In celebration of Finale's 20th Anniversary, MakeMusic has announced the imminent release of the next major version of the music notation software for Windows and Mac OS X.

Finale 2009 includes major workflow improvements among its many new features plus full VST and AU plug-in support. The Garritan Aria Player is also included free and is fully integrated into Finale 2009.

Shipping is expected to begin July 21st. Pre-order is available for $600. Note that upgrade and academic pricing are also available. For more information, please visit the link below :

Audio Impressions will be previewing the release version of DVZ Strings, Ai's virtual instruments and high-resolution 70 piece orchestral string library at the audioMIDI.com's Film and TV Composition Clinic.

Ai's DVZ Strings includes samples of priceless Stradivari and Guarneri instruments and it features groundbreaking and never-before-available technologies developed to produce real-time, real-world orchestral balance for accurate score transcription.

Included is Audio Impressions' SPACE, Decca Tree and microphone cross-bleed simulation software with continuously variable room size and acoustic adjustments to once-and-for-all eliminate the overdubbed s ...

Audix has announced the release of a new USB plug and play microphone : the Audix USB12.

Designed for recording voice and acoustic instruments directly into the computer via the USB port, the USB12 is a gooseneck microphone featuring a 12 mm modular threaded capsule for accuracy, a membrane switch for "steady on" or "momentary on", a heavy duty base for stability, a double gooseneck for precise positioning, a headphone jack for real time monitoring and a bass roll-off filter to help reduce unwanted room noise or boominess. The USB12 is a plug and play microphone supporting 44.1k and 48k sample rates for both PC and Mac platforms.

The Audix USB12, which includes a 6' USB cable, is available from authorized Audix dealers in a matte black finish or a white finish for a suggested retail price of $179.

Hercules is proud to announce a DJ Sponsorship Initiative in which both future DJs and established DJs can secure support from Hercules.

- One or more DJ Console Rmx for free and/or other Hercules DJing products for DJs that work in pairs or have a small company with a few DJs
- Hercules branded hats, t-shirts, posters and stickers for DJ gear
- Appearance/inclusion in the "Hercules DJ team" section of the Hercules DJ Mix room website
- VIP Member page with DJ profile on the Hercules DJ Mix Room
- Financial support and assistance in planning from Hercules at events/gigs where the DJ uses Hercules DJ Console Rmx and/or other Hercules DJing products such as the DJ Console MK2
- Performance videos of the DJ using Hercules product will be visible on the Hercules DJ Mix room website
- The DJ endorsement will be mentioned in Hercules DJing ads and possibly on stickers placed on the outside of product boxes

QuikQuak has announced the release of Fusion Field, an easy to use diffusion reverb that QuikQuak has created in response to requests for a RaySpace 'light' and a version of Glass Viper's own diffusion reverb.

Features :

- A clean stereo reverb, with an even decay.
- High quality standards, with low CPU resources.
- Fast editing, for that quick grab effect.
- A single impulse source quickly gathers a complex diffusion.
- Intuitively linked Decay and Spread dials.
- Clear reflected sound, with a fast diffusion build up.
- Great for adding sheen to vocals, strings and ambiences.
- Plain visual feedback of filters.
- Zero latency.
- Completely reworked and enhanced diffusion reverb, based on RaySpace and Glass Viper.

Fusion Field is available now for Windows and Mac OS X in AU and VST formats at a price of £25.

Best Service has announced the release of Convolution Space, 8.5GB of Stereo and 5.1 Surround textures packed into the included Native Instruments Kontakt 2 Player - with 625 instruments built in to combine and explore these textures endlessly through the wonders of Convolution Based Spectral Recombination.

Convolution Space is available now for Windows and Mac OS X in VST, AU, RTAS and stand-alone formats at a price of €199. For more information, please visit the following link :