Latest articles by Andy Jones
“It’s compact, it’s live-ready… but it’s still an engine from an older synth”: Korg KingKorg Neo review
KingKorg Neo is a bi-timbral VA synth packed into a small-form 37-key compact body, and is not as ‘Neo’ as the name implies
Best DJ laptop 2025: our pick of PCs and M3 Macs for playing out and performing
Our hand-picked laptop choices for DJs, all perfect for Serato, rekordbox, Traktor, Ableton, Virtual DJ and more
"70 years on, it’s a sound that is still in demand": The producer's guide to the EMT 140 plate reverb
In the '60s and '70s, you needed a cumbersome metal plate strapped to some springs to create quality reverb, but it was so good that we still yearn for that EMT 140 sound today. Here’s how to recreate it, without a plate in sight…
How to connect studio monitors to your audio interface
Here's our step-by-step guide to making your speakers and interface work in perfect harmony
Make a modern soft synth sound like a dusty old ’70s vintage synth… for free!
Get those vintage vibes without the price tag…
7 underrated VST synths you might not know about
We celebrate some of the great softsynths that may have flown under your radar
The 5 vintage synths that gave us synth-pop
These are the machines that rocked the 1970s and popped the 1980s…
"It's a great synth, but $25,000 great?": 5 stupidly expensive vintage synths (and how to get their sound for free)
Synthflation means you can pay nearly six figures for some of these synths (but also get most of their sounds for free)…
6 underrated hardware synths that you can still buy today
Incredibly, some of these under-the-radar beauties are over a decade old, but still available (and still very good)
"We can’t deny that going back to it after a few years away has been a joyful experience": Reason Studios Reason 13 review
Nearly a quarter of a century after v1, Reason reaches the not so unlucky v13, but is this once influential DAW still relevant?
“Can make subtle harmonic changes or be a hugely creative plugin, but either way it makes your mixes sound better”: Plugin Boutique Scaler EQ review
Scaler EQ delivers harmonic processing we didn’t know we needed, but once heard, we might just apply it to everything
6 ways to get more from Waves Tune
Waves Tune is the fast way to tune your vocals naturally or get that hard-tuned, robotic effect - here’s how to become a power user
Hear how Waves vocal effects can transform your recorded and live vocals - we've demoed and tested 10 plugins
From tuning to bending, listen to what these plugins can do to your vocals!
“If you’d always yearned for atmospheric ‘proper’ guitar but lacked the playing skills and banks of effects, this is it”: E-instruments Desolate Guitars review
Desolate Guitars could be the guitar library you didn’t know you needed, and is one of the most inspirational tools we've used this year
Best Mac for music production 2025: the best Apple machines for your music-making needs
In the market for a music production Mac? We’ve compared every model in Apple's latest range - from the older M2 machines to the latest M3 MacBook Pros and iMac - to see which is the best fit for you…
He coined the term EDM and created the electronic drum kit... meet Richard James Burgess
The unsung hero of music production, Burgess has been there or thereabouts in just about every major innovation of the last 50 years…
“v3 delivers a well rounded mix of ‘must-haves’ and ‘wants’”: Korg Gadget 3 review
Korg’s Gadget is unusual in that it made the move from iOS to desktop, but is there room for it in 2024?
“A surprisingly capable and very easy to use EQ that you can go as deep with as you wish”: Wavesfactory Equalizer review
Another day, another smart EQ, but does this rather blandly-named processor do a great job without stressing you out?
“One of the easiest and classiest-sounding drum instruments in its price range”: Modalics MINDst Drums review
It might be a bit too purple, but behind its simple UI, MINDst Drums delivers all the mix-ready, real beats you could need…
The genius of 'anti-producer' Steve Albini
This month in our Pioneers series, we explore the influence of an engineer whose uncompromising approach helped to shape the sound of albums from Nirvana, Pixies and PJ Harvey
Best Waves plugins 2025: Our pick of effects to help make you a better music producer
From emulations of iconic studio hardware to the most out-there multi-effects and versatile vocal tuners, we round up the Waves effects that matter in music production
Studio designer Jim Keller on Martin Gore’s studio: "He had the most equipment that I've ever seen"
Jim Keller's Sondhus has created extraordinary studios for bands including a-ha and Depeche Mode. What can they teach us about making our own spaces work to our advantage?
Best audio interfaces under $200/£200 2025: Make high-quality recordings that won't break the bank
Our pick of sub-$/£200 audio interfaces from Focusrite, Audient, Arturia and more
"We’re getting our hardware and software worlds to collide and make beautiful music together": The ultimate guide to studio workflow
Want to marry up your digital desktop or mobile DAW setups with hardware synths or a Eurorack? Get the best from all worlds as we unite analogue and digital in sweet harmony…
"If you want to write a classic pop song, use these chords: Ab, Bb, G minor 7th, C minor. You can’t go wrong with that": How to make a track that sounds like The Pet Shop Boys
The Pet Shop Boys have just released a new album, Nonetheless, so it’s a great time to show you how to create some of their signature sounds for free