De la Mancha has announced the release of version 2.0 of pitchfork which is now multi-band.

pitchfork is a 3 band pitch shifter / modulator, covering everything from subtle doubling to total pitch destruction. Each band can be shifted in pitch and has its own tempo sync LFO for modulation madness or subtle wandering. You can split the bands into low, mid and high ranges, or leave all 3 as full spectrum bands to double or treble up the original audio.

Features :

- 3 bands, can be split into low/mid/high frequencies or full spectrum
- each band can be shifted and modulated independantly by it's own shifter/LFO
- shift each band by +/- 36.00 semitones
- tempo sync LFOs from 1/16th to 32 beats
- LFOs have 20 waveforms with PWM for pulse and smoothing for random
- LFO gives further modulation by +/- 36.00 semitones
- LFO phase adjustment +/- 360 degrees
- mute each band for sound design
- midi CC's assigned to each control

pitchfork is available now for Windows in VST format and is priced at $15.

ReFX has just released Nexus² which comes with over 70 new features and improvements. Here are most important ones :

- Expansion Dance Vol.2 already included! - 128 new presets, 500 MB of new samples
- Three skins (Black 'evil', Black 'good' and Cobalt) included for free
- New FX: analog phaser from Arts Acoustic - up to 16 stages. Smooth as silk
- New FX: stereo enhancer - widen or narrow the stereo field
- Feature Matrix: layers can be switched on/off separately
- New section: oscillator mix level
- Oscillators can be switched on/off separately
- Volume- and pan-control for each oscillator

Nexus² is available now for Windows and Mac OS X in VST, AU and RTAS formats at a price of €299.99 / $349.99. Upgrades are available. Note that a Syncrosoft eLicenser (dongle) is now required and can be purchased from reFX if you don't already have one.

Propellerhead has announced the release of three new software bundles : Reason Premium Edition, Studio Combo, and Rhythm Combo.

The Reason Premium Edition ($599/€499) includes a full version of Reason, bundled together with the four complete Hypersampled ReFills (Reason Drum Kits, Reason Pianos, Abbey Road Keyboards and Reason Electric Bass sound libraries).

The Propellerhead Studio Combo ($299/€249) bundles the four Hypersampled Reason sound libraries — Reason Drum Kits, Reason Pianos, Abbey Road Keyboards and Reason Electric Bass ReFills — in one package.

The Propellerhead Rhythm Combo ($149/€149) bundles the Reason Drum Kits and Reason Electric Bass ReFills into one package.

All three packages will be available in Europe and Asia on August 5, 2008 and in North America on August 25, 2008.

Tascam has launched the GT-R1, a new portable recorder for guitar and bass players.

Based on the DR-1 recorder, the GT-R1 features a pair of built-in condenser microphones which allows to capture rehearsals and live shows. Musicians can also plug directly into the instrument input to record with amp simulation and effects. The GT-R1 includes a rhythm player for instant inspiration, and a 1GB SD Card and rechargeable battery are included to get started right away.

Features :

- Portable stereo recording with built-in condenser microphones
- MP3 or WAV file recording, up to 48kHz/24-bit
- 1/4" Instrument input for Guitar or Bass
- Amp simulation and multi-effects
- Over 80 rhythm tracks in a variety of styles
- Overdub function allows users to record over an existing track
- Powered microphone input
- Low cut filter and analog limiter on input
- Loop and change the speed of music playback without changing the pitch to learn and transcribe new music
- Guitar and Bass canceller allows musicians to play along
- Includes 1GB SD Card and rechargeable battery
- USB 2.0 Connection to computer for file transfer and charging
- Optional AK-DR1 includes a tabletop stand, microphone clip and windscreen

For more information, please visit the link below :

Puremagnetik has released Big Bertha for Ableton Live, Kontakt and Logic. Big Bertha is a custom built 6-string Maillet electric bass with a classic, deep and funky tone. Recorded through both a Jensen transformer and an original tube buffered AMB DI, Big Bertha includes detailed multilayer velocity sampling of every note across 3 octaves and a collection of over 60 looped clips played in various styles and tempos. The loop library includes funk, rock, RnB, fusion and many other stylings.

Pricing : Basic Monthly Subscription: $5.75/Month Basic Yearly Subscription: $60/Year All Access Pass - $198/Year

Perimeter Sound Arts has released Tone Set #5, a collection of 128 newly created Gearbox patches.

Sorted into 4 categories, 'Alternative', 'Blues', 'Clean', and 'Metal', with a focus on mixing and matching guitar & bass pres and cabs, and bringing out the truer tone of the amps, with fewer effects added and almost no compression used.

Tone Set #5 is available now and is priced at $20. Note that a free no-restrictions-on-use (and no email sign up of any kind required) free demo pack of 16 patches from Tone Set #5 is also available.