MusicTech - September 2016

6 PRO WORKSHOPS 20 GEAR TESTS
Issue 162 September 2016
www.musictech.net 1.3GB
samples
Issue 162
September 2016
MASTERING
The magazine for producers, engineers and recording musicians
FOR STUDIO & ONLINE

From hard drive to Spotify:
make your music sound pro
with our in-the-box guides
The incredible
Driftmoon Studio
Bluedot: where
music met
tech in space
www.musictech.net

Sept 2016
Issue 162
5.99
MT162.cover.indd 1 05/08/2016 11:11

Welcome MT
Expert Panel
Studio Hardware John Pickford
A studio engineer for over 25 years, Johns
a keen sound-recording historian who has a
passion for valve-driven analogue equipment
and classic recording techniques.
Mixing/Mastering/Logic Mark Cousins

Mark specialises in sound design and
cinematic productions. Hes recorded with
orchestras across Europe and is heavily
involved in soundtrack composition.
Production Matthew Mann

Matthew Mann is a keyboardist, composer,
singer, writer and educator who spends much
of his time doing voiceover work, composing
How you should master
original electronic music and fronting an 80s your music has just
tribute band.
changed. Yes, Im being
Digital/Composition Andy Price typically melodramatic
With a Masters in songwriting and a vast
interest in music history and recording to reel you in, but new
techniques, Andy works daily on MusicTech.net
and is currently heading up our songwriting and
delivery services like
Cubase series. Spotify andiTunes are
Recording & Guitar Tech Huw Price
changing the mastering
A recording engineer since 1987, Huw has rule book and we all
worked with the likes of David Bowie, My
Bloody Valentine, Primal Scream, Depeche need to be aware, and adjusting accordingly
Mode, Nick Cave, Heidi Berry and Fad Gadget. Luckily, Mike Hillier has been keeping close to the developments and throwing
himself into all of these changes and not only does he have solutions and
Scoring/Orchestral Keith Gemmell explanations, but he has in-the-box treatements, too, so we can all benefit. We also
Keith specialised in areas where traditional
feature mastering guru Beau Thomas who tells us more about modern mastering
music-making meets music technology, including
orchestral and jazz sample libraries, acoustic and reveals one or two surprises about the much lauded world of vinyl mastering
virtual instruments and notation software. Elsewhere, theres rather a celebratory feel as we cover the crossover festival
Bluedot, which sounds like a music-and-tech fest literally made in heaven. Yet this
Ableton Live Martin Delaney is tempered by the sad news of the passing of our very own Keith Gemmell, who
Martin was one of the first UK Ableton-Certified
Trainers. Hes taught everyone from musicians wrote for MusicTech from the very first issue right until this one. He wrote an
to psychiatric patients and written three books incredible number of reviews and features for us we feature some of his recent
about Live. Martin also designed the Kenton
Killamix Mini USB MIDI controller and is now best on p107 and pay tribute on p13.
the editor of Ableton Live Expert. Not much else to add, so take as much joy from your music making as Keith
clearly did, and see you next month
Synthesisers/Modular Dave Gale
Dave is an award-winning media composer,
orchestrator and producer, with a passion for Andy Jones Senior Editor
synths and modulars in all their forms, whether Email andy.jones@anthem-publishing.com
software, hardware, vintage or contemporary.
facebook: www.facebook.com/MusicTechMag Twitter @AndyJonesMT
Instagram: musictech_official Tumblr: musictechofficial.tumblr.com
Electronic Music Alex Holmes
Alex has been a computer musician for 15
years, having a keen passion for beats, bass
and all forms of electronic music. Hes currently
involved in three different dance-music projects.
Pro Tools Mike Hillier

Mike spent five years at Metropolis Studios,
working alongside some of the best-known
mix and mastering engineers in the world.
He now works out of his own studio in London.
New to Music Tech?

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MAGAZINE September 2016 |3
MT162.welcome.indd 3 05/08/2016 11:54

MT Contents
MT Contents
Issue 162 September 2016
MASTERING P22
GREAT STUDIO! P14
FREE SAMPLES P114
BLUE DOT P6
MT Cover Feature MT Interview
24 Beau Thomas
An expert in mastering vinyl speaks
MT Studio
22 NEW MASTERING 18 THE JUPITER 8

STANDARDS
We all need to know the new
rules of mastering for the new We go back
delivery formats like Spotify and to the future
iTunes. Here they are and how to with a look at the
use them in the box best synth ever
4 | September 2016 MAGAZINE
MT162.contents.indd 4 05/08/2016 11:41

Contents MT
MT Issue 162 Full listings

STUDIO
006 | The Bluedot festival
The Latest Reviews 014 | Show Off Your Studio!
DYNAUDIO LYD 5 & 8

018 | Back To The Future: Jupiter!
COVER FEATURE
Plus new gear from Softube, AKG, iZotope, Rupert Neve, Aston, 022 | New Mastering Standards
Output, Audio Technica, Eve Audio, Korg, SE, UAD and more The new rules of mastering your
music in the box for various
streaming services
INTERVIEWS
036 | Beau Thomas
Mixing and mastering tips
110 | Industry Guru sE Electronics
TECHNIQUE
044 | Live In Depth
Aggregate audio devices
Technique And Tutorials 050 | Logic In Depth
44 Live In Depth
Movement sounds in Alchemy
056 | Songwriting In Cubase: Pt. 4
Storytelling in songwriting
061 | MT Modular
More audio inputs via aggregate audio devices How to integrate clocks
50 Logic In Depth
SUBSCRIBE
088 | for a huge discount!
REVIEWS
066 | Dynaudio LYD 5 & 8
New monitors and theyre white
Modulation and movement with Alchemy
068 | Softube Modular
56 Songwriting SOS
Modular in soft-synth form
072 | AKG K812
The ultimate reference phones?
075 | iZotope VocalSynth
Part 4 of our songwriting series using Cubase Four vocal FX for the price of one
078 | Rupert Neve RNHP
Dedicated headphone amplifier
080 | Aston Halo
Hemispherical reflection filter
082 | Output Movement
Add rhythm to your audio sources
MT Buyers Guide 085 | Audio Technica IEM Series

In-ear monitor range
107 6 of the best

90 | Eve Audio SC3010
Pro-level studio monitors
93 | Korg Volca FM
orchestral collections
Easy FM in mobile-synth format
97 | SE Quadnic
Modular chiptune frolics
100 | UAD Fender Tweed Deluxe
Detailed amp simulation plug-in
102, 105 | Mini Reviews
107 | 6 Of The Best
114 | On your MT DVD
MT162.contents.indd 5 05/08/2016 11:44

MT Studio Bluedot 2016
MTStudio
Round-ups Analysis Industry insight
FOR MORE
OF THE
LATEST NEWS
CHECK OUT
MUSICTECH.NET
MT162.StudioBlueDotNEW.indd 6 03/08/2016 14:09

Bluedot 2016 MT Studio
REPORT
Bluedot Festival 2016
The three Ss Space, Science and Synths collided at Jodrell Banks inaugural
Bluedot Festival: with interactive gaming, live-coded Algoraves, Jean Michel
Jarres laser harp, Professor Brian Cox and stargazing feasts on the bill
B
luedot Festival is a gathering held at Cheshires
mighty Jodrell Bank, under the watchful eye of the
Lovell Radio Telescope. With its programme of talks
and music, its best thought of as a 5,000-people-
sized experiment into whether the collision of science and
music at high alcohol levels does in fact release the elusive
fun particle.
Named in honour of the famous Voyager 1 photo of the
Earth taken from the edge of our solar system in 1990, which
astronomer Carl Sagan immortalised in his 1994 book, Pale
Blue Dot, its a festival of paradoxes. On one hand, talks
convince us of the absolute certainty of the heat death of
everything in the universe, while Charlotte Church sings
Things Can Only Get Better; the festival takes place under a
gigantic radio telescope detecting the faintest signal bursts
from distant stars, while bands test the treble-range hearing
of everyone for miles around; and scientific talks explain the
difficulty of creating convincing Artificial Intelligence to a
crowd of people who look as though they may already own
their own pet robot.
Bluedots main stage,

under the watchful
eye of the magnificent
Lovell Telescope

Bluedot 2016 MT Studio
Theoretical particles, real ale

Professor Brian Cox may currently be residing in the Where
Are They Now? files of pop after his stint as keyboard player in
D:Ream, but he was King Of Geeks here. Brian, along with
comedian Robin Ince and a panel of super scientists (plus
enthusiast Charlotte Church) kicked off the main-stage
entertainment with a live recording of their excellent Infinite
Monkey Cage podcast. A first for them and a first for a UK
festival, but it needs to be said that Bluedot managed to
reconcile the sobriety of its science programme with the
music very successfully, through a stellar lineup of electronic
big-hitters with at least a tangential relevance to space
faring. Even the more guitar-orientated acts like Mercury Rev
and Everything Everything had something of the starry-eyed
about them; and crossover talks involved Doves duo Jez and
Andy Williams explaining how they bounced a guitar riff off
the moon, remixes of sounds from space, a commissioned
music piece about a recently discovered type of carbon and
more. There were also giant Clangers for the kids.
But what about synths, you cry? What about laser harps?
Well, Underworld conjured up the post-rave euphoria; Air
brought the retro thrills (and the mindblowingly desirable
vintage-synth collection); DJ Yoda treated the crowd to an
AV mash-up of sci-fi-movie visuals and sound; while the likes
of Caribou, Beyond The Wizards Sleeve, Public Service
Broadcasting, Floating Points and the warped but talented
Lets Eat Grandma brought things up-to-date.
Top: Brian Enos However, for many a real-ale swilling onlooker, it was the
Zenith light
mothership light show and soaring, epic melodies of Jean
installation
incorporated live data Michel Jarre that stole the show coaxing cheers from the
from the telescope hordes with a sonic odyssey fit to light up any radio telescope.
Above: Jean-Michel
Jarre, in his element Ambient light
as Saturday-night
headliner
And Bluedots Sentinel, the 76.2-metre-diameter Lovell
Telescope, was indeed lit up by none other than the
Left: Underworld
round off Friday s festivals second-most-famous Brian. Mr Enos installation
fun and frolics projected hypnotically undulating colourscapes onto the

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Introducing the New Rokit 4 & Rokit 10-3 G3
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2015 Gibson Brands, Inc. All rights reserved. www.krksys.com
Report Bluedot 2016 MT Studio
telescopes lofty exoskeleton from sunset to sunrise,

providing an unsurpassed photo opportunity and proper
sense of wonder. If you paid extra, you could book a table at
the Stargazer Banquet at The Restaurant At The End Of The
Universe where else? serving a galactic-themed feast
courtesy of Michelin-starred chef, Aiden Byrne. Planet-
spotting sessions were also provided for free by Jodrells staff.
Drunken keyboard solos

There were also a few intriguing diversions that hinted at one
possible direction festivals might be taking into the realms
of Algorave and interactive gaming. For the uninitiated (ie
those who have left their bedrooms in the last six months),
Algorave is live-coded dance music, generated by audio-
synthesis code projected onto a screen. Laptop performers
on stage change parameters and type semi-colons; and the
music changes in real-time. Had Bluedot gone peak geek, at
this point? No, not even That award went to the hugely
enjoyable Foxdog Studios, whose surreal and witty
performance involved WiFi-connected audience members
creating Happy Egg avatars and playing synth solos with
them via their smartphones. Also, if more surrealism were
needed, one only had to look to Henge, whose mushroom-
headed silver-catsuit-wearing space dancers werent even
the weirdest thing on their side of the stage.
The cynical may well have picked up on the fact that, yes,
this is indeed a very sophisticated crowd (we actually
spotted a pot of fresh coriander outside one tent, a festival
first for MusicTech). So if youre looking for edgy, all-night
dance thrills, this isnt the festival for you.
If, on the other hand, you want a mix of thought-provoking,
TED Talk-esque interstellar chatter and synth-soundtracked Above: Ambient
hedonism, then you should book your place ASAP judging post-festival gardens
by the positive post-festival feedback, tickets to next years Right: Caribou
Bluedot are likely to sell out in the time it takes a neutron star headlining Sunday
to rotate. MT Below: JMJs entry for
discoverthebluedot.com Show Off Your Studio
MAGAZINE September 2016 | 11

MT Studio
THEMTTEN
A brand-new feature in MusicTechs Studio section
where we throw 10 quick questions at a successful
producer/musician. This month, DJ Tristan
WHAT IS YOUR BACKGROUND? Right: DJ Tristans

lavish studio setup
My name is Tristan, which is also the production name I use.
in action
I started going to raves in the early 90s and bought some old
Top:
Technics SL-BD22 belt-driven decks to start DJing. I decided
DJ Tristan in action
to get a basic studio, with an Atari and lots of outboard and WHAT STUDIO TECH WOULD YOU LIKE DEVELOPED?
start creating music myself. Touch-screen technology for serious studio use At the
moment, it is not available to the average user. Thats the way
TELL US ABOUT YOUR SOUND? I use all my other media devices, so I would love to be able to
Depth, funk, psychedelia and positive vibrations. The most use it to write music.
important thing is a good vibe and my aim is getting people to
connect to my music on an emotional and cerebral level. WHAT MAKES THE BEST STUDIO?
Good room, good speakers, good source material. Dont forget
TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOUR STUDIO? to save regularly and back up your hard drives.
Theres my Macintosh which I have just pimped up with an
SSD drive for a fraction of the price of a new computer I AND DO YOU HAVE ANY ADVICE FROM WORKING IN THE
should get another couple of years out of it. Im running MUSIC INDUSTRY?
Ableton Live on it with lots of plug-ins, including UAD. Other Music is actually only a fraction of the whole process of
hardware includes Barefoot MM27 speakers, Access Virus
Snow synth, Nord Lead 2X rack, and Octave Cat synth.
making a living . So much these days involves doing your own
PR, bookings and admin; but these are essential if you want
T
to get attention out there in the world
HOW DO YOU START A TRACK?
Normally kick and bass, then percussion, leads and weird PLANS FOR THE FUTURE?
atmospheres, then risers, fills, segues at the end. A very busy schedule of festivals over the summer months
see below
HOW DO YOU FINISH A TRACK?
The arrangement is always the back-breaking part of the WHAT IS THE FUTURE OF MUSIC PRODUCTION?
process, so crack on with that soon, dont put it off! The It is no longer only exclusively available to the elite; anyone
sooner you have a few minutes of track under your belt, with a laptop can now create music and has the power to
the more light there is at the end of the tunnel towards a complete finished releasable tracks, and indeed release their
finished piece. own work themselves online. This is only going to get easier,
so the future of music production really is whatever you want
it to be!
ANY TIPS FOR SUCCESS?

Successful is a relative concept, but the Holy Grail is to firstly
to make music you like, and then if youre lucky, make a career
out of it. Dont expect to get rich from it, but persistence and T
authenticity are the two cornerstones of creativity. People E
resonate with that and I believe thats the most likely chance
for your music to be successful. In
F
You can catch DJ Tristan at Youths Puretone Resonate
Festival which is an ambient arts festival held between 16
to 18 September at Granada, Spain: puretonefestival.com
MT162.Studio.indd 12 05/08/2016 14:17

Studio MT
Keith Gemmell 1948-2016

particularly on the continent,
where their jazz-influenced
brand of progressive rock proved
popular (earning the band Top
10 status in Italy).
The band made four albums
Audience, Friends Friends
Friend, The House On The Hill
and Lunch before disbanding
in 1972 (before going on to
reform in the 2000s).
Gemmell then played in other bands writing for MusicTech since our very first
throughout the 1970s, including Sammy, issue in March 2003. For the magazine
who recorded an album produced by Ian he specialised in features on orchestral
W e have some sad news this month as

our longest serving writer, Keith
Gemmell, has died after a long battle with
Gillan from Deep Purple.
He studied jazz and composition before
discovering the joys of music technology in
products and notation software. He wrote
hundreds of such features for us, right up
until his death (we round up six recent ones
cancer. Keith was in various bands in the the 1980s with a setup that many of us in this issue, on p107).
60s before a long stint in Audience, who would recognise from the era: an Atari Keith will be sorely missed by all of us on
enjoyed success in the States and across 1040ST running Notator; an E-mu Proteus the magazine and is survived by his wife
Europe and toured with a fledgling Led module; Korg M1 synth; Roland Sound Jackie and two sons, Patrick Gemmell and
Zeppelin. Gemmell played flute, clarinet and Canvas plus an unspecified Roland drum Rennie Gemmell. Wed like to thank Patrick
saxophone in the band and used wah-wah machine, reel-to-reel, and mixing desk. for supplying some of the details here. MT
effects to create a highly unique and Later, he continued to enjoy composing
Above: Keith (second left) joined Sammy after
atmospheric sound. As Cherry Red Records and arranging, but also returned to teaching Audience, with their album produced by Ian Gillan
says: Audience had a fanatical following, and writing, publishing several books and from Deep Purple
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MT162.Studio.indd 13 05/08/2016 14:17

MT STUDIO Show off your studio
Show off
your studio
(and dog)
Were now seriously impressed by
your studios and your pictures of
them. Show Off Your Studio via the
MusicTech Facebook page and you
could take the top slot here (pets in
shot certainly help, too!)
Now that is
what we call
komplete kontrol
Driftmoon
Contact: driftmoonmusic@gmail.com
MusicTech: Tell us about mastering for my clients. I didnt Ive totally refurbished and
your studio expect the studio to actually be so reconstructed my home to be a
Technically, my company is called time-demanding, but its proving to full-on studio. I know many people
Driftmoon Audio Suite, but the be an amazing experience. Working prefer to have a studio somewhere
studio is called Double Helix with so many different clients and else, but I love the fact that when I
Mastering. I use the studio 50 per musical genres has opened up a have an idea for new track or melody,
cent for my own music composition world of new possibilities to me. I can write it down immediately.
under the Driftmoon alias and 50 per Also, its good to be available if
cent for mixing, producing and MT: Where, when and how?! clients need something to be done as
110| |September
14 November2016
2015 MAGAZINE
MAGAZINE
MT162 SOYS.indd 14 01/08/2016 11:00

STUDIO Show off your studio MT
soon as humanly possible. The music MT: Kit list? 2x Event Opal; 2x Avantone
scene is a rapid changing world, Mac Pro with 12-Core Xeon, 1TB SSD Mixcubes; Roland JU-06 and JP-08;
so its good to stay ahead of any and 128GB RAM; Universal Audio Dave Smith Instruments Sequential
potential problems. Also, considering Apollo Quad and UAD-2 Satellite Prophet-6; Native Instruments
that I live in the heart of Prague Quad; Waves MaxxBCL; API 5500; Komplete Kontrol S88; software from
right next to the most visited tourist Kush Clariphonic; SSL G Compresor; Waves, UA.
locations, finding some place just SPL M/S Master and MasterBay;
for a studio setup would be Focusrite ISA One; Mutec MC-3+ MT: Which DAW?
extremely difficult. Smart Clock; RTW TM3-Primus; For composing and production, I
MT162 SOYS.indd 15 01/08/2016 11:00

MT STUDIO
Show off
your
Showstudio
off your studio
Driftmoon (contd)
use Ableton Live. I somehow love the UNESCO protection, I cant have an MT: Do you have any advice for MT
workflow and even for orchestral AC unit here. readers about setting up a studio?
composition, its absolutely To try and remember that we all
amazing. Granted, it doesnt have as MT: Any dream gear? started with something little.
many features as, for example, Barefoot monitors, I really hope one Whether or not you will make
Cubase when it comes to composing, day I will be able to get a proper something great out of it depends
but you can work around them and space which will be treated so I only on you. Listen to as much music
find your own way of doing things. could buy and use these. So far, (in different genres) as possible and
For mixing, I use Pro Tools and for they are huge for my current space also to be kind and respectful to
mastering, Sequoia. but it never hurts to dream, right? other musicians.
MT: What is your favourite gear?

I recently purchased a Dave Smith
Prophet-6 and, oh my, its absolutely
phenomenal! Ive spent days playing
with the sounds and writing them
down in an Excel sheet to categorise
them and then I immediately started
reworking my album tracks, because
the sound of the Prophet is amazing.
It just stands out.
MT: How often are you in your

studio? I am here daily for 10 to 16
hours it depends on how much
work there is to be done. I stopped
having weekends years ago, now
every day is a work day, but every day
is amazing and different. I somehow
got used to non-linearity and its
making every day interesting.
MT: How do you use it? Driftmoons

My studio space consists of only outboard gear is
impressive,
one room, so there isnt enough particularly the
space to record a whole band: SPL gear
nevertheless I can record singers
and instrumentalists with ease. I
mostly use the studio for producing,
composing, mixing and mastering.
MT: Next on your shopping list?

Right until now, Ive had no need to
go into the 500 Series world. But
after loads of positive reviews about
Meris Mercury7 Reverb, I think Ill
start collecting different 500 Series
modules. Ive also tested the Moog
Ladder Filter module, its incredible.
MT: Does anything annoy you

about your studio setup?
Loads of time and effort (not to
mention money) went into this space.
Ive had room to work with and I
made it work. The room itself is
treated to industry standards. If I
could change one thing, it would be
A different
the air conditioning. However, perspective we
because the studio is located in a still love the dog
very old building which is under
110| |September
16 November2016
2015 MAGAZINE
MAGAZINE
MT162 SOYS.indd 16 01/08/2016 11:00

STUDIO Show
Showoff
offyour
yourstudio
studio MT
Just get the gear

you need
(and bluehas
Steve lights)
everything in
reach, but that desk height
can be annoying
Steve Broadbent
Contact: sbroadbentphoto@yahoo.com.au
MT: What are the key components Solo audio interface. It allows me to getting, then its less important.
of your studio? monitor all sorts of effects live on People get really upset when you
iMac 21.5-inch computer; the way in, with the option to write dont have acoustic treatment. It can
Universal Audio Apollo Twin Solo the FX to the track. I love the be a touchy subject!
interface; Behringer ADA8200 ADAT Marshall amps for my guitar. My
Pre; Dynaudio DBM50 monitors; only regret is that I went with the MT: Does anything annoy you?
AKG K240 MKII and Senheisser HD Solo and not the Duo, as I hit the Desk height. You cant have
380 Pro headphones; M-Audio DSP limit quickly. everything in reach. Also, I have
Oxygen 49; Line 6 POD HD Desktop; everything I need and yet I finish
Rode NTR, NTK, NT1-A, NT-USB MT: How do you use your setup? much less music than I did when I
and M5; Roland TD-9KX2 and As a hobby. I did record a couple of had very little gear I suppose Ive
E-Drums; Reaper; NI Komplete 9 bands for money, but found it time developed a fear of writing bad
Ultimate; BFD3 with a few consuming and the bands were music. Finally, there can be noise
expansions; Steven Slate drums; inexperienced. I play most pollution from the neighbourhood.
various Slate Digital plug-ins. instruments on most of my own
tracks, but have recently started MT: Do you have any advice?
MT: Which DAW do you use, doing online collaborations. You can Force yourself to finish almost
and why? find some of my music here: https:// everything you start. Write for the
I use Reaper. Its a tiny download, soundcloud.com/steve-broadbent bin. You can get by with very little
cost me only AU$70 for two full and there are plenty of great free
version upgrades and its incredibly MT: Next on your shopping list? plug-ins that will do what very
customisable, with toolbars, layouts It should be acoustic treatment, but expensive plug-ins can do. Dont
and themes. It takes a while to get I dont want to damage the walls think that if you only had [insert
it the way you like it, but it grows and I dont know how long the gear name here] you could make
with you. studio will stay in the current room. better music. I think that
Acoustic treatment is helpful, but restrictions and barriers are
MT: What is your favourite gear? when its just a hobby and youre conducive to creativity, whereas
My Universal Audio Apollo Twin pretty happy with the sound youre endless options are the opposite. MT
MAGAZINE September
MAGAZINE April 2016
2015 | 17
MT162 SOYS.indd 17 01/08/2016 11:00

MT Back To The Future
BACK
TO THE FUTURE
Regarded by many as the flagship synthesiser of the 80s,
the Jupiter-8 from Roland set an interplanetary benchmark.
Dave Gale sets course for the Gas Giant of analogue
Its a sight to behold

possibly the prettiest
synth ever made
to buying my first synth from all of the savings I had accrued

from five years of backbreaking jobs while being a school
pupil and there it was. My first synth-to-be, a second-hand
Jupiter-8A, which was being discarded by a record producer
in order to purchase something like a Yamaha DX7 (funny
L
ike many, I had a slightly unhealthy fascination with how useful hindsight can be).
shows like Top Of The Pops when I was in my teenage I remember reading some years ago, in a readers poll,
prime, and Im not talking about Legs & Co! No, I was that it was genuinely thought that the Jupiter-8 was one of
always craning my neck to see which synth was being the prettiest synths ever made. I cant disagree, but why? Its
used by the performing bands, which was a game made
easier by the standard tradition of writing the brand name on
the back of the synth for all the cameras to see. And there
seems to be none more striking than the name Roland, in
My first synth-to-be was
that classic late-70s font.
a Jupiter-8A, discarded by a
Glowing with power
The machine which seemed to be more predominant
record producer for a DX7
than any other, during that early- to mid-80s period, was
identifiable via a bright orange, glowing power switch which possibly because of the colourful switches which line the
was also located on the back panel, just along from the front of the panel, along with the beautiful legend which is
Roland moniker. It was of course the Jupiter-8, although its encased, along the top, by the orange framing.
worth stating that it wouldnt always glow, due to the nature It might be pretty, but its also heavy. Weighing in at
of the miming that would occur on a show like Top Of The around 48lbs, better known as 22kg, thats an awful lot of
Pops, as it often wasnt even plugged in. bags full of sugar, and its one of the reasons that I rarely take
Nevertheless, I can take myself back to a time when I my Jupe out these days. Once its in a flight case, your back
walked into a synth store in south-west London, with a view clearly knows it, and I blame my Jupe for a recurring back
MT162.Back to the future.indd 18 01/08/2016 11:01

Back To The Future MT
THE NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK

