Week of January 30, 2005 Friday, February 4 2005 | dmac Version 1.5 of RealGuitar Virtual Instrument Released MusicLab has released version 1.5 of their virtual guitar for Mac and PC. RealGuitar is a sample-based virtual instrument designed to make performing guitar parts on a keyboard easier. RealGuitar features a multi-channel layer technology and a custom library of specially recorded samples taken from every fret of all 6 strings of a guitar. The floating fret position technology, which imitates the change of fret position of a guitarist's hand on the neck, gives one the possibility of playing up to 104 guitar frets simply using 43 keys of a standard keyboard. The Guitar Touch technology allows users to easily imitate basic guitar techniques (strumming, plucking, sliding, bending, muting) using standard MIDI keyboard and MIDI controllers, such as Pitch Bender, Modulation Wheel, Sustain Pedal and Aftertouch. RealGuitar includes a 555 MB sample set featuring 8 acoustic guitar patches (Steel Picked, Steel Fingered, Nylon Picked, Nylon Fingered, Steel 2 Picked, Steel 2 (Doubling), 12-String, Steel Stereo), along with 1000 instant guitar chords; 26 chord types recognition; automatic fret position change; custom 32-bit sound engine; and more. RealGuitar operates as a virtual instrument software plug-in in all major Windows hosts such as Pro Tools, Cubase, and VST2 and AudioUnit hosts on OS X. For more information, visit their web site at musiclab.com. Friday, February 4 2005 | dmac MODELmaker Software Now Available for Neuron VS Neuron VS Resynators Page Previously only available to Neuron keyboard users, Hartmann Music has now released MODELmaker for use with the Neuron VS virtual instrument. Using the MODELmaker software, you can analyze your own sample material and bring it into the Neuron VS Software synthesizer. The graphical user interface helps to arrange, prepare and playback different sample formats and finally render a model out which can then be loaded into Neuron VS. Neuron VS is built around the same sound engine found the Neuron Hardware Synthesizer. Neuron VS includes 2 Resynators, the Blender module, the Mod- and Slicer Module, a Silver Unit (Multimode Filter plus Time and Frequency Effect unit) and 7 ADSR Shapers. Unlike the Neuron Hardware Synthesizer, Surround capabilities, 4 levels / 4 times Shapers, high-end Delay and Reverb are not included. A custom hardware controller with four assignable rotary encoders and a stick controller is included. MODELmaker is a free download for registered Neuron VS users, and runs on Mac OS 9/X and Windows. A PDF manual is included. A software update for Neuron VS is expected soon as well. For more information, visit their web site at hartmann-music.com. Friday, February 4 2005 | dmac Electronic Producer #1 Added to Precisionsound Lineup This fist producer set from "Henrik B" contains 178 24 bit WAV files divided into 3 categories; "Drums", "FX" & "Synth" mapped for HALion, Kontakt, NN-XT (Reason). You also get a 16-bit Sf2 (SoundFont) version for maximum compatibility with almost every virtual sampler on the market. "Electronic Producer #1" comes from the mind of Henrik B into your studio and will give you a toolkit for electronic music making, soundtracks, jingles and any music style that needs the flavor of pure analog sound design. For more information, visit their web site at precisionsound.net. Wednesday, February 2 2005 | dmac More Downloadable Kontakt Sounds from Kid Nepro Kid Nepro has expanded their Kontakt collection with 15 New downloadable files. All sounds are also compatible with Native Instruments Intakt, Kompakt and Battery samplers. New files include: Funk Guitars Rock Guitars V1 Rock Guitars V2 Acoustic &12 String Guitars Sitar Mix Church & Tubular Bells Harp Glissandos Orchestra Effects Orchestra Hits V1 Orchestra Hits V2 Orchestra Winds - Bassoon, Clarinet, Oboe, Flute Orchestra Brass - Trumpet, Trombone, Tuba, French Horn Orchestra Strings V1 Orchestra Strings V2 Orchestra Strings V3 Downloadable Files are $5 per download package. Buy six and get two free. Order online download delivery and have your new sounds the same day. Kid Nepro is also offering a special bundle package on their four CD-ROM collection for Kontakt. Get all four CD-ROMS consisting of: Drum & Bass, Vintage Synths, Midi Mix and Killer Keyboards. Plus the 15 new downloadable files all on one DVD for only $250. Over three gigs of data in all. For more information, visit their web site at kidnepro.com. Tuesday, February 1 2005 | dmac SonicBirth released SonicBirth is an "AudioUnit designing application". It allows users to build their own AudioUnit plug-ins, either by working with existing circuits or by creating circuits completely from scratch. SonicBirth is also an AudioUnits package, as it comes bundled with a set of plug-ins designed for standalone use as plug-ins as well as pre-constructed circuits to modify or build upon for creating new plug-ins. Whether you're looking for traditional eqs, compressors, and reverbs, or softsynths, distortion, and filters, etc., SonicBirth allows you freedom and creativity over your sound. SonicBirth is based on a powerful, flexible engine. Every plug-in can be used in 32 bits or 64 bits for added precision. Since all plug-ins share this engine, any improvement in speed will benefit all of them. These are the currently available prebuilt plug-ins. New ones will be added over time, free of charge: Multiband Scraper: Degrades the bit depth and sample rate of the signal independently over and under a user selectable frequency. Simple Reverb: A simple reverb based on Jezar's Freeverb, with the the addition of a feedback delay line and selectable filter. Multiband Freeverb: Jezar's Freeverb with a twist. MIDI Filter: A MIDI controllable, lowpass/highpass selectable filter. Frequency is set by the note pressed. Bassdrum: A bassdrum synthesizer, with variable slope, punch and distortion. Rainy synth: A simple synth showing a filter used in an unusual way to create a new sound. 