PC and Music News

SONiVOX has announced the release of their new line of "DVI Products" (Downloadable Virtual Instruments). Designed for users' instant gratification and ease of use SONiVOX DVI's are made in collaboration with the TASCAM Giga development team melding SONiVOX's instrument content with TASCAM's GVI sample playback technology. As a result of this partnership each DVI product is downloadable and instantly playable as a plug-in or as a standalone instrument. The initial rollout of DVI products include, Steel String and Nylon String Acoustic Guitars, multiple Drumkits, Basses, Electric Guitars, Harpsichord, Electric Pianos, Vintage Synths, Harp, Bagpipes, String Ensembles, Brass Ensembles, and more, all priced from $11.95 to $79.95.

SONiVOX DVI's are available now directly from SONiVOX's webshop for Windows in VSTi, RTAS and stand-alone formats with Mac OS X compatibility following later this year.

Humanoid Sound Systems has released Scanned Synth Pro, a virtual instrument designed to create rich complex digital tones and fantastic sound effects, while using simplifed controls and traditional synths techniques such as filters, lfo's and effects. Scanned Synth Pro is the successor to the popular Scanned Synth VST and adds many exciting new features, including :

- The Psycho! Button: antisocial behaviour in a button. This feature was requested by Trilby Temperley of The Resonance and should not be used by sensible people.
- A Polyphonic Filter with cutoff frequency modulation and pitch-tracking allowing the sound to be shaped naturally and untuitively as well as expanding the range of possible sounds even further
- An Echo effect
- Improved sound quality including making the dist ...

Expert Sleepers has released Windows versions of several free VST effect plug-ins : Phaser, Ping-pong Delay and Multitap Delay. Phaser is a fairly straightforward phaser effect while Ping Pong Delay is a simple stereo ping pong delay plugin, last but not least Multitap Delay is a 4 tap delay with filter and saturation.

Tone2 has released FilterBank3, which is a complete plug-in Synthesizer as well as a flexible Multi-effect Unit.

Features :

- 58 high-end stereo filters.
- Semi-modular architecture.
- Flexible routing.
- 2 anti-aliased OSCs/LFOs with BPM Sync and 11 wave shapes.
- Alias free FM and AM.
- 12 oversampled types of distortion.
- 20 types of surround delay, reverb.
- 200+ presets.
- Can be loaded as synthesizer as well as effect.
- Vocal filtering, equalizing, phasing, flanging, compression.
- Feedback.
- Step sequencer.
- MIDI learn.
- Autosync to BPM.
- Realtime frequency display.
- Envelope follower.
- Tool tips and help functions.
- VST 2.4 / AU, stereo, 64 Bit accuracy.

FilterBank3 costs €59 / $79 and is available for Windows in VST instrument and effect formats. Mac OS X VST/AU instrument and effect versions are expected to be released this week. A demo version of the Windows version is available.

SoundToys has announced availability of the new SoundToys 3.01 software version adding Windows XP and Vista support for Pro Tools TDM, LE, and M-Powered systems.

SoundToys Native Effects ($495) contains :

- EchoBoy - Pro analog echo/delay modeler. Must have for lead vocal. 30 vintage and modern models, MIDI sync.
- FilterFreak - Fat analog sound. Flexible modulation, MIDI sync'd rhythm.
- PhaseMistress - Lush analog sounding phase-shift, 6 mod modes, MIDI sync'd rhythms.
- Speed - Advanced pitch and time compression expansion tool.
- Tremolator - Classic tremolo plus, programmable auto-gate with MIDI sync.

SoundToys TDM Effects ($1195) contains all six of the above, plus :

- SoundBlender - Powerful multi-effects plus Intelligent Pitch-Shifting. Industry standard.
- PitchDoctor - Smooth, easy, auto vocal pitch correction without chipmunks.
- PurePitch - Formant and pitch shifter. Harmony and voice manipulation.

For more information, please visit their web site.

Shuriken has released Shredder, a sampler designed to be easy to use and fun to play with. It has 12 slots for samples that are controllable via MIDI notes or automatable parameters.

Shredder is free / donationware and is available as a VST plug-in for Windows and Mac OS X (UB).