I would imagine most people know by now that Roland
have introduced a digital facsimile of the JP-8, in the shape
of the Boutique JP-08. This is an ACB reincarnation (not
analogue, although you would be hard pushed to know
it), of the classic, but for many, there are two prevailing
negatives here. Firstly, and contrary to the name, its
only a four-voice unit, although full eight-note polyphony
can be achieved by buying two (but of course). The other
glaring omission is the lack of arpeggiator. Yes, we know
you can find these elsewhere, but we want to have those
buttons right in front of us, as its pretty much part of the
sound of the original Jupe. Another worthy contender for
Above: consideration, though, is the Arturia Jupiter 8V, which
the offers a very similar timbre, but with added effects and
Boutique
the like, that one would expect from a plug-in version.
JP-08 is a
limited-
gripe, which started (you edition,
guessed it!) around the time I was mini-hardware But wheres the special stuff?
Jupiter-8, which
gigging with it. lacks some of the The exceptionally pleasant structure of the JP-8 was one of
features of the the signature touches that made it such a delight to use, but
Colourful structure original, but costs there were many features that became something of a
a hell of a lot less
The popularity of the JP-8 is highly justified because so calling card. The VCOs could be syncd together very easily, in
many electronic and pop artists cite it as one of their Below: there are few the oscillator section, but lurking below was a button marked
software Jupiter-8s
favourites; Thomas Dolby, Jean-Michel Jarre and Howard around, so Arturias Unison, which meant that all 16 oscillators (two per voice)
Jones were all fans of the JP-8, but what is this down to? I Jup-8V wins the best could be summed to a single note. The noise that this made
soft version
believe that its largely due to the serene nature of the filters. was awesome, and became something of a signature sound.
Unlike other machines of this era (Juno-6, SH-101, etc), the Bottom: you could do Whats more, applying the portamento to this, and hearing all
worse than tracking
filter on the JP-8 doesnt self-oscillate, so its much less the oscillators glide to the same location, was awe-inspiring.
down a Jupiter-6 as
aggressive and less likely to rip your head off. It is, of course, an alternative to the And now weve mentioned the portamento, I can tell you
completely analogue (as you would expect for a synth of this 8, and save yourself a about one of my fave things that the Jupe can do. Poly Mode
few thousand while
age), and so lends itself to more modest tonal colours. If you youre at it
2 uses the same oscillators first, with each trigger. So using
have used a few synths of the preset variety, I would put this mode, with portamento, means that the notes will glide
from chord to chord, in the way that one would want sliding
effortlessly from one chord to the next! When I discovered
All 16 oscillators could be this trick as a teenager, I spent the next week writing tunes
that just did that Great for me, less so for my family, who
summed to one note. The noise could hear the thundering chords vibrating through the
bedroom floor boards, into the lounge below. Families, as we
this made was awesome all know, should suffer the art of their teenagers.
But there was more besides; a clockable LFO with four
waveforms (one of which was Sample And Hold); 64 memory
money on it that you have probably come locations that were non-volatile, stable tuning with a tune
across a JP Strings patch at some point, button that would bring all oscillators into line, and a
and that speaks volumes about staggeringly fast warm-up time of four minutes.
what the Jupe does best. But I have saved the best until last, as any
The two VCOs, which begin the synth owner from that time will know. There
synth architecture, are stunning, with was an arpeggiator that ran over a range of a
a choice of four waveforms on each. full four octaves, and with four modes of
Interestingly, VCO One offers triangle, saw, operation; Up, Down, Up & Down, and Random.
pulse and square, whereas VCO Two offers a Just ask Nick Rhodes, of Duran Duran, about the
slightly different selection, namely sine, saw, pulse Random arpeggiator! It would probably be easier to
and noise, with the ability to frequency-shift VCO Two fully, list the Duran songs that didnt feature it. Rio, Hungry
in a rather lovely semitone step motion, coupled with a fine Like The Wolf and more, all benefitted from a bit of Jupe
tune pot. This is where the user could make those magical JP (Dur)randomness [[sorry about Owen, our sub ed Ed].
strings come to life, with the subtle detuning of the second
oscillator against the first. That, and the legendary 24dB/
octave four-pole filter, brought forth the subtlety which was
ideally suited to strings or similar. There is also a 12dB/
octave two-pole filter on offer, which predictably sounds
more abrasive, and a fully sweepable high-pass filter, which
proves useful for those higher strings.
Two full ADSR envelopes could dutifully control
amplitude, and many other parameters besides, with the
addition of many options laid out elsewhere, so it was
possible to assign the envelopes to a number of different
duties, and share settings. Very flexible indeed

MT Back To The Future
THE VINTAGE ALTERNATIVES

At the time of writing, many of us would not be able to
afford an original secondhand Jupiter-8, at least not if we
also want to continue to pay our rent and mortgages. Good
ones will sell for anything up to 7,500 or more which is
quite extraordinary. So a good place to look, if you feel you
just must have a Jupe, is the Jupiter-6. The JP-6 came later
and has MIDI as a result, although many people believe
that it does not stack up as well tonally. They are cheaper,
but they are no slouch, offering many of the features
available on the JP-8. Of course, many of us are wondering
if Roland might do something with its ACB technology,
from the Boutique series, and remake the classic in a
digital and keyboard form. Its all a matter speculation
from JP-8 fans, who really would like to see the return of
the poly that largely ruled the 1980s.
Other options are to look at synths such as the JX-8P or
JX-10, both of which came after the JP-8. They have roots
in the Jupe heritage and with a sound that is not dissimilar.
The MKS-80 is effectively a refined, rack-mounted JP-8,
and generally attracts a silly price tag to match, which isnt
far from that of the JP-8.
The Jupiter-8 Arpeggiator

offers players all manner of
Duran Durandomness
Its also worth mentioning that the JP-8 Arpeggiator had a Top left: this is where
clever trick that it could play, by plonking down the notes of a the magic happens!
The JP-8 Arpeggiator,
chord in a certain order. The notes would then play back in
offering all manner of
this simplistic sequence, as they moved up or down the Duran Durandomness
octaves, which was a very handy little trick for a teenager I believe its testimony to the fact that out of all of the
Right: 64 non-volatile
with no sequencer to draw upon. memories, available poly-synths of that age, very few really worked well and were
to stack, clearly ultimately reliable. The Jupiter-8 is built from a metal chassis
shown on the
The final reckoning ber-bright with components that are verging on weapons-grade. The
Its strange how the Jupiter-8 has become such a classic, and LED display faders and pots feel like quality, as they sit upon the
full-metal panel of the classic. I have had my Jupiter-8 for
JUPITER-8 versus 8A versus MIDI over 30 years, and its still going strong. Its required very little
In an attempt to bring the Jupiter-8 a little more up to date, during the latter days in the way of maintenance, which says al lot about the quality
of its reign, the Jupiter-8A was introduced. There were some subtle changes of the build and components within. Its a classic that was
made under the hood, but the biggest and most obvious was the addition of a built to last, and for me has become something of a family
DCB (Digital Communication Buss) port on the back panel. This opened up the heirloom, and if its value continues to rise, you can expect to
Jupe to other Roland devices which supported this protocol. These included
see it on Antiques Roadshow, in another 30 years time. MT
sequencers such as the JSQ-60 and MSQ-700, and hence was a useful stepping
stone to MIDI, which appeared later. Unlike some other synths, the Jupe took
really well to the notion of having MIDI retrofitted. Kits form the likes of Kenton Wed very much like to thank Richard Lawson for
Electronics are reliable and will allow access to parameters such as VCA and VCF permission to use pictures of his very own Jupiter 8 for this
(cut off) via MIDI CCs, giving the JP-8 a great lease of life in the DAW-based age. piece. He runs www.rlmusic.co.uk which has several classic
synths up for sale and also offers a restoration service.

MT Feature The New World Of In The Box Mastering
MT Feature In The Box Mastering
THE NEW WORLD

OF IN-THE-BOX
MASTERING
Maximising the impact of your finished mix has changed radically over
recent years with the intruction of so many new delivery formats. Here,
Mike Hillier covers the in-the-box tools and tricks you need to know
T
he days of mastering being used to squash the life out of mixes are over
the loudness war has been won, and dynamics are finally coming back.
The process began with the introduction of EBU R128 in 2010, a set of
recommendations regarding loudness set down by the European Broadcasting
Union. This set of guidelines defined a new way of measuring loudness the
Loudness Unit (LU) and recommended that broadcast audio be normalised at
-23LU referenced to full-scale digital audio (LUFS). This guideline quickly found
its way into law in Italy; and broadcasters in many other European countries,
including the UK, set personal goals of complying with the standard. A similar
law, the CALM Act, was passed in the US, which demanded broadcasters there
comply with ATSC A/85, which is based on R128.
These systems, though, only apply to broadcasters and while mastering
engineers began to take note, it wasnt until streaming services such as Apple
Music, Spotify and YouTube all began implementing similar loudness
normalisation that the war was finally won. The loudness normalisation
techniques used by each of these services differ slightly, but the principle is
similar in each: the loudness of each track is measured before playback, and each
file is automatically turned down so that they play back with the same loudness.
Heavily limited tracks are turned down the most, while dynamic tracks are
mostly left alone meaning they now punch louder than the limited tracks.
Of course, this doesnt mean that mastering is no longer necessary. Mastering
has always been about far more than simply making everything louder. And
artists havent stopped wanting to hear their music as loud and in-your-face as
possible. Its simply that the techniques to achieve loud and aggressive mixes
have changed, and the methods we used to use now have the opposite effect,
making mixes quieter and less noticeable.
With this in mind, it wouldnt be much of a surprise to see many albums from
the loudness wars getting the remaster treatment, but this time with their
dynamics left alone, or even enhanced.
In this feature, then, were going to look at what you can do in your DAW to
make your masters sound loud and punchy, without sacrificing the dynamics.
Were also going to look closely at the measurements you should be making to
ensure you are listening to your tracks as they will play back on each of these
streaming services.
MT162.Cover feature.indd 22 10/08/2016 15:48

THE NEW LOUDNESS PARADIGM Powerful emulations of similar RMS and peak levels may still not sound
Previously, mastering engineers have used all traditional studio mastering comparatively similar in level, if one of the signals
trickery are available
manner of tools to measure loudness: from PPM and to the home producer in the contains a good portion of its energy outside of the
VU meters to RMS measurements, dynamic-range form of dedicated metering, range of human hearing while the other is more
EQ, limiting and compression
meters, and now the new Loudness Unit. So which plug-ins
heavily band-limited. Even within the limits of
should you use in your own mastering sessions? human hearing, a 200Hz tone will sound quieter
Before we go on, its important to understand the than a 2kHz tone at the same level, following the
difference between each of these types of meter. Peak equal-loudness contour, or Fletcher-Munson curves.
meters, such as PPMs, measure the loudest points on To counter this, there are various frequency
the waveform, and are useful for informing you of curves which can be applied to weight the signal
how much headroom you have before the signal will before measuring. A-weighted curves have been
clip, but do not offer any indication of the subjective
loudness of the material. A heavily compressed
signal may sound loud while not containing any loud Consider the difference between
peaks, while a less-compressed signal may sound
comparatively quiet, while containing some very short-term loudness, and long
high peaks. Peak meters can also be calibrated to
over-sample the incoming signal in order to term, or integrated loudness
determine if the signal contains any inter-sample
peaks which may cause problems further along the commonly used for measuring loudness and are
chain, either when converted to an analogue signal, built into many meters. You will also occasionally
or when converted to mp3. This type of peak meter is see C-weighted measurements, and a new weighting
sometimes referred to as a True-Peak meter. curve, the K-weighting, which is most commonly
RMS, VU and Loudness Unit meters provide a used alongside Loudness Units to measure loudness
more useful measure of perceived loudness as they in Loudness K-Weighted Full Scale (LKFS).
average out the signal over time. This means they With all of this in mind, its clear that there isnt
are less useful for knowing where clipping may be one single measurement you should be using, but a
occurring in your signal, but will let you know how combination of several different meters: one which
loud one signal will be perceived compared to can show you the true-peak values of your signal,
another. However, even these are not ideal and another which can show you the perceived
measurements, as our ears perceive volume loudness. The difference between these two figures
differently at different frequencies, and have no is also important, as it is this which gives us an
means of showing how much of the signal lies within indication of how much dynamic range has been left
the range of human hearing. Two signals with in the recording.

The New World Of In The Box Mastering Feature MT
range in the final master, the client be that record

INTEGRATED LOUDNESS label or artist would nearly always be pushing for
Without going into the maths, integrated loudness is essentially a measure of the
average short-term loudness over the track. However, to prevent long periods of louder masters, hoping, perhaps navely, that louder
silence from bringing the integrated loudness down, the meters stop integrating masters would make their music stand out. Now that
the measurements whenever the signal drops below a threshold of -10 LU (relative audio-playback software, such as iTunes, and
to the un-gated measurement). This means that you cant trick the system by streaming services, such as Spotify and YouTube
adding long periods of silence to the end of your tracks to bring down the automatically normalise the loudness of music,
integrated loudness.
adjusting the volume of louder tracks down to make
everything the same, we need to start paying closer
It is also important to consider the difference attention to the loudness and less to the peak level.
between short-term loudness, and long term, or More to the point, in order to get our tracks sounding
integrated loudness. A song might, for instance, as loud as possible on these platforms, we need to
have quiet verses and loud choruses. This will mean start targeting our loudness to these platforms while
we should get a different loudness measurement for maximising the peak-to-loudness ratio (PLR).
each. In fact, even if we look at a single bar of music, While it would make our lives simpler were each
its likely that some beats will have more energy than of the major platforms (Apple Music, Spotify and
others. A short-term measurement over 500ms is
likely to produce a different result to one over five A NOTE ON PEAKS
seconds. However, it is the integrated loudness thats While peak meters will provide a sample-accurate
important to us, as this is what will be measured by measurement of any peaks in your audio signal,
streaming platforms to determine the playback gain, when the signal is converted from digital to
or how much the track is to be turned down by. analogue, inter-sample peaks can still cause
distortion problems with some systems. Similarly,
these inter-sample peaks can cause problems when
WHAT IS THE NEW LOUD? converting from a lossless audio format, such as
Up until now, in the digital era we have only needed WAV, to a lossy format, such as mp3. Try to use
to pay close attention to the peak meters to make True-Peak limiters and True-Peak meters to avoid
sure the track wasnt clipping, while VU, RMS and any inter-sample clipping, or alternatively, leave an
other loudness meters have been used merely as a extra dB of headroom available at the end. Peaks at
-1dB and a loudness of -11 LUFS should still give you
guide. And while many mastering engineers would
plenty of impact and level.
argue vociferously about increasing the dynamic
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MT Step-by-Step Mastering with IK Multimedia T-RackS
Add your track, or tracks to T-RackS and play through them Add a Brickwall Limiter in the final slot. Set the Output Ceiling at
01 several times. Pay close attention to the stereo spread, frequency
02 -1dB and for now, leave the Input at 0dB. We will come back at
balance and dynamic response of the track. Make notes on anything the end of processing to alter the Input in order to set our final level.
you feel might need to be altered.
Add a Classic EQ in slot 5 and use this to notch out any problem If the dynamics need reigning in, add a compressor in position 6
03 frequencies. Were using slot 5 to avoid dealing with the parallel
04 in the signal chain. We like to compare a fast, modern-style
processing in slots 1 to 4. You can use the A/B/C/D chains to compare compressor with a slower vintage-style one as, even with similar
different EQs or EQ settings. settings, each will bring something different to the final sound.
After the compressor, were going to use another EQ for more Now go back to the Brickwall Limiter in Slot 8 and set the input
05 general voicing. Add a Vintage Program EQ 1A in position 7. Where
06 gain such that the RMS Meter reads around -14dB. If your peaks
the Classic EQ was used to notch out problems, this EQ will be used to are still a long way from the ceiling, consider reducing compression
shape the overall tone of the master. earlier on. If your limiter is working too hard, compress harder earlier.

track to approximately 16 LUFS, while YouTube is

MASTERED FOR ITUNES
In addition to using a low loudnes-normalisation normalising to around -13 LUFS and Spotify is
value of -14LU, Apple has made other steps to try currently normalising to -11 LUFS, which, while 5LU
and improve the quality of music available from its louder than Apple, is still dynamic compared to
store, or streaming services. Apples AAC codec has many loudness war casualties.
been designed to take advantage of higher bit-depth In effect, this means that on Apple Music, any
and sample-rate files, and Apple suggest submitting
track mastered louder than -16 LUFS will be turned
songs as 24-bit/96kHz where available. Additionally,
Apple suggests that files should peak at -1dBFS. down automatically to playback at -16LUFS, while on
This little bit of headroom ensures no inter-sample Spotify, any track mastered louder than -11 LUFS
distortion is captured in the AAC file. will be turned down.
On Apple Music and YouTube, more dynamic
YouTube) to use the Loudness Unit to measure the tracks with a peak-to-loudness ratio greater than the
program loudness, and all to converge on a single platform target loudness allows will not be adjusted.
normalisation value, the reality is that each of the So they will sound quieter, maintaining the integrity
platforms has its own proprietary loudness of the dynamics in the recording.
measurement and each has a slightly different figure However, Spotify will apply peak limiting to
for normalising to. tracks with a peak-to-loudness ratio greater than 11,
Apple Music, for example, uses SoundCheck to which in effect turns everything up, but at the
determine the program loudness, normalising each expense of dynamics.
Q&A WITH PETE HEWITT-DUTTON

PETER HEWITT- lack of time available at
DUTTON is a pressing plants.
mastering engineer
at Metropolis Q: Are more pressing
Studios, London. plants opening?
He has followed the Its not that easy the
traditional rise, equipment has not been
from receptionist, manufactured for over
through assistant 30 years now, and
and finally to mastering engineer in his keeping the old gear
own right. Peter is now a specialist in running is getting harder
cutting vinyl at the studio. MusicTech by the year. Some
caught up with him to discuss the companies are starting to therefore can
challenges of working with vinyl, and the manufacture new presses now, so put more detail in. We play back the audio
more exotic methods of cutting that the hopefully, this situation will get better in at half the original speed, and spin the
studio employs. the near future. turntable at 16 rpm, so when you play it
back at 33 rpm, everything is back to
Q: What effect has the rise in vinyl sales Q: Has the process of cutting a record normal speed, but sounding better than if
had on you at Metropolis? changed much over the years? wed cut it at 33 rpm.
Our cutting lathes are busier than ever! We Very little has, in essence; it is a very
almost cant cut lacquers quick enough to simple process of cutting a groove into a Q: Do half-speed cuts improve all kinds
keep up with demand. Its been fantastic. lacquer-coated aluminium disc which has of music?
While a lot of studios (sometimes literally) hardly changed since the 1930s. Over the Yes, every area of the audio sounds better
threw out their lathes in the 90s when CD years, there has been refinement of the when cut at half speed. So for dance music,
was killing vinyl sales, ours were carefully process computers designed in the 70s you will get a tighter, punchier bass; pop
maintained, waiting for the time when and 80s designed to fit more audio on a benefits from the stability of the centre
they would be busy again. disc, and at a higher fidelity for example, image and clarity of the vocal, and the
but in essence, what we are doing has open, clear top end sounds great on
Q: Why is vinyl becoming popular again? not changed. classical recordings.
I think the main reason is that in a world
of people listening mainly to downloads, Q: What is half-speed mastering? Q: Are there any downsides to working at
the LP seems a better physical product to Its one of the best ways we have to make a half-speed?
own than the CD. The ritual of putting the record sound better. The groove on the Only for the engineer doing the cut. Several
disc on the turntable, the artwork and record is a direct representation of the of the processes done when cutting at full
lyric sheets is all being introduced to a acoustic sound, so the more detail you can speed dont work the same at half speed,
whole new generation now. get in that groove, the more audio detail because they are frequency specific. For
It should not be forgotten that the will be reproduced. High frequencies, for example, sibilance has to be very carefully
numbers of records being sold are still example, can be very difficult to cut, as the controlled on vinyl, but that processing
comparatively small, but that is growing stylus cutting the groove has to move very has to be done beforehand for a half speed
steadily, and showing no signs of slowing. quickly, slowing the whole process means cut, as the top-end frequencies which need
The biggest restriction is becoming the it has more time to cut the groove, and taming are now in midrange.

MT Step-by-Step Mastering with iZotope Ozone 7
Add the track or tracks you want to work on to the Ozone project, Dont add loads of modules The fewer you add, the less likely you
01 and initialise the project by removing or bypassing all of the
02 are to over-process. Start with a simple Maximizer module, with
active modules. Listen to the material closely, paying attention to the True Peak mode engaged. The Limiter shouldnt be doing anything
stereo spread, frequency balance and dynamic response. Make notes. initially: if it is, turn the input gain down to give yourself headroom.
Add an EQ module and drag it into the first position in the chain. Add any additional processing as you feel its necessary, whether
03 Use this to notch out any problem frequencies. The digital mode
04 thats compression, further EQ tweaks, stereo imaging or
in this EQ is capable of some very precise EQ notching very useful for excitement. Drag each module into position in the chain before the
targeting resonances without effecting the rest of the signal. final Maximizer module.
You can add third-party VST or AU plug-ins, too, which can be Set level with the Maximizer Threshold: add 1dB headroom with
05 useful for adding additional metering, such as a loudness meters,
06 the Output Ceiling. You can even hear the difference this makes
de-noising tools or a favourite audio processor. to future mp3 encoding via the built-in Codec monitoring. As this is a
True Peak limiter, you may be able to get away with a higher ceiling.

HOW TO MAKE YOUR MUSIC STAND OUT

RMS
Since Spotify is using limiting, and has the highest DAWs and meters occasionally use different methods for calibrating their RMS
platform loudness, it makes sense right now to use measurements, using square waves rather than the standard sine wave. This
Spotify as our target loudness, in order to avoid results in an RMS reading that is approximately 3dB lower than a sine-wave-
having our masters further limited by Spotify calibrated RMS reading. As the AES stipulates using the sine-wave reading to
unless you intend to master separately for each calibrate RMS levels and the LU meters use a similar calibration, you should aim
platform. Masters will continue to be turned down for a value of -14dB RMS on square-wave-calibrated meters, or risk mastering
your tracks too loud.
on other platforms, but the dynamics will be left
alone, and our masters will still sound more dynamic
on these platforms and have more energy than whole only using the track integrated loudness
loudness war tracks, which will have been turned when playing back playlists, or random play. This
down a far greater amount. enables us as mastering engineers to continue to
If you dont have a loudness meter with craft a journey through the album, with loud tracks
measurements in Loudness Units, a simple RMS having more impact after a quieter ballad.
meter will provide an adequate approximation of If we cant use limiters to make masters sound
short-term loudness; but measuring integrated louder, what tools and tricks should we be using to
loudness is more difficult without a dedicated meter. give our masters impact? The simplest trick is to
If the track has roughly equal amounts of loud and make use of the extra headroom available. If your
quiet sections, you could try and balance the two average loudness is -11 LUFS (the Spotify loudness
out, so that the average remains around -11dB RMS, target), you have 11 LU of headroom for your peaks.
with verses measuring around -13dB RMS and If you can use this full range your mix will instantly
choruses up to around -9dB RMS. But if you are carry more dynamic punch than mixes with quieter
thinking of becoming or already are a professional peaks. In many cases, this will mean finding new
mastering engineer, youll want to invest in one of ways to add to rather than reduce the dynamic range
the available meters. of masters. Expanders are one option; however, they
When working on an album, dont think you have often dont produce great results on full-programme
to make every song the same loudness. Many material, being better suited to specific tasks.
platforms are intelligent enough to know when the EQ is the best weapon in the mastering engineers
listener is listening to a full album, and will measure arsenal for giving the mix impact, particularly since
an integrated loudness for the whole album, and the weighted curves of the loudness meters will
play back at that level when the album is played as a enable us to boost some frequencies without much
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Distributed by SCV: Call 03301 222500 for your nearest dealer MAGAZINE September 2016 | 29
www.scvdistribution.co.uk

Loudness Meters
New loudness measurements require new measuring tools. While
many engineers will be happy approximating for loudness with RMS
meters, mastering professionals will want dedicated LU metering
tools, which can show both the short-term and integrated loudness
measurements of tracks they are working on
IZOTOPE INSIGHT
Price $499
Web www.izotope.com
Insight is one of the
most comprehensive
metering tools
available. In addition to
a range of loudness
meters, showing short
term and integrated
loudness over time and
a loudness graph,
Insight has a suite of
tools for metering and
visualising, including
spectrum analysers,
peak meters and an
interesting tool for comparing channels
in a mix called meter tap. Insight is included with the
Advanced versions of iZotope RX and iZotope Ozone.
METERPLUGS LCAST
Price $199
Web www.meterplugs.com
In addition to short-term, integrated and true-peak
levels, LCAST lets you target your audio to the
loudness-normalisation levels of Spotify and
iTunes. This meter also supports offline bounce,
enabling you to get faster-than-real-time results
for your integrated loudness and loudness history.
A Surround version of LCAST is available, which can
export the loudness measurements to a .CSV file,
enabling you to generate loudness reports.
KLANGFREUND LUFS METER

Price $49
Web www.klangfreund.com
Klangfreund LUFS Meter might look quite basic, but
it is capable of all the necessary measurements
including short term and integrated-loudness
measurements, true-peak measurements and can
even be used to automatically adjust the loudness to a
predetermined level, which is particularly useful for
anyone working in broadcast. A non-commercial,
feature-limited version of Klangfruend LUFS Meter
is also available for $29.

NUGEN VISLM-H2 change in the measured loudness; while cutting

Price 342 others will help us reduce the measured loudness
Web www.nugenaudio.com while keeping the peaks where they are, in effect
VisLM-H2 has true peak, momentary, short term and increasing our dynamic impact.
integrated-loudness meters, with support for up to Since the weighting filters almost all work by
7.1-channel Surround Sound. Furthermore, VisLM-H2 is focusing the measurement onto the most receptive
capable of showing mid-side loudness separately from part of human hearing between roughly 1 to 5kHz
stereo or surround loudness; loudness history can be we can focus our attention closely on this range.
viewed and exported for offline reporting. A compact Any cuts made to this range will provide us with a
version VisLM-C2 is also available, which lacks the more heavily reduced loudness compared to cuts in
standalone options, loudness history and advanced other ranges, while boosts outside of this frequency
mid-side metering. range will not increase the measured loudness by as
much. There is little point pulling everything out in
the 1 to 5kHz region of course, as your master will
sound terrible the goal should still be to produce
well-balanced masters but if there is room to pull
some out, you can now do so knowing that your mix
will play back louder as a consequence. Also, now
that we have headroom available to us, we can safely
add a little extra sub into our masters without lifting
the loudness too much.
Of course, were not suggesting that you cant use
limiters at all. They are still very useful tools for
protecting your final master from clipping,
particularly True-Peak limiters. And they still have a
useful purpose for deliberately squashing material
for creative musical purposes, irrespective of the
loudness normalisation.
TC ELECTRONIC LM1N THE HIPPOCRATIC OATH

Price $79 Mastering compression, like limiting, will reduce the
Web www.tcelectronic.com dynamic range of the mix. And despite using lower
LM1n is the simplest of TC Electronics range of ratios it can often have a more dramatic effect on the
loudness-measuring tools, providing a quick measure audio, even with only one or two dB of gain
of the integrated loudness, and loudness range. Pro reduction. While it does reduce dynamic range (thus
increasing the measured loudness), subtle use of
Tools users can quickly measure the
compression can still be a very important tool in
loudness of any clips by
mastering, precisely because it can have a large
using the offline tool. And
effect on our perception of the mix even at subtle
simple up and down
settings. Compression can glue a mix together like
arrows provide instant
no other tool at our disposal. It can also pull all of
visual feedback if the
the life out of a mix so be careful. Not every mix
material needs to be needs mastering compression, but if a mix isnt
made louder or quieter. sitting together, and EQ alone isnt helping you to
place it all in one space, then adding a slow-attack,
WAVES WLM PLUS slow-release compression stage with a low ratio can
Price $399 help to sit everything together.
Web www.waves.com Saturation tools can also help to sit a mix
Waves WLM Plus together, especially one that has been done entirely
provides momentary, in the box. However, this too should be applied
short term and integrated sparingly, and often not at all. If a mix is sounding
loudness measurements,
as well as true-peak COMPRESS OR LIMIT?
readings, all of which can In the fight for louder and louder masters, several
stages of compression and limiting were often
be exported to a .CSV file
applied to try and squeeze every last drop of level
for offline reporting. out of a master. In the new loudness-normalised
WLM Plus also includes a paradigm, this will only result in flat, dull masters
true-peak limiter, which which sound lifeless next to more dynamic,
can be used to ensure uncompressed tracks. But both compression and
limiting still have a place. Compression tends to be
that there are no
used at lower thresholds, and so has a bigger impact
inter-sample peaks in on the overall tonality and cohesion of a mix (a little
your audio which could can go a long way here), while limiting is almost
cause distortion further transparent when used only on peaks. However, it
down the chain. should be used sparingly.