5 Band Eq: A five band, with variable center frequency, Q and gain, completely MIDI controllable. 20 Band Eq: Simply a basic twenty band eq. Width Enhancer: Stereo width enhancer/nullifier. Limiter: a seven stages, 2 ms look-ahead limiter. Compressor: Audio compression with variable attack, release, threshold, and knee softness. Gate: Audio gate with variable attack, release. The price for the preview version is US$99 - the final price will be US$129, however if you are good with graphics, check the screenshots page for a way to get SonicBirth for free. The final version is expected to be completed around June 2005. It will be faster, have more prebuilt plug-ins, and more elements to build plug-ins from. A demo version is available - it will override the sound for one second every thirty seconds until it is registered. SonicBirth requires MacOS 10.3, a recent version of QuickTime, and a host application that supports the AudioUnit plug-in format. More @ sonicbirth.com Monday, January 31 2005 | dmac Version 2.4 of Voxengo's GlissEQ Released Voxengo has released a new update to their PC VST analog-style equalizer with dynamic equalization performance and real-time sonic spectrum analysis. Version 2.4 offers you a new and a very different quality mode--the "Alt Quality". This version update also features a narrow-band sweeping function. This function allows you to listen to a selectable narrow spectral band in order to hear what is going on there. With GlissEQ, the spectrum of the track can be exported to any other instance of GlissEQ thus making interchannel spectrum overlays possible. This can help you to free frequency ranges in one track to allow the instrument in another track occupying these frequencies breathe. Voxengo GlissEQ features: Five filter bands Eight filter types Real-time spectrum analyzer Full/bar spectrum graph modes Interchannel spectrum overlays Bandpass filter sweeping Extra efficient Dyn 0 mode High quality mode The "Alt" quality mode Three dynamic modes "A-to-B" comparisons Factory presets Mono-to-Stereo, Stereo-to-Stereo processing Any sample rate is supported Internal 64-bit processing Native assembler DSP code Voxengo GlissEQ VST is available for a discounted price of USD 59.95 ($20 off the regular price) through February 7. For more information, visit their web site at voxengo.com. Monday, January 31 2005 | dmac Zero-G Announces Two New ReFills Zero-G continue their support for users of Propellerheads Reason software with the release of two new Reason ReFill libraries; KONCEPT & FUNKTION and THE OPERATING TABLE. KONCEPT & FUNKTION features over 1.1 Gb of Drum & Bass loops and samples produced in the UK by producers, David & Nic Higham. Providing all the loops and samples you need to turn out dance tracks, D&B producers will find plenty to keep them happy and are likely to find themselves conjuring up a masterpiece before they know it. Included in the product are 40 Construction Kits, plus a huge selection of driving Beats & Loops, Bass Loops, Liquid Funk Loops, Organ Loops, Pad Loops, Synth Loops, and Loop FX. Additionally, Drum Kit Sounds, Dark FX, Hits FX, Industrial FX, Noise FX, Space FX, Sweep FX, Pads, Pad Sweeps, Female Vocals, Spoken Vocals, and Vocal FX complete this creative and highly usable drum & Bass production kit. Formats provided inside the KONCEPT & FUNKTION ReFill are: REX2 ReDrum Kits & Samples NNXT NN19 Now also available as a Reason Refill, Zero-G's THE OPERATING TABLE is a groove library performed and produced by Emre Ramazanoglu, whose production credits include The Prodigy and William Orbit. Emre also masterminded the Award-winning "Return To The Planet Of The Breaks" sample library on the Zero-G label. The sample-accurate construction kits and breakbeats found on The Operating Table derive their feel and sonic basis from live drumming techniques performed by four featured drummers, but were created via extremely creative processing techiques, while preserving the real feel of a performance. Many performances change and evolve, providing multiple loop variations. Real kits are the foundation of the sound of each break, although some incorporate additional live triggered analog drum machines or software triggered sounds. Formats provided inside the THE OPERATING TABLE ReFill are: REX2 Please note that each of these new Reason ReFill products from Zero-G are formatted as a single Reason ReFill, and is therefore usable only with Propellerheads Reason software. The REX files etc. are NOT also provided separately outside of the Refills. However, details of an alternative plug-in version for each of these two libraries, powered by a customized version of the Native Instrument's INTAKT engine can be found on the Zero-G website. The plug-in versions are also compatible with the full versions of INTAKT and KONTAKT. Zero-G's KONCEPT & FUNKTION ReFill and THE OPERATING TABLE ReFill are in stock now at a recommended retail price of 79.95 ($139.95 / 119 Euro) each. For more information, visit their web site at zero-g.co.uk.