Sure, you could buy a standalone music production box that replicates most of what you have in a DAW, but a lot of musicians don’t want that. There’s also a place for simple recorders/loopers that offer a different kind of creative experience, and this is definitely the place that Critter and Guitari’s 5 Moons is heading to.
This unassuming wooden box is in fact a five-channel multitrack recorder with looping and bounce-down functions. So, although you can use it in a linear manner if you wish, the real creative boon might come when you start looping and layering.
There’s no screen - just plug in, hit the record button and you’re off. Once you’ve created five tracks you can bounce these down to a single track in a new song, giving you a further four tracks to work with. Bounce down again and you’ve got another four tracks; you can repeat this process as many times as you like, effectively giving you an infinite number of tracks.
A USB-C port provides power and data transfer, and controls comprise just volume sliders, some buttons and a master output knob. An 8GB microSD card contains the operating system and is used for storage - around 20 hours of recording time. Input is on 1/8-inch monophonic jack and the output is the same. Recordings are made at 16-bit/48kHz.
5 Moons’ feature set might seem pretty basic - basic instructions are brief enough to fit on the bottom of the unit - but we think that, along with its pine casing, this is what gives the device its rustic, old-school charm. In fact, we reckon that some will end up making more music with this thing than they would with a laptop’s worth of software.
Head to the Critter and Guitari website to find out more. 5 Moons costs $325.
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