MT Step-by-Step Mastering with plug-ins
Using plug-ins inside a DAW gives you the most flexibility to We always start by adding the final processor first, so lets add a
01 choose which processors to use at which point. But, as before,
02 brickwall limiter in the last plug-in slot on the channel. Were
first listen to the material and make notes, paying attention to the using the UAD Precision Limiter which is not True Peak, so were
stereo spread, frequency balance and dynamic response of the track. setting the output to -1dB.
In the first slot, were going to add the Brainworx bx_digital V3 We have a variety of meters we can place on the Master channel.
03 equaliser, and were going to immediately follow that with a
04 Here, were adding MeterPlugs Dynameter, Brainworx bx_meter
FabFilter Pro-Q 2 equaliser. Well use the bx_digital as an M/S EQ, and and the Blue Cat FreqAnalyst. Alongside the DAW meters, this offers
the Pro-Q 2 as a standard stereo EQ. loudness measurements and a frequency spectrum.
You can now take your pick of all your favourite processors to Finally, go back to the brickwall limiter and adjust the level using
05 add. Only use what you need; dont automaticaly add favourites.
06 either the input or threshold, depending on the plug-in youve
Here, weve added a further shaping EQ (UAD Manley Massive Passive opted for. You want to try and bring the loudness up to around -11LU
MST) and were not going to use any compression or saturation stages. with peaks ideally at 0dBFS.

Modern ITB Mastering Feature MT
STEREO WIDTH be altered in the mix to make it sound better, and

One of our favourite mastering tricks is stereo-image then only when you are sure you can make it better
manipulation. Advanced frequency-dependent tools should you apply the process. Most times, we find
exist for shrinking the low end and widening the top ourselves needing a little gain adjustment first,
end; but often, just a simple full-band expansion of followed by some EQ usually to pull out a resonant
around 10 per cent can be all that is needed to give a
frequency in the mix. With this done, listen again,
track a little extra dimension. It is easy to overuse,
however, and a skilful mastering engineer will know and compare the master closely with other tracks in
when a mix should be shrunk rather than expanded the genre, before deciding if any gentle shaping
in the stereo field, and will even occasionally needs to be done with further EQ processing, or if
automate the stereo width through a song to bring more drastic attention is needed with compression,
extra attention to choruses. M/S tools, multi-band processing or saturation.
There are, of course, still some listeners who
overly digital, spiky, and harsh, a little soft-clipping listen to physical formats, as well as a couple of
through a tape simulator can be the ideal tool, but
many mix engineers are now employing analogue
emulation tools, such as tape simulators and Listen closely, several times,
mix-buss emulations at nearly every stage, adding
noise and saturation throughout the mix. In this before you consider reaching
case, a final stage added at mastering is only going
to raise the noise floor and add mud to the mix. As for a single processing tool
with everything else in mastering, these tools should
only be used where appropriate. streaming services which dont yet use any loudness
In an ideal situation, a great mix will need no normalisation. So some artists will still want their
mastering processing added at all, and the mastering music to sound as loud as possible on CD. Sometimes
engineer will simply listen, and then pass on the mix this cant be avoided, but its worth considering that
untouched. Even among experienced professionals a more dynamic mix will sound better (if not as loud)
this is likely to be rare, but should give you an on these formats. Plus, many listeners who still use
insight into how to approach a master. Listen closely, CD are doing so on high-quality systems, and will
preferably several times, before reaching for a single have plenty of volume available on the amp should
processing tool. Describe for yourself what needs to they wish to simply turn the CD up. MT
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MT Mastering Special Beau Thomas
Beau Thomas
TEN EIGHT SEVEN MASTERING
The MusicTech Mastering Special continues with a focus on
Ten Eight Seven Mastering. Beau Thomas has gone from being a
DJ and drum n bass artist to one of the most sought-after mastering
engineers in the country. Here, he lifts the lid on the dark art
B
eau Thomas began life in the music MusicTech: So tell us how your interest in
industry as part of drum n bass acts mastering began?
Babylon Timewarp, The White House Beau Thomas: In 1999, everything fell apart a little
Crew and Intense. He was then offered bit and I needed a job. A great cutting engineer
more lucrative work by cutting engineer called Shane McEnhill, who now owns Finyl Tweek,
Shane McEnhill, who offered him a job as a vinyl used to work at Heathmans Mastering and he got me
cutter at Heathmans Mastering. After Heathmans a job there. I was a runner, hand-copying CDs. There
folded and following a brief stint at Masterpiece were CD mastering rooms and vinyl rooms, and
Mastering, Thomas took the plunge, rented a studio thats when the appeal started to kick in. Although I
and took the mastering-engineer hot seat. was doing digital mastering at first, my world was
Ten Eight Seven Mastering was the name of the vinyl. Id already cut loads of dub plates and I
new outfit in 2012 and now Thomas specialises in wanted to be the best I could be. Back then, vinyl
vinyl and CD mastering for a varied client list, mastering rooms were the bigger rooms. They had
including Wilkinson (RAM Records and Virgin), the better speakers and lathes.
Icarus (Sony), a lot of work for Aphex Twin, dBridge
and the Hyperdub label. He has a wealth of MT: How did you initially attract clients?
knowledge and experience in mastering analogue BT: If Id have spoken to artists direct like Fabio
and digital formats, making him one of the go-to And Grooverider and told them I was cutting,
engineers, especially with the recent resurgence in theyd have been like, Beau who?. Then I bumped
vinyl that has meant that his cutting lathe is never into Quiff of Total Science and told him Id cut him a
out of action. Here, he tells MT about digital and free dub plate if he sent me two tracks. He sent me
vinyl mastering and offers plenty of advice, too 18 by the following Monday! He then told Fabio and
various other people, and before I knew it, I had
MT162.INT BeauThomas.indd 36 05/08/2016 14:19

Beau Thomas Mastering Special MT
artists phoning up and wanting me to cut dub

plates. Dub plates are a great way to start in
mastering, especially vinyl, because if you fuck one
up, you can just redo it. Its not like the record stage
where you get test pressings that have to go off for
processing and if they come back shit, you have to
recut the lacquers and send them all off again. So
that was a massive kick-start for me. I dont think I
cut an album for five or six years all I did was
single-track sides.
MT: So you built a reputation pretty quickly

BT: I cut dubs for all the big guys; everyone did at
Heathmans at the time, but it took time to prove
It took time to prove myself

Once you do that, your names
scribed on the record
myself until everyone was happy with the plates.
Once you do that, your names scribed on the record,
and thats a big thing for vinyl. Thats why I still
sign every record I cut.
MT: Tell us about the kit you have

BT: I was in a beautiful room at Heathmans, and was
very fortunate because the owner Ronnie Garrity
was really good to me. Then I was offered a job at
Masterpiece those mastering studios were built at
a time when there was lots of money around and the
rates and rents were astronomical. Then studios
started going from five rooms to two rooms and
needed to start cutting back. Heathmans and
Masterpiece went that way a little bit, and
fortunately I was able to put in an offer to the owner
at Masterpiece, who was thinking of emigrating.
I needed some money spent on the room. I wanted
a new desk, a monitor panel and all the wiring
redone, so I bought all the kit off him, rented the
TEN EIGHT SEVEN

MASTERING THE KIT
PART 1
THE DESK
MT: Talk us through the main desk
BT: This is the hub of the studio, and as
you can see, Im a big Maselec fan.
Theyre made by a guy called Leif Mases, whos
Swedish, I believe. He was Abbas engineer,
super-technical and a great producer and mix
engineer, but he found that there wasnt enough kit
made specifically for vinyl mastering, especially
interfaces. For example, there has to be something
that monos the bass, because you cant cut stereo
bass, so he created this MTC-1 console and put in an
elliptical EQ and a knob for stereo width. If musics
too wide it can cut the vinyl too deep, or the sides
can distort, so you have to pull the stereo width in
slightly. These two features werent on any
hardware kit, you had to get them custom-made. It
obviously has volume control, different sources for
cutting and I can input-bypass everything and use
the output to A/B test things. All of my kit is on these
insert switches, theres no patch bays or the need
for dodgy cables its either engaged or its out.

room and Ten Eight Seven Mastering was born.

Well be four years in November. A lot of people
asked me why I didnt do it earlier, but where do you
buy a record-cutting lathe? The one I have is a VMS
80; I think they only made 74 of them. With the
whole vinyl increase, they now cost anywhere
between 80,000 and 100,000 each.
MT: Thats obviously expensive kit, so how do you

go about charging?
BT: I wouldnt charge a big label more than a small
one, but if someone says theyve started a new label
and have never put out a tune before, then it might
not be straight-off-the-book rate. Obviously, my
prices have gone up over the years, but Ive spent a
lot of money on kit and Im a lot better than I was 10
years ago.
I do a lot of free stuff, believe it or not. Theres a
guy called Charlie Rhymes whos worked with The
Qemists and I just liked what he did. He hasnt got a
load of money, so I did four tracks for him for
nothing. I try and look after people and judge things
by where I think theyre at and how passionate they
are, rather than how much money theyve got.
MT: What do you think about the long-running

analogue versus digital gear debate when it comes
to mastering?
BT: I think it depends on the artist. You have
someone like Skrillex whos pretty much all in the
box. He masters all his stuff using Ozone and is
very, very clever. Ultimately, using analogue gear
Ultimately, where people make a
will give you a different sound. Some people who do
stuff in the box will use a limiter, an expander, an
big mistake is they try and achieve
exciter and another limiter, and squash everything
until it starts to sound painful.
loudness over everything
A lot of people are surprised, but I do a lot more
in the box than Ive ever done. I have to say to some people come in for sessions and are adamant
myself that Im using a plug-in because it sounds that they want to go through all the analogue gear.
amazing and its the best product I can use to give a
client the best master, and theres no hardware THE PROCESS
limiter than can touch digital limiters, theyre just MT: How would you advise people to prepare their
too slow. Sometimes, the idea of using analogue kit mixes for mastering?
is great, but the reality is entirely different. But BT: Ultimately, where people make a big mistake is
TEN EIGHT SEVEN

MASTERING THE KIT
PART 2
THE LATHE
MT: Tell us a little about the
lathe operation
BT: Its a VMS 80 the flagship lathe. The
cutter head has a pipe that shoots industrial-grade
helium into it to cool it down while the coils heat up
inside. The more treble you send to the lathe, the
hotter it gets. When the cutting stylus hits the
lacquer, theres a shaving that comes off, called the
swarf, and that gets sucked up a pipe. Cutting is
like pushing a pyramid into sand; the deeper you go,
the wider the groove becomes. The space between
the grooves is called the land. If youve got too little
land, the grooves will modulate left and right, cross
over and hit each other then you get jumping
records. If you have too much, then the grooves will
be so far apart that youre just burning up time, and
you dont want to burn up time to preserve the
quality of the record.

Beau Thomas Mastering Special MT
TEN EIGHT SEVEN PART 3 that they try and achieve loudness over everything.
Everyone wants everything to be loud and tends to
MASTERING THE KIT THE REEL- A/B their tracks against a mastered song from
MT: How do you use the reel-to-reel TO-REEL someone they look up to. I think people sometimes
in the mastering process? spend more time worrying about how loud
BT: Its a Studer A807 quarter-inch tape
somethings going to be than the mix-down itself. A
with vari-speed. It does everything I need it to do.
When I was at Masterpiece, they had a Studer A820, good mix-down that is very controlled and sounds
which is the flagship model. I didnt have the money great will nearly always become really loud easily.
to buy it back then but always wanted one, because Everyone can slam the arse out of everything and
people like a bit of tape saturation. Artists that write push it through the roof, but that doesnt mean it
in the box exclusively sometimes want to get a bit of sounds that great. Those artists who achieve a
hiss into things. Recently, an artist called Joy
really loud level and their stuff sounds great, its not
Orbison came in and wanted to just take that digital
edge off, so we ran it all through tape and back out the level that sounds great its their mix.
into the computer.
MT: When you first receive an artists music, how
MT: How do software tape-saturation plug-ins do you analyse what needs doing to it?
compare to the reel thing? BT: When I get an album of, say, 15 tracks, Ill tend
BT: Theres some absolutely fantastic plug-ins. In
to have a little flick through just to get an idea of
particular, UAD make Ampex and Studer plug-ins
with all the extra bits, so you can tune things and what the best-sounding track is or whats the
add hiss. Most artists have got these plug-ins and loudest. An album can only be as loud as the
there are numerous other tape-emulation quietest song, and you cant make those as loud as
saturation plug-ins by companies like Slate Digital the loud ones, so you have to turn everything down
and Waves. Im not saying the Studer is much better to match it, which no one likes doing. Some artists
than those plug-ins, but its just a nice thing to have
come in with tracks that are super-loud already and
its not so much about me, but the clients and
what they want. The thing about tape is that once those dont need limiting, but some are a bit dull or
you hit record, youre committed, whereas with a bit too bright. Some sound so good I dont even
plug-ins you tend to keep tweaking and changing touch them. I like working from gut instinct and
and people dont always like that. start to EQ very quickly. Working in the box allows
you to do that.

TEN EIGHT SEVEN PART 4

MASTERING THE KIT THE
MT: And you also use OUTBOARD
Summit Audio outboard?
BT: Yes, Ive got Summit EQs and
compressors, because Ive always loved Summit
stuff. If I add 2dB at 10Kohms on the Summit, it will
still sound very different to the Maselec, which is
really more for precision. If Ive got a song that
sounds a bit flat on the top end, I can add treble and
top end on the Maselec to make it brighter, but the
Summit EQ will colour it and the compressors sound
completely different.
MT: Do you have any hardware for digital EQing?

BT: I have a digital EQ made by Weiss Daniel Weiss,
I think his name is. The EQ1-MK2 is a dual seven-
band parametric equaliser, but to be honest, its in
bypass because I tend to use internal plug-ins by
UAD and FabFilter a lot more now. Two plug-ins
I cant do without at the moment are Ozone 7,
because the limiter is second to none, and the
Brainworx V3 EQ plug-in. I also use a DS1-MK2,
which is a de-esser limiter. I love it its saved so
many records Ive cut from sounding like shit. I can
catch any distorting snares, hats and vocals by
moving the frequency and changing the bandwidth.
The odd person says, Youve to the studio?

BT: Like most of my clients even the ones I know
ruined my song, its too loud, well its much easier for them to send tracks by
email. So Ive never met him, but we deal on email
so Ill go back in and change it quite a lot. He is lovely to work with, hes a really
cool guy, very easy-going and just does his thing. He
just fires it over in email and says, Ive got a load of
MT: Talking of loudness, where do you think the stuff for you, can you see what you can do? I send it
demand for it comes from? back and, most of the time, he thinks its wicked.
BT: Its clubs, almost definitely. Back in the day, Now and again, theres the odd little change.
youd turn up at a club and the mix was pretty much
locked, with a limited amount of volume increase MT: What would you say is the most important
otherwise, everyone would turn it up and up and element of mastering?
up and blow the system. So everyone wanted their BT: The end product; its got to be. If I did a shit job,
stuff to be louder and louder. Part of the reason I got they wouldnt come back. However, mastering is
a lot of work is that I cut really loud dub plates, very subjective what one person loves, another
because thats what people wanted. Then digital hates. I often say to people, if youre not happy or
started appearing and CDJs. With all the limiters theres something youd like changed, please let me
and maximisers, people started doing a little bit of know, particularly when it comes to levelling how
mastering. Level-wise, vinyl became inferior to loud something is. Most people, despite what they
digital: people would smash the arse out of it and say, want stuff really loud, but there is the odd
everyone got used to it sounding like that. person who says, Youve ruined my song, its too
loud, so Ill go back in and change it. If were doing
MT: How often do you end up not doing anything an album for digital and thats going to be cut to
while mastering? vinyl as well, I would prefer to sit with them in the
BT: If I dont need to touch it, I wont touch it. Back room when were doing the digital version and let
in the day, Id shit myself and think they wouldnt them go away and listen to that first, because in
want to use me again, but I realised why theyre here, everything sounds loud and amazing but when
here is because theyre not sure. they get home and listen on headphones or their
Matrix & Futurebound have sent me masters in regular setup, it might not be quite what they
the past, but when I compared what I did to theirs I thought it was.
could only get it sounding the same, or if I tried to
make it better, it ended up being worse. Some people THE RESURGENCE OF VINYL
are a bit underwhelmed because they expect MT: How does your approach to mastering vinyl
something to come back bigger and better, others and digital files differ?
think its amazing. BT: Digital and vinyl mastering are two different
things. What you can do on a digital master you
MT: Will an artist like Aphex Twin ever come down cant necessarily do on vinyl, i.e. the amount of

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TEN EIGHT SEVEN PART 5 BT: I think its a physical thing. Weve lost books,
CDs, VHS, DVDs weve got nothing in our house,
MASTERING THE KIT THE PMC
just a remote and a phone. Weve moved to an
MT: Tell us about the PMC monitors? MONITORS age where we can stream anything with todays
BT: They originally cost 90,000 but I
broadband speeds, but we still listen to MP3s.
didnt pay that [laughs]. Mastering wise,
every studio Ive ever worked in had these in the Why the fuck are we listening to MP3s because
room, so you just get used to them. Ive worked on they sound better? Its true that with some 320kpbs
ATCs and Genelecs, but if the PMCs are set up with mp3s youll struggle to tell the difference from the
the right acoustics and everythings balanced original master WAV, but in others, its really
correctly, you just cant better them they sound noticeable. MP3s were created because bandwidths
amazing. I think its to do with their transmission used to be quite small. To send an album at 600MB
line, but even at very low levels, they still project sub
would have taken a week, so they created a way of
accurately, so you dont need to have them too loud.
sending it faster, but somehow, were at the pinnacle
of the digital age and still listening to these diddly
little music files. The average CD is 16-bit and even
thats superior.
THE FINAL MASTER

MT: Whats your view on using headphones to mix
and master?
BT: I know a lot people who have bought or been
given headphones and have stopped using their
speakers for mixing, because their headphones are
much more accurate than their room. Headphones
are like having a second room or a second set of
speakers, and a lot of the time, people dont have the
correct setup. Ive got a pair of LCD-X headphones
and they sound amazing. I never used to have
headphones; I just felt if I could get stuff to sound
good on the PMCs, then that would be enough, but
Somehow, were at the pinnacle

of the digital age and still listening
top end you can put in. People say things like, Oh, to these diddly little music files
I love the sound of vinyl and think it sounds much
better than digital, but digital doesnt degrade with there were examples where I could hear the kick
every revolution. Its a preference thing. Vinyl is distorting a little bit on the headphones and,
much more natural-sounding; you cant reproduce surprisingly, its very hard to hear those subtle bits
these mad, super-squelchy frequencies. People of distortion on the PMCs, because theyre so big. In
prefer the sound of vinyl because they prefer duller, my opinion, people often struggle with the low end
slightly warmer-sounding material; other people in their tracks, so I think a good pair of AKGs or
love super-compressed, loud digital stuff. So you Beyerdynamics can give you a good setup for mixing
cant always cut the digital version to vinyl, as the on headphones.
differences are sometimes quite extreme.
MT: Is there any kit youre looking to add?
MT: How does vinyl degrade with every revolution? BT: Software-wise, Ive had a bit of an upgrade. Im
BT: The outside of the record is the brightest part of quite tight with iZotope and they provided me with
the record. As the record plays through, you lose Ozone 7 Advanced, which Im very happy with. I like
treble because, in effect, its travelling less distance the UAD plug-ins and, kit-wise, I want some Manley
over the same amount of time, so theres less stuff and Im probably going to buy some new
information. Thats why when some people find out converters to offer a slightly different way of
there is a B2 on a record they sigh, because its routing stuff.
inferior. So the bigger the disk, the more information
per revolution, and that information is treble or MT: Do you think the studio will expand?
definition top end, basically. So Ill alter the song BT: I seem to be booked up permanently. My brother
as it plays through, starting off with less treble, and works here in the evenings, so eventually, well
put the treble back in manually as it plays through. expand and open a second room. We get a lot of
So yeah, vinyls not perfect, far from it, and most people sending their CVs and I feel really bad that
people arent even aware of it. theres nothing here for them. I was given an
opportunity at Heathmans Mastering to work my
MT: But people are still going back to vinyl, even if way up, but in those days, there were 40 engineers
its just for listening in three buildings, so things have changed a lot. MT

MT Technique Live In Depth Part 7
Ableton Live Live In Depth Part 7 On the disc
Accompanying
project file included
on the DVD
Beef up your
Ableton Live audio
ins and outs
Do you need more audio inputs and outputs for your Live rig? Before rushing out to buy
another interface, make sure youre fully exploiting what you already have
S
ooner or later, we all have a moment when Ableton Live-specific topic here, but its incredibly
something changes unexpectedly in our relevant, because Live is at the centre of so many stage
studio or live setup; maybe we borrow a drum and jam rigs. The understanding of aggregate audio
machine or synth from a friend, or somebody devices fits very neatly into that world, just as you ought
comes over for a jam, and suddenly the to know how to ReWire different DAWs, how to use MIDI
well-organised rig doesnt quite have enough audio Sync, and so on.
inputs or outputs to go round. In the longer term, you Typically these days, wed be using USB audio
can plan to buy another soundcard, or you can use interfaces for this. Its the most common form of
external audio inputs on your hardware instruments, if connection for audio and MIDI peripherals, although
they have any, and bodge something together that way. FireWire is still around, and there are a few Thunderbolt
Either way, right there on the spot, you need something
to make it work, and this is where aggregate audio
devices come in, if you have an unused sound card Combine multiple devices
lying around.
Under Mac OS X, we can combine two or more audio to create the monster aggregate
interfaces, including the one built into the computer, so
that our favourite music software sees all of the device of your dreams
connected physical inputs and outputs as one virtual
device. This device will be available system-wide for any interfaces available, like the Apogee Ensemble, and
software, including Ableton live and other DAWs. In FireWire interfaces are still around and FireWire is
some ways, you might think were not talking about an compatible with Thunderbolt if you have an adaptor.
Just to be clear, when I talk about an audio interface, or
Workaround or long-term plan? a sound card, Im referring to the same thing.
Is it worth buying another soundcard just so you can do this? Truthfully, Id say no! I view aggregate You can combine multiple devices to create the
audio devices strictly as a workaround for those situations where youre caught short on the input monster aggregate device of your dreams, although
front, like when theres a gear failure in the studio, or youre having a jam with a group of players and
there simply arent enough physical inputs to do it properly. If youre looking to expand on your after a certain point, Im not sure whatd happen
available inputs long-term, a better option would be to add something that connects to your regarding computer performance and latency I dont
existing interface via an optical cable, like Focusrites OctoPre or RMEs OctaMic. think Ive ever gone further than two interfaces plus
built-in audio. I always make a point of using the mains
MT162.TUT Live7.indd 44 01/08/2016 11:56

Live In Depth Part 7 Technique MT
MT Step-by-Step Aggregate audio devices
An aggregate audio device is a name for the connecting and Youll need a Mac running Live, and one or more audio interfaces,
01 configuring multiple hardware audio interfaces, so that they
02 to follow our steps. Any relatively recent version of Mac OS X
appear as one continuous set of inputs and outputs in software. should do, and Im afraid that, yes, this is Mac-only.
This can scale up from small to very big rigs. For starters, lets say You can combine your Macs headphone output with soundcard
03 you want a simple DJ cueing setup, which requires two separate
04 output to make a virtual interface with two stereo outputs, and
stereo outputs, but you only have a basic stereo soundcard. set them up so one outputs to PA/mixer, the other to your headphones.
Make sure your soundcard is connected as usual probably via From the Audio Devices window, youll see a panel that lists all
05 USB. You dont want Live open yet. Go the OS X Utilities folder,
06 recognised interfaces and any existing aggregate audio devices.
which is inside the Applications folder, and open Audio MIDI Setup. Click + to add a new one, and rename it something sensible.
power adaptors for any interfaces in these setups as interfaces like the Alesis Core 1, right up to, for example,
well. The ability to create aggregate audio devices is the RME Fireface UFX. Live wont recognise a new
built into Mac OS X, which is why this entire tutorial is aggregate audio device until its relaunched, so bear
Mac-only. OS X is very convenient for handling these that in mind if you dont see it listed in Audio
audio tasks, as well as having deep MIDI routing Preferences. Talking of which, youll also have to visit
capabilities also built in like the ability to configure Audio/Input Devices/Configure and Audio/Output
wireless MIDI networks. You can use little audio Devices/Configure and enable every input and output
MT162.TUT Live7.indd 45 01/08/2016 11:56

MT Step-by-Step Aggregate audio devices (contd)
In the panel at the right of that, you should see a list of all Tick all of them you might as well include the inputs as youre
07 available audio inputs and outputs, including Built-in Microphone
08 not adding many, anyway. Quit Audio MIDI Setup. You can return
and Built-in Output which are the Macs own hardware connections. here whenever you need to manage your aggregate audio devices.
Now when you open Live, go to the Audio tab in Preferences. Click the Input and Output Config buttons and you can enable all
09 Where you choose Audio Input Device and Audio Output Device,
10 of the inputs and outputs in the device. From now on, Live will
you can view and select your new Aggregate Audio Device. treat this as one device, just like any other. Close Preferences.
Open a Live set. Anything with some clips in Session or Under the Master Track, you can define the Master Out and Cue
11 12 Out destinations the one that will go to your headphones. By
Arrangement View will do, though its easier to view routings in
Session. Open the In/Out View to see all four outputs available. default, all tracks will go to the Master Output.
that you want to use which is probably all of them! outputsthatll plunder your cable stash in double-
After that, of course, theyll all be available in in Lives quick time. Same with audio effects you can wire up a
In/Out View. How you use all those spare connections is hardware reverb, or compressor, and create a
up to you; one thing that comes to mind is routing out convenient recall by using Lives External Audio
and back to external hardware synths and drum Instrument and Effect devices, effectively letting you
machines, especially if youve got something like a include your hardware in chains of presets. By the way,
Machinedrum, which has six separate physical the OS X Audio MIDI Setup utility is the most important
MT162.TUT Live7.indd 46 01/08/2016 11:56

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MT Step-by-Step Aggregate audio devices (contd)
Click the solo/cue switch in the Master track, and the solo button You may need to experiment with the In/Out View settings to find
13 in every track becomes a headphone-cue icon. Now you can use
14 the right stereo output, and dont forget theres a cue volume
these to direct a tracks audio to the cue output. control below the switch, which you could assign to a MIDI controller.
Useful, right? Saved yourself from buying a new interface, maybe.

15 As I said, this scales up, so lets try with two audio interfaces. Im
using the Native Instruments Komplete Audio 6 and Alesis Core 1.
The procedure is similar, its just a matter of more connections.

