PC and Music News

Alesis announces that the MasterControl audio interface and control surface is now shipping. MasterControl will be on display at the 2009 NAMM Show in Anaheim, Calif., January 15 — 18, 2009 at the Alesis booth, number 6400.

Features :

- FireWire connectivity: one cable carries all audio and control data
- DICE II chip with JetPLL technology for stable clock sync
- Up to 192 kHz (highest available) recording / playback capability
- Eight analog inputs, expandable up to 26 simultaneous
- Nine Touch-Sensitive, 100mm, motorized, capacitive Alps faders
- Eight assignable knobs, three banks each
- Two banks of eight assignable buttons, two banks each
- Dedicated transport controls with multifunction jog wheel
- Three pairs of independently assignable stereo outputs
- Dual, independently assignable stereo headphone outputs
- Flexible, direct monitor routing, assignable through any/all output pair(s)
- Dedicated talkback microphone with control surface or footswitch operation
- Steinberg Cubase LE included
- Ableton Live Lite included
- HUI+ Control Surface
- Compatible with all popular DAWs, virtual instruments, and other audio software

MasterControl is available from pro audio and musical instrument retailers. It has an MSRP of $1,299 and a street price of $899.99.

For the first time ever, Cakewalk releases a trial version of Sonar available for both 32-Bit and 64-Bit computing. Here's how it works: Cakewalk will provide trial users with a complete 15 day test drive and saving capabilities. When the trial expires, you can register your own copy of Sonar 8 to earn 15 more days of free play. After your 30 days expires, you can purchase the full version and continue to access your projects.

Vir2 instruments unveils MOJO, a new virtual horn section powered by the popular Kontakt engine.

According to Vir2 instruments, MOJO offers the most flexible and innovative approach to pop, funk, jazz, and big band horns ever created in a virtual instrument. Inspired by legendary groups like Tower of Power and the big bands of decades past, MOJO is capable of emulating everything from a sultry sax solo to a screaming full big band playing at the top of their lungs.

Pushing the boundaries of sampling and scripting technology far beyond traditional sample libraries, MOJO offers a simple but feature-packed interface. No need to decide in advance which articulation you want to play. Simply load the instrument, turn the Ensemble knob to specify how many players you want playing that instr ...

Synful has just updated Synful Orchestra to version 2.5.1. This new release includes a new French Horn.

The new Synful Orchestra 2.5 French Horn is an important step in the evolution of Synful's RPM technology. For most playing just set the Expression Brassiness control to a desired level and play in a normal style. Synful produces natural slurs, attacks, and varying note shapes automatically. Solo horn or sections from 2 to 16 players are easy - just turn the number of players knob. Like all Synful Orchestra instruments, when you play harmony in a section the players distribute themselves over the notes of the chord - automatic divisi. You can change continuously from a very dark sound to an extremely brassy sound. Realistic slurs, glisses, rips, trills, dramatic crescendi and dimuendi are simple and intuitive. The new French Horn is the first fully expressive instrument to use our second generation RPM Synful synthesis engine. The new French horn does not use Delay for Expression. Everything you play live is the final product. It is based on new 24 bit recordings which have been translated to a new generation additive synthesis format.

For more information and sound examples, please follow the ink below :

Ueberschall has just released Ambient Works, their latest Elastik Player-based library.

Ambient Works has far reaching current and new media project applications and can be meshed to many genres. Enclosed is an epic resource of diverse sustained textures compiled into construction kit loop format. You can also redefine the feel of any of the 24 construction kits included by adjusting the individual layers of a kit. All sounds are logically organized and ready for immediate use. Each kit has the ability to :

- Tweak each layer's pitch and tempo in realtime
- Adjust each note within a sample
- Import layers from different kits and adapt where desired
- Lock tempos to host sequencer

Of course you can also assemble your own ambient creations by mixing and matching material from any of the kits — over 780 samples to choose from. Ambient Works has the binary sounding evolution and underscore rings / shrills of today, as well as classic fluid and shimmering essentials of the past.

- Analog enriched Pads,
- Stringed Timbres,
- Organic Atmospheres,
- Bells,
- Nature,
- Percussion and more...

Ambient Works is available now and has an MSRP of $119 / €99. To hear a demo go to :

De la Mancha has released two new free plug-ins : plastique and Imperfection.

plastique is a free 2-oscillator subtractive synth VSTi for Windows, using the 31 waveforms from the Casio HT-700 synth and some enhancements to the original's feature set. It does lo-fi 80s sounds but also so much more, with a configurable filter (up to 16 poles), a pitch envelope for percussion, an arp, tempo sync delay & LFO, chorus and some lo-fi instability.

Features :

- 31 Waveforms from the Casio HT-700.
- 2 Oscs with sync and octave / semitone detune.
- Configurable Resonant Low Pass filter (2-16 poles with cut-off spread).
- Volume and Pitch envelopes.
- Tempo sync LFO with 10 waveforms and note-on sync to modulate filter and pitch.
- Tempo sync Arp with 6 modes and adjustable octave ...