PC and Music News

Akai Professional announces the LPD8 laptop pad controller and LPK25 laptop performance keyboard controller. The LPD8 and LPK25 will make their debut at Akai Professional's booth, number 400, at the Summer NAMM Show held at the Nashville Convention Center, July 17 — 19.

The LPD8 and LPK25 are USB-MIDI controllers for musicians, producers, DJs and other music creators. Each model is less than 13 inches across and weighs less than a pound to easily fit into a laptop case, backpack or messenger bag for extreme portability.

The LPD8 is based on Akai Professional's MPC line of iconic music product stations. While the smallest model, the MPC500 is quite portable, many producers prefer to work with software on their computer and the LPD8 gives their laptop the controls they prefer over a mouse and keyboard. The LPD8 has eight blue light-up pads that are velocity sensitive for programming rhythmic or melodic parts. The pads can also send program-change information to software. The LPD8 also has eight assignable Q-Link knobs to which users can assign virtually any parameters in their software for hands-on control.

The LPK25 is a scaled-down relative to the MPK series of keyboard performance controllers. The diminutive keyboard is made up of 25 miniature, velocity-sensitive keyboard keys with synth action. The LPK25 contains an arpeggiator, which steps through chords automatically, assisting musicians with creating quick melodic ideas. Sustain, octave up and down and tap tempo controls round out the LPK25's easy-to-learn layout.

Each controller works plug and play with Mac and PC and requires no software driver installation or wall power for operation. Both the LPD8 and LPK25 have four memory banks for programming and recalling settings appropriate to different software programs they use.

The LPD8 and LPK25 will be available from musical instrument and professional audio retailers Q3 2009.

With an engineering/mixing career spanning almost three decades, Chris Lord-Alge has worked alongside such artists as Green Day, U2, Tina Turner, James Brown, Nickelback, Rod Stewart, Santana, Steve Winwood, Celine Dion and many others. At the heart of his sound is a command of compression that gives each and every track he mixes its radio-ready punch. During the development process of CLA Classic Compressors, Lord-Alge worked closely with the Waves R&D team, resulting in impeccable models of four compressors considered true classics by audio engineers the world over.

CLA Classic Compressors consist of four plug-ins: the CLA-2A, the CLA-3A, the CLA-76 Blacky and the CLA-76 Bluey. These classic models grant users access to the same tools that Lord-Alge has used to help define hard-hitting rock and pop over the last several decades.

Steinberg is pleased to announce that the new multilingual Knowledge Base is now available to all registered MySteinberg users. Providing answers to frequently asked questions, effective problem-solving tips and other really useful information, the Knowledge Base currently contains all articles in English and German. Spanish, French, Italian and Dutch articles will be added over time to offer the information you're looking for in your own language.

MOTU has updated its beat production machine BPM to version 1.04, offering improvements, optimizations and refinements in the following areas :

Sequencer :
• Default velocity in the step sequencer.
• Entering and dragging notes in the piano roll sequencer when Snap To Grid is enabled.
• Deleting notes with Delete key in the piano roll sequencer.

Scene :
• Pasting shallow copied scene.
• Toggling Live mode.

Browser :
• Loading saved performance file containing audio files loaded via the browser.

This update is free for all registered users.

New Atlantis Audio Releases Physical Therapy Volume 1, a unique Reason ReFill for $9.99 that helps raise money for charity.

The Real Unreal World
Physical Therapy is a unique collection of Combinators for Reason 4. Featuring exotic physically modeled mallet and percussion instruments infused with sounds of nature, this ReFill provides a diverse set of playable, musical and truly inspiring sounds for your music or film score projects.

Certified Organic
Physical Therapy places an arsenal of lush, organic tones in your hands. You'll find rich wood marimbas, exotic glass bells, dramatic metal chimes, powerful percussion kits and beautiful nature field recordings, all brought to life as playable instruments with the power of the Combinator.

With 54 Combinators, 25 NN-19 instruments, 6 ReDrum kits and 4 long-play nature field recordings, this diverse collection of 24 bit instruments are sure to breathe new life into any track.

For a Good Cause
As part of our ongoing commitment to relief, a portion of sales will be given to charity.

Get the instant download for $9.99 at :

Universal Audio today announced the addition of Trident Audio Developments to its roster of premium plug-in partners. The "Trident" name, by way of parent company PMI Audio Group, is famous not only as the now-legendary UK studio that produced a litany of classic recordings, but also as the manufacturer that spawned incredible console designs including the universally loved A-Range desk.

"It's well-understood by the audio production community throughout the world that Universal Audio is an unstoppable force in the circuit emulation business," said PMI President Alan Hyatt. "Their good faith to involve the olders of the original designs and trademarks shows respect to the IP owners and creative contributors such as Trident designer Malcolm Toft. We couldn't be happier to partner with a company so dedicated to getting every last detail right."

Universal Audio's President Matt Ward commented, "Universal Audio has always had a huge respect for the classic Trident designs, and of course Trident's sonic contribution to some of the best records ever made. We're very pleased to add Trident to the UAD product line, and I'm certain that our more than 30,000 users will agree."

"Trident's indelible impact on the sound of record making is nearly impossible to gauge. The consoles made available to Trident's staff, and the studios fortunate enough to acquire them, were legendary in both sound and reliability. Every record made on a Trident was uniquely and quite positively altered by the sonic imprint of its distinctive tone," said UA's Plug-In Product Manager Will Shanks. "It is exciting to offer this same tone on the UAD Powered Plug-In Platform."