16 Connect the interfaces, and use Audio MIDI Setup to configure
those inputs and outputs, adding NI to the existing aggregate device.
View it in Lives Preferences whoo, thats a lot of connections! If you own an interface with ADAT connections, you may not need
17 Enable them all. In theory, having more enabled ins and outs here
18 an aggregate interface. Ive got a Ferrofish A16 adding 16 inputs
can increase CPU usage, but Ive never had an issue with it. to an RME Fireface UFX it simply appears as one unit.
place to view and troubleshoot your audio and MIDI well, so the two units dont have to be physically
routings, especially as Live users are so fond of using together. In my studio, I have a five-metre optical cable
the IAC Driver to create weird audio setups, like sending connecting a Ferrofish A16, positioned near the
MIDI out of Live and back in again. hardware synths, to the UFX which is positioned near
A better long-term solution for this is to buy a the computer.
soundcard with more inputs, and if thats still not Aggregate devices arent always the most elegant
enough, combine it with a mic pre that connects via long-term solutions. But if you have a spare interface
optical cables. Naturally, youll also have to make sure lying around and suddenly you need more, it gets the
your main interface has optical connections, too. If you job done. Under Mac OS X, creating and managing
take a Focusrite 18i20 for example, and you want to add aggregate devices is about as easy as it gets, and Live
eight more inputs to it, get a Focusrite OctoPre and has no problem identifying and using them. Whether
connect them via optical. The 18i20 will appear to Live youre going to use this on a day-to-day basis or not, its
as usual, without any special configuration; itll just something to get familiar with in advance of the day
have more inputs. You can buy long optical cables as when you might need it to get you out of a hole! MT
MT162.TUT Live7.indd 48 01/08/2016 11:56

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MT Technique Movement sounds in Alchemy
Technique Movement sounds in Alchemy Powered by
Movement
sounds in Alchemy
Alchemys flexible architecture and wealth of modulation options can create sounds with a
surprising sense of movement. Mark Cousins gets animated
H
aving a synthesiser as powerful and as flexible then working in a variety of music divisions, like 1/8th or
as Alchemy residing in Logic is a joy for any On the disc 1/16th. For the LFOs shape parameter, youll want to pick
sound designer or musician working in the one of the simple waveshapes like Ramp Down (which in
field of electronic music. From gritty analogue this application sounds like a continuously re-triggered
basses to shimmering digital pads, there Accompanying envelope generator), sine or square waveshapes.
project file included
are few sounds Alchemy cant turn its hand to. One of on the DVD
Alchemys most interesting areas, though, is in the realm Modulate me
of movement sounds whether its a tempo-synced With all forms of modulation added for movement, youll
pulsating pad, or one finger-type patches that produce a want to play close attention to the amount of modulation
complete musical hook from a single key. Although theres applied. Initially, youll want to set up the effect with lots of
plenty of preset fodder in this department, its well worth depth so that its clear what effect the LFO is having on the
understanding the variety of techniques that can be used patch. Often the most effective sounds, though, come from
to add movement to your own sounds. a small or moderate amount of depth, rather than the filter
being modulated over its entire range. Its also worth noting
New movement the Bipolar option. With Bipolar not activated, the LFO
When it comes to adding movement to an Alchemy patch, adds to the existing parameter level, rather working both
you have a variety of approaches that you can take, each positively and negatively on the current filter cutoff point.
offering different advantages and sonic possibilities. Put The LFOs are definitely a great solution for adding
simply, movement is created using a variety of modulation movement quickly, but they arent quite as flexible as
sources like an LFO, for example, or step sequencer Alchemys MSEG (or Multi-Staged Envelope Generator).
routed through to one or more destinations within the As the name suggest, the MSEG works with a number of
patch. In most cases, the primary destination is usually discrete stages, each stage much the same as an AD
filter cutoff to produce an exciting timbral movement, (Attack/Decay) envelope generator. Applied in a simple
way, you could use just three or so tempo-synced steps,
When it comes to adding each step having its own amount of depth and an
adjustable curve (which isnt available on the LFOs,
movement to Alchemy, you have of course). What youll achieve is a result similar to
the LFO solution, but with an added amount of
a variety of approaches interest whether its contrasting the amount of

modulation between steps, or the relative curve of
each step.
although you might also want to use the amplifier and/or
the pitch of the oscillators as two alternative choices.
The first choice for movement in a patch has to be a
tempo-synced LFO, of which Alchemy can use multiple
instances of in any single patch. Once youve assigned an
LFO, there are a few parameters worth particular attention.
Sync, of course, is the all-important means of locking the
LFOs movement to the tempo of your project, with rate
ARP ATTACK
Alchemys arpeggiator is also another way you can inject movement into a patch, especially as
Alchemys version includes a version of a step sequencer. In the case of the arpeggiators sequencer,
the steps relate to a unique velocity setting for each note of the arpeggio. Map velocity to your chosen
parameter, and the arpeggiator can control anything from filter cutoff to panning. The arpeggiator
itself contains the all-important Mode, Rate, Octave and Length controls, letting you move between a
chugging eighth-note sequence, to swathes of 32nd notes spiralling through a chord. As with the
other examples, the best results come from combining the arpeggiator with other movement
modulators like the LFO.
MTF43.TUT Logic Alchemy Movement.indd 50 01/08/2016 11:59

Movement sounds in Alchemy Technique MT
MT Step-by-Step EDM pulse pad
Create an initialised patch using Alchemy menu option File > Click on the filter cutoff control and notice how the modulation
01 Clear. Our basic starting point involves a single oscillator set to
02 area changes to show Filter 1 Cutoff as the target. Click on the
the sawtooth wave. Create some additional unison voices with a drop-down menu and assign LFO1 to modulate the filter. Lower the
medium detune and ensure the filter is set to LP4 MG. cutoff and tweak the depth to get the desired amount of movement.
For the LFO Shape control, select the Ramp Down option, so that Lets create an additional form of movement using another LFO.
03 it sounds like a continuously retriggered envelope. Ensure Sync
04 Under the drop-down menu in the Modulation section you can
is set, position the rate to 1/8, and disengage the Bipolar, so that the find an option to create a new LFO. Move between the two LFOs using
LFO works additively to the initial cutoff position. the current parameter as part of LFO display.
On the second LFO, well use the standard sine waveshape, but The addition of effects is often an important part of these
05 select a rate thats different to LFO1 (1/4* would be a good
06 movement sounds. For a pulsing pad sound, try a combination
option). The trick is to use a small amount of depth for the modulation, of tempo-synced Stereo Delay (on 1/8 Note Dotted) and a large Space
creating a subtle undulation effect. Designer reverb setting of around six seconds.
One-finger patches MSEGs own File menu, which contains various starting
Going further still, its possible to create a complete points (like Pulse 8th) that speed up the creation process.
bar-long sequencer using 16 MSEG steps, with radically The final modulator source to explore is the step
different step heights, reverse curves, sustaining steps, sequencer, which bears many of the same sonic traits
and so on. Used creatively, these complex envelope- as the MSEG, although its worth making a distinction
generator sequences power many of the one finger between the operation and output of each modulation
patches found on instruments like Native Instruments source. As the title suggests, the sequencer works best
Absynth, or Spectrasonics Omnisphere. If youre creating a when youre mainly interested in 16 or more discrete
patch from scratch though, its well worth noting the stepped parameter values, and not so interested in the

curvature between each step. This is evident in the release, you can create a result not dissimilar to the default
sequencers display, which is focused on the relative depth shape of the MSEG modulator. Shorten the release and
of each step using a series of graph-like bars. increase the gate, and youll notice the movement as a
series of short stepped values, whereas gate at full will
Step up produce an output almost exactly like the bar graph.
Although it isnt possible to change the curve of each step, Rather than a one-size-fits-all solution, its great that
its worth noting that each step does trigger an attack, gate, Alchemy includes a variety of different modulation sources
release envelope that is associated with the sequencer. that can all be used inside the same patch. It might be, for
Using a short attack and gate, for example, and moderate example, that you use an LFO on the amplifier, modulate
MT Step-by-Step Complex envelopes
In this next example, were going to see how Alchemys multi- As before, click on the filters cutoff control to make it the active
01 segment envelopes go above and beyond what you can achieve
02 target in the modulation area. From the drop-down menu, select
with LFOs. In this case, were using two sawtooth oscillators an octave MSEG1 as the source. Set the depth to around three oclock and lower
apart, which are then being passed through a resonant LP2 MG filter. the cutoff setting to around 10 oclock.
The MSEG section lets you draw complex tempo-synced On the MSEG display we can now see a unique AR envelope for
03 envelopes from scratch, although if you want to save some time,
04 each 1/16 step (as sync is active). The grey line also sets the
consider using the one of the preset starting options (like Pulse 16th) envelopes loop point. Move this back so that the MSEG envelope only
from the MSEGs drop-down File menu. works over 3/16ths.
For each step, we can adjust the height of the node as well as MSEG envelopes can be a simple or as complex as you like.
05 the shape between each envelope points. Set the node lower on
06 Although our simple three-step solution works well, you can also
each successive 16th and adjust the curve to be faster on nodes 1 consider using more steps, often with radically different curves and
and 2 and slower on node 3. with some points sustaining, or even reversing.

the filter using a complex MSEG and another LFO, while sequencer. Despite the sonic complexity of Alchemys
a parameter like reverb time is modulated using the step architecture, its a surprisingly intuitive synth that rewards
sequencer. The fact that Alchemy also supports a those who are willing to step beyond its presets. MT
semi-modular architecture, including parallel and serial
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EDM-type pads, or complete musical phrases with the step
MT Step-by-Step Step sequencing
Using the same two-oscillator bass patch as before, lets Try adjusting each of the bars on the sequencer to create a
01 now explore the step sequencer as an alternative source of
02 repetitive pattern that can be applied to the filter. To make things
modulation. In the modulation area, route Sequencer 1 through to interesting, weve created syncopated accents on steps 4, 7, 10, 13,
Filter 1 cutoff, with plenty of modulation depth. and 15 that lend a driving quality to the sequence.
The icon towards the bottom of each bar can be used to tie one Experiment with the attack, gate and release parameters to hear
03 step to the next, resulting in an output thats twice the usual
04 different transitions between the steps. Increasing gate to
length. Weve placed the tie on an accent, therefore adding more maximum, for example, will produce the same stepped output as the
emphasis to that note. graphic display, or you could add a touch of swing.
Try using the sequencer on other parameters in this case, You can also use the sequencer to create melodic lines by
05 using it to modulate the wet/dry ratio of the reverb. Create an
06 mapping it to the sources tune parameter. To achieve this, set
addition sequencer (Sequencer > New Sequencer) in the modulation the depth to 24.0 st and the value snap (as part of the sequencer) to
area for a unique pattern. 1/24th, creating a sequence over +/-1 octave.

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MT Technique Sonic storytelling
MT Workshop Music Composition Tutorial Part 4 Requirements

Our DAW Songwriting
features are
illustrated using
Cubase, but you can
Sonic storytelling
apply the principles
to whichever
DAW you use. Support
files can be found at
www.musictech.net
We often talk about songwriting in a technical, structural context, but the purpose
of a good song is how it can elicit an emotional response from the listener. So how
do songs actually do that? Andy Price reveals the secrets of sonic storytelling
O
f the many aspects of songwriting that often understanding of the proper use of tension, emphasis,
get discussed in an educational context, a weight and release or storytelling with sound.
songs dynamic quality is the most likely to be
overlooked; while other, arguably less vital Are you sitting comfortably?
areas are brought to the fore. A proper grasp of When narratives in songwriting are discussed in an
the importance of dynamics to making songs sound educational context, its often in relation to the lyrical story.
kinetic, vibrant and interesting is one of the most However, the kind of storytelling were talking about is not
important skills you can master as an aspiring songwriter, something we spell out with words and indeed, your
and something that we at MusicTech have long laboured to lyrical narrative (if you have one) really has no bearing on
prioritise, both from a creative and technical standpoint. your dynamic narrative, though it can inform and, in turn,
Most dynamic considerations happen during the stage be shaped by it.
when youre mixing and layering your track. Yet having a An example of a typical dynamic narrative sequence is
general overview of your track, and at which points you as follows: we begin our dynamic narrative with a simple
want to bolster and heighten the emotions of the listener chord sequence, establishing the mood and emotional
should be a factor from very early in the process because vibe; we then lead the listener into an area of tension/
songwriting is fundamentally all about conjuring a mood uncertainty as we chordally descend (using minor chords
with sound, and that begins at the conception stage by and 7ths), before exploding into an emotive outpouring,
deciding what kind of emotions youre attempting to revealing the primary concern be it lyrical or sonic of
wrangle out of your listener with your music. the song, and unveiling, for the first time, our primary hook.
To realise your songs goal, you need to take your Then we return to our opening chord sequence, now
listener on a sonic journey, navigating emotional highs, emboldened by the listeners new context of how it sits in
contemplative lows, moving chord sequences and relation to the rest of the song. This contrast eases your
resonant vocals, delivered at the right time and with listener through the dynamic narrative. Countering loud
appropriate emphasis. It may seem like an obvious thing to sections with quiet ones is the most regularly used
say, but its worth underlining: timing is the key concept to example of simple dynamic contrast: more creative
get your head around before you can become a methods include stripping away instrumentation, altering
professional songwriter. Whether youre building primary the vocal melody (or, using the same vocal
hooks, melodies, build-ups or any other element of your melody across
song, they all have to fit within what can be thought of as
the dynamic narrative of your song.
We should be clear that the dynamic narrative were
focusing on here has nothing to do with the literal
narrative that any of your songs lyrics might contain.
Instead, its how we describe the listeners journey
through your song. For many songwriters, its instinctual
but others, who may have technically effective hooks and
instrumentation, find it a struggle to organise these
things, resulting with their songs not attracting the
interest theyd hoped for. This is often due to a lack of
Focus on DAW dynamics

The benefits of using your DAW to focus on the dynamics of your songs
is you dont just have to rely on your ears. You have a complete
visualisation of all the strands of your mix and the intensity of your
waveforms. So you can see just how loud and quiet parts of your song
are, and you have the ability to experimentally tweak your recording by
changing not just the volume, but the instrumentation, the melody (if
youre using MIDI) the speed and, really, every other sonic aspect of your
song without having to think too hard and manually change it.
MT162.TUT_Cubase.indd 56 01/08/2016 11:58

Sonic storytelling Technique MT
MT Step-by-Step Building a dynamic narrative
In this step-by-step, well look at a specific example of a song Lets take a look at the mix for the song, to analyse just what tools
01 02 and thought processes have been used to weave this dynamic
which was written a few years ago but which best encapsulates
this idea of sonic storytelling. The song is called The Last Man and it narrative. The track begins with a slightly ethereal, otherworldly synth
scales a wide range of highs and lows. sound, created using Natives Absynth.
After a few seconds, the primary verse motif begins, played softly The idea here is to ease the listener into the song by introducing
03 on an acoustic guitar in the key of B major and backed up by a
04 the primary verse melody in isolation, given support by the synth
more warm-sounding synth pad sound (which was also generated to underscore its importance to the listeners ears from the get-go,
through Absynth). before the more powerful, driving elements come into play together.
Those driving elements include the restrained (but powerful) There are numerous additional vocal tracks in this mix, too. All
05 drums and a staccato, punctuating bass part. As well as a now
06 these do is very quietly and subtly bolster the primary vocal part
more minimal synth backing, most importantly, the vocals begin here, by adding melodic support to it. Theres little in the way of counter
performed in a slightly sombre baritone. melody, as this central melodic pillar of the song needs to be
re-enforced.
two different sections), or using pauses and silences and OK choral

changing the BPM or key. Getting across our mood early is The ascending and descending volume of your song needs
an important first step. You need to isolate chords that, to be a primary consideration. Most uptempo dance tracks
when used together, evoke the emotions you want to elicit maintain one clear dynamic narrative and that is lets
at the specific part of the song youre writing. The process have fun and therefore maintain a volume and energy
of finding chords is something that requires a separate that facilitates dancing and uncomplicated positivity.
feature to this one. But dont despair, as the second part of However, the vast majority of songs in many other genres,
this series looked at methods of getting inspired; while the particularly those in modern pop and rock, need to build to
second part of our previous songwriting series from a few their loudest (usually most positive) point underlining
years back highlights keys and chords in general. Both can their central hooks importance by placing it in the part of
be found online at MusicTech.net the song where the volume is maxed out.
So youve got your chords but how you play them (and So, conventionally speaking, the chorus is the point in
on what instrument) has a massive bearing on how theyre the song when the audiences interest should be piqued.
presented to the listeners ears. The same chord sequence This makes it the most likely location for that primary hook
played as gentle picked guitar or twinkling piano can evoke your topline melody. If any area of the song should be
wholly different sensations than if theyre played on a dirty, ramped up, either in terms of instrumentation or emotional
distorted synth or over fast-paced power chords. intensity, then its here. If your listener isnt sufficiently

MT Technique Sonic storytelling
MT Step-by-Step Building a dynamic narrative contd
After two verses, we reach the chorus. The preceding verse has The post-chorus (or pre-verse) section which begins immediately
07 already laid the groundwork for the chorus musically, as were
08 after serves two functions. Musically, it leads us back to the start
still in the same key, but with the chords played in a different order of our verse while the rhythm changes somewhat, and becomes more
with resolution back at the root chord (B). Were now freer to add of a build-up; secondly, it emotionally takes us down from the cliff
counter melodies and a slightly more histrionic vocal performance. scaled by our chorus and eases us back to the restraint of our verse.
Now the listener has a mental map of our song, he or she can Following another chorus and post chorus, we slide into a much
09 predict what will happen next. So its often interesting to change
10 more relaxed bridge section. In this section, I increased the
things, if not musically then emotionally, with the intensity of your volume and foregrounded mix elements such as strings and the
performance in an area where your listener expects restraint. As an aforementioned synth that had been lurking in the background
example, the fourth and final verse vocal of The Last Man explodes previously. The melody is more smooth, resolved and positive.
into a louder, more emotional performance.
Then, when the audience expects a final verse, we strip away Through using considered peaks and troughs of volume,
11 all the elements, including the drums and have a plaintive
12 instrumentation that helps to evoke the emotions we want and
acoustic guitar gently lead us into an epic string-laden finale, with varying intensities, Im confident that this song weaves a dramatic
foregrounded lead guitar. This is the sonic equivalent of a deep breath narrative effectively. Theres many other ways to do this and of course,
before a plunge. it all depends on the type of track youre making. But working on these
dynamic elements can make your song more compelling and powerful.
engaged by your chorus, then theyre likely to switch off. Its song, suddenly stopping (or at least reducing the BPM) can
an idea to put the most power and emphasis into your add another dimension of fragility, uncertainty, and tension
vocal delivery during the chorus, and (if, for example, youre and can help you to build to your climax.
creating EDM-type music, layer your chorus the most by You should be able to look at your song and interpret it
employing added instrumentation, with the aim of as a series of dramatic scenes. Just like a good horror
bolstering this central hook). Adding extra octaves is one movie which uses sound to ramp up the expectation of a
trusted method of making your melodies sound thicker and jump scare, so your verse and pre-chorus have to have not
fuller, usually having an extra track one octave higher will just a chord-based, but a feel based, relationship with
do the job of making your hook notes sound more rounded. your chorus.
So dont just settle for a single vibe or feeling with your
Softly, softly song. Changing the volume, be it through altering your
As we mentioned above, occasionally harnessing the playing style, the rhythmic components or the density of
power of complete stops and silences can be dramatically texturing in the mix, is a vital part of creating worthwhile
beneficial to your track and add to the momentum of your songs, and ones which stand a chance of affecting the
dynamic narrative. If youve got a generally quite energetic emotions of a greater number of people. MT

STAFF PICKS
EXHALE
THE MODERN VOCAL ENGINE
STAFF PICK For years, vocal instruments have provided a way to
Exhale was in its early BETA portray the sound of a real live singer or choir in a track.
stage when Gregg & Brian visited In speaking with music makers, Output found the number
us for an evening in Brighton, UK.
one frustration with vocal instruments was that nothing was
Gregg, in sheer excitement and
the windy seafront elements modern, or in line with todays current records, film scores
gave us a demo on his laptop. and sound design.
Lets just say, even in those
conditions, Exhale still sounded That is the world of EXHALE.
amazing!
Gareth Halsall One thing is for sure, you havent heard ANYTHING like
General Manager
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MT Modular Technique MT
MT Modular Clocks
Clocks
Clocks are an integral part of a Eurorack setup, allowing
synchronisation right across a rig. Dave Gale delves into
the world of pulses, to discover much more than face values
S
ay the word clocks to any normal person add some additional functionality to proceedings, and
with an interest in music, and they will thats where things get more complicated.
probably start singing a well-known piano
line from a song by Coldplay (and what an The base pulse
amazing earworm that is). But to somebody As with all things Eurorack, there can be many ways of
with a taste for the intricacies of electronic music, they approaching a topic to achieve a similar outcome, so we
may well smile and ask which type of clock? are going to aim to try and keep it simple. If you have a
sequencer in your Eurorack, I would pretty much stake
Old formats my career on the fact that it will have either a Clock In
Over the years, there have been many forms of clock; or a Clock Out, or more likely still, itll have both. Given
some analogue and some digital. Word clock is one the likelihood that this may well form the centre of your
that many will be aware of, thanks system, and probable starting point, it makes sense
to the world of DAWs, and MIDI that you might want to consider this your Clock Master
clocks may well get mentioned in or to put it in a less grandiose way, its the unit which
certain circles, too, but in a strange will start your clock chain, and send a clock pulse to
return to a format with its roots other units to lock to. If you change the tempo/speed on
planted firmly in the past, clocks in your sequencer, other units should follow.
Euroracks are very simple beasts. So lets take a common scenario; you want to lock a
Anyone who has listened to the second sequencer to your first. By simply taking the
album Random Access Memories Clock Out from your first sequencer, and sending it to
by Daft Punk will have heard a track the Clock In on the second, you should have a reliable
which is something of a homage to clock chain. Easy enough. But we can take this basic
the legendary producer Giorgio concept further, by perhaps sending the clock to
Moroder. The spoken word that something else in your rig, such as an envelope
forms the introduction to this track generator. Now youre probably ahead of me at this
hears the man himself speaking point and youre thinking that the envelope will fire off
about the way that he created a every time it receives a clock pulse, and you would be
click track to synchronise his Moog right. But it is at this point that you will discover how
sequencer, which formed part of his rapid that pulse is. Most clocks in the Eurorack world
modular, to analogue tape. The rest fire off 16th-note pulses, which is to say that you will
is classic electro history, in the get 16 pulses to a single bar of music, a little like a
Far left:
shape of the extraordinary sound of 4ms RCD
hi-hat (now youre really ahead of me). So you could, in
I Feel Love featuring Donna The Rotating fact, use your clock signal to make a basic insistent
Clock Divider
Summer, which hit the musical from 4MS has hi-hat like sound, which triggers every 16th note. Of
world like a ten-tonne truck. numerous course, you could also look to use it for something more
division
In many respects, the simplicity options,
that Giorgio describes here is the offering up
some excellent
Clocking modules
essence of what clocks in modulars polyr hythmic Apart from the aforementioned Doepfer clock divider, one company
options for that seems to have taken the whole idea of clocks to heart is 4MS.
are all about. Their purpose is to your triggers It does a number of clock dividing and multiplying modules, the
provide a base pulse, which can be most simplistic of which is the RCD (Rotating Clock Divider). Apart
Left:
sent in the direction of modules Doepfer A-160 from looking after the basic concept, it also offers some unique and
Its simple, alternative clock divisions, such as /3, /5 and /7. Using these as
that can accept this pulse, normally
classic and pulses can create some beautiful polyrhythmic patterns, which can
labelled as a clock input, so that does the job then be rotated through their respective divisions, causing even
any modules in this chain will stay with the more interest. Similarly chaotic concepts can be found in the
minimum of Pittsburgh Modular Time Runner, the functionality of which is also
in time with each other. Sounds fuss and, being linked to pattern generation. Definitely worth a look if you like more
Doepfer, its
simple, and most of the time it is, very cost chaotic triggers.
but occasionally we might want to effective
MT162.TUT MOD.indd 61 01/08/2016 11:57

MT Technique MT Modular
Clocking to MIDI and DAWs

If, like me, you find yourself hooked into your computer and DAW
quite a lot, its perfectly possible to generate a nice clock to work
with from a chosen MIDI-to-CV interface. The Pittsburgh Modular
and Studio Electronics MIDI 3 will both accept an incoming MIDI
clock from a DAW, and allow a clock-pulse signal to be generated.
Equally handy is the ability to then divide the clock within the MIDI
3, so that you can lock a Eurorack-based device right into your
DAW-based production. Similar concepts are available from the
Mutable Instruments Yarns and the Doepfer A-190.
note-like, which might remind you of some of the

earlier single note repeated musical ideas that weve
heard in earlier forms of electronic music, and now you
know why.
In a perfect world, you could take your clock signal
and chain one unit to another using a series of ins and
outs but what if your units dont allow for this? Thats
where you will need either cables with splitters, or
some form of multiplier module, of the type that will
take a signal and split it. There are many modules that
will do this, and both passive and powered multipliers
will do the job; but somehow, a powered multiplier will
offer more assurance, although Ive never had problems
with passive mults myself.
For some (myself included), its often nice to make Above:
Clock divider and Volca
use of a dedicated unit to act as clock master, and The Volca Beats playing
nothing does this job better than an LFO module. along nicely, thanks to some
basic clock division from the
Selecting a nice, tight square wave (or pulse!) will give Doepfer A-160
off a significantly tasty signal which you can route in clock multiplier. To be fair, these are less common, but
numerous directions, allowing nice, tight syncing their name and purpose speaks for itself.
across the system. It also means that you can have an Taking a moment to think about this one, what other
elegant tempo control, right on your LFO, and there is a reason might you have for wanting to divide a clock?
certain charm to this mode of working. Where does the A very common pursuit is linked to the idea that the
clock start? It starts there, on my LFO module! (Its user may want to run a secondary sequencer,
worth noting that I dont normally talk to myself in considerably slower than the primary, with a view to
these tones, its only when thinking patches through controlling the pitch of the primary sequencer from the
be honest, you do it, too). secondary sequencer.
This would, in effect, mean that you could shift the
Its good to make use of a

sequence which is playing on your primary sequencer
up or down, to change harmony, and this could happen
dedicated unit such as an

every bar, or even every two or four bars. This is not for
the faint hearted, as ultimately, itll take time to set up
LFO to act as clock master

and perfect, but its something employed by many
producers who wish to exploit the live notion of
working with a modular.
There is no doubt that there is a lot of satisfaction to
Division and multiplication be had from setting up a sequencer chain of this type,
So far, then, so good. Weve got a clock signal and were and the purists will doubtless defend this with large
routing it all over the place, but now we are getting a dollops of integrity. Yet there is an argument that a
little bored of that 16th-note hi-hat sound that we used similar outcome could be achieved with the use of a
earlier, and would rather like it if it played eighth notes. sequencer such as an Arturia Beatstep Pro, which has
Well, luckily, there are devices and modules out there the ability to store complete song-style patterns.
just right for the task, and not surprisingly, the clue is in Granted, its not the traditional, purist approach to the
the name. Clock dividers do exactly that; take a clock problem, but it does save a lot of time, and the
and divide it, often numerous times, with an option for Beatstep Pro will also input or output a clock of your
separate outputs for each division. choice, which makes it a very sensible centre to a
Lets consider one of the most basic dividers, from system. Time to rock out with your Clock Out! MT
the ubiquitous Doepfer. The A-160-1 will take your
incoming clock, and divide it by 2, 4, 8, 16, 32 and 64, The odd ones out
Theres always someone who wants to spoil the party, and
meaning that you could have a long 808-style bass- regrettably the one company that doesnt currently conform to the
drum timbre, triggered every four bars, by exploiting the same format of 16 pulses per bar is Korg, much to the annoyance of
/64 output. Its also got a rather handy reset input, anyone who owns an SQ-1 sequencer and/or any of the Volca range.
Plugging a 16th-note clock into a Volca will result in it running at
meaning that you can tell the divider where beat one of twice the speed of the rest of your system. However, all is not lost!
bar one actually is. Useful beyond all doubt! However, Youll just need a clock divider, to offer it a /2 clock in order to get it
if you have a desire to increase the clock speed, in to lock into your modular or, even cheaper, halve the time of your
Volca sequence to compensate.
multiples, youll be wanting to use (you guessed it) a
MT162.TUT MOD.indd 62 01/08/2016 11:58

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MusicTech.indd 1 27.07.2016 13:33:52
MUSIC IS OUR PASSION
MusicTech.indd 2 27.07.2016 13:34:05

