“Get you to your sound faster”: Reason 13 puts the focus on workflow, and there are new synth and ‘space delay’ devices, too By Ben Rogerson published 2 May 24 The new version of the DAW-cum-plugin will be released on 18 June
“A funk bass stripped down to its essence – beautiful, minimal, well-crafted”: Vulfpeck funk maestro Joe Dart teams up with Sterling By Music Man for super affordable $399 signature bass By Jonathan Horsley published 2 May 24 But you've got to be quick to grab one. The Sterling By Music Man Joe Dart is a special “Timed Edition” release, meaning you have until the end of May 2024 to order
Mr piano mule: Man jailed for attempting to smuggle £4.2m illicit stash into the UK in the back of an upright piano By Ben Rogerson published 1 May 24 Authorities were quick to lift the lid on his deception and crack the case
“An exploration of China's rich musical heritage”: Arturia’s Augmented Yangtze puts a contemporary spin on 6 classic instruments By Ben Rogerson published 1 May 24 Bass Dizi, Xiao, Pipa, Guqin, Yangqin and Erhu multisamples meet multiple synth engines
“A luxurious and refined take on a classic circuit”: KittycasterFX reimagines the Muff with the Mohair Fuzzstortion, pairing fuzz with a treble booster circuit for super-versatile performance By Jonathan Horsley published 30 April 24 KittycasterFX mastermind Howard Gee is not a fan of Muff-style fuzz but he has made one anyway, with the Mohair spiking a silicon fuzz circuit with some Rangemaster inspired hot sauce
“Enhance the low-end tightness, along with adding top-end bite without harshness”: Seymour Duncan launches alt.metal Blackout humbucker – the ultimate mod for low-end riffmongers? By Jonathan Horsley published 30 April 24 Available for six or seven-string guitars, the alt.metal Blackout is literally built to chug, for players who tune to C# or lower
“We forgot who our core customer was”: Guitar Center CEO says premium guitars key to firm’s future and promises “playground” experience for serious musicians By Jonathan Horsley published 30 April 24 Gabe Dalporto, the new CEO of the US-based gear giant, outlined his vision for the firm, and a retail experience that lets players get hands-on with more pro-quality gear
“Legendary tone”: Behringer has officially released Vintage, its free VST synth plugin (yes, really this time) By Ben Rogerson published 26 April 24 The company says it’s worth $99, but you can have it for nothing
“Two glowing hot 12AX7 preamp tubes, running at the proper high voltage, are this pedal’s beating heart”: Friedman unleashes the IR-D, a twin-channel boutique fire-breather inspired by a modded JTM45 By Jonathan Horsley published 25 April 24 The IR-D preamp pedal takes those Friedman's high-end amp sounds and puts them in a tube-driven pedal, with dual boosts, onboard IRs, MIDI control and effects loop
“If you think your addiction to synths and studio gear is out of control, imagine being in Depeche Mode”: We'd forgotten quite how much of the band's gear Alan Wilder shifted in his legendary auction, and just how many bargains were up for grabs By Andy Jones published 25 April 24 An Oberheim and Minimoog went for a song, but it was a Martin Gore guitar and E-mu sampler that stole the show