PC and Music News

Our dear friend Nolot has taken those pictures at the Winter NAMM 2009 exclusively for you, check it out !

Our Team has made a selection of the most significant videos we've found about this Winter NAMM 2009.

Give it a try at : NAMM 2009 Videos on 440tv !

Keep an eye on it because new videos are coming !

Digidesign is now offering two new Pro Tools LE system bundles: 003 Factory Complete and 003 Rack Factory Complete. Both bundles combine a Digidesign 003 hardware interface with the new Complete Production Toolkit - the powerful new expansion option for Pro Tools LE systems that combines a variety of plug-ins for both music and post production applications. The bundles offer up to nearly $500 in savings from standalone purchases.

The Complete Production Toolkit, made available with the release of Pro Tools 8 last month, dramatically expands the creative and production power of Pro Tools LE 8 by adding full 7.1 surround mixing, and support for up to 128 simultaneous audio tracks to any Pro Tools LE 8 based system. This bundle includes Digidesign virtual instruments and professional plug-ins valued at $2,650 including: Eleven LE classic guitar amp emulator, Structure® LE advanced sample player, Hybrid 1.5 high-definition synthesizer, Smack! LE compressor, DINR LE noise reduction, TL Space Native Edition convolution reverb, X-Form® time compression/expansion and pitch shifter, and Neyrinck SoundCode Stereo surround-to-stereo down mixer.

Additionally, the toolkit unlocks several powerful, professional processing tools in Pro Tools LE, including multi-track Beat Detective rhythm analysis and correction tool, DigiBase Pro file management, DigiTranslator 2.0 for importing/exporting of OMF®, AAF, and MXF files, and much more.

Both bundles are currently on display at the NAMM show in Anaheim, booth 6606, and both will be available for purchase in Q1 2009 from authorized Digidesign dealers for $3,995 and $2,995 respectively.

The Complete Production Toolkit software option for Pro Tools LE systems can also be purchased stand alone for $1,995.

EastWest has announced that it intends to bring the mystique and splendor of sounds from the "Silk Road" to users' workstations with the introduction of Quantum Leap Silk. This Virtual Instrument features a collection of historic and unique string and woodwind instruments from China, Persia and India.

All instruments featured in Silk are multi-sampled with extreme attention to detail, offering the maximum in expression. Quantum Leap Silk contains extensive articulations, interval sampling (where appropriate), round robin (alternate samples) and phrases to give the feeling of smooth effortless performance – like silk. Each musician recorded for Silk is a master of his instrument, providing the best and most accurate sound available. Silk also allows users to adapt the instruments using dozens of useful micro tunings in the key of their choice.

Some of the instruments featured in Silk include :

- CHINA: erhu, zhonghu, gaohu, pipa, guzheng, yangqin, sheng, suona low, suona high, dizi low, dizi hi, xiao and bawu.
- PERSIA: electric cello, kemenche, nay, duduk, tar, qanun and 30 piece string section.
- INDIA: dilruba, sarod, tanpura and bansuri.

Silk is available now for Windows and Mac OS X in VST, AU, RTAS and stand-alone formats at a fee of $595 / €455.

Steinberg is pleased to introduce the PlugIn Zone, a new section on the Steinberg website dedicated to renowned software companies and their acclaimed VST products.

"We're happy to offer this additional service to our customers as well as to everyone who employs VST-based plug-ins in their audio productions. Visitors will enjoy perusing the VST PlugIn Zone to find a wide range of useful plug-ins from our VST-partner companies," comments Timo Wildenhain, Marketing Manager at Steinberg. "The PlugIn Zone also features plug-ins that already implement VST3, the new industry standard. An increasing number of manufacturers have recognized the advantages that VST3 brings to the users," he continues.

Several companies have recently released new VST3-based products with exciting new features and capabilities — more information is available on the PlugIn Zone page. Check out popular and newly developed plug-ins by clicking on one of the many company names. And the "Plug-in of the Month" introduces you to a plug-in on a monthly basis, giving you a brief product description, screenshot and link to the manufacturer's website.

M-Audio has introduced a new series of USB MIDI keyboard controllers designed for professional musicians.

Available in 25-, 49- and 61-key models, the Axiom Pro series offers easy software integration to digital audio workstations (DAW) including Pro Tools(R), Cubase, Logic and Reason — as a result of M-Audio's HyperControl(TM) technology, which automatically maps keyboard controls to commonly accessed parameters in software instruments and DAWs. The constant two-way link with the host DAW means that the Axiom Pro series keyboards are always in sync with the software's active parameters. The intuitive graphic LCD constantly updates the current values, to ensure seamless editing and prevents parameter jumps—even when plug-ins are closed. Users can also easily toggle between Mixer and Instrument control modes, making the music creation process much more seamless.

Axiom Pro series keyboard controllers are also the first to combine MIDI control with ASCII keystrokes, allowing users to assign any button to send QWERTY key commands like cut/paste or undo directly to the host software. The controllers offer M-Audio's premium TruTouch semi-weighted keyboard action for a more tactile and responsive playing experience. They are also equipped with eight velocity-sensitive trigger pads with M-Audio's exclusive Trigger Finger technology for triggering loops and samples.

The Axiom Pro 49 is currently shipping and carries a MSRP of $599.95. The Axiom Pro 61 is expected to ship in the first quarter of 2009 and will carry a MSRP of $699.95. Pricing and availability for the Axiom Pro 25 will be announced at a later date.