MT Reviews Dynaudio LYD series monitors
MT Lead Review
Hardware Software Mobile Tech Accessories
Details
Kit LYD 5 & LYD 8
Manufacturer
Dynaudio
Price LYD 5, 395 each
(street); LYD 8 555
each (street)
Contact Audio
Distribution Group
sales@audio
distributiongroup.
com
Web
www.dynaudio.com
www.audio
distributiongroup.
com
Features
Shared
Bi-amp two-way
active speakers
Bass extension
Position switch
for two tunings
Tweeter:
28mm soft dome Choice
Connections:
XLR and RCA DYNAUDIO 9/10
9
9/10
LYD 5 & 8
analogue
Sensitivity:
+6 dB: 50mV
0dB: 100mV
-6dB: 200mV
LYD 5
Woofer: 5 MSP
Max SPL: 106dB
Dynaudio has an incredible rep for speaker design. Jon Andrews looks at
Crossover freq:
5.2kHz
two sets from the new LYD range. And yes, they are white
Freq range: 50Hz
W
to 22kHz
Output power LF: e all know that music speakers a look of authority and too, depending on your room size and
50w, HF 50W -production hardware perhaps a little futuristic appeal. audio setup. Sensitivity lets you match
Power cons: has become more exciting to your pro or consumer interfacing with
100W (<0.5W on
standby) in terms of looks and Small, medium, large -6dB and +6dB options for high and
Dimensions: popularity Eurorack, colourful Ive had two of the range on test for the domestic output levels.
170x260x211mm controllers, etc but speakers? They last month: the LYD 5 and LYD 8. As has Im a big fan of Standby mode. Yes, I
Weight(kg): 5.7
have always been mostly black the become normal, speakers get released do get irritated if it kicks in too early, but
LYD 8 most outrageous departure being KRK in threes, with a clue to the woofer size its probably saved me money over the
Woofer: 8 MSP yellow and the NS-10 white cone. in the name. So while each shares a years and you get the choice to use it.
Max SPL: 112dB
Dynaudio wanted to make a splash 28mm soft-dome tweeter, we switch to Then you get to tweak the low ends by
Crossover freq:
3.9kHz with the LYD range, so made it white. imperial measurements with the 8- and +/- 10Hz with handy Bass Extension
Freq range: 45Hz Okay, its not that radical and the black 5-inch wooferd versions here. options. Again, this is related to volume,
to 22kHz cones take so much of the front panel The LYD range is designed for small so if you mix at low levels or have a
Output power LF:
80w, HF 50W
up that, along with black sides, you get and medium studios and setting the smaller room, you might want to have
Power cons: used to it pretty quickly. speakers up is very straightforward. this switched to -10Hz. But do
100W (<0.5W on Whether you like white is, of course, Theres an excellent manual with a great experiment with these in your setups
standby)
a matter of personal choice. I rather like design that gets you to the heart of and stick with the setting you are happy
Dimensions: 234
x369x328mm it. It accentuates the front design a little speaker positioning very quickly. There with. Two final settings are perhaps less
Weight (kg): 10.2 more than black would, with an angled are extras around the back of each that common: Position and Sound Balance.
curve around the woofer that lends the make initial tweaks and setups easy The former has two settings Wall and
MT162.REV Dynaudio.indd 66 01/08/2016 11:13

Dynaudio LYD series monitors Reviews MT
Free to help with anomalies created Lifting the options, thinking I might be able to
by reflections coming off the back wall. With so many combinations of setup match them (to see if I could get an
Basically, set it to Wall if your speakers options available, I decided to go down equal sound from the 5s and the 8s, but
are within 50cm of your back wall; the middle as much as I could and pay less for the 5s!). This didnt quite
otherwise, its Free. How this works is experiment along the way; in effect, work the 8s always won, bass-wise.
not really explained, but I did try it, with taking the advice from earlier. As the Then I tried the Wall and Free options
hit-and-miss results. speakers were within 50cm of the back on both. It didnt make much difference
The Sound Balance is a little harder wall, I also engaged the Wall option with on the 5s, but I did notice a slight
to explain, and is dependent on your Standby mode on for good measure. muddying of the bass with the 8s when
acoustic treatment. Dead rooms might I set both the LYD 5s up; then the 8s in the wrong mode. The manual explains
require the Bright setting to give the for comparison; and then and why not little of the physics, bar anomalies at
speakers more zing, while one with lots one of each, for a direct comparison low frequencies, but it did alter the LF.
of reflections might require Dark to help across a mix in stereo, which turned out
deaden the response. Its a useful to be the most revealing (FYI, I used an Conclusion
setting to have, but again, will add to Allen & Heath Qu-24 mixer to feed from So what does all of this prove? These
your setup time as you experiment. both Live and Logic). are great-sounding speakers I was
It sounds like a lot of options to Often when testing speakers you very impressed with what I heard on
fiddle with, but you should always start with preconceptions based on mixes from similar priced and more
expensive monitors and could make all
sorts of improvements, and at lower
The 5s are suited to smaller levels. Yet the flexibility from all these
extras makes the LYDs suitable for all
rooms but both can be edited to sorts of studio situations, even though
it takes time to set up. Theres little to
fit if you spend time with them call between them. The 5s are obviously
suited to smaller environments but
both can be edited to fit. Spend time
invest time at this stage of a monitor reputation, price, specs etc, so you can sorting this and youll be very happy
setup to get better results for your then be surprised by units not living up with either. MT
mixes down the line. Indeed, the manual to, or exceeding these expectations.
lists quite a few suggestions on setting This time, though, what I expected was MT Verdict LYD 5
up and tweaking here its great advice, pretty much the result, up to a point.
+ Great and accurate response
actually (well probably cut-and-paste it Like I said, the A/B comparison across mids and highs
into an article soon!) Finally, the manual between the two monitors was the + Lows are tight and not as lacking
advises running the speakers in, most revealing. As you might expect, the as you might expect
something youd expect to have to do slightly larger woofer of the LYD 8 + Bass Extension and other
controls add setup flexibility
with a lot of monitors, especially as you resulted in a better response further
+ Solid build
get above a certain price point. down the range. You might also expect + An overall tight sound
the upper mids and top to be more or
less the same, because the tweeters - Manual a little vague on how
are identical. Its a simplistic way of some of the extras actually work
- Larger rooms will require the
looking at it, but direct comparison optional BM sub (or 8s)
revealed just that. Both have an
exceptional degree of clarity across Tight sound for small rooms and
these ranges with pinpoint detail on the enough control for accurate results.
soundstage in fact, I couldnt fault
them with the 8s providing just that
8/10
extra bit of boom down under. So the 8s
delivered this bottom but, surprisingly, MT Verdict LYD 8
at lower levels: and on certain tracks I
+ Great response across the range
was mixing on I was getting a more + Good energy for mid size rooms
rounded and tighter picture from the 5s + Again, lots of flexibility in set up
it just held together that much better. + Very solid build
I then decided to notch the bass + Good set-up info in the manual
+ Good detail for editing
response back on the 8s and bring it up
on the 5s using the Bass Extension - The 5s will be better at low levels
- Again, some extras a bit vague
Alternatives Its hard to split these two, but the
There are literally hundreds of monitors available in this price range, 8s deliver for larger rooms and have
so Ill just list some of the ones weve looked at recently, including a great balance and accuracy.
9/10
Dynaudios own BM Compact mkIII set-up and the MunroSonic Egg100
Around the back, you get a number of options system. More recently, I also reviewed the RM series from Pioneer, very
not always available on other monitors, much the new kids on the block but great monitors, especially the RM-07.
including Position and Sound Balance
MT162.REV Dynaudio.indd 67 01/08/2016 11:13

MT Reviews Softube Modular
The multicoloured
cable shop! Cables
switch colour
automatically, so
its easy to follow
them from source
to destination
SOFTUBE Innovation
Modular
If youve ever wanted to get into modular synthesis, but are worried
about spending the cash, this could be the solution for you. Dave Gale
boots up the latest incarnation of modular in software format
I
Details t has to be said that there is an end is thunderous, with wonderful my starting point. Once selected, the
Price 69/$99 element of commitment involved in warmth in the lower mids, while the top module appears in the modular case,
Contact getting into Eurorack and modular end offers a wispy quality. It could be and is ready for use, which essentially
MSL Professional
0207 118 0133 synthesis. Theres the inevitable argued what I was hearing in the means patching it in its a modular
Web inherent price tag and then theres the presets is akin to what I refer to as the synth, remember so rather than
www.softube.com bewildering array of modules available, Bose effect where the frequency waste time, in goes a filter, VCA and
so if your path towards modular glory is palette is coloured by an overarching envelope. Patching together is a cinch,
laced with trepidation, the new Modular top and bottom end, that feels pleasing thanks to the elegant design of the
virtual synth from Softube could well be to the ear in its initial form. So now was interface. As you select an output, all
the answer at least in the short term. the time to break open a pack of virtual the available inputs for connection
patch cables and build up a timbre. glow green, as does the cable you are
Modular concept
Once installed, Modular appears
seamlessly in your DAW, and springs
open to reveal a blank case. Where are
I had to take off my soft synth
all the modules? I cry, but then, clicking
the intuitive Add button reveals the
hat, and very firmly put on my
available units with six basic, but good,
modules from Doepfer, and a host of
Eurorack boffin cloak
utility modules.
Features The ethos of Modular is to offer At this point, I discovered any iLok, uLok
A fully fledged the user modules from the real world, illusions I may have had that this wasnt Its worth mentioning that authorisation of the
modular synth Modular is made through the iLok system
and while theres a large collection of a traditional modular were about to which, if you are not familiar, is a pretty well
in software form
generic utility modules, many of which come into sharp focus. Creating a established anti-piracy and authorisation
Basic selection
offer the sort of functionality expected sound, I had to take off my DAW-based system. The ideal setup is to have an iLok USB
of modules to
key, which will hold iLok licences; but the said
work with in a Eurorack, theres also a helpful soft synth hat, and very firmly put on licence can also be written to your computers
Virtual Models
smattering of modules from existing my Eurorack boffin cloak. This synth hard drive instead, if a USB key is not present.
of existing units This can be slightly more complicated if
Expandable, companies, most notably at this stage will not make a sound unless you look
transferring a licence from one machine to
with more Doepfer and Intellijel, with the latter after the basics; youll need a MIDI-to- another, which is why many prefer the iLok
modules requiring an additional small purchase. CV module to be in place if you want to USB-key method, as the key can be easily
arriving soon moved. iLok is also used by many other
Supported
Diving straight in with some of the trigger a sound from your keyboard, so companies (Eventide, Synthogy, Celemony,
plug-in formats: presets purely to get a taste of what is having attended to this, I moved to an iZotope, Avid) as an anti-piracy system, so the
VST, VST3, AU on offer, I was immediately hit by the oscillator. The Doepfer A-110 VCO is one likelihood is that you will use it for other
and AAX Native software over time.
depth of the sonic palette. The bottom of the first modules on view, so this was
MT162.REV SoftTubeModular.indd 68 01/08/2016 11:54

MT Reviews Softube Modular
ultimately means that the Modular is

pretty future proof. In the short term,
you might want to consider the Intellijel
extras, because even though its
perfectly solid, the tonal colour of the
Doepfer module set will inevitably
become tired in use.
Conclusion
I have always been a little sceptical of
modular synths in software format, and
this is quite possibly because I am so
spoiled by using the real thing, but I
have to say that I really enjoyed my time
with the Modular. The overarching fact
is, it sounds huge and certainly to my
ears, theres some very realistic
modelling of third-party modules.
So, are there any circumstances
where it could actually take the place of
my Eurorack? Only time will tell, and
this is most likely to be dictated by the
situation and how practical it is that I
will have my Eurorack with me. The
basic, slim collection of tonal modules
that are currently available at this time
is a minus, but with more modules on
the way, Modular is a great investment
if you want an inexpensive version of
modular on the move. MT
Do I really need this?

There is no doubt that if you want a modular
on a budget, this is an excellent solution, and
I cannot overstate how good the Modular
connecting. However, just like a drum synth into the system also at Above: The Module sounds, but there are lots of great soft synths
modular, it is still possible to make CV additional cost which means you Selection menu out there, and I think the question is more
its the modular about whether youre the sort of electronic
connections that might not illicit a can turn your modular into a very beefy equivalent of musician who likes to experiment. If you are,
response at first, so unlike many soft drum machine; but it has also teamed pick n mix, and this will most likely open new horizons, but if
just as sweet to boot youre after presets aplenty, this is probably
synths, if youre creating a patch from up with Intellijel to model the
not the best choice for you.
scratch, you will need to engage the Korgasmatron II filter, Rubicon VCO Below: 16 notes of
grey matter to ensure that connections and Fold modules. fun the step
sequencer, ready to
make sense. Helpfully, cable colours Further models from other sync to your DAW
MT Verdict
alter with each one patched, so its easy companies are in the pipeline, which
+ Sounds wonderful
+ Very flexible like a modular!
+ Ergonomic interface
Other companies have models + Basic, but good, module choice,
right out of the box
in the pipeline, so the Modular is + Further modules can

be purchased
+ Pretty future proof
pretty future proof + Excellent value for money
- Will require some time and effort,

unlike some other soft synths
to trace the route of any cable. Alternatives - Slim collection of tonal modules
And so the fun can begin, as it is If youre really into the concept of a modular at present
even possible to build step sequencers synth on your computer, then there are a - Software did crash on me a few
into the frame as well, which will then, number of very fine options available in this times, so further stability updates
arena. Arturia has modelled the Moog Modular are likely
in turn, clock to your DAW, via the and the ARP 2600, both of which are excellent - No standalone version
helpful DAW Sync module. However, clones and cost a fraction of the price of the
plug-in only
vintage examples. If you own a Roland AIRA
special mention must go to the FX pedal, you can use Rolands new Modular
additional modules that are available at Customizer, which will allow you to build a The overall sound of this soft synth
modular on a Mac/PC or iPad, and load it will excite many, but youll need
extra cost. Theres a great choice of
into the pedal for use. Similarly, if you have to put in some time to realise its
basic Doepfer modules available an iPad, the new Moog 15 App, from Moog, full potential
straight out of the box, which will more
than allow you to get going, and Softube
is outstanding with all the touchy-feely
elements that can be exploited on a
touchscreen device.
8/10
has implemented its own Heartbeat
MT162.REV SoftTubeModular.indd 70 01/08/2016 11:54

RDE MICS COST
A FORTUNE
LUCKILY, PETER PICKS UP THE BILL

Peter Freedman
Anyone can make a cheap mic cheaply, but only by investing $50
million in cutting-edge R&D and manufacturing can RDE make Founder, RDE
a range of truly world class microphones that everyone can afford. Microphones
But dont take our word for it. Visit your nearest RDE dealer or
rode.com/soundbooth to hear them for yourself.
Exclusively distributed in the UK & Ireland by Source T: 020 8962 5080 W: sourcedistribution.co.uk/rode
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#41940 - RODE Recording Ad - Music Tech.indd 1 28/08/2015 14:26

MT Reviews AKG K Series headphones
and KRK, too. What I noted is that they

are accurate, but not accurate as in the
Audeze flat-reference accurate.
Whereas those could be quite harsh in
my listening, these are more easy on
the ear and more natural. Not coloured
but pure, sweet and vibey.
Like switching to a better set of
monitors, I was expecting to hear things
Id not heard before on previous sets of
reference phones and while I didnt
quite experience that, I did find myself
reaching for these phones more and
more post-testing, and re-enjoying
classic pieces of music on a new level.
For mixing, they are extraordinary.
Ive been mixing a lot on headphones of
late and finding the results a little
scrunched, with lots of fighting for a
place in the mix. These seem to allow
you to place things better, spread them
out and allow mixes to breath more.
Levels came down, I was less stressed
AKG Choice and everyone in our house was happier!
9/10
9
9/10
K812
Conclusion
These are the best-sounding phones
Ive used, bar none. So why no 10? Well,
price will be an issue. I know Ive said
that money should be no object when
Andy Jones finally gets hold of a set of AKG K812s, said to be the youre monitoring your precious music,
ultimate reference headphones. Well, they should be at that price but no matter how good these are,
you try explaining 1,300 for some
headphones to your wife. If you can,
F
Details or one reason or another, I was people mix on phones, so why not have however, your mixes and masters wont
Kit K812 supposed to be looking at a super accurate set on hand? Im regret it. MT
Manufacturer these phones a year ago, but it showing my age but at one time, music
AKG
Price never happened much to my production was an expensive game. Alternatives
1,099 +VAT disappointment. However, last issue I Now its cheap(ish), so spend more on We havent looked at headphones at this price
Contact Sound for many years at MusicTech, so theres
reviewed the new range of budget AKGs what you listen to the results with!
Technology nothing that I can recommend as a direct
01462 480000 pretty good, particularly the top-end Secondly, these are actually streeting at alternative. For a lot less, you can choose from
Web www.soundtech. ones and just for the hell of it, I used a around a shade over a grand (still a lot). our current list of top headphone buys (all
co.uk from 200 upwards), including Ultrasones
set of these to compare them to. So So, straight to the sound and I P880, Audio Technicas ATH R or M70, KRKs
good were these that I thought Id compared these to the best of the KNS 8400 and Blues Mo-Fi. Id also add the
Audeze EL-8s to that list, as theyre probably
the nearest reference headphones Ive looked
You suddenly open things up

at and the most expensive at 600.
Features
the space, the frequencies, MT Verdict
Open-back
reference
headphones
the separation and clarity + Incredible accuracy
+ Very comfortable
+ Vibey sound, but still flat
53mm + They will open up your mixes and
transducer (finally!) share my thoughts, especially cheap AKG range last issue and noted those of your favourite artists
3.5mm jack with + The ultimate!
as these could be the phones you need that it was the aural equivalent of
6.3mm adapter
Frequency to master your music taking the roof off at Wimbledon. You - Isolation not great
range: suddenly open things up, and by that I - Could do with a carry case
5 Hz54 kHz Lets get it out the way first mean the space, the frequencies, the - The price, of course
i/p impedance:
First up, the price. 1,300 for a pair of separation and the clarity. Its as if
36 ohms Accurate yet vibey, spacious, on the
impedance: headphones. You have got to be kidding everything relaxes into a more musical money, comfortable and perfect for
36 ohms right? Well, no. We think nothing of space around your head when you mixing (and listening to) your music,
i/p power: spending that much (if not a lot more) compare these directly to something these are the ultimate phones (at
300mW the ultimate price).
on a decent set of studio monitors that cheaper. Of course, I didnt just compare
9/10
Cable: 3m
Weight: 390g offer accurate responses, so why not a these to cheap sets during my testing
set of headphones? More and more but put them next to phones by Blue, AT
MT162.REV AKG K812.indd 72 01/08/2016 11:06

iZotope VocalSynth Reviews MT
IZOTOPE
VocalSynth
Vocal effects are huge and dont look like going anywhere soon.
Alex Holmes reviews iZotopes latest, with four for the price of one
S
Details ynthetic vocal effects have a type-selector switch with three have portamento and the ability to
Price 149 been around in popular music settings. Special mention should go to change the pitch-bend amount for the
Contact Time+Space for quite some time now, and the specially-crafted dial called Bats, MIDI tracking for better expressiveness.
01837 55200
www.timespace.com
there have been multiple which makes any signal sound like a If you could use retro vocoder and
Minimum system software solutions and hardware units gravelly Christian Bale! At the top of the talkbox sounds, or overly pitched
requirements that make these sounds possible. GUI you also have volume and dry/wet RnB-style harmonies, this is perfect to
Windows 7, 8 and 10
(32 and 64-bit),
However, iZotopes new VocalSynth controls, plus a flexible X/Y pad that get you started. Or, if youre willing to get
VST2, VST3, AAX, plug-in is the first time several of the allows you assign parameters from a experimental and creative but arent
DPM, AudioSuite DPM most popular techniques have been long list to each axis. worried about intelligibility, then its a
and AAX
combined in a single, easy-to-use great sound-design tool. MT
Mac OS X 10.8 to 10.11,
Audio Unit, VST2, product. At its heart are four engines; Perfect harmony
VST3, AAX, DPM, the Polyvox can change the formant To round things off, there are five effects
AudioSuite DPM Alternatives
and AAX
of the voice or create organic, layered at the bottom that run in series called Theres not really anything out there that
harmonies a la Imogen Heap; the Distort, Filter, Transform (with eight has all of these FX in one plug-in. However,
Vocoder creates classic talking-synth convolution speaker models), Shred for high-quality vocoding, you could check
out MeldaProductions MVocoder (49), or
sounds like Daft Punk; the Compuvox is (a stutter effect), and Delay. They lack for Compuvox effects theres Sonic Charges
a Speak & Spell-style computer voice, deep controls but have been fine-tuned Bitspeek ($33). Alternatively, Madrona Labs
Virta ($89) is a more complex and flexible
and Talkbox creates melodies in the to get quick, good-sounding results. The
synth that can be controlled by your voice,
style of Chromeo or Tupac. final section allows you to add up to but it lacks the retro vocal FX sounds found
These four units sit in the middle of three additional voices and tune each in VocalSynth.
a clear GUI (with a resemblance to NIs one up or down in semitones or octaves
recent Reaktor plug-ins) with volume for rich-sounding chords. By default,
MT Verdict
controls for each. This is one of the big the plug-in runs in Auto mode and
draws of the software, as you can blend tracks the inputs pitch, but the real fun + 4 simultaneous vocal engines in
all four engines to create rich new comes when you put it into MIDI mode one plug-in
+ Streamlined, fine-tuned controls
textures, although some panning and start playing the keyboard. This + Quick and easy to use
controls would have been nice to help turns VocalSynth into a much more + Good-sounding FX
with separation. The Vocoder, Compuvox expressive instrument allowing you to
and Talkbox each have 10 different play polyphonic chords, or monophonic - Using all four modules has a
high CPU hit
Features wavetables for the carrier, which track melodies. You can also send it a
- Cant fine-tune internal synths or
4 vocal engines the pitch of the incoming signal sidechain signal and use that as the other parameters
in one plug-in
meaning theres no complicated setup carrier, which opens up endless creative - Not always easy to get good and
5 built-in effects
needed to get instant results. The input sound-design possibilities. We tried out intelligible results
Pitch Correction - No pan controls for each module
module can also pass through a Pitch a bunch of different vocals and
Assignable Correction module to tidy tuning or sidechain signals and came up with a Well laid out, easy to pick up and
X/Y pad
create hard-tuning effects, with the few great riffs, but also struggled a little unique in the fact it offers four
MIDI
ability to constrain to a key. On top of to get intelligible results. Maybe if there popular vocal processors in one
tracking mode
the waveform selection, each engine was more control over the sidechain plug-in, but limited controls make
Built-in
wavetable
consistently good results tricky.
gives you fairly limited control over and the actual oscillators then you
or sidechain
carrier signal
three main parameters for things such
as formant, drive and bit reduction, plus
might be able to fine-tune things to
improve this. Also, it would be nice to
8/10
MT162.REV iZotope.indd 75 01/08/2016 11:31

MT Reviews PreSonus Studio 192
PRESONUS
Studio 192
Described as a Studio Command Centre, could the PreSonus Studio 192
be the solution to all of your production-setup needs? Andy Jones investigates
T
Details he audio-interface market us UC it? Overall thoughts
Price 719 (street) certainly a crowded one and Universal Control is the name of the So, the UC software is practical and
Contact manufacturers really do have software that interfaces the 192 Studio the hardware itself is very easy to use
www.presonus.com,
www. to offer something unique or with whatever DAW and computer you I particularly like the main central dial
sourcedistribution. inspiring to grab attention. Or, in the use. Essentially, this is software that and the two headphones outs are very
co.uk Studio 192s case, a massive spec. acts as a routing manager with your useful. Audio performance was
0208 962 5080
And call it a Studio Command Centre DAW and it can make or break your exceptional, as you might expect,
for good measure, too, why dont you? experience with the interface. Ive although I did have to reboot both Live
Features
This USB 3 interface has enough used UC before, but it required a quick and Logic on occasion after lengthier
24-bit, 192kHz
USB 3 interface ins and outs for some of the most update and restart before successfully sessions to get everything running
8 remote- demanding of multi-channel set-ups interfacing with Live. smoothly. Id also question the USB 3
controlled 26 ins and 32 outs with eight mic and Actually, I have to say, it was one of standard in terms of performance, as
XMAX preamps
line ins, eight line outs, plus main outs, the most straightforward interfacing the Focusrite Clarett 8Pre I tested a few
Input monitoring
with StudioLive and ADAT and coaxial making up the experiences I have had. Often you months back offered an outstanding
Fat Channel DSP digital numbers. With two inputs expect a couple of hardware or software latencey performance and extra
processing on
every analogue around the front and LED meters reboots but in this case, it was very channel controls, for not much extra.
input and the offering an indication of signal strength easy: so easy, in fact, that I barely had to But in terms of ease of set up and
first ADAT inputs use, Studio 192 delivers a good audio
Studio One Artist
I have to say, it was one

version included
performance and bags of extras. The UC
Up to 26 software is not just a bolt-on, and you
of the most straightforward

inputs/32 will end up using it more than most
outputs (8x14
interfacing software, as it makes
at 192kHz)
interfacing experiences ever

Two front-panel remote control a proper reality. MT
combo mic/inst
inputs
6 balanced MT Verdict
line-level direct-
to-ADC inputs per input channel, its not unlike several switch to the UC software to get + Set up and ease of use is a
via dual-purpose other interfaces Ive tested over the last everything up and running. Indeed, real bonus
rear-panel
year stand up Prism and Focusrite. not having to do so meant that the + Great audio specs
combo jacks
+ Fantastic range of connections
8 balanced TRS However, Studio 192 also boasts a initial experience was transparent and
outputs version of PreSonus very own DAW easy always good in my book but Im - UC software is a little bland
ADAT/Dual SMUX
optical ip/op:
(Studio One v3 Artist), which is a highly glad I eventually went in deep with the - Better for touch than desktop
16x16 channels regarded affair with synths, sample UC software, as it does offer some - There are better-performing
at 44.1 or 48kHz; player and drum machine plus around extras on top of the routing, including interfaces in terms of latency
8x8 channel at
88.2 or 96kHz 30 effects plug-ins and 2GB of sample remote control of the preamps, EQ and It is called a Studio Command
118dB A/D/A content. Whether a complete DAW will compression. Its a bit bland-looking a Centre and what you get for
converters tempt you in is, of course, up to you little Logic-like in appearance but this your buck is lots of connectivity,
Stereo S/PDIF
but its an impressive bundle, whichever is probably as its optimised for the a great spec and bags of extras.
coaxial input
and output way you look at it, and central to that
Command Centre ethos.
iPad, and it does do the job, making the
routing and tweaking experience easy.
8/10
MT162.REV Presonus.indd 76 01/08/2016 11:41

FIRST WITH REVIEWS
FIRST WITH NEWS
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MT Reviews Rupert Neve Designs RNHP Precision Headphone Amplifier
RUPERT NEVE DESIGNS

