PC and Music News

Phoenix Audio is pleased to announce the release of its 8 channel mic pre amp, the DRS-8.

The DRS-8 is an 8 channel solid state class A discrete mic pre amp, each channel has its own dedicated level control, -30db pad, phantom power, phase reverse, high pass filter and mute buttons. The unit has an 8 channel monitoring output facility so all 8 channels can be sent directly to a monitor controller or a patchbay as well as having individual channel outputs.

The design is based on the current family of DRS mic pre amps like the DRS1 & DRS2, that all feature the DSOP2 output stage that offers a full coloured saturated sound. Each unit is constructed to a commitment to high quality sonic clarity whilst still offering a distinctive vintage tone.

Estimated street price :$3500.

XLN Audio announces the release of the free Addictive Drums 1.5 Adrenaline Update featuring full E-Drums Support, Beat Transformer, GM Support, New Beats, New Presets and more.

• E-Drums Support
The Addictive Drums 1.5 Adrenaline Update offers full support for your E-Drums enabling you to simply plug and play. With ready made settings for all the major E-Drum models on the market Adrenaline lets you hook up and go in a matter of minutes. All the functionality for the E-Drums Support is located in the new Map Window where you can tweak the settings to your liking. For example you can edit the velocity control, variable hihat, positional sensing, etc.

• Beat Transformer
Edit the velocity, tempo and length of the MIDI beats and grooves inside Addictive Drums with the new Bea ...

SM Pro Audio unveils the Nano Patch+, a new passive volume controller.

One of the benefits of passive volume attenuation is that you no longer have to control volumes with your software's master volume fader. Reducing levels from your software only reduces the audio bit depth. It is much more appropriate to keep your software masters at unity and attenuate the audio to your active monitors with a passive controller like the Nano Patch Plus. This way you can maintain maximum audio resolution and attenuate your monitoring volume with the confidence that the sonic integrity of your audio is not compromised.

No active circuitry, buffers, transistors, batteries, or power supply of any kind can interfere with the main passive output of the Nano Patch+.

Features :

• Super compact ...

Vir2 Instruments has just announced the release of World Impact: Global Percussion.

Featuring a massive collection of varied percussion samples, World Impact spans the globe featuring percussion instruments from large to small, west to east, north to south, and traditional to rare. Sampled in meticulous detail and programmed for maximum and instant musical usability, the collection includes hundreds of varied percussion instruments from Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Australia, and more. A massive 4.2-gigabyte collection of Japanese Taiko drums recorded from multiple microphone positions forms a central part of the library. Each instrument has been recorded with numerous alternate takes and velocity layers, assuring realistic and dramatically expressive sonic results.

Beyond the in ...

IMSTA (the International Music Software Trade Association) has just deployed its 2009 "Let's Talk Piracy" survey, which will be active until December 31st 2009. The non-profit association aims to reduce the demand for pirated music software through campaigns that are designed to raise awareness and change user behaviour. The 2009 survey features a contest in which 10 lucky winners will receive prizes donated by IMSTA member companies.

IMSTA's goal is to collect information from software users on an annual basis, in order to identify specific trends in attitude towards the use of pirated software. The 2008 survey prompted over 3700 responses from 83 countries, with IMSTA member companies playing an active role in promoting the survey on websites, in newsletters and via e-blasts to registered users. The 2009 survey uses the same questions, enabling IMSTA to compare data year on year.

The annual survey is one of IMSTA's most valuable pieces of research. Since survey participants can choose to remain anonymous, it is believed that the responses will give an accurate picture of their views. IMSTA is hoping that the 2009 survey will attract a large number of new participants, but we'd also strongly encourage 2008 participants to come back and re-visit the questions. It may be that their views on certain issues have changed over the course of a year and this is just the kind of information IMSTA would like to have.

To take the "Let's Talk Piracy" survey, please visit the link below :

Ohm Force has announced that they are globally reducing their advertised prices. And it's not a promo: it's for real and forever !!

Not only the plug-ins licenses are globally much more affordable when purchased individually, the big ALL-ALL Bundle can now be grabbed by only €299 instead of €493.

Ohm Force has also unveiled a new bundle especially tailored for live performers : the ALL-Live Bundle. It contains the 3 from which features are specially suitable for live tweaking: Ohmicide:Melohman, Symptohm:Melohman and the Quad Frohmage – the three for only €199. The first two, as the Melohman part of the name suggests, have extended preset morphing capabilities: it's possible to morph from one preset on the fly to another using a midi keyboard controller, with a full set of configurable parameters. The latter is one of the most powerful filter banks out there, with an advanced XADSR module, 6 midi controlled envelope followers, 6 event generators, among many other killer features.

For more information, please visit the link below :