto unknown realms. Ragnarok is coming!

Ibanez PS2CM Paul Stanley with purple cracked mirror finish!

The Kiss guitarist isn't exactly known for being subtle and neither is his new limited edition signature model guitar, based around one of his most famous guitars and made to rock!

Fender rolls out Roasted Ash Stratocaster, Telecaster and Precision Bass

These three new vintage-styled guitars all come with a more modern, processed roasted tonewood construction which not only avoids CITES restrictions but brings some other benefits, too.

iZotope lets Ozone 8 and Neutron 2 mastering and mixing tools communicate

Two tools, connected: iZotope updates its Ozone and Neutron mastering and mixing tools. Biggest new feature? They're now integrated using the Tonal Balance Control plug-in.

#HomeRecordingDays at Thomann with special offers, give-aways and tutorials

The German online gear retailer has a new promotional campaign aimed squarely at budding home recordists - with a few tutorials mixed in to help make sense of all that new tech!

Erica Synths spectral analysing Black Dual VCF is now available

First seen at Superbooth the Black Dual VCF with fabulous 16 band spectral analyser LED strip is now available from Erica Synths. Dark, growly filtering x 2.

ESP LTD Kirk Hammett Limited Edition quilted maple Ouija Board models

Kirk Hammet's Ouija design is the focus of a new super-limited edition Japanese Custom Shop ESP version and a more widely available Korean-made guitar released under the LTD brand.

Eventide ups its mastering plug-in game with Elevate, an intelligent limiter

Developed by Newfangled Audio, Elevate combines a multi-band limiter, EQuivocate's equalizing tech, and a maximizer with the goal of increasing your mix's perceived loudness and improving its dynamics...

Vixen: a mixer for Korg Volcas gets Kickstarted and open for preorders

Vixen is an 8 channel mixer designed for mixing and powering up to 8 Korg Volcas. A great idea, great features at a keen $219 preorder price point in a weird coloured case.

bx_console N plug-in gets you closer to the Neve VXS analog console sound

Brainworx's plug-in models the 72-channel Neve VXS analog console, this time with the addition of per-channel saturation control and one-click random channel assignments...

Boss Katana amps updated to Version 2 with added FX – for free

Boss has just announced a very nice little update to their popular Katana amp range, bringing some really useful new features and a range of new effects to the series. For zero dollars.

Mutable Instruments discontinue Clouds Texture Synthesizer module

The Mutable Instruments carnage continues with the announcement that Clouds, the granular texture synthesizer module found in everyone's Eurorack is discontinued.

Epiphone Winter Collection in white – now with built-in beer opener!

This avalanche of all new all-white signature guitars will be here just in time for Winter, and it includes signature models for Matt Heafy, Björn Gelotte and Tommy Thayer.

Mackie Onyx Artist and Producer USB audio interfaces: Scarlett killers in black?

Mackie is pursuing the saturated small desktop interface market with the Onyx Artist and Producer. Both interfaces handle 24-bit/192kHz audio and take on Focusrite's Scarlett series...

Mutable Instruments Clouds and Braids as free Max4Live devices

Timo Rozendal has released Mutated Texturizer and Mutated Macro Oscillator, free Max4Live versions of Mutable Instruments' Clouds and Braids Eurorack modules.

HY SeqCollection is here: 5 MIDI sequencers for bonkers synth lines

HY SeqCollection features five sequencer modes - acid, dark, m5816, step16, and hexa. Acid is partly inspired, as expected, by the legendary Roland TB-303 bass synthesizer - expect to deal with 16s, accents ...

PreSonus Quantum 2 arrives: a $700 sequel to the $1000 pro-audio interface

The Quantum 2 is a fact and it's out for blood! It's a 22-input, 24-output audio interface that connects via Thunderbolt 2 to deliver 24-bit, 192kHz sound with very low latency...