RNHP Precision
Headphone Amplifier
Mike Hillier considers the potential benefits that this dedicated
headphone amplifier can bring to your mixing setup
I
n professional audio, headphone Details amplifier, using a pair of Sennheiser HD phones, but also the shortcomings. In
amplifiers are usually among the Manufacturer 280 Pro closed-back headphones and the room, the sound has a little more
last things we tend to think of. Most Rupert Neve Designs the balanced input on both units, the room to breathe, the instruments can
Price 529
modern audio interfaces will have RNHP was a touch brighter, with a hit your chest just as much as your ears.
Contact
one or two headphone outputs and for Sonic Distribution touch less bass. Stereo spacialisation is a little better,
the most part, thats been good enough. 0845 500 2 500 Playing through our reference though not substantially, using the
The Rupert Neve Designs RNHP is a Web tracks, this resulted in the pounding headphones; but it became much
www.rupertneve.com
dedicated headphone amplifier, kick drum on Daft Punks Rock n Roll easier to focus on details and to listen
designed to drive a single pair of being a little lighter on the RNHP than closely to reverb tails.
pro-quality phones with exceptional the Egg amp. The snare and claps, If you mix on headphones often,
quality. The circuit is borrowed from the though, seemed more snappy through then a great headphone amp is going to
RND 5060 Centerpiece desktop mixer, the RNHP. The big crunchy distorted help, and the RNHP is exactly this. But if
which is itself based on the larger 5088 guitars on Godspeed You! Black you mostly mix on monitors, with the
console, giving the RNHP a very strong Emperors Mladic were much cleaner occasional switch to headphones for an
pedigree to live up to. through the RNHP, leaving more room alternative perspective, then you might
The rear panel of the RNHP houses for the string arrangements. Elton want to consider this as a luxury
the three inputs, a pair of XLR/TRS Johns Tiny Dancer was more vocal- upgrade, rather than a necessity. MT
combi inputs, a pair of RCA inputs and a forward with the Egg amplifier, while
single stereo 1/8-inch jack input. The the RNHP brought the piano and the Alternatives
three input options are each calibrated string section closer to the front, while The RNHP is a great-sounding device, which
really brought a better sound from our now
to expect a different level of signal. The the vocal sat more into the track. The fairly old headphones. If youre looking for an
combi inputs expect a professional bass guitar seemed to lose a little alternative, its worth considering many of the
level balanced +4dBu signal this is energy compared to the Eggs, which hi-fi headphone amps, rather than something
designed specifically for the studio world.
likely to be the outputs from your audio helped the whole mix to sit more
interface or mixer. Alternatively, the RCA comfortably. The brass arrangement on
inputs are calibrated for unbalanced Reveres As The Radars Sleep sits right MT Verdict
signals. Finally, the stereo 1/8-inch jack in your face on the RNHP, with the
+ Improved sound quality
is designed for use with the lower- breakup around the top of the + Capable of driving
quality headphone amps built into instruments sounding like the mic is high-impedance headphones
laptops and mp3 players. giving everything it has. Through the Egg + Three input options
All three inputs can be hooked up amp, this distortion simply sounded like
- Only currently available as a
simultaneously, with switching done a generic distortion plug-in placed
single channel
from buttons on the front panel, which Features across the brass, and they sat in among - No link option
also houses the 1/4-inch headphone Switchable the rest of the mix much more.
between XLR/ Whether youre looking to just
socket and volume knob. TRS, RCA and
All in all, we preferred the RNHP
improve your listening rig, or
Our studio interface has no 1/8-inch inputs sound to that of the Egg amps built-in
expand your studio options, the
headphone output built-in, and weve VESA mountable headphone amp. Comparing these in RNHP is a great-sounding box.
been reliant on the headphone amp turn against the room sound, this time
8/10
1/4-inch TRS
headphone
built-into our SE Munro Egg 150 system using the Egg 150 monitors, shows the
output
amplifier. Lined up against the SE obvious benefits of checking mixes on
MT162.REV RNHP.indd 78 01/08/2016 11:42

MT Reviews Aston Microphones Halo
ASTON MICROPHONES Innovation
Halo Music
Accompanying the two microphones in the Aston range
is Halo, a reflection filter. Can it improve the sound of the
Origin and Spirit? Mike Hillier investigates
W
Details eve been very impressed a hemisphere, which means it will also recommend you attach it directly to the
Manufacturer with both the Origin and be able to absorb reflections coming stand and not to the boom arm, for
Aston Microphones Spirit mics from Aston from the floor or ceiling. The textured better stability, and because affixing
Price 199
Microphones. These and waveformed surface is designed the Halo at any angle other than vertical
Contact
Sonic Distribution large-diaphragm condenser mics to help diffuse the direct sound further, doesnt make sense.
0845 500 2500 performed far beyond our expectations, so that any reflections that do reach the The microphone itself mounts on
Web winning blind shootouts against some mic are more diffuse. This should sound the metal hardware, and for our first
www.astonmics.com
of our favourite (and most expensive) more natural, and produce less experiments with the Halo, we mounted
mics. Now they are joined by Halo, a unwanted comb-filtering. an Aston Origin directly to the hardware
reflection filter. with no shock-mount.
Halo is made from a patented PET Halo and welcome In our studio control room, the effect
(polyethylene terephthalate) felt: this The Halo is quite large, which helps the of using the Halo is not overwhelming.
The control room is already a fairly dry
space, and if anything, adding the Halo
Halos textured surface left the vocal sound a little choked.
Moving into the live room, however, the
is designed to help diffuse difference between recording with and
without the Halo was quite noticeable.
Features
the direct sound further The room tone was brought down
drastically, leaving the vocal sounding
Hemispherical clean, clear and dry. With headphones
design
is a lightweight material, with some unit to absorb the aforementioned on, it was as though the vocalist was
360-degree
filtering very efficient acoustic-absorption reflections from a wide range of angles singing right into our ears.
Proprietary properties. The material is also including above and below. Despite its Dry recordings dont usually sound
easy-mount
eco-friendly, being made from size it is lightweight enough for one that great on their own, but the big
hardware
Cable-tidy 70-per-cent recycled PET plastic person to affix it to a mic stand without advantage is how well they receive
built-in design bottles. Unlike most other reflection any struggle. Mounting it to the mic effects afterwards. Comparing the vocal
53 x 45cm filters, the PET felt shield itself is not stand is simple, and doesnt require a recorded with and without the Halo
ridge-textured
surface area
simply a U shape, absorbing reflections degree in mechanical engineering to with both EQd, compressed and with
from the back and sides, but instead is work out. However, wed strongly a Lexicon Hall reverb applied brings
MT162.REV Aston Halo.indd 80 05/08/2016 14:21

Aston Microphones Halo Reviews MT
Alternatives floor also meant switching to a small, differences, though, were subtle
kick-drum mic stand worked perfectly
The SE Reflexion Filter was the first dedicated much more so than the vocal recording.
portable vocal booth we came across, and it for getting the height right. Positioning Halo is undoubtedly a useful tool,
did an excellent job at cleaning up the room
tone, but was quite weighty and not always the Halo for use next to an amp on the and one that will help bedroom
floor would presumably require a boom
that easy to affix to the stand. The Halo has producers reach a new level of quality in
tech specs that out-perform the alternatives,
arm pointed vertically at the floor and
but it is much simpler to set up and use. If you
their recordings, cleaning up the often
regularly track vocals in small untreated some fiddling to get the mic angled at significantly-less-than-perfect room
rooms, this type of device should be high onthe speaker, but should still be possible. reflections from the signal. In a more
your wishlist.
Again, we used the Aston Origin on professional room, however, it might
the cabinet with the Halo. The Halo is have less appeal as there is less to
out what it is that makes the Halo so quite large, but we were able to get an clear up. Having said that, Halo does
worthwhile. Without the Halo, the room SM57 inside the hemisphere on a ofter the pro-studio owner some
tone is being passed through the reverb, second stand to pair with the Origin. flexibility, and its much easier to set up
smearing the reverb tail, and bringing However, we werent able to get the and far more convenient than building
up a muddiness in the low-midrange. SM57 capsule to quite line up with the a temporary vocal booth. MT
The reverb tail from the Lexicon of the one in the Origin without the back of
recording with the Halo sounded the SM57 and the mic cable hitting MT Verdict
cleaner, and more focused, placing the the back of the Halo. This isnt so bad,
+ Lightweight
vocalist more accurately within the though, as we can sample-align the + Easy to set up
artificial space. The result was we didnt signals in our DAW. + Cleans up the room reflections
feel wed need to EQ the reverb send The results of the guitar recordings
and return as heavily to fit into the mix were great. The Halo helped to isolate - Effect is most noticeable only in
the worst rooms
Next up, we tried using the Halo on a the mildly overdriven signal coming
guitar cab. We usually try and lift guitar from the amplifier from the sound The Halo is more than just another
cabs off the floor on a small stool or saturating the room. The guitar reflection filter, and manages to
similar, as this helps to prevent comb seemed more mid-forward, and more look good while also improving
your signal quality.
filtering in the bottom end from aggressive, with the pick attack
reflections coming off the floor. With
MusicTech the
HK Halo,
Nanoraising
608i ad.qxp_Layout
seeming to provide more of a dynamic
the cabinet off 1the25/07/2016
than09:31 Page
without the 1Halo in place. The
8/10
LUCAS NANO 608i

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MT162.REV Aston Halo.indd 81 05/08/2016 14:21

MT Reviews Output Movement
Choice
9/10
9
9/10
OUTPUT
Movement
Movement is Outputs first audio plug-in, but does it match the calibre of its
previous sample-based instruments? Mark Cousins finds out
O
Details ver the course of its three spread across the two FX engines. The Into the groove
Manufacturer Output previous products REV, rhythm generators are presented as Part of the appeal of Movement, as with
Price 122 SIGNAL and EXHALE Output LFOs, step sequencers and a sidechain Outputs other products, is the way the
Contact Time+ Space has developed a range of input, all designed to add movement to interface integrates itself into the
01837 55200
Web output.com
Kontakt-based virtual instruments with the aforementioned, and otherwise process. What could be a complicated
a consistent level of ingenuity and static, FX engines. plug-in, therefore, remains intuitive
creative flair. Anticipation for the Sonically speaking, the output of throughout the entirety of its use
companys fourth release was high, Movement can be characterised as a immediate and accessible for the
then, but few expected that Output range of animated FX treatments that first-time user, yet deep enough to keep
would make the bold jump between the vary given the material presented to ardent knob-twiddlers happy for hours.
world of sample-based instruments them. A vanilla-sounding synth pad, for The accessibility of Movement is
and the parallel universe of audio
plug-ins.
Movement is Outputs first audio
plug-in, and its designed to impart a Accessible for the first-time
range of rhythmic qualities onto any
number of audio sources that you pass user, yet deep enough to keep
through it. However, given the high
standards weve come to expect from ardent knob-twiddlers happy
Output instruments, does Movement
make the grade as an audio processor?
Features To fully understand what Movement example, suddenly comes to life with perfectly illustrated in respect to the
300+ presets has to offer, its worth taking some time pulsating filter treatments; or a simple modulation mapping, where the rhythm
Sidechain, LFO, to describe its signal path and the guitar line suddenly becomes a sources are assigned to parameters
Step Sequencer
creative possibilities it entails. rhythmic feature with a choppy, within the FX engine simply by a
rhythm
modulation Movement is powered by two parallel staccato-like gate, bathed in echoing process of drag-and-drop. Once
Flux and effects engines (A and B), each of which delays. For new users, its well worth assigned, numbers in the centre of each
Randomizer
has up to four different effects slots spending time with Movements presets pot indicate the routing, as well as
Filters, EQ,
delay, distortion, that can be used to instantiate a range just to see the breadth of what the small bar graphs on the bottom of the
compression of signal-processing options, including plug-in can achieve, and thanks to a pot to see the depth of modulation.
and reverb filters, delays, reverbs, compression clear preset-tagging system (using The beating heart of Movement is
X-Y pad
and distortion. What makes Movement descriptions such as choppy, pulses or the four rhythm sources: each set to
Live and
studio use really interesting, though, is the sidechain), its easy to find the work as an LFO, step sequencer, or
introduction of four rhythm generators, treatment that youre after. sidechain modulator. Looking first at
MT162.REV OutputMovement.indd 82 01/08/2016 11:40

Output Movement Reviews MT
the LFO, its pleasing to see a range Alternatives

of creative waveshapes (like Quad Movement is a relatively unique product, although there are alternatives
Stepped Sawtooth, or Notch) as well that explore similar areas, especially in respect to step sequencer-driven
as the conventional sine, triangle and effects. Waves MetaFilter ($149) is a good combination of analogue-style
filtering controlled by a step sequencer, LFO and sidechaining although,
sawtooth shapes. We also enjoyed the of course, you miss out on the other effects included in Movement.
addition of a Chaos control, which Ive achieved similar modulation-style effects using Native Instruments
Guitar Rig 5 (169), which has a modular-like signal path and all-important
varies the amplitude of the LFO on step sequencers and LFOs, but lacks the immediacy or focus of a tool
each step, making the output more such as Movement.
interesting to the ear. As youd expect,
Rate can be locked to various clock
divisions from 1/64th notes, right up progression to the sound that goes
to eight bars as well as including both above and beyond what the rhythm
dotted and triplet settings. sources offer.
Although some may be surprised by
Flux capacity Outputs move into the audio plug-in Increased output
One of the more intriguing elements world, it makes a lot of sense. One While its hard not to be impressed by
has to be the Flux control, which lets consistent theme to all Outputs the ingenuity and creativity embedded
you modulate the speed of a selected products so far has been the sonic into Movement, it does have a small
LFO/step sequencer using the rate of depths of the playback engine. Where number of caveats, which are worth
the other. The result of using Flux is a some libraries offer a fait accompli considering. The modulation-routing
unique form of shuffling or skipping with respect to their sound content, system, though intuitive, doesnt
movement whether its a subtle Outputs sample-based instruments necessarily facilitate the summing of
Tangerine Dream-like movement used their content as just the beginning two rhythms to a single destination
between 1/16ths and 1/32nd settings, of what you could achieve. Indeed, so that, for example, a fast-moving
or a more radical Dubstep-like with a range of filters, effects options, step-sequencer line is slowly
modulated wobble moving from 1/8ths modulators, step sequencers and so on, modulated up and down using a
to 1/24ths. Not surprisingly, Flux plays a instruments like REV, SIGNAL and slow-moving LFO. Equally, the FX
big part in many of the presets, and EXHALE felt like creative tools in their options, though competent for the task
certainly a key component to the own right, rather than pre-assembled in hand, could have greater scope
unique sound of Movement. collections of sounds and effects. whether its the option to change
With up to 32 steps, the step In keeping with Outputs other bitcrushing as well as distortion, or a
sequencer is a great of creating offerings, therefore, Movement sounds greater amount of filter-pole settings,
patterns within Movement, with a fantastic, with a set of presets that will or some of the granular options
handy set of pre-programmed surprise and delight in equal measure, included in SIGNAL.
sequences to get you started. To vary especially when you start manipulating Overall, Movement is an exciting
the effect of the step sequencer, the aforementioned X-Y pad. Having development for Output, demonstrating
Movement includes a variety of step always wondered what SIGNAL would that its unique approach isnt just
shapes, alternating between gated sound like with our own audio material restricted to sample-based
square shapes across the steps, for passed through its audio engine, instruments. Output seems to have a
example, to a more typical spiked Movement does, to a large extent, knack of understanding what piques a
AD-enveloped shape. While it might answer that question. As youd expect, producers interest, which it then
have been nice to see shape-editable pads and any ambient and textural manages to develop into a coherent
on a per-step basis, its still a great sources gain an extra sense of musical product: whether its an
feature that tallies with the immediacy dimensionality and animation, which instrument focused on reversed sound,
of Movement. can range from something subtle to like REV, or in Movements case, a
One prominent element of the more extreme sonic territories. What plug-in that adds motion and interest to
GUI is the large X-Y controller, which was a big surprise, however, was the anything that passes through it. MT
is configured to add a level of transformative effect Movement had on
performance control to all of the vanilla drum loops, highlighting the MT Verdict
presets. Indeed, its well worth tweaking versatility of the plug-in.
+ Transformative and
the X-Y controller as you move through Like a number of select software- imaginative effects
the presets, as its effect can have quite based tools, Movement is the perfect + Intuitive GUI
a profound impact on the plug-ins remedy for those moments when + Good range of presets
output. Even better still, consider inspiration starts to run dry; or indeed, + Instant inspiration
automating the control so that you can an existing palette of sounds becomes
- Modulation routing could be
add a whole level of animation and too familiar. Movement is a tool that more flexible
works best when a degree of - Range of effects could
serendipity is thrown into the equation be expanded
X-Y FX-engine control
You can assign the X-Y pad to any parameter when youre not quite sure exactly
Demonstrating the same
by either right-clicking, or cmd-clicking on its what you want, but youre aware your creative spark as its innovative
control. The two axes of the pad correspond music needs some form of rhythmic or
with the two FX engines, hence the cyan and
instruments, Outputs Movement
orange colouring. By clicking on the small X-Y textural lift. The result might be as is an inspiring and intriguing
pad icon next to the control, you can set the simple as a small stutter effect, but it audio plug-in.
relative knob range, moving between subtle
and more extreme parameter changes.
will ultimately provide the all-important
ear candy that your track needs.
9/10
MT162.REV OutputMovement.indd 83 01/08/2016 11:40

Audio Technica IEM series headphones Reviews MT
Details
Kit
IEM Series
Manufacturer
Audio Technica
Price
E40 70; E50 140;
E70 280
Contact
Audio-Technica
0113 277 1441
sales@audio-
technica.co.uk
Web Spot the difference! Not the most
enticing studio gear, but in-ear
eu.audio-technica. headphones could be just what you
com/en need for mobile music making and
these are the best weve tested. From
left to right: the E40, E50 and E70
Features
In-ear monitor
headphones
3.5mm gold-
AUDIO TECHNICA
plated stereo
mini plug Choice Value
9/10
9
9/10 $
1.6m (Y type)
IEM Series
cable
Flexible memory
cable loops
Detachable
cables
Includes carry
case and silicone
eartips
Were big fans of Audio Technicas R and M-Series headphones, but can its new
ATH-E40 in-ear monitor phones do the business? Andy Jones tries all three
Dynamic,
dual-phase
W
push-pull driver
Frequency ith the music-production are in-ear phones, for a start that is, Small is good
range: world going mad over the ones that you insert into rather than There are three models in the IEM
20Hz to 20kHz
great-looking studio cover your ears with. series starting at 70 for the E40,
impedance:
12ohms hardware, its often hard to Youd have thought that this design doubling in price for the E50 and again
Sensitivity: get too excited over practical accessory couldnt possibly offer the fulsome and to 280 for the top-end E70.
108dB/mW products that we all need. We must also
ATH-E50 remember as we witnessed in
Single balanced
armature driver
Augusts MusicTech (issue 161) that
theres a huge mobile music-making
Can such diminutive
headphones really offer a full,
Frequency
range: community out there that neither
20Hz to 18kHz wants nor needs a rack of modular
immersive mix experience?

impedance:
44ohms
synths, expensive outboard or 5,000
Sensitivity: monitors to make music with. They
107dB/mW want everything to be small, light,
ATH-E70 inexpensive and, well, just easy. And all immersive mix experience that full Interestingly, all three have different
Three balanced credit to both music-production camps on-ear phones offer (like our reference frequency responses than you might
armature drivers
we just like making music with tech, ATH M and R-Series plus recently expect simply as they have very
Frequency
range: whatever the size or ware! added AKG K812s), but AT reckons that different driver setups.
20Hz to 19 kHz For anyone where large monitoring these tiny, lightweight phones are as Each of the range is bigger and more
impedance: is an issue, though and were not just good as in-ear gets. They are, it says robust than they look in the picture
44ohms
talking mobile music making here this perfect for stage monitoring and studio above and all come complete with
Sensitivity:
109dB/mW new range of headphones from Audio mixing. Can such diminutive phones see-through windows onto the circuitry
Technica could be just the ticket. They deliver such a big ask? within. They also come with solid and
MT162.REV ATH-E Series.indd 85 01/08/2016 11:33

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Audio Technica IEM series headphones Reviews MT
compact carry cases easily rounded, but certainly everything was 1,300 monitors. They will take some
pocketable and great for protection. evident from the mix Id done on the getting used to, but if you want your
The E40s boast the lowest of input headphones that cost 1,230 more! music making streamlined and free of
impedances, which means they can be The 50s are a 100-per-cent step up excess weight and size distractions,
driven by low-powered devices but in price, but perhaps not a huge step up these are as good as it gets. MT
dont push them too hard. The others sonically. They rather surprisingly
have more middling impedances, so will seemed to offer a wider listening
Alternatives
be safer with a wider range of gear. experience, which isnt immediately
The Etymotic Research ER4 microPro in-ear
Each of the phones in the range also evident from the specs. This is probably headphones (250) make a similar mixing
offers flexible memory cable loops, down to the different driver, but the claim, but are quite harsh. Otherwise, our
recent on-ear recommendations include
which means that the cable near the overall sound was, if anything, very Ultrasone (P880); Audio Technica (ATH R or
ear piece is adjustable actually, more similar to the 40s. However, its well M70), KRK (KNS 8400) and Blue (Mo-Fi).
hard-wired so you can alter it worth going back to that impedance
according to your ear size. This does figure, as the sound might be similar
work and is useful if you want to but the 50s can be played much louder, MT Verdict ATH-E40
experiment with hiding cables for live or which could be an advantage in several
+ Cheapest in the range
keeping the phones snugly in-ear for situations especially live ones. + but surprisingly not the
intense mixing sessions. On to the most expensive and its cheapest sound
This, and the silicone ear tips which another 100-per-cent price hike for the + Adjusting is easy (as with
fit well within, help alleviate that E70s. Here, youre paying for three the whole range)
+ Good isolation
+ Great mid and
upper-mid response
All of the models in the range Value - Bass end is lacking, but
sit well around your ears in the - adjust! As with all of these
up and over position $ phones, you will need to adjust

and adjust some more
The ATH-A40s have a brash,

in-your-face sound suited for the
stage and for mixing, as everything
age-old problem with in-ear drivers, so the sound benefits. I put Choice is there. For the money, these are
9/10
9
9/10
headphones: them slipping out. I must them next to my open-back R70s and our pick of the range. Silly value for
say that all of the models in the range there was a little more detail in the what you get.
work well in this regard, simply because
the up over and in position becomes
mids and upper mids, although they
werent as rounded at the bottom.
9/10
a lot easier to adjust and make Again, adjusting them here is key. Push
comfortable so gravity cant do its thing. them in a little and the response will
MT Verdict ATH-E50
improve. Its an in-ear thing you have to
The sound spend time with. + Mid price in the range
Having just mixed a track with a set of + Good isolation
+ Good upper mids and mids
1,300 AKGs, I was expecting crushing Conclusion + Slightly wider immersive feel
disappointment when trying out the Only you will know whether in-ear
70 E40s and yes, there is a vast phones are for you. Some people swear - Bass is lacking, so adjust!
difference at least at first. The Lows by them; others dismiss them for - Not really a discernible update in
sound quality over the 40s
simply werent initially as prevalent, mixing, the argument being they can be
which is perhaps understandable with more tiring for long sessions, as the These mid-point phones in the IEM
in-ear headphones its hard to sound and physical presence of the range benefit from the same sound
replicate the cavernous quality that phones is more wearing over time. quality as the 40s, but can be
driven that much harder.
outer earphones offer. However, I did However, as youve read this, youre
find that adjusting the position of all
the phones helps with the bass
probably a fan of the concept. I also
have to say that the IEM series has
8/10
response a lot basically, you need to woken me up to the possibilities of a
push them a little further in than you more compact, mobile mixing MT Verdict ATH-E70
might expect, which not only improves experience. Unlike the current trend of
the bass response but also the isolation wearing massive and gaudy + Best sound of the range
+ Best isolation of the three
(and naturally, I wont be held headphones in public, Id rather keep
+ The three drivers add clout
responsible for injury, deafness etc, if my mobile mixing to myself and two of + Gave all the detail from mixes
you push them in too far!). The beauty is these stand out for just that. The produced on expensive systems
that, once you get it right, you lock it in cheapest A40s are surprising good for
place with the memory cable. Time just 70 and to me, offered as full a mix - By far the most expensive
spent adjusting here is well worth it. as the 50s, although possibly a more Its the old you gets what you pays
Once this was done with the E40s, narrow one. The 70s are the best all Choice for message, as these sound the
9/10
9
9/10
the immersive feel was there and I round, as you might expect for the best (although the 40s give them a
could also pick out every part of the mix money, and the best in-earphones Ive run for their money).
albeit perhaps not as prominently in
some lower reaches and not as
mixed on, translating all Id done on
much more expensive headphones and
9/10
MT162.REV ATH-E Series.indd 87 01/08/2016 11:33

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MT Reviews Eve Audio SC3010 Monitors
EVE AUDIO
SC3010
Choice
Monitors
9/10
9
9/10 We always recommend throwing a large proportion of your budget
at your monitors. John Pickford checks out some of the more
expensive in Eves range to find out why
A
Details ccurate monitoring is one of driver and a whopping 800 watts to the We mounted the monitors vertically
Price 4,999 (inc. VAT) the most important aspects bass driver. Both the midrange and on the sturdy stands that usually
Contact Nova of recording music. Get it bass drivers diaphragms are made with support our ATC mid-fields, enabling
Distribution
020 3589 2530
wrong and when your tracks layered glass fibre, while the midrange us to hear how they slot in to our
Web are played elsewhere, they can sound unit also incorporates ROHACELL monitoring system comprising huge
www.eve-audio.com poorly balanced either overly bright or (registered trade mark) structural foam ATC SCM100A main monitors and the
dull as ditchwater. The key is ensure in a sandwich arrangement. Crossover ubiquitous Yamaha NS-10M nearfields.
that your monitors work well in your frequency between bass and midrange Playing some familiar music, starting
mixing or mastering room. is 240Hz, while the RS6 tweeter covers with David Bowies Ashes To Ashes, we
Designed and assembled in the range from 21kHz all the way down could hear immediately that the 3010s
Germany, Eves SC3010 is a large to 1,800Hz, an extremely wide band for are beautifully balanced with a firm,
three-way main monitor that has been a treble unit; bass extends downwards weighty and taut bottom end and
designed for use in professional studios to a window-rattling 29Hz. crystal-clear upper frequency with no
or larger project studios. They need The tweeter and midrange driver are sign of tizz or treble-spit. Switching to
space to work properly, so if you work housed in a silver module that can be our main ATCs confirmed this initial
with a DAW setup in your box bedroom, rotated 90 degrees, so the monitor can impression, showing the 3010s to be a
these are probably not the monitors for be placed horizontally if desired. true full-range design. Most impressive,
you. Given space, however, they offer Within this module is the rotary though, is the performance of the broad
full-range monitoring and an knob that controls the 3010s DSP midrange, the area that lets down many
impressive range of user-adjustable electronics, a range of EQ filters and inferior designs. Showing no favour to
parameters, for the sort of money youd volume and phase controls that allow any part of the audio spectrum, all the
spend on quality mid-field designs. the monitors response to be tailored to subtle elements of the Bowie track
Measuring 380x580x440mm suit any acoustic environment. A were presented clearly, enabling us to
(W/H/D) and weighing in at 37kg, the high-quality (24 bit/192kHz) A/D hear the precise timbre of the various
3010s are the smaller of Eves two main converter from Burr-Brown and Cirrus instruments and multitracked vocals.
monitoring systems, featuring a Logic delivers a pure, unsullied signal to Whats more, the monitors locked into
250mm (10-inch) bass driver, 130mm the DSP section. The in-wall setting the groove of the track, conveying the
Features (five-inch) midrange and Eves newly provides the correct filtering necessary nuances of the myriad percussive
Three-way developed AMT RS6 tweeter, an Air for in-wall installations. elements and playing a proper bass
active design
Motion Transformer that utilises a large At the rear of the monitor is an tune with no boom or port-chuffing to
Frequency
response 21Hz folded diaphragm capable of handling unusual large, rectangular bass port, slow down the bottom-end that
to 29kHz punishingly high SPLs. designed to eliminate compression and underpins the track.
Separate PWM Like most modern studio monitors, distortion and give deep, yet tight and Moving to a solo acoustic
for each driver the 3010s are an active design, with Eve clean bass reproduction. Foam performance, Nick Drake singing Pink
114dB maximum
utilising three bespoke PWM amplifiers, port-bungs are provided to block off the Moon highlighted the natural and
SPL
one for each driver. With a maximum ports in the case of in-wall installations. unforced nature of the monitor,
DSP electronics
output level of 114dB, the amps deliver Input connectors are provided for both giving one of the most convincing
AMT RS6 tweeter
250 watts to the tweeter and midrange XLR and RCA (phono) cables. reproductions Ive personally heard
MT162.REV Eve 3010.indd 90 10/08/2016 10:29

Eve Audio SC3010 Monitors Reviews MT
outside of electrostatic panel speakers. lengthy periods of time without causing

Alternatives
Shut your eyes and you could be fooled Adam Audios S5X-V (7,998) are full range, active main monitors that
listener fatigue. At just shy of five grand,
into thinking that Nick was there employ their proprietary X-ART midrange and tweeter module. Genelecs the Eve SC3010s offer outstanding
himself, performing in our control room. 1238APM (4,699) is a Class-D tri-amped monitor featuring a 15-inch value for money, giving you so much in
woofer, five-inch midrange and one-inch metal-dome tweeter.
Speaking of which, our control room terms of advanced technology,
is 42 square metres, providing enough thoughtful design and, above all else,
space to allow the monitors to sing precisely within the stereo picture. superb sound reproduction. MT
without obstruction, and although we Stereo images remain stable and solid
experimented with the EQ filters, in over a wide area; youre not confined to MT Verdict
our room the flat, standard response a single-seat sweet spot. Image depth + Tonal accuracy
setting worked best; a testament to the is also good, if not quite the last word in + Pace, rhythm and timing
monitors exceptional tonal balance. soundstaging, and atmospherics are + Scale and stereo imaging
Over a period of several weeks, we conveyed beautifully via the excellent + Power handling
+ Versatile filtering and
monitored all sorts of audio through the RS6 treble unit. positioning options
Eves, never once feeling that they were That the Eve SC3010s get so much
providing less information than our big right in terms of tonal accuracy and - Only for large rooms
ATCs, which cost more than twice the rhythmic pace sets them apart from the
The SC3010s offer full-range,
price of the 3010s. The sense of scale many clinical, unforgiving designs that accurate and musical monitoring
when playing full-range music with favour lightning-fast dynamics and for the sort of money youd expect
deep bass is incredible for a monitor trip-hammer transients above all else. to spend on a pair of top-flight
with a 10-inch bass driver. Only when The 3010s present their fine details mid-fields. Voices and instruments
are faithfully reproduced with
replaying electronica with serious with rich harmonics and atmosphere;
first-rate timbral resolution, while
sub-bass did we notice that the Eves they have a true musical heart. their timing abilities engage with
couldnt quite defy the laws of physics Factor in the many clever DPS the rhythms that drive music. A
and reach down to subsonic territory; a filtering options to accommodate superb choice for those luckily
sympathetic subwoofer such as Eves speaker position and room acoustics, enough to have a large mixing room.
TS112 ThunderStorm may help here.
Imaging is another of the 3010s
and you have a versatile and extremely
capable full-scale monitoring system
9/10
strong points, with instruments located able to honestly present your work for
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Korg Volca FM Reviews MT
KORG Choice Value
9/10
9
9/10 $
Volca FM
With the original Volca range, Korg was right there at the peak of the revival
of analogue synthesis. With the Volca FM, its a different story altogether.
Andy Jones looks at the companys latest mobile synth and unearths some
surprises, one being nothing less than the Holy Grail of synthesis: easy FM
I
Details ts fair to say that with the original Easy FM? including Envelope Generators. So you
Price 129 Volca range back in 2013, Korg was As with the Yamaha reface DX keyboard get Attack and Decay controls each for
Contact right there at the analogue cutting that I reviewed in October last year, modulator and carrier; plus LFO Rate
Korg 01908 304600
edge wittingly or not at the right Korg is promising a kind of easy FM and Depth; together with an Algrtm
Web www.korg.co.uk
place at the right time. It was my first (Frequency Modulation) synthesis with (algorithm select) rotary. As well see
year back on a music-technology Volca FM. I say easy, but what I mean is shortly , these make Voca FM an
magazine after being away for a while easier than the notoriously difficult-to- incredible sound-creation and
and it felt like it was 25 years before: a get-your-head-around synthesis performance tool but first, lets run
new Novation BassStation, a new Nord employed on the DX7, surely the most through what else is on offer.
Key Features
Lead (okay, thats virtual analogue) and famous FM synth of all time. It was a
3-voice FM synth
new and relatively cheap analogue gear keyboard with millions of fans, but only Other features
32 programs
6 operators,
something all the big guns in gear had a few (notably Brian Eno) could get to There are 16 gold keys that not only
32 algorithms said would never happen ever again. the bottom of it. Volca FM (like reface function as playable keys, but also
16-part Yet there was Korg, with three Volca
sequencer
Volca FM promises easy FM

synths recreating all the fun of
Pattern-chain up
to 256 parts analogue, much of the sound (albeit
a synthesis that is notoriously

Arpeggiator: from a small speaker), the playability
9 types and tweakability, and in boxes that cost
Voice modes:
difficult to get your head around

a shade over a hundred quid each.
Poly, Mono,
Unison We loved these Beats, Keys and
Connections: Bass units still do and Korg later
headphone out,
added Volca Sample which I looked at in
Sync in and out
(3.5mm jacks) early 2015. That is a more digital affair, DX) tries to bring FM to the masses. memory locations for sequences; plus
Effects: chorus offering sampling as its raison detre FM has a fundamental waveform they also give you access to other
Power: 6x and very good it is, too. We said: Theres modulated by other waveforms to parameters like Voice Modes (Poly,
AA alkaline
batteries,
more creativity to be had here than on produce sounds. Both types are Unison, Mon etc); tempo variants;
supplied; or AC the other Volcas (and especially with generated by operators; the metronome controls; and finally,
adaptor (DC 9V), the other Volcas) and we like the nod fundamental by a carrier operator, the parameters for the Motion Sequencer.
optional
Bat life: 10 hours
back to happier, simpler sampling modulating ones by modulators. Volca The standard sequences are played
Weight (kg): 0.36 times, as under those limitations, FM has six of these, with up to 32 by pressing the main Play button on
Size (w x h x d): creativity blossomed! So to Volca FM combinations (algorithms). The beauty the middle right of the fascia and then
193 x 46 x 115mm and the move away from analogue is that the front panel features the main stepping through them with the
continues, albeit differently parameters for these as controls Memory button. Recording onto them
MT162.REV Korg Volca FM.indd 93 01/08/2016 11:34

MT Reviews Korg Volca FM
Theres just space to cover some

other features. You can chain Volca FMs
together with others, as before; you can
use (probably will use) an optional PSU
(from Korg UK for 14.89); and theres a
useful parameter list card that shows
you how to access numerous other FM
parameters if you want to dig deeper.
Alternatives Finally, Volca FM is 100-per-cent
Ive already mentioned other gadgets and keyboards that offer a similar ethos to Volca FM in the compatible with original DX7 patches
main text, but none of them really match it, nor do everything you get within this unit. The Teenage of which there are thousands
Engineering PO series offers beats, bass, arcade noises and a lot more over six entertaining units and available via plug-ins like MIDI-OX,
are silly money if a little flimsy. The Yamaha reface DX also offers a little less FM power but within a
more standard keyboard setup and I liked it a lot when I reviewed it. Then, of course, there is the rest Dexed and NIs FM7 which opens the
of the Volca range. The original three offer the best of analogue or Sample, which gives you your own unit up to some incredible synth history.
sounds back at you. Id still say FM does a bit more sonically, though. Besides, so much else will do
analogue, so its nice to hear something a little bit different in an FM stylee.
Conclusion
The negatives such as they are from
is as easy as hitting the Record button transported back to 1987 starts the original Volcas still largely apply:
and playing along in time; erasing data running for the hills. battery numbers, small speaker, plastic
as easy as clearing per step, all data or There are plenty of fast attack feel and small-ish controls. But so do
clearing during playback. keyboard sounds, organs aplenty and the positives. Volca FM is surprisingly
Its very easy to get going by editing pianos; more than enough strings and sturdy and compact, it sounds great
the sequences shipped with the unit pads; guitars and basses; plus lots of, and is eminently tweakable. Yet the
but far more fun creating them from youve guessed it, other bells and biggest surprise is that the shift away
scratch or changing the sounds of whistles. Okay, oh so FM so far, and an from analogue has helped rather than
those chosen with each sequence. initial play might underwhelm you but hindered the unit. Since the originals,
On to the Motion Sequencer, which wait! Firstly, make sure you link Volca the world has gone Eurorack crazy for
has been a Korg staple in its range of FM up to your proper studio speakers to its analogue fix, so perhaps is moving
Electribes for 15 years and enables you get the best from it, as the onboard away from cheap to bespoke, therefore
to record knob-and-button presses and speaker doesnt do it justice. Secondly, leaving the original trio a little high and
turns. While fully featured, it is still its not really the sounds you start with dry for some. So FM moves the Volca
surprisingly simple to use, and offers that make Volca FM so cool; its what ethos forward to great effect, reigniting
great ways to vary sequences, with a you end up doing with them. the concept for an altogether different
Smooth option to keep changes a little As Ive said, the Motion Sequencer sonic platform and perhaps a different
less jagged. will take you quickly into an set of users. Along the way, it also
experimental area just switch shows its not just analogue that will get
In use between the algorithms as your you impressive real-time results
Its actually the Motion Sequencer and sequence plays and youll have a suddenly you can do it with FM, too, and
the main controls that I mentioned Radiohead album on your hands. But for silly money. I didnt expect to be quite
for controlling the stand-out FM even just sliding the Velocity fader will so blown away by another Volca, but
parameters which combine to make give you different results and, more three years on, this is arguably the best
of the five in the range. MT
It shows what FM is all about. Korg Volca FM
You might still not get it, but you + Great sonic potential
+ Real-time creativity is a massive
will make some great sounds

bonus and charm all in itself
+ As easy to use as all of the Volca
range, if not easier
+ Syncing still good fun
+ The sequencing options,
Volca FM so creative. With analogue dramatically, switching on the particularly the Motion
synthesis, youll know that the arpeggiator and moving a few controls Sequencer, are excellent
frequency and resonance controls will in real time gets you something way + It really is easy FM
give you all of the impressive drama. away from the original sound. Ive rarely
- Youll want to use an external
Here, though, any number of controls experienced anything quite like it: speaker to make the best of it
will give you almost as dramatic albeit where the original presets are perhaps - and an external PSU (14.89)
less predictable results, and it is so a little uninspiring, but that really
easy to change one of the presets to get doesnt matter, as they can be altered The Volca FM injects new life into
the Volca story. Its so tweakable
super creative very quickly. so quickly and easily. Its what you can and creative that the initial sounds
And on to the core sounds, and Id do with them that counts and Volca FM dont really matter and youll be
better quickly describe them before I especially switching between 32 inspired by what you do, even if the
change them too much! Anyone familiar algorithms suddenly shows you what FM whys and hows mean youre not
quite sure how youre doing it!
with FM will be at home here although FM synthesis is all about. Sure, you still
there is more to it than that, before
anyone who doesnt want to be
might not understand it, but youll make
some great sounds with it very quickly!
9/10
MT162.REV Korg Volca FM.indd 94 01/08/2016 11:34

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Studio Electronics Quadnic Reviews MT
Top line: the LED

display indicates
which oscillators are
being noodled with.
The Master mode
button enters the
Master & Slave mode
MIddle line: the

Process-mode pot
makes the magic
happen. One moment
STUDIO ELECTRONICS
you sound nice and
pure, the next you get
your head bitten off,
Quadnic
in a frenzy of
phase modulation
Bottom line: plenty of

CV inputs for pitch,
and audio outputs to
route those gnarly
tones to the next
The Quadnic is the latest modular offering from those stage of your
modular. Or maybe
West Coast gurus at Studio Electronics. Dave Gale sum it up from
the Mix Out
examines how tuneful these chips really are socket instead?
W
Details hen I were a lad, home points but you would clearly need four
Price 239 computing was becoming pitch CV sources in order to make this
Contact MSL all the rage, and generally happen, which may be an issue for
Professional
0207 118 0133 speaking, there were some modular owners. Each oscillator
contact@ three camps; ZX Spectrum, BBC is capable of calling upon one of 64
mslpro.co.uk Model B or Commodore 64, the latter digital waveforms, and we are also
Web www.
studioelectronics.
containing the sound chip which has offered a single audio output per
com become legendary in certain musical oscillator, as well as a sum of all parts,
circles. It is this chip which gave rise to meaning that each oscillator tone can
the idea of the three oscillator and be fed to a different location in your scrolling through them with simplistic
white noise compositional construct modular. Very handy and flexible indeed immediacy, and hearing lovely
heard in so many early computer my initial misguided preconception changes in timbre and octave, to
games, and now the musical genre was unravelling nicely. create beautifully interesting patterns,
known as chiptune. Think Super Mario Plugging up a single pitch CV input, which reminded me of the old Korg
and youll be on the right track So no I was immediately presented with a Wavestation series, which Ive always
surprise, then, that any digital oscillator plethora of options, one of which was to looked back on with affection.
I started to realise there was a whole
world of uniqueness waiting in the
64 wave sequences create depths of this module, and then,
exploring the central Process Mode
lovely changes in timbre dial, all sorts of gloriously colourful
tones presented themselves;
Features and interesting patterns sometimes sounding quite DX-like and
pure, through to much grungier and
Versatile digital
oscillator dirtier tones, particularly when in the
4 digital which offers this sort of architecture dial in a chord to work with. In keeping Sync mode.
oscillators,
and functionality might immediately with its chiptune roots, these are mainly
available to
independent and be compared to the chiptune or triadic in form, with the root note being Master and servant
unison control Commodore 64 SID chip, as it was doubled an octave lower, but the choice So, what of the other processing
64 waveforms
better known. Well, that was my initial is pretty wide. Apart from the obligatory modes? Well, they mainly fall into the
offered per
oscillator mistake, when encountering the major and minor chords, there are phase-modulation camp, which is very
Wave Quadnic for the first time. major 7th and dominant 7th chords, similar to FM, and can be predictably
sequencing Following my original train of and even a major 6th chord thrown in harsh, particularly when there is
models
Width: 12HP
thought, the architecture of the for good measure. I particularly like the oscillator detuning available. If you feel
Depth: 35mm Quadnic offers four single oscillators, open 5th chord, which slotted that you would prefer to lock the four
(including all of which can be controlled in Unison immediately into a composition which I oscillators together, and use more of a
connectors)
mode, with one pitch CV. They can also had on the go at the time of reviewing. modulatory style of synthesis, then the
Current draw:
50mA (max) be controlled independently and It was then that I discovered the joy Master button will allow all four
singularly, via dedicated pitch CV patch of the 64 available wave sequences, oscillators to work in a master-and-
MT162.REV SE Quadnic.indd 97 01/08/2016 11:52

MT Reviews Studio Electronics Quadnic
some eight modes of operation, all

through a rotary encoder, so it would
have been helpful to have a stepped pot
located here, so that some positive
switching could have replaced the
guesswork involved in lining up the pot
with the legend.
A similar issue arises with the Wave
Sequence selection pot, but this seems
to be less of a nuisance in practice,
mainly because the sequences just fall
out the module.
Conclusion
Its worth saying that there is so much
functionality lurking beneath the
Quadnic that any user would be well
advised to download the PDF
schematics from the SE website. These
are particularly useful in establishing
what does what, in which context, and
may save you plenty of figuring-out
time if you wonder why a pot doesnt
seem to be doing very much. In timbre,
this module definitely warrants a 10/10,
but the operational side can feel a little
clunky, erratic and occasionally
confusing, which slightly tarnishes the
overall rating. MT
Do I really need this?

If you like the idea of something in your rig
thats harsh at source, then this is worth a
look. The chiptune chordal mode, wave
sequences and modulation-style tones add up
to a very flexible unit; but if youre looking for
something more akin to an analogue VCO,
this is not the place to go. Thats not what its
designed to do: but dont be fooled into
thinking that digital equals bad, because
digital oscillators such as the Quadnic can
have a central place in a system, and often
surpass expectation. But the user needs to
enter this agreement with an open mind
do so, and the sonic potential is vast.
MT Verdict
The glory here is from subtle All four oscillators
patched and ready to
go! The ability to + Excellent build quality
sinusoidal tones through to

address oscillators + Very capable module
independently is a
huge boon, and + Plenty of timbral choice
the clang of FM bells

means you get four + Beautiful tonal quality, if thats
times the noise for what you want
the price of one + Beautifully aggressive, if thats
what you want
slave configuration. The glory here is Now, at this stage, I have to raise a + Separate audio and CV
from subtle sinusoidal tones through to minor gripe. The screenprinting on this addressing for all four oscillators
the clang of FM bells, with a detuning module is beautiful, looking particularly
- Definitely takes some time to
option, which can make the most lovely against the black of the panel. work out the basics
beautiful tone sound gnarly and However, the Process Mode pot offers - Stepped pots would be
aggressive, with the simple twist of a welcome occasionally
pot. Full of richness and perfect for Alternatives - Better online manual would
certainly save some time
filtering, there is something quite The Quadnic is such a flexible oscillator, its difficult to make immediate
comparisons, although the module which I feel comes closest is Mutable
wonderful about the fulsomeness of Its a well-built, excellent-sounding
Instruments Edges, which shares a similar architecture, but with far
the tone on offer, and its something I fewer timbral options, as it is more of a traditional chiptune-style digital module, which is extremely
would personally want to explore module. Some of this functionality has also made its way into its sister capable of chiptune tones,
product, the Mutable Instruments Braids oscillator. The Braids enticingly highly aggressive timbre and
directly to VCA. I also found myself offers analogue-style timbres, alongside a bewildering array of more far more besides.
8/10
working with the Quadnic as a drone esoteric waveforms, such as vowel and traditional chiptune tones.
generator, a role it performed with rich However, for a more traditional chiptune oscillator, ALM Busy Circuits
Sid Guts has something of a cult following, for good reason.
sonorous duty.
MT162.REV SE Quadnic.indd 98 01/08/2016 11:53

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MT App ad A4.indd 1 08/08/2016 14:41

MT Reviews Fender 55 Tweed Deluxe
UNIVERSAL AUDIO
9
9/
Choice
9/10
10 Fender 55
Value
Tweed Deluxe
Universal Audio finally applies its studio-grade modelling
$ expertise to a classic amplifier. Mark Cousins investigates
the Fender 55 Tweed Deluxe emulation
F
Details or several years now, the Full tweed jacket (in addition to the Instrument Volume
Manufacturer UAD platform has included a As youd expect, the Fender 55 Tweed and Mic Volume controls), making the
Universal Audio
range of excellent amplifier Deluxe is a true end-to-end example of amplifier increasingly overdriven as you
Price 149
simulators from the likes of modelling: including the amplifier head, push the control harder. Like plenty of
Web www.uaudio.com
Brainworx and Softube, but as yet, none a number of different speaker cabinets, examples of classic vintage gear from
have been developed by Universal and a collection of studio-grade yesteryear, therefore, an apparently
Audio itself. With the release of the microphones used to record it. While simple control setup conceals a
Fender 55 Tweed Deluxe, though, we some amplifier simulators offer a complex set of sonic interactions.
finally get to see Universal Audios bells and whistles approach, the
expertise applied to a guitar amp. Fender 55 Tweed Deluxe is all about In unison
Released in 1955, the classic 5E3 tone whether its switching between Another pleasingly studio-friendly
Fender Deluxe amplifier is an intriguing the Inst and Mic inputs, swapping feature is the Mic Setup section, which
includes various classic Dynamic,
Some amp simulators offer

Ribbon and Condenser microphones.
Whats particularly useful is the ability
a bells and whistles approach,

to use two mics simultaneously, either
to mix and match different timbres, or
but this one is all about tone

to create a pseudo stereo effect by
panning two mics left and right
respectively. With the addition of an
Key Features off-axis positioning control, perfect
End-to-end device, known for its unique and speaker cabinets, or moving phase alignment, and a bass roll-off
emulation of the
entire 5E3 tweed somewhat colourful response to the microphone positions. Ultimately, its control, if felt as close as possible to
Deluxe circuit dynamics of the input. Compared to the these key parameters rather than a walking through to the studio area and
Unison significantly cleaner Fender Twin that host of FX pedals that deliver a truly micing the amp yourself.
technology followed a few years later, the Deluxe great guitar sound. One last modelling detail worth
allows for
authentic guitar amplifier has a unique range of tones - Whether youre a guitar player, or picking up on would be the pairing of
interaction with from a soft and subtle tube saturation simply a producer using the plug-in the Fender 55 Tweed Deluxe plug-in
Apollo Interfaces
when the amp is driven lightly, to a as a re-amping tool, what becomes and a Unison-powered Apollo interface.
Best-in-class
speaker-cabinet raucous, overdriven tone when the amp immediately apparent is just how In this case, the plug-in actively
emulation was driven hard. In short, it was an dynamic and responsive the 55 Tweed changes both the impedance switching
UAs first amplifier that responded to your Deluxe feels. Take the Tone control, for and gain staging, based on which of the
complete, stem-
to-stern guitar playing, and despite a relatively simple example. Being more than just a virtual inputs you select, injecting
amplifier model set of controls, could produce a range of rudimentary filter, the Tone actually another further layer of realism into its
different timbres. doubles as another form of gain control sonic behaviour.
MT162.REV FenderTweed.indd 100 01/08/2016 11:14

Fender 55 Tweed Deluxe Reviews MT
As always, the best plug-ins

Alternatives
Other amplifier simulators include versions of
especially those that use distortion
the tweed amplifier, including Native come at a premium, but given the sheer
Instruments Guitar Rig 5 (169), and IK amount of musicality you get back from
Multimedias AmpliTube Fender (163).
However, both solutions provide a wide range the Fender 55 Tweed Deluxe, it will be
of amps beyond the basic tweed amp setting, an investment that reaps dividends.
so the modelling isnt as detailed as whats Its certainly an excellent and logical
provided on the UAD version.
choice for Universal Audios modelling
expertise, and may indicate a string of
Amp it up products (a Fender Twin would make us
Without any doubt, the Fender 55 very happy!) that could follow in future
Tweed Deluxe is arguably the most instances. Ultimately, you quickly software updates. MT
authentic and sonically detailed realise why the plug-in is best run on
emulation weve seen of any guitar the front end of an Apollo interface,
MT Verdict
Arugably the most authentic

+ Superbly authentic sound
+ Dynamic response
+ Concentration on tone
and sonically detailed emulation + Flexible mic controls
weve seen of any guitar amp - Big hit on UAD DSP resources
- Makes other tweed models
sound inferior!
The Fender 55 Tweed Deluxe

amplifier to date, complete with a level where you simply record through the illustrates just how good amplifier
of dynamism and musicality to match. plug-in, rather than run multiple modelling can sound, capturing
As youd expect, theres a massive hit instances. For non-Apollo users, all the unique sonic traits of a truly
on DSP resources, so that even on an though, theres always the option of classic vintage amp.
OCTO-powered UAD device, youll
struggle to run more than eight
bouncing/freezing the track, if you want
to claw back some DSP resources.
9/10
Reel People Present Double Bass

Soul Vocals Mania VIII: Pure
Modern Metal
Publisher Loopmasters
Price 24.95
Contact info@loopmasters.com Publisher Beta Monkey Music
Web www.loopmasters.com Price $39.99
Key Features
R
Key Features Contact lost@betamonkeymusic.com Modern, thrash
eel People Present Soul
14 song Web www.betamonkeymusic.com and death-metal
Vocals is a new pack of 12 grooves
construction kits
vocal-construction kits in 1.22GB of
I
80 to 127BPM
24-bit WAV and Apple Loops f youre after some intense 24-bit audio
Male and
600+ Loops at
formats, for use in RnB, deep female vocals metal drum grooves to add
house and beyond. Each kit Ad-libs, leads and power and excitement to your
Choice 80 to 110BPM
9/10
9
9/10
layered harmonies Acidized WAV,
contains several male and female tracks, then you might want to Apple Loops and
Recorded at the
harmonies and ad-libs, plus a check out Double Bass Mania REX formats
Reel People studio
256MB of multi-
comped file with all the main VII from Beta Monkey Music. velocity drum hits
layers combined. All of the Recorded and mixed by one of
harmonies are double-tracked to from 84 to 127BPM, meaning the metals leading engineers, the some blistering fills and high-
provide a richer sound, with each parts could be suitable for many library contains over 1GB of deep octane beats delivering straight-
take hard panned so that they can genres, from hip-hop or drum n and punchy toms, fierce snares up metal grooves alongside more
be separated, if you so desire. The bass to house styles. MT and fast but tight kick-drum rolls. complex syncopated patterns and
ad-libs are in mono, but there Tempos range from 80 to 110BPM, alternative time signatures. MT
are several versions to offer up MT Verdict with inspiration drawn from
variation. Lyrics-wise, its not
A well performed and
death and thrash alongside more MT Verdict
going to win any awards, but the thought-out pack that modern metal styles. All loops
A large collection of varied,
phrases are uplifting without features some great male come from the same session for fierce and brutal metal drum
sounding too cheese-heavy. With and female harmonic layers easy drag-and-drop arrangement, grooves and fills, with a tight
that in mind, some will prefer to and a decent selection of and you also get 256MB of and punchy performance and
soulful ad-libs. production finish.
8/10
use the pack as a source of individual multi-velocity hits
layered, wordless harmonies and
ad-lib chops. The tempos range
taken from the same session. The
playing really is world class, with
9/10
MT162.REV FenderTweed.indd 101 01/08/2016 11:14

MT Mini Reviews
zplane displays all the results in easy-to-read

tables, with failed results showing up in
ppmBatch
red, and passes in green reports can
be generated in .txt format. In addition
to integrated (or program) loudness,
Manufacturer zplane ppmBatch displays maximum
Price 252 momentary loudness, maximum
short-term loudness, the loudness
Contact support@zplane.de
To aid engineers in meeting these range, and maximum true peak values.
Web www.zplane.de standards, zplane has developed Each of which can be hidden from the
Minimum system requirements ppmBatch, a batch-processing display or report, should you not wish to
PC Windows 7, 2GHz CPU loudness analysis and normalisation see them.
Mac OSX 10.8, 2GHz Intel CPU tool. With ppmBatch, engineers can Anyone working in the broadcast
drag-and-drop audio files into the field will instantly see the uses for
L
oudness processing is now a key software, which can then be analysed ppmBatch. In the music world, its a bit
part of the workflow of any and, if required, processed to match the more difficult. Loudness normalisation
broadcast facility. Ensuring loudness standards required. A number is not yet standardised, and we had to
compliance with EBU R128 of loudness-standard presets are make a number of guesses when
within Europe, or similar standards included, including the EBU R128, ATSC creating our custom profiles.
elsewhere in the world, has meant that A/85, and ITU BS-1770. Users can also Weve started using the tool for an
Key Features
any audio intended for broadcast has to create their own loudness presets. As idea of loudness levels as we exported
Offline analysis
be strictly controlled. The music world and normalisation loudness presets for the streaming masters, which, alongside real-time
has enjoyed (or not, depending on your Batch services are not included as presets, we meters, is a great aid for developing an
views around the loudness war), a little processing created our own music presets for use overall loudness arc for an album. MT
more freedom. But with loudness Multi-channel as part of our mastering process.
support
normalisation now implemented on Default loudness
All the most common audio formats MT Verdict
nearly all the major streaming services, presets for EBU can be used with ppmBatch, including A handy tool for measuring and
and iTunes Soundcheck built into the R128, ITU BS-1770 WAV, AIFF, FLAC and lossy formats such batch-processing audio clips for
and more
iTunes Player, the music world, too, as mp3, Ogg, and WMA. However, if loudness profiles.
8/10
Drag-and-drop
has to start optimising for its own Print reports processed, all exported files are
loudness standards. Broadcast WAVE format. The window
ALM Busy Circuits Korg plugKEY

Patch Cables Manufacturer Korg
Price 85 (street)
Key Features
Connectors:
Manufacturer ALM Busy Circuits Contact 01908 304600 Apple Lightning
Price 10-12 (depending on pack) Web www.korg.com MIDI IN: 5-pin DIN
jack; Charging Port:
T
Contact ALM Busy Circuits DC 5V microUSB
he best ideas are the
E: info@busycircuits.com iOS: 8 or later
simplest, right? Well
W: www.busycircuits.com Outs: audio line
plugKEY almost takes over
N
(L/mono, R): 1/4
ight follows day, as our most favourite iOS thing phone jacks
Christmas comes but ever. Okay, MusicIO still has that Headphones:
Key Features stereo 1/8 mini
once a year, and as Good-quality
prize, but plugKEY is as simple in Choice Built-in tuner allows
9/10
9
9/10
every Eurorack user patch cables concept and even simpler in you to learn pitch
and scales
knows, you can never have enough Variety of colours execution. Basically, it allows you
and lengths 60 x 74 x 23mm
patch cables, in a variety of to plug any MIDI-based keyboard Weight: 69g
Nice ergonomic
different lengths and colours. into an iOS device (iOS 8 or later)
Enter ALM Busy Circuits, with its
Excellence design
and play it. But theres more. It
10/10
Available packs/
new range of aptly named Patch lengths: also has a couple of 1/4-inch-jack MIDI keyboard to its MIDI In and, lo
5x15cm, 5x30cm,
Cables. These have a good quality 5x60cm, 3x90cm, outs and a headphone out so, yes, and behold, youre playing your
feel about them, and are 2x120cm it turns your iPad or iPhone into a apps. It is, perhaps, a liitle pricey
reassuringly pleasing to use, proper sound module and for what it is, but this is as easy as
partly down to the specific design either red or green, but more instrument. We tried it with a iOS audio gets. MT
of the plug, which has three colour choices will follow. MT number of different iOS apps
helpful notches to aid grip. You including Korgs Gadget another MT Verdict
can buy these cables in various great iOS marvel BeepStreets Easy-to-use, simple concept,
pack lengths, quantity and colour,
MT Verdict Sunrizer and Arturias iSEM and it no delays, and great audio.
so you have complete control over Great quality cables in a worked a treat with all of them. Korgs plugKEY really is a great
what you might want to use and number of useful lengths. Simply plug it into your iDevice way to welcome your iOS
Whats not to like? device to your studio world.
10/10
where, rather than the normal the audio will then be disabled
prescribed colours from other
companies. Currently available in
and channelled through plugKEYs
outs. Connect the MIDI out of a
9/10
MT162.REV minisP102.indd 102 01/08/2016 11:38

ABLETON LIVE 2016
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156 loops covering drums, hats, Hip-hop and trap vocals in a house track. The
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glistening arps and leads, jazzy 156 drum, bass, songwriting, and finding and process of working with vocals is a
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licks, and vinyl noise beds. Its an 139 MIDI loop files moving on to discuss good, all-round introduction to get
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sounds, with an energetic and percussion and chorus and special effects,
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loose feel. In addition, theres a panning and balancing, and finally MT Verdict
folder of tail samples that can be vocal chops. Bland looks at native
Although a little technically
used with their corresponding MT Verdict effects in both Live and Logic X, light in places, this is a good
loops, or as samples in their own
Despite some occasionally
and plug-ins by Slate Digital, UAD, introduction to working
right. There are also 139 MIDI files heavy-handed production and Native Instruments. If youve with singers, recording
that offer a great way to use some finish, this is a versatile and already got experience working and producing vocals, with
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of that live feel with your own with vocals and are looking for you thinking.
loose-sounding loops and hits.
instrument sounds, and a decent
folder of 88 beefy, saturated drum, 8/10
in-depth tips on different mix
techniques and mixing settings, 8/10
percussion and FX hits. MT then you may wish to look
Drum Werks Arps

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Price $99 (works with
Publisher Beta Monkey Music
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with other packs from the same velocity drum hits and electronic samples. The instrument to get you started. It
series. Youll find a range of beats GUIs main section has standard seems like a missed opportunity
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120BPM, and each fill has been to get the most out of them. MT note velocities. A nice touch is the all four instruments, though. MT
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get one drum sound, there is a keyswitches, and the mod wheel
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vast amount of subtle pattern grooves with a punchy sound, can introduce reversed samples to tool for adding cinematic
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MT162.REV minisP105.indd 105 01/08/2016 11:39

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Six of the best Buyers Guide MT
Six of the best

Hardware Software Mobile Technology Samples
Welcome to the MusicTech Buyers Guide. With the sad passing this month of
our orchestral expert Keith Gemmell, we thought wed round up his finest recent Details
Price 383
reviews of orchestral software instruments and collections Contact via web
Web www.
spitfireaudio.com
S
onokinetic is famed for its
BEST Delicate phrasing orchestral software. Titles
Sonokinetic
like Grosso and Capriccio
have focused mainly on the
grandiose, but Sotto concentrates on
the lighter side of orchestral
Sotto
composition with a variety of soft beds
and patterns. With Strings, Wind and
Brass sections, there is plenty here for
a variety of cinematic orchestral
Details productions. Entire compositions
Price 302 suitable for atmospheric backgrounds
Contact can be realised with just Sotto alone. It
via website
works wonders if youre stuck for ideas
Web www.
sonokinetic.net a true source of inspiration to
kickstart a composition and maintain a BEST Update
constant mood throughout. For
Spitfire
composers and producers on a tight
deadline, this is a marvellous
inspirational tool and timesaver. Bravo
Audio
Sotto. Beautifully conceived phrase-
based library suitable for film and
game music, where light orchestral
sounds are required.
BEST Strings
Albion
NI Brass One
A
lbion One is a reworking of
Ensemble
the award-winning and
best-selling title from Spitfire.
This time around, a 109-piece
orchestra was used in the recording
T
he Symphony Series rationale and the GUI redesigned, but the aim is
is not surprisingly to still the same: to provide a broad range
provide composers with a of orchestral brush strokes and to
comprehensive toolset for enable quick composition. Albion One
creating realistic orchestral is a big step up from the original version.
productions. String Ensemble has four Its intuitive and yields gratifying results
Kontakt instruments: violins, violas, at surface level but if you want to, its
cellos and basses. In his review, Keith possible to dig very deep with the eDNA
Gemmell said: With its rich, luscious, synth engine. And the conclusion was:
professional sound, this should prove When it comes to all-round cinematic
popular with professional and amateur orchestral sample libraries, few can
composers alike. This is an excellent Details match Spitfire Audios Albion One,
full-size string orchestra with a great Price Ensemble: which provides lush strings, powerful
sound, which is easy to use and is 429 brass, thunderous percussion along
Web www.native-
suited for both quick sketching and instruments.com
with a huge variety of organically
end-production use. derived loops and synth pads.
MT162.6OTB.indd 107 03/08/2016 14:18

MT Buyers Guide Six of the best
BEST Huge drama

Orchestral Tools
Metropolis Ark 1
W
e first met Orchestral the review. He said: For powerhouse
Tools at last years NAMM productions, we dont think theres
show, where the huge anything to match this at the moment.
demo from this collection No doubt other developers will follow,
designed for impactful and epic film but this is currently the library to buy for
Details
and trailer scores was booming any composers involved in producing
Price 549 +VAT
Contact
across the hall. We were so impressed epic soundtracks. A terrific library that
+49 (0) 7665 that we made it one of our products of contains just about everything for
9398678 the show. Little did we know that Keith composing and producing loud,
Web
www.orchestral Gemmell was already on the case with powerful and epic music. Epic!
tools.com
This is currently the library to

buy for any composers involved in
producing epic soundtracks
BEST Traditional classic
Garritan Personal
Orchestra 5
G
arritan Personal Orchestra orchestral library. Its packed with every
(GPO) has been around since orchestral instrument any composer,
2004 and standalone since arranger or student might need to write
2009. GPO5 saw a much classical music, whether for large or
needed update with 70-per-cent more small ensembles and is probably the
patches, more choir, more piano, more most complete library of its type. GPO
Details
everything, really. Those strings and has always been great value for
Price 99
harps are real strengths, as is the fact money. Version 5 is even better, with Contact Time+Space
that it is so light on your system. Keith improved sounds and a helluva +44(0) 1837 55200
Gemmell said of it: This is a brilliant lot more of them. Web www.garritan.com
BEST Classic organ Details

Price 119
Web www.
IKM Miroslav
Philharmonik 2 CE
ikmultimedia.com
T
his certainly vies for being the projects, others might offer more on a
oldest orchestral tool in this technical level. They are, of course, far
roundup the original came out more expensive and this is where IK
20 years ago. For a budget price, Multimedias offering scores very highly
you get a good amount: over 10GB of indeed its fantastic value for money.
content over 700 instruments spread Value-wise, orchestral libraries dont
over all four sections of the orchestra come better than this a full
(strings, brass, woodwinds and orchestra, solo strings, ensembles
percussion). For pure classical-music plus mixing and editing features.
MT162.6OTB.indd 108 03/08/2016 14:18

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MT162.US subs.1db.indd 5 08/08/2016 14:48

MT Industry Gurus sE Electronics
The entrance to sE Electronics

dedicated production facility
in Shanghai INDUSTRY GURUS
sE Electronics
Our series of in-depth interviews with the makers of the gear you use
continues with sE Electronics. MusicTech meets the acoustic and mic
experts for exclusive interviews with the Founder of the company,
Siwei Zou, and the Brand Manager, Chris Dauray
A
s a successful composer, been deeply impacted by our family MT: What was the original goal?
conductor and musician in history. I was very lucky to have the SZ: Simply to develop and manufacture
Shanghai, the founder of sE opportunity to move to the US and to good-quality, reasonably priced
Electronics, Siwei Zou, was continue my studies in audio engineering. microphones. I was looking to set up a
invited to California State While starting a new life in the US, I saw business where I could utilise my music
Universitys music department as a the opportunity to create sE Electronics. background and my entrepreneurial spirit.
scholar. During his time in San Francisco, As the company founder, my role is In the 90s, before I started sE Electronics,
his contacts in Shanghai sent him newly multidimensional. At the beginning, I was I found microphones produced in China
developed microphones to record with, the engineer, the musician, the manager which were well received by my musician
and he took more of an friends, and when we
interest in their design
until eventually, sE Even our entry-level $200 X1 R talked about them, I
saw an opportunity.
Electronics was born
in 2000. Since then, mic is hand-built and hand-tuned However, I also found
inconsistency in
the company has
rapidly grown and by the same few people quality. While I had no
manufacturing
now makes mics for all experience, I was keen
recording situations and budgets, and and the salesperson all responsibilities to learn and start my own brand.
pretty much invented the concept of the required in creating and running the
reflection filter the mobile booth that company. As it began to expand, I became MT: Tell us about sEs product range?
cuts down reflections when recording more involved in product development CD: sE has a pretty broad portfolio,
vocals. Here, Siwei and the Brand Manager and engineering. I needed a team of comprised mainly of acoustic treatment
Chris Dauray reflect (sorry) on the professionals to take on responsibility for products and studio microphones. The
companys history and success sales, marketing and product development. Reflexion Filter Pro invented by sE in
I was very lucky to find partners in Sonic 2006 was a category-starter in many
MusicTech: Tell us about the early days? Distribution in the UK, that helped sE ways. The original product has grown into
Siwei Zou: The history of sE has always develop in all these aspects. a very successful range from sE, with
MT162.INT Guru.indd 110 01/08/2016 11:05

sE Electronics Industry Gurus MT
about 120,000 sold, and dozens worlds finest musical instruments MT: What about the musicians and
of companies have produced are built. We believe it produces a producers who use your gear tell us
their own copies and clones over superior product. about some of the bigger names?
the years. This is a definite Additionally, we spend a lot of CD: Our gear is used by a pretty large
testament to the need for and money on our microphones and array of high-end producers and
success of the original RF Pro. their components. Again, this engineers, both in the studio and for live
As for our microphones, they doesnt sound unusual, but many sound. To name a few: Ken Pooch Van
range in price from about $99 to mic companies spend a massive Druten (Linkin Park), Greg Price (Black
several thousand dollars for our amount of cash on advertising and Sabbath), Ryan Hewitt (The Lumineers,
high-end studio mics, notably marketing, and cut corners when it The Avett Brothers), Scott Hendricks (Blake
the ones co-designed with comes to the products themselves. Shelton, Faith Hill), Andrew Meyer (Justin
Rupert Neve, one of the most Timberlake, Madonna), Simon Franglen
famous names in the history of MT: Tell us a little more about the (composer/musician/producer for films
audio. Were the only mic Reflexion Filter like Titanic and Skyfall), Lance Reyolds
company in the world hes CD: Since we invented it, the (Alt-J), Bill Reynolds (Band Of Horses)
collaborated with, and its been Reflexion Filter has been copied its a long list.
a true honour to work so closely and cloned more times than we Through word of mouth, Steve Stevens
with Rupert Neve Designs. can count. There are dozens and (Billy Idol) helped make our ribbon mics
The affordable mics are sEs dozens of products on the market much more well-known. He called the VR1
real strong point, though. The that look like a Reflexion Filter a no-brainer it gets him to his tone
X1 Series models cost around $200 USD, and are even called reflection filters faster than other ribbons do. Now weve
and have been massively successful for us. but dont perform the same. seen these ribbons used by Billy Gibbons,
There arent a whole lot of mics at that The key thing is this: our RFs are My Morning Jacket, Keith Urban, Linkin
price-point with a hand-made, hand-tuned Park theyre all over the place. They
brass capsule, and that gives them a really hear more high-frequency content than
sEs groudbreaking
special edge performance-wise. Reflexion Filter is other ribbons do, which makes them more
Moving forward, were definitely going much-imitated useable on sources where you wouldnt
to push into the world of live sound. Weve always reach for a ribbon.
had quite a bit of success there, but in Scott Hendricks said his Reflexion
some ways, thats been largely accidental. Filter levels the acoustic playing field,
Huge bands are using our studio mics on regardless of where I decide to record. F.
stage. They werent designed for the road, Reid Shippen uses his to keep the bad out
but theyre being used there, and we think and the good in. We hear Reids also
thats amazing. Were currently working on essentially replaced his FET47 with our X1
a number of dedicated live-sound pieces D for kick drums. Greg Price, FOH for Black
that were really excited about, which will Sabbath, says I love the sound of this
fit in well with our current product line. group of microphones on guitars hes got
the sE4, 4400a, T2, and Voodoo VR1 and
MT: So what do you think separates your VR2. We dont usually like to bring cost
mics from other manufacturers? Is it cost into it, because we believe our mics can
versus performance? constructed with our own patented outperform mics costing several times as
CD: The vast majority of what makes up multi-layer technologies, which help much, but we do get a lot of comments on
our equipment is built by hand in our own diffuse and absorb sound evenly across their value, which is a nice bonus.
factory, from start to finish. This may not the entire frequency spectrum. If you just
sound unusual, but its not as common as stick a piece of foam on a metal panel, it MT: Over your history, the nature of how
most people might imagine, and its a huge will kill the high frequencies. If you just we record and listen to music has shifted
part of the difference between a decent mic put a piece of cardboard there, itll a lot. How do you see these
and a great mic. cause reflections of its own. changes, and how have they
Since we have our own manufacturing The layered materials we shaped the company?
facilities, were able to exercise an use in the Reflexion Filters are CD: We live in an interesting
immense amount of control over our specifically designed to time. More music can be made
production process, and were able to maintain a completely neutral and heard! by more people
supervise this process 100 per cent of the environment around a than ever before. This is
way through and were constantly microphone they dont mostly a wonderful thing.
improving it. And all our employees are colour the sound at all. If For very, very little
true experts at their jobs. Our capsule- you look at a frequency money, you can get a
builders are masters at their craft it is an sweep of a microphone home-studio setup that
extremely skilled and dedicated crew. with no filter, and then can sound absolutely
For example, every ribbon element in the same sweep after stellar if you know what
every ribbon mic even our entry-level youve added a youre doing. Thats the
$200 X1R is hand-built and hand-tuned Reflexion Filter around caveat, of course. A highly
by the same few people, and its done not the mic, they look proficient engineer can
just with machines, but by hand, in a way almost identical. This is make anything sound
that only a great deal of experience can something you wont get great, but the most
provide. This is the same way that the from an imitation. expensive mic in the
MT162.INT Guru.indd 111 01/08/2016 11:05

world doesnt guarantee a good vocal isolations not always the answer. werent afraid to experiment in the studio,
sound for an inexperienced engineer. Plus, Sometimes, its quite necessary: like if or even if they were afraid, or if it was an
with so many tools at our disposal great youre recording vocals in a bad room and accident, they did it anyway.
affordable plug-ins and outboard gear you want to keep the room sound out of
audio education and experience is more your mic. Its why our RFs exist: to solve MT: What is the biggest production
valuable than ever, since more people are that particular problem. mistake that you hear and what is your
using these tools than before. And given But sometimes, the sound of your mix is cure-all advice for it?
the growing pains our industry is going helped greatly by instruments bleeding CD: These days, its over-compression. You
through by adapting to new digital into one another. People try to glue a mix can hear it everywhere. Its hard to get a
distribution methods (e.g. streaming together with reverb and compression, but big guitar sound if everything else is big,
platforms), its hard to make a living if theyd just had the band all play together too. One cure is to learn how to record
making music. Its always been difficult, in a decent room, or maybe if theyd used and EQ each track in a manner that
but technology has changed the struggle. three mics on a drumkit instead of 12, they complements the other tracks in the mix,
The issue may not be how to make an might not need to fuss with it so much so you dont need to rely on compression to
album, but how to rise above the later to get it to gel. Use your polar force them all together later. Think about
proverbial noise floor and reach a large patterns to your advantage; move your which parts of the frequency spectrum
number of people without a major-label mics around, listen, pay attention to phase, each instrument should occupy, and
deal, and how to monetise that reach. and think about how few mics you could record/EQ them to fit there. Think of it as
use to capture the instruments essence. composing an arrangement, and
MT: Whats the one thing, tip or piece of compression will become much less
advice you get asked about most? MT: What about more general advice or necessary in the mix phase.
CD: Most common would probably be some tips for recording using a microphone?
variation of whats the best mic for CD: There are almost never wrong choices MT: What advice would you offer about
recording X? How do I know if that mic making a living from music production?
is the right choice for it? CD: Firstly, experience is irreplaceable.
Assembly of a titanium
capsule said to offer Learn all you can. If possible, try to get an
MT: And your reply? punch, detail and great internship with an experienced engineer
transient response
CD: If the source is dark or neutral, try a or producer. Watch and learn. Be a
brighter or more detailed mic like a fly-on-the wall in as many situations as
condenser. If the source is really bright or youre able. Soak it all in. Learn a ton of
harsh, try a more mellow mic, like a different styles and approaches and make
ribbon. If youre doubling tracks, try your own from that.
different polar patterns on different Secondly, think about new areas of
passes to give some different textures. work. For example, videogame scoring is
Think about how featured you want the huge these days. Composers and mixers
particular track to be. Is it the lead vocal? are making great livings there. Whats the
Is it a moody rhythm guitar? Generally, next industry with growth potential like
bright stuff sticks out more. Use your mic that? Look at growing markets and think
choice to your advantage and the song will about how you can contribute your music
mix itself. or production experience to them.
for mics in a studio setting. Live sound is a
MT: And as far as micing up instruments bit trickier, since youve got a host of other MT: How would you like sE to be
or vocals, whats the most common issues to deal with physical size, remembered as a company?
problem and your advice for it? potential feedback, ruggedness but in a SZ: I hope sE Electronics will be
CD: Aside from the above, people should studio setting, you should always, always remembered for its passion, innovation
think carefully about how many mics feel free to experiment. Some of the and dedication. These are the spirits
theyre using at once, and how much greatest advances in recording technology that started the company and continue
isolation each track actually needs. and some of the most to embody everything we do. Every
Sometimes, people think its better to interesting mixes ever microphone we make is an expression of
use more mics or made have come from love and dedication.
more tracks, or choices that would be
use a million considered wrong by many MT: Finally, how do you see the future of
overdubs to keep engineers. Its all about music production?
all of their serving the song. If your SZ: Technological revolution will of course
sounds 100-per- choice serves the song continue to impact music production.
cent separated better, its the right choice. Music can be produced, edited and shared
from one another Sylvia Massy, one of my at a cheaper cost and with faster speed
and individually very favorite producer/ than ever before, and this shows no sign of
manipulatable. engineers, recently wrote a stopping. Innovation and integration in
Its ironic for me book called Recording audio-production equipment will
to say so, since Unhinged: Creative And determine the future of the microphone
our Reflexion Unconventional Music itself. As for sE, well strive to create
Filters are Recording Techniques. She products for all types of customer
designed to do interviewed a whole bunch expectations and uses, and will continue
just that, but of amazing people who to do so as the industry evolves. MT
MT162.INT Guru.indd 112 01/08/2016 11:05

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Size 645MB
Format 24bit/44.1kHz WAV,
Apple Loops, REX Size 288MB
Format 24-bit/44.1kHz WAV, MIDI, Massive
Weve teamed up with drum specialists The sample masters at Mode Audio have provided an
Beta Monkey Music for a collection of eclectic mix of top notch loops, MIDI parts and NI
144 tightly played and immaculately Massive patches for you to check out. Youll find RnB
recorded acoustic drum loops. Youll synths, chunky hip-hop grooves, deep ambient loops
find a wide range of tempos from and drones, retro synth pop, live percussion, analogue
chugging slow rock jams, through solid drums and more taken from nine of the latest releases.
pop-rock beats, all the way up to some Use the code MUSTECH20 for an exclusive 20%
blistering double-kick metal grooves discount at modeaudio.com Web www.modeaudio.com
and drum fills.
Web www.betamonkeymusic.com
//LOUNGE AND CHILLOUT
Size 370MB Format 24-bit/44.1kHz WAV

Get in the mood for summer with this pack of five smooth and
laid-back construction kits that offer a mixture of chillout, pop and lounge
music styles ranging from 86 to 140BPM. Theres a blend of organic and
electronic sounds, with live guitars, pianos and percussion alongside synths,
arpeggios and FX. Each kit contains a complete mix, plus component parts
labelled with the original key and tempo Web www.equinoxsounds.com
//VIDEO TUTORIALS
//RECORDING VOCALS, TECHNO DRUMS FM SOUND //NEW ORDER DECONSTRUCTION
& ABLETON TIPS
Size 296MB Time 43 mins Format MP4
Several videos taken from Producertechs latest courses along with
trailers for each. Theres Ian Bland discussing vocal recording setups, drum and
bass guru Reso showing how to create kick sub frequencies, pro techno drum Size 240MB Time 30+ mins Format MP4
This months videos from Point Blank Music School
include PB instructor John Watson explaining how to
production tips from Spektre, plus Rob Jones taking a look at creating bell and
bass patches using Operator, and also giving and introduction to Outputs Signal manage gain staging within Ableton Live to keep your
instrument. Web www.producertech.com plug-ins running at their optimum levels. Theres also a
video of Ski Oakenfull breaking down the individual
sounds, samples and melodies of New Orders classic
//SOFTWARE
DEMO//SOFTWARE FULL//SOFTWARE
Blue Monday using Ableton and Push, recorded live as
SONAR+D 2016. Web www.pointblanklondon.com
IZOTOPE VOCAL SYNTH NUSOFTING SINNAH //VOXENGO SPAN, ACON DIGITAL

(Win, Mac, OSX) Use four different engines to (Win, Mac, OSX) Free VA synth with a
produce complex and unique vocal effects complex oscillator and a resonant delay EQUALIZE & MORE
see review on p75. www.izotope.com network, loopable ADSR, subtractive stereo
SUGAR BYTES FACTORY

(Win, Mac, OSX) Flexible new synth with 2x10
filter, reverb, and oscilloscope.
nusofting.liqihsynth.com Size 911MB Format MOV
Loop+ has provided some more studio and software
videos for you to check out, starting with a look at how to
oscillator engines, 11 filter models, a liquid AUDIOVITAMINS CONTRA FREE
mod matrix and more. www.sugar-bytes.com (Win, Mac, OSX) Effective tool to load in setup Voxengos free SPAN Spectrum Analyser plug-in to
different plug-ins and compare settings by monitor different mix groups in one window. Theres also
BEATSKILLZ VALVESQUE switching between them at set intervals. producer Multiplier giving overviews of kiloHearts
(Win, Mac, OSX) Classic British distortion www.audiovitamins.com Multipass Multi Effect plug-in, Acon Digitals Equalize,
sounds. Includes six Triode and six Pentode
modes, plus a Varislope EQ Section. and BeepStreets Sunrizer soft synth, plus a behind-the-
www.beatskillz.com scenes look at the Loopmasters Zen Ambient Vol 2 Pack.
Web www.loopmasters.com/loopplus
MT162.dvd pages.indd 114 08/08/2016 14:36

Inspiring Every Moment
Audio-Technicas In-Ear Monitor Headphones
Bringing the worldwide critically acclaimed
sonic signature of the M-Series to an in-ear
design, the Audio-Technica in-ear monitor
headphones have been designed to fully
answer the needs of demanding sound
professionals and musicians from the studio
to the stage and the DJ Booth.
ATH-E70 ATH-E50 ATH-E40
www.audio-technica.com
TECHNOLOGY
Distributed in the UK & Eire by Sound Technology Ltd | www.soundtech.co.uk

MusicTech - September 2016

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6 PRO WORKSHOPS 20 GEAR TESTS

Issue 162 September 2016

FOR STUDIO & ONLINE

MT162.cover.indd 1 05/08/2016 11:11

Mixing/Mastering/Logic Mark Cousins

Production Matthew Mann

Pro Tools Mike Hillier

New to Music Tech?

MAGAZINE September 2016 |3

MT162.welcome.indd 3 05/08/2016 11:54

22 NEW MASTERING 18 THE JUPITER 8

4 | September 2016 MAGAZINE

MT162.contents.indd 4 05/08/2016 11:41

MT Issue 162 Full listings

DYNAUDIO LYD 5 & 8

MT Buyers Guide 085 | Audio Technica IEM Series

107 6 of the best

MAGAZINE September 2016 |5

MT162.contents.indd 5 05/08/2016 11:44

6 | September 2016 MAGAZINE

MT162.StudioBlueDotNEW.indd 6 03/08/2016 14:09

Bluedots main stage,

MAGAZINE September 2016 |7

MT162.StudioBlueDotNEW.indd 7 03/08/2016 14:09

Theoretical particles, real ale

MAGAZINE September 2016 |9

MT162.StudioBlueDotNEW.indd 9 03/08/2016 14:09

Professional Studio Reference Monitors

KRK Systems is a member of the Gibson Family of Brands.

telescopes lofty exoskeleton from sunset to sunrise,

Drunken keyboard solos

MAGAZINE September 2016 | 11

MT162.StudioBlueDotNEW.indd 11 03/08/2016 14:10

WHAT IS YOUR BACKGROUND? Right: DJ Tristans

ANY TIPS FOR SUCCESS?

12 | September 2016 MAGAZINE

MT162.Studio.indd 12 05/08/2016 14:17

Keith Gemmell 1948-2016

W e have some sad news this month as

THE DEFINITIVE MIC PRE/EQ

Two independent, Class A, genuine Neve 1073 preamps & EQ

MT162.Studio.indd 13 05/08/2016 14:17

MT162 SOYS.indd 14 01/08/2016 11:00

MAGAZINE September 2016 | 15

MT162 SOYS.indd 15 01/08/2016 11:00

MT: What is your favourite gear?

MT: How often are you in your

MT: How do you use it? Driftmoons

MT: Next on your shopping list?

MT: Does anything annoy you

MT162 SOYS.indd 16 01/08/2016 11:00

Just get the gear

MT162 SOYS.indd 17 01/08/2016 11:00

Its a sight to behold

to buying my first synth from all of the savings I had accrued

18 | September 2016 MAGAZINE

MT162.Back to the future.indd 18 01/08/2016 11:01

THE NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK

MAGAZINE September 2016 | 19

MT162.Back to the future.indd 19 01/08/2016 11:02

THE VINTAGE ALTERNATIVES

The Jupiter-8 Arpeggiator

20 | September 2016 MAGAZINE

MT162.Back to the future.indd 20 01/08/2